American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Review

Additive Manufacturing in the Aerospace Industry

Lidong Wang, Reed Mosher and Patti Duett

Institute for Systems Engineering Research, Mississippi State University, Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA

Article history Abstract: The main advantages of Additive Manufacturing (AM) of metals
Received: 28-03-2024 in the aerospace industry are part consolidation; the reduction of lead time,
Revised: 29-04-2024 the construction of complicated structures easily with a great Strength-to-
Accepted: 10-05-2024 Weight (S:W) ratio; production of parts on-demand with reduced inventory,
Corresponding Author:
uncertainty and the costs of supply chains. Ti6Al4V and nickel-based alloys
Lidong Wang are commonly used AM materials for aerospace parts. Ground-based AM for
Institute for Systems aerospace has achieved great advances. AM has the potential to develop parts
Engineering Research, for general aviation, aircraft, missiles and less massive satellite systems. This
Mississippi State University, study introduces AM advantages, the technologies of AM, the materials and
Vicksburg, Mississippi, USA applications of AM and research progress in the aerospace industry; deals
Email: lidong@[Link] with the state-of-the-art of AM and its trends for aerospace; and highlights
its challenges and future research.

Keywords: Additive Manufacturing (AM), Aerospace, Artificial

Intelligence (AI), Direct Energy Deposition (DED), Powder Bed Fusion
(PBF), Defect, Residual Stress, Supply Chain

Introduction designs, etc., can be fabricated employing AM

(Mohanavel et al., 2021). Additional aerospace
AM methods have been employed in aerospace components include flap lever, rocket engine parts,
applications and DED and Laser PBF (L-PBF) are satellite antenna, turbogenerator casing, RF feed
popular. DED has been utilized in parts with big build antenna, antenna integrated helix feed and rocket
volumes and can be employed to repair existing parts brackets (Balaji et al., 2022).
besides producing parts. L-PBF has been commonly The “buy-to-fly ratio”, also called the BTF ratio, is a
employed in aerospace applications, enabling the weight ratio of a raw material and a component. It is a
construction of completely dense components with created parameter or concept in AM applications for the
complicated geometries and small-to-medium build aerospace industry (Debnath et al., 2022). Maintenance,
volumes. The applications of AM in the aerospace industry Repair and Overhaul (MRO) are crucial for the safety of
include valves, turbomachinery, propellant tanks, heat aircraft and they are thus controlled seriously by
exchangers, satellite components, liquid-fuel rocket engines national/aeronautical agencies such as the Federal Aviation
and the sustainment of legacy systems (Blakey-Milner et al., Administration (FAA) in the US (Ceruti et al., 2019).
2021). The metal-based AM methods (e.g., PBF and DED)
with improved build quality and rate are now feasible to be
AM Advantages
used in aeronautical applications (Wang et al., 2023).
Wire Arc AM (WAAM) is a DED technology AM has been used in the aerospace sector because of
appropriate for producing big metal components because the easy construction of complicated structures with a
of its lower manufacturing costs and higher deposition great S: W ratio (Madhavadas et al., 2022). The BTF ratio
rate. It has become a prevalent alternative to conventional of AM is less compared with traditional manufacturing
production processes for materials (e.g., titanium alloys methods such as machining (subtractive manufacturing).
utilized in aerospace) (Li et al., 2022). Experiments and The low BTF ratio and the capability to construct
investigation on the friction-stir powder AM for Al 6061 complicated structures have made AM especially
powder (aerospace-grade aluminum alloy) and how to find attractive in the aerospace industry. Another primary
its optimal variables/parameters based on the grey relational attraction point for AM is the non-existence of cost in
analysis were introduced (Chaudhary et al., 2022). tooling (Pasang et al., 2023).
Aerospace components, for example, door handles, The aerospace industry possesses the geometric
light housings to power wheels full interior dashboard freedom of AM that allows for making lightweight and

