Rocket Lab's Neutron medium payload rocket has made innovative advances in space travel – the largest composite rocket ever built. Initially, hundreds of layers, thousands of square feet of carbon fiber were laid by hand onto a mold that took a huge team weeks to complete.
Now, the 39-foot-tall carbon composite 3D printer can lay 328 feet of carbon fiber per minute, which can be done in a day with Rocket Labs' new Automated Fiber Placement (AFP) machine.
Think of it like a 39-foot (12-meter) tall, 75-ton autonomous 3D printer that prints layers of carbon fiber at 328 feet (100 meters) per minute. Instead of "printing" parts, it lays carbon fiber sheets layer by layer in different directions to enhance the strength and stiffness of each structure. The AFP has the ability to move laterally up to 98 feet (30 meters) and is therefore fully capable of laying the largest components - the 91-foot (28 meters) long neutron rocket intermediate stage and fairing.
It takes weeks to lay these structures by hand. Whereas, AFP can be printed within 24 hours
AFP was also responsible for layering the first stage with a diameter of 22.9 feet (7 meters) and the second stage tank with a diameter of 16.4 feet (5 meters).
While the workpiece is being machined, the built-in, fully automated inspection system scans for defects or blemishes in the carbon composite structure and pauses to alert the operator before proceeding to the next layer of machining.
SpaceX's Starship is mostly made of stainless steel (the 300 series "HFS", like the Cybertruck's "bulletproof" material), while Boeing's Starliner uses mostly aluminum alloy. Initially, SpaceX considered using CF composites on Starship, but ultimately chose stainless steel due to its cost-effectiveness, temperature resistance, and durability.
The AFP head can be rotated 360 degrees to lay CF as quickly as possible from any direction
Rocket Lab expects that the use of AFP will make the world's largest composite reusable rocket cheaper to build and produce faster and easier, saving more than 150,000 man-hours.
According to the Rocket Lab website, the company aims to launch its first neutron rocket in 2025.