IEM Seminar Series: Additive Manufacturing On Earth, On Orbit, On Planet

 *   Technological developments performed within the last decade by the European Space Agency (ESA) have highlighted the significant potentialities of Additive Manufacturing (AM) for space applications.
 *   AM technologies have been extensively exploited on conventional and non-conventional metals, polymers, ceramics and geopolymers (e. g. Moon regolith), ranging from few grams up to few tons of material. Applications on satellites and rockets structures, radio frequency antennas and components, mechanisms, propulsion and thermal management systems have been developed, including on-orbit as well as on-planet manufacturing.
 *   AM has been identified as a key enabling technology for current and future space missions as well for a number of critical aerospace applications: however, fundamental challenges need to be addressed, including the design and modelling tools, the materials supply (including powder quality control and traceability), the processing and post-processing stages up to verification testing and structural analysis methodologies and standardisation.
 *   The Seminar will give an insight on AM technologies used for space and aerospace applications and will address all open challenges for AM applications in satellites, spacecraft and rockets primary structures. It will provide concrete case studies addressing all highlighted challenges and will also show real-life failure investigations (Failure Investigation Module as a Course in the Course) on AM parts.

Bio:
Dr. Tommaso Ghidini is the Head of the Structures, Mechanisms and Materials Division at the European Space Agency. With world class laboratories and computational centres, the Division guarantees the structural integrity of the entire range of ESA Space programmes and missions. After obtaining a Ph. D. in structural mechanics, experimental and numerical, in Germany, and before joining ESA, Dr. Ghidini has worked for AIRBUS on all major civil and military programmes of the European aeronautical industry including the A380, A350 and A400M aircrafts. He has received a number of international awards for major aerospace industrial achievements and developments and receives invitations to lecture in some of the most prestigious European universities, and Organisations.