© 2024 Lidong Wang, Reed Mosher and Patti Duett. This open-access article is distributed under a Creative
Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 license.
Lidong Wang et al. / American Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences 2024, 17 (3): 116.125
DOI: 10.3844/ajeassp.2024.116.125

high-performance parts. Many parts fabricated using AM Technologies of AM

have been incorporated into aerospace vehicles and
engines (Khorasani et al., 2022). AM reduces waste Technologies of AM can be classified. The
compared with conventional technologies of subtractive technologies and related materials, power sources,
manufacturing, which is especially important in the strengths and downsides are shown in Table 2 (Gao et al.,
aerospace sector because very expensive and hard-to- 2015). The standard definitions of some technologies
manufacture materials (e.g., titanium alloys, nickel-based according to ASTM (2012) are:
superalloys, ultra-high temperature ceramics, etc.,) are • DED: Focused thermal energy is utilized to fuse
often utilized in aerospace (Kozhay et al., 2022). There materials when they are deposited
are benefits for metal AM applications in aerospace, • Sheet lamination: The sheets of materials are bonded
including novel materials and unique design, multiple to produce an item
components consolidation, reduction in the mass of parts • Binder jetting: A liquid bonding agent is deposited
due to lightweight and efficient designs and decrease in selectively to bond materials in powder
the lead-time as well as costs (Blakey-Milner et al., 2021). • Material jetting: The droplets of the build material are
In aeronautics, AM leads to the following specific deposited selectively
benefits: (1) Enhanced efficiency and reduced weight
• Vat photopolymer: Liquid photopolymer in a vat is
through topological optimization; (2) Decrease in the BTF
cured selectively by light-activated polymerization
ratio, reducing the waste of materials and contributing to
• Material extrusion: The material is dispensed
lower costs in manufacturing; and (3) Reduced costs
selectively through an orifice or nozzle
related to downtime due to the optimal operations of MRO
(Montanari et al., 2023). Valued spare components/parts • PBF: Thermal energy fuses the zones of a powder
with big volumes are required in aircraft sectors because bed selectively
of unpredictable/uncertain demands. AM can make the Two major types of additive layer manufacturing
supply chain regarding aviation spare components/parts technologies employed in the aerospace sector are DED
more efficient, more effective and simpler. The supply and PBF (Kozhay et al., 2022). DED is highlighted
chains of aerospace sectors need to be more efficient and especially for high-value structural components in the
agile through using AM (Debnath et al., 2022). aerospace industry (Pasang et al., 2023). An accurate and
AM has the potential to enable on-demand informative scale model can be developed for material
manufacturing, flexibility of design, rapid prototyping, jetting and Stereolithography (SLA). The model can be
reduction in tooling cost, the mitigation of the dangerous employed in the aerospace sector for the communication
effects of demand volatility and a decrease in excess and testing of design (Mohanavel et al., 2021).
inventory (therefore dropping the costs in inventory) Material Extrusion AM (MEAM) enables the production
(Alogla et al., 2023). AM can make supply chains simpler, of panels with complicated geometries for the aerospace
more elastic, more efficient and less risky by putting the industry in one production step. This helps improve the AM
production process close to the assembly, utilization and of multi-functional structures for the aerospace industry.
MRO locations. AM helps change the management of MEAM is Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) (Pierre et al.,
aerospace projects by eliminating fabrication and 2023). FFF is a technology for fabricating thermoplastic
products through heated extrusion and the layer-by-layer
assembling limits, optimizing the design of products and
deposition of materials. Multi-material AM of high
reducing the lead time for aircraft development,
temperature using FFF for lightweight applications in the
production and MRO (Vieira and Romero-Torres., 2016). aerospace industry was presented (Vakharia et al., 2023).
Table 1 (Nyamekye et al., 2023) shows the abilities, In the EBM technology, powder is gathered in a thin
benefits and outcomes of the AM of Ti. layer before they are pre-heated and melted. LOM is a fast
technology with low costs (Mohanavel et al., 2021). SLM
Table 1: The AM of Ti builds a 3D structure through melting material layers in
AM abilities Benefits Outcomes powder successively. It has gained popularity in
Optimized designs Light weighting, Improved functionality aerospace (Chaudhry and Soulaïmani, 2022). Metal AM
integrated parts, can be classified as DED, PBF, sheet lamination, material
customization extrusion, material jetting and binder jetting. PBF and
Near-net shape Reduced raw Reduced cost and
DED are the two major technologies among the metal AM
designs (due to material, space embodied energy,
the above ability) utilization compact design technologies (Mu et al., 2023). Metal AM technologies
Process without Swift and flexible Efficient manufacturing have been utilized in the aerospace industry (Guo et al.,
tools and fixtures manufacturing and process 2022). Among the technologies of metal AM, Direct
with freedom Metal Deposition (DMD), FDM, SLM and EBM are often
Localized On-demand Reduced time to market used. FDM is a filament-based technology while the others
manufacturing manufacturing are powder-based as shown in Table 3 (Yakout et al., 2017).

