Conflux announces project with Rocket Factory Augsburg

Metal additive manufacturing business Conflux Technology has announced a partnership with Germany’s Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA), which will see one of the Australian company’s heat exchangers incorporated in an orbital rocket 

In a statement from Conflux on Wednesday, the company said one of their heat exchangers would be embedded in a gas duct of a rocket made by RFA.

The project is described as including materials qualification and testing of the nickel-copper alloy Monel 500K, production of the heat exchanger on an EOS M300-4 laser powder bed fusion machine, and development, build and functional tests this year.

Support for the project through a $1 million Australian Space Agency’s Moon to Mars Supply Chain Capability Improvement grant was announced in June last year.

“At Conflux we are establishing ourselves as leaders in the development and commercialization of 3D printed thermal solutions and relevant materials for extreme applications,” said Dan Woodford, Chief Commercial Officer at Conflux.   

“With support from the Australian Space Agency’s Moon to Mars Grant Supply Chain Capability Improvement grant, we are now applying it to the rapidly expanding space industry.” 

The SCCI grants offer support of between $250,000 up to $1 million, covering up to 75 per cent of project costs, and aims to assist Australian companies in linking with global supply chains in space, and their ability “to support NASA’s endeavour to go forward to the Moon and then on to Mars.”

RFA was founded in 2018 and aims to offer launch services of up to 1.300 kilograms “into low Earth orbits and beyond on a weekly basis at unmatched prices.”

Picture: supplied

Further reading

CONFLUX TECHNOLOGY TO DEVELOP NEW FUEL OIL HEAT EXCHANGER WITH GENERAL ATOMICS

CONFLUX AND GKN ANNOUNCE EUROPEAN COLLABORATION