In the coming years, Additive Manufacturing will play an increasingly role in micro-turbine production, therefore the importance to know the impact of this type of manufacturing are crucial for the optimum design and performance of the device and the right definition of the stress fatigue generated. Is for this reason that the aim of this project is to study the impact that Additive Manufacturing puts on the design and the performance of a micro-turbine wheel, regarding the stresses generated on it.
To study the final stresses properly, a model of the micro-turbine has been developed with ANSYS Workbench. It includes an initial CFD study with ANSYS CFX to find the temperatures and pressures under which the micro-turbine works. Then, these temperatures are imported to ANSYS Thermal to calculate the temperature distribution in the geometry and after, CFX and ANSYS Thermal results are imported to ANSYS Structural to carry out a stress analysis.
The results of the project are taken from the execution of this model with the properties of Inconel 625, manufactured by Selective Laser Melting and manufactured by Casting, and a deep study of the stress generated at the junction between the blade and the hub is carried out at the end.