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Table 2: The classification of AM

Categories Technologies Materials Power Sources Strengths/Downsides
Electron beam Repairment for damaged components, printing
DED welding, Molten metal Laser beam of functionally-graded materials; post-
laser engineered powder processing (machining) required
net shaping (LENS)
Laminated object Metallic sheets, Good surface finish; low cost of materials,
Sheet lamination manufacturing (LOM) plastic films, Laser beam machines, processes; decubing issues
ceramic tapes
Metal powder, Wide material selection, full-color object
Binder jetting Indirect inkjet ceramic powder, Thermal printing; infiltration required in post-
printing polymer powder energy processing, many porosities in products
(plaster, resin)
Photopolymer, Photocuring/ Printing of multi-materials, good surface
Material jetting Inkjet printing/Polyjet wax Thermal finish; material with inadequate strength
energy
Vat Photopolymer, Good resolution of parts; speedy building;
photopoly- SLA ceramics (alumina, Ultraviolet costly materials &
merization Zirconia, PZT) laser supplies, overcuring, scanned line shape
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fused deposition Thermoplastics, Multi-material printing, inexpensive extrusion
Metal extrusion modeling (FDM) ceramic slurries, Thermal machines; poor surface finish, limited part
-------------------- metal pastes energy resolution
Contour crafting
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Selective laser Polyamides/ Laser beam
sintering (SLS) Polymer with high power
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PBF Direct metal laser Stainless steel in Laser beam Good accuracy, completely dense products,
sintering (DMLS) atomized metal with high power good stiffness & strength; powder recycling &
-------------------------------------- powder, cobalt ---------------------- handling, supporting & anchoring structures
Selective laser melting (SLM) chromium, Electron beam
-------------------------------------- Titanium Ti6Al-4V, ----------------------
Electron beam ceramic powder Electron beam
melting (EBM)

Table 3: The classifications of AM for metals

Shapes of Materials Feeding Approaches AM Methods Cladding or Welding if Applicable Specific Techniques if Applicable
Filament Wire fed FDM
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powder bed SLM, EBM
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3D welding Shaped metal deposition
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Powder Powder fed (spray) DMD 3D cladding Laser metal deposition
Laser consolidation
LENS
Plasma deposition manufacturing

Laser DED (L-DED) AM technology employs a consumption. The thermal behaviors of L-PBF involve
focused laser beam to melt metallic wires or powders multi-physics phenomena, for example, thermal gradients,
while depositing them (layer by layer) to construct a heat absorption, etc. The complicated phenomena are
favorite geometry. L-DED has attracted substantial sensitive to laser power, beam shape and scan speed. PBF
attention in the industries of aerospace, defense, etc. L-DED has the best reproducibility and dimensional accuracy among
is appropriate for fabricating big metal parts/items with metal AM technologies (Pratap et al., 2023).
greater productivity and lower costs compared with other WAAM is a technique of DED. It has a high BTF ratio
metal AM technologies, for example, L-PBF and material and enables the production of parts with full density and
extrusion (Chen et al., 2023). reduced porosity. It has been employed to fabricate big
PBF has been powerful in the aerospace sector metallic parts in the aerospace industry (Mu et al., 2023).
because of good precision and the ability to construct Powder-Bed AM (PB-AM) is used in aerospace. PB-AM
complicated geometry (Alogla et al., 2023). It is vital to unifies a few powder-based AM technologies: SLS/SLM,
produce lightweight metal parts in the aerospace sector EBM and binder jetting (Katz-Demyanetz et al., 2019).
because reduced weight reduces emissions and oil DMLS and EBM are two common AM methods for

