标题: CAS Institute of Mechanics Completes Four-Level Validation System for Space Metal Manufacturing [打印本页] 作者: admin 时间: 2026-10-13 20:10 标题: CAS Institute of Mechanics Completes Four-Level Validation System for Space Metal Manufacturing On October 13, 2026, Nanjixiong learned that the CAS Institute of Mechanics had completed reduced-gravity flight verification of space metal manufacturing and space thermal control and fluid management in Xi'an. More than 20 effective flights validated core metal manufacturing technologies and also tested space fluid physics and control.
High-altitude parabolic maneuvers provide brief, stable microgravity and low-gravity environments. They offer repeatability, convenient crew cooperation and real-time payload adjustment, and can reproduce low-gravity conditions on the Moon and Mars. Compared with other approaches, flight experiments require shorter preparation and support faster technical iteration.
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Reduced-gravity flight illustration.
Metal experiments focused on space additive and subtractive manufacturing using stainless steel, titanium, aluminum and high-entropy alloys widely employed in spacecraft. They explored process principles and operating windows under complex conditions, collecting data on melting and solidification, melt transfer, melt-pool evaporation, elemental ablation, defect formation, resulting geometries and performance.
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Examples of melt-pool behavior, droplet climb-back and manufactured samples during the flights.
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Electromagnetic testing of integrated experimental equipment developed for the aircraft platform.
Fluid experiments examined spray cooling and propellant tank fluid management under low gravity, revealing liquid-film dynamics and the effects of gravity on spray cooling.
From drop towers to orbit
Combined with routine drop-tower work, Lihong-1 rocket flight experiments and Qingzhou cargo spacecraft orbital experiments, this campaign completes the institute's four-level system: drop tower → reduced-gravity aircraft → rocket → orbital platform. It spans basic principles, key technology verification and engineering tests in suborbital and orbital environments.
In January, its recoverable microgravity laser AM scientific payload flew suborbitally aboard CAS Space's first Lihong-1 vehicle, accomplishing the first space laser wire-fed metal AM experiment described in the source. The payload landed by parachute and was recovered, marking a move from ground tests into space engineering validation.
In April, a joint team from the institute and the CAS Innovation Academy for Microsatellites demonstrated metal AM aboard the Qingzhou experimental spacecraft at a 600 km orbit. Testing has progressed from seconds in drop towers to tens of seconds during aircraft parabolas, hundreds of seconds in suborbital flights and long-duration orbital validation on space platforms.
The team will collaborate with research organizations and companies using rockets, space stations and other platforms to refine the technology and accelerate engineering applications.
Nanjixiong's observation
From January's Lihong-1 printing experiment through April's Qingzhou orbital demonstration and September's aircraft tests completing the system, the institute moved from individual experiments toward systematic validation in nine months. A path toward practical on-orbit manufacturing and repair is taking shape.
Source: CAS Institute of Mechanics website.
AI-translated from an article by Kuaixiong on Nanjixiong, originally published on 2026-10-13. Text and images retain the original source attribution. Read the original Chinese article
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