AI searched 100 million possibilities and found a cheaper way to 3D-print a NASA rocket alloy
Researchers used AI to search through more than 100 million possible settings for 3D-printing a high-performance NASA alloy. After only 40 experiments, the system identified six successful configurations, including one that worked at a record-low 500 watts. That could allow GRCop-42, currently difficult and expensive to print, to be made with much more widely available equipment.
Washington State University researchers utilized artificial intelligence to discover a more efficient and economical method for 3D printing a high-performance metal alloy, GRCop-42, widely used in aerospace applications. The AI strategy, developed by a team from the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, enabled the testing of over 100 million possible configurations without the need to manually check each one.
The advanced AI model identified six successful printing configurations at various laser power levels, allowing the alloy to be printed using 500 watts of laser power, half the typical requirement. This development could democratize the printing process by enabling common commercial printers to use GRCop-42, reducing energy consumption, equipment wear, and costs associated with sample processing.
The same AI-guided approach can potentially be applied to other scientific problems with large numbers of possible experiments, such as drug discovery.
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