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printing metals. DMLS has been employed in the Various materials have been utilized in spacecraft,
industries of aviation and aerospace to produce parts by including stainless steel, plastics, glass, aluminum alloys,
melting the layers of thin metal powder (e.g., stainless Inconel alloys, carbon composites, ceramic matrix
steel, aluminum, titanium) (Prathyusha and Babu, 2022). composites, etc., (Sacco and Moon, 2019). Carbon fiber is a
Hybrid AM uses a secondary process (such as machining) significant material utilized for aerospace due to its smooth
for better surface quality of parts (Khorasani et al., 2022). finish and high S:W. FDM is the AM technology for carbon
fiber (Madhavadas et al., 2022). Applications of AM parts
Materials and Applications of AM include brackets and structural items, engine components,
turbine blades, etc. One of the metal AM applications for
Materials for AM in the aerospace sector include aerospace is the antenna (lightweight, made from
titanium alloys, aluminum alloys, cobalt alloys, copper aluminum) from Robert Hofmann company for
alloys, refractory alloys, nickel and iron-based communication satellites. This part filters high-frequency
superalloys, stainless steel, etc. Most of them are utilized radio waves (Khorasani et al., 2022). AM products in the
in the form of pre-alloyed powder, regularly made by gas aerospace industry include 3D printed communication
atomization, or in the form of wire depending upon the satellites, Radio Frequency (RF) filters, in communication
specific process (Blakey-Milner et al., 2021). The most satellites, satellite brackets (printed with titanium, optimized
popular materials for AM applications in the aerospace by topological optimization), rocket engines for spaceships,
sector are titanium and nickel base alloys because of their combustion chambers, 3D printed nozzle (injector heads)
outstanding performance at high temperatures. Ti6Al4V (Pant et al., 2021). Additional details of AM in the aerospace
alloy has a low thermal coefficient, low density, high sector are as follows (Blakey-Milner et al., 2021):
strength, high fracture toughness, etc. Therefore, it is
commonly utilized in aerospace. Many turbine blades are • Structures and brackets: Brackets, structures and
manufactured using titanium alloy for commercial aircraft frames are general application cases of AM and
(Debnath et al., 2022). topology optimization in the aerospace sector, for
Inconel alloys (e.g., Inconel 625 and Inconel 71) and example, aviation structures and brackets, lattice
titanium alloys have been extensively utilized for structures and spacecraft structures
aerospace. Inconel 718 is specifically utilized to produce • Static and dynamic engine components (e.g.,
gas turbines and other high-temperature structural parts turbomachinery components)
(Balaji et al., 2022). Titanium is costly, but it can be • Thermal devices (e.g., heat exchangers)
utilized as AM material without a considerable reduction • Liquid fuel rocket components (e.g., injector
of waste (Mohanavel et al., 2021). Ti6Al4V is one of the components)
most popular titanium alloys in the aerospace sector. The
most recommended Ni-based superalloys for aerospace The aerospace sector has been driven strongly by the
are Inconel 718 and Inconel 625; both are Ni-Cr-based requirements of large original equipment manufacturers;
alloys. Inconel 718 has good strength (tensile, rupture, therefore, the manufacturers of AM equipment have been
creep and fatigue), corrosion resistance and high working upgrading their processes as well as systems constantly to
temperature. Inconel 625 has good corrosion resistance, fit or follow the requirements. Table 4 shows some
high strength and outstanding manufacturability aerospace parts, their materials used, AM processes and
(including joining) (Katz-Demyanetz et al., 2019). companies where they are produced (Tepylo et al., 2019).
Table 4: Some aerospace parts produced by AM
Parts AM processes Materials used Companies
Rocket engine combustion chamber SLM Copper NASA
Thrusters on the SuperDraco rocket DMLS Nickel-based superalloys SpaceX
engines
Industrial gas turbine blades SLM Nickel-based superalloys Siemens
Ducts on the F/A-18E/F SLS Titanium-based Boeing
Aircraft engine brackets DMP (direct Titanium-based 3D systems
metal printing)
Front-bearing housing on the XWB-97 EBM Titanium-based Rolls Royce
Bleed air leak detectors on the F-35 EBM Ti6Al4V Lockheed Martin
F-15 pylon ribs DED Ti6Al4V Multiple companies funded by the
DOD in the USA
Nacelle hinge brackets on the A320 DMLS Ti6Al4V Airbus
Brackets on the A380 SLM Ti6Al4V Laser Zentrum Nord GmbH
(representing Airbus)
The rear frame on the Eurofighter typhoon WAAM Ti6Al4V BAE systems
Turbine combustion chamber DMLS Inconel 718 EOS
LEAP engine fuel injector nozzles SLS Co-Cr GE and Morris technologies

