Scaled airfoil shapes, 0.014-0.016” (0.35-0.4 mm) thick ⇒ Part must be strong and durable enough for handling and sustain 4-5 psi (0.3 bar) differential across cascade in testing
0.002” (50 μm) coating yields 25% metal volume so rapid increase in strength with applied coating
Airfoil wall thickness only 0.010-0.012” (0.25-0.3 mm) prior to coating
Results
Printed and Plated Thrust Reverser Cascases
Overall, parts held to tolerance ±0.005”
Vane Thickness held to 0 to +0.003”
Tolerance and Quality suitable for reverser performance and loads testing ⇒“huge cost/cycle time reduction” over alternative fabrication method – EDM metal ⇒Nearly 90% savings on wind tunnel cascade models allowed testing of more designs