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Multi-material 3D printing has moved to the defense (Prathyusha and Babu, 2022). Topology optimization and
industry. Printing various materials together to fabricate the utilization of the lattice structure have the potential to
sustainable and cost-effective components has been fulfill mass reduction for aerospace applications. The
presented. For example, nickel-based materials are added development of new alloys for AM in aerospace
only in the zones required for wear or corrosion applications has been one of the important areas of AM
resistance. However, it is still a challenge to join (Blakey-Milner et al., 2021).
incompatible metals, for example, titanium and aluminum Generative Design (GD) helps increase the potential
(Machi, 2017). The use of AM has been decided to of AM. It is based on parametric tools of CAD that enable
manufacture rocket engine parts according to NASA' multiple optimized outputs for a designer to choose. The
strategy. Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) (also known advantages of synergizing GD with AM in the early
as drones) are very important in the aerospace industry. A development stage of products have been demonstrated
complete drone or only a part of the components can be (Pilagatti et al., 2023). AM defects can be categorized into
produced using AM (Madhavadas et al., 2022). four types: (1) Pores, (2) Lack of fusion, (3) Irregular
surfaces or subsurface defects and (4) Microstructural
Research Progress and Trends in AM discontinuities. A formulation of the defect-driven
topology optimization for the fatigue design was
Aerospace structures (e.g., aircraft wings) are
generalized (Boursier Niutta et al., 2022).
designed for requirements of strength, stiffness and
Cracks and keyhole pores are damaging defects in
stability under certain conditions of loading. The AM of
alloys produced by L-DED. An in-situ pipeline with
continuous carbon fiber composite provides possibilities
acoustic signal-denoising, feature-extraction and sound
for the cost-effective and automatic manufacturing of
classification was developed that incorporated
highly loaded structures. Compliant or so-called
convolutional neural networks for the online detection
morphing mechanisms (exploiting the elastic properties of
of defects in L-DED. Microscope images were
materials to obtain shape changes) show the potential to
employed to locate the cracks and keyhole pores in a
enhance the flight performance of aerospace structures.
product (Chen et al., 2023).
The AM of composites combined with utilizing morphing
SLM is a metal-based AM technology. Machine
mechanisms has the potential to lower production costs
Learning (ML) and numerical simulation (based on the
while enhancing the flight performance of the structures
finite element model) were combined to study the SLM
(Fasel et al., 2020).
process. Laser speed, hatch space, layer thickness, Young's
Additive (layer) manufacturing of vibration dampers modulus and Poisson ratio were considered as input
for the aerospace sector was introduced and the spiderweb parameters, while output parameters were predicted normal
cellular structure constructed via the AM for aerospace strains in the product. Optimal parameters were found for
was presented. A lattice structure within the spiderweb the SLM process (Chaudhry and Soulaïmani, 2022).
absorbs maximal vibration during the high spin of a A data model of metal AM products was developed.
brushless motor (Bari and Bollenbach, 2022). A design There are five kinds of data in the model: Parameters of
method was developed for the cellular structure to be design, parameters of process, signatures of process,
fabricated using AM. The design method employed the parameters of post-processing and the quality of the
adaptive meshing technique of finite element analysis to product. The model is shown in Table 5 (Liu et al., 2022).
design the topology of the cellular structure and then the Table 5: A data model of metal AM products
cross-sectional area of each structure was optimized for Data categories Data sub-categories
the minimal weight subject to compatibility, stress and Design parameters Design features
buckling constraints. The method was demonstrated for an Build preparation
Process parameters Parameters of laser/beam and scanning
aircraft bracket design (Opgenoord and Willcox, 2019). Properties of powder materials
An aerospace bracket was redesigned employing Parameters of powder bed and recoating
Computer-Aided Design (CAD) with topology Parameters of the build environment
optimization and manufactured with Ti6Al4V alloy using Process signatures Melt pool
By-products
SLM. SLM is one of the AM methods and a popular Single track
deposition technology (layer by layer) for the Single layer
manufacturing of metallic components. Optimal printing Powder bed
parameters were simulated to minimize the production Post-processing Powder removing
time with the least residual stress (because of the high parameters Heat-treatment
Post-machining
thermal gradient in the AM process) (Satya Hanush and Non-standard processes
Manjaiah, 2022). AM integrated with the topology Product quality Geometry and dimension
optimization for the design and manufacturing of Quality of the surface
lightweight aerospace structures was presented Physical and mechanical properties

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4D printing refers to a printing process with three Table 6: Challenges of AM with various materials in the
spatial dimensions, plus material composition as the aerospace industry
fourth dimension. Such space and material flexibility in a Materials Challenges
production process will have valuable applications in the Polymers and composites Few choices
Weak mechanical properties
aerospace sector (Katz-Demyanetz et al., 2019). The trend
Metal and metal alloys Few choices in alloys
of earth or ground-based AM is that metallic 3D printing Not ideal surface finish
is employed in big launchers and spacecraft while Inadequate dimensional accuracy
polymers are utilized in relatively small spacecraft like Post-processing needed
CubeSats. Substantial efforts are ongoing to combine Ceramics Few choices
metallic 3D printing (specifically PBF and laser-based Not ideal surface finish
technologies) with the fabrication of launchers for the Inadequate dimensional accuracy
Need for post-processing
reduction of complexity and mass (Sacco and Moon,
2019). The main development trends of AM in aerospace AM parts can have defects/stress risers, for example,
are summarized as follows (Katz-Demyanetz et al., 2019): powder particles stuck on surfaces, partially melted
powder, voids from imperfection or gas pores and lack of
• Expanding the range of precursor materials, i.e., adhesion or pre-existing cracks/fractures formed between
metallic alloys (high entropy alloys and bulk subsequent printing layers. Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP)
metallic glasses), lightweight structures and and heat treatment help decrease residual stress and voids.
compositionally and functionally graded materials, HIP enables material joining improvement, porosity
metallic and ceramic matrix composites, as well as elimination, powder compaction and fatigue damage
refinement (Yakout et al., 2017).
composite-like materials
Composite structures are widely applied in aerospace
• Increasing the application trials of different PB-AM because of their high strength/stiffness. However, defects
technologies for aerospace, focusing on AM of in materials can evolve into local cracks/fractures easily
crucial aerospace parts under extreme or cyclic loading. Failures of composites
• The regulations standardization of AM for aerospace often result from very few cracks and defects formed
during the AM process. It is significant to monitor the AM
AM Challenges and Future Research process, detect defects in real time and eliminate the
defects in composite structures (Lu et al., 2023).
There are challenges for AM in the aerospace sector. AM drawbacks lie in cracks, porosity, surface
All the challenges can be future research. Table 6 lists the roughness, material anisotropy, unique microstructures
challenges according to the used materials (Frazier, 2014; and residual stress (inducing crack extension and
Zhan and Li, 2021). Other challenges in the aerospace structural deformation). Post-processing is sometimes
area lie in (1) Problems in measuring porosity and residual required with thermomechanical treatment, surface
stresses accurately; (2) No suitable certifications or polishing, or final machining. Major defects in Al parts
standards for a product manufactured using AM; (3) Size produced using AM include anisotropy, residual stresses,
constraints in some AM processes; (4) Not easy to analyze poor surface quality (great surface roughness), porosity and
surface roughness when using certain AM technologies; (5) hot cracking. One drawback of Al alloys is oxidation
Limitations in build consistency, resolution and build (causing porosity in the product). In addition, parts made of
quality for AM technologies; (6) Impossible to make big Al alloys using AM often exhibit porosity that is associated
structures utilizing some AM parts; (7) A challenge when with both process parameters and material composition,
employing topological optimization for AM; (8) Not easy which is shown in Table 7 (Montanari et al., 2023).
to qualify materials used for AM because of The aerospace sector substantially relies on available
inconsistencies, thus expensive to complete a good quality spare components/parts to sustain the reliability and
testing; (9) A problem in having the perfect safety of aircraft. Volatility (variability or unpredictability
microstructure and composition for a component although of customer demands) can happen because of incidents or
ceramics can be used in AM with a high S:W; and (10) accidents, maintenance requirements, changes in aircraft
With disadvantages (e.g., residual stresses, poor design and shifts in economic conditions and customer
microstructure control and less choices of materials) when demands. Thus, managing inventory and supply chain risk
metallic glasses used (Madhavadas et al., 2022). effectively is a challenging task because of unpredictable
Despite many benefits, AM has inherent issues in demands, parts with a high value and long lead time
aerospace applications, including imperfection in related to production and delivery (Alogla et al., 2023).
materials, size limitation, lack of process repeatability and The influences of AM on the bullwhip effect in the spare
predictability, uncertainty in long-term performance, high components/parts of the aerospace sector can be an
infrastructure and running costs etc., (Tepylo et al., 2019). important future research topic (Debnath et al., 2022).

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Table 7: The reasons for porosity in Al alloy parts produced development of rigorous procedures and standards for
using AM certifying the AM processes and materials of various AM
Reasons Details methods or technologies is still a challenge. Furthermore,
Process parameters Laser power AM challenges in this study were summarized based on
Scanning strategy
Scanning speed the literature; there are possibly more challenges in the
Building direction actual production processes of various AM techniques.
Thickness of the powder layer There is an increasing trend towards manufacturing larger
Preheating temperature or more complex parts using AM. Advanced robotics and
Atmosphere of building room
Material composition Impurities
automation help to improve the efficiency and
Al wettability productivity of large-scale AM. Artificial Intelligence
Low absorption of laser energy (AI) can be used to optimize the geometry of AM parts
Evaporation of alloying elements and AM process parameters (Pratap et al., 2022).

The aerospace sector runs many kinds of business, Conclusion

such as general aviation, military or commercial aircraft,
satellites, missiles, space launches and in-space Advantages of AM for an aerospace lie in (1) The easy
systems. Manufacturing in the aerospace sector depends construction of complicated structures with a great S:W
on many interactional, technological and economic goals. ratio; (2) The consolidation of multiple components and
The goals and related issues can be described as follows mass reduction of products; (3) A decrease in the BTF ratio;
(Blakey-Milner et al., 2021): (4) The optimization of MRO to reduce costs associated
with downtime. AM also enables the on-demand
• Delivery of a safety-critical component in a small production of parts and helps reduce transportation,
manufacturing volume with a relatively inflexible inventory, uncertainty and overall supply chain costs.
schedule of delivery DED and PBF processes are commonly used AM for
• Lightweighting is related to the technological as well aerospace. The most common materials of aerospace
as economic situations of aerospace structures components made using AM are nickel-based alloys (used
• A critical issue of metal AM products in the for aero-engines) and Ti6Al4V (used for aerostructures
aerospace sector is the problem of certifications and aero-engines). Major challenges of AM for aerospace
• An aerospace structure is usually complicated with a include making large structures using some AM parts,
low volume; therefore, issues related to sustainment joining incompatible metals, poor microstructure control
are important. Sustainment involves repair or (when metallic glasses are used), possible cracks,
remanufacture, part availability for aging aircraft, as porosity, part's intrinsic anisotropy, surface roughness,
well as re-certification of existing aircraft for residual stress due to the high thermal gradient and a lack
alternative use of resilience of the spare part logistics. All the challenges
discussed in this study can be future research.
Discussion
AM applications in aerospace lie in prototyping, Acknowledgment
tooling, production, etc. AM will continue transforming
The support from Mississippi State University is
the industry. Some AM materials can be recycled and
appreciated.
reused in the aerospace industry, which demonstrates the
benefits of AM in preserving natural resources and
maintaining the sustainability of materials. Design for
Funding Information
AM offers more opportunities due to design freedom The authors have not received any financial support or
compared with traditional manufacturing, which enhances funding to report.
innovations and drives the aerospace industry toward
unprecedented heights of creativity. AM can fulfill the Author’s Contributions
on-demand fabrication of components, reduce inventory
All authors equally contributed to this study.
uncertainty, streamline assembly processes and reshape
the supply chain in the aerospace sector. It is valuable to Ethics
research the influences of AM on the bullwhip effect in This article is original and contains unpublished
the spare components/parts of the aerospace sector. material. The corresponding author confirms that all of the
Aerospace products need to adhere to rigorous other authors have read and approved the manuscript and
certifications and standards to ensure safety. However, the that no ethical issues are involved.

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DOI: 10.3844/ajeassp.2024.116.125

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