3D-printed parts could keep Canadian subs operating for another decade

Canadian defence officials are working with Dalhousie University researchers on new methods to use industrial-grade 3D printing to create parts for submarines and naval vessels. Photo by DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY /HANDOUTArticle content

Engineers are experimenting with using 3D printing to make parts for Canada’s 35-year-old submarines in an initiative designed to help keep supporting the boats for another decade.

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The Royal Canadian Navy’s second-hand Victoria-class subs were built in the late 1980s and some parts are no longer available. The navy plans to keep the vessels operating until at least 2035, when it expects to receive the first of as many as 12 new submarines.

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In the meantime, some parts have to be custom-built, causing delays and additional expense.

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That’s where Paul Bishop, a materials engineer at Dalhousie University in Halifax, comes in. He is leading a research team supported by Defence Research and Development Canada as well as various companies in an effort to use an industrial-grade form of 3D printing to produce critical submarine parts.

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“They have a very hard time sourcing replacement parts for those vessels, given their age,” Bishop said in an interview. “The idea is that, with the appropriate knowledge we are developing, one could potentially 3D print or repair replacement parts at a fraction of the cost and time and actually put the boat back in service under the right circumstances.”

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Bishop said the $7-million project was about demonstrating that specific defence-grade alloys could be 3-D printed and then transferring that knowledge to companies that could support the Royal Canadian Navy.

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“We are making a domestic eco-system for using metal 3D printing in the defence sector,” said Bishop, who will be discussing the technology at the CANSEC security tradeshow in Ottawa on May 28 and May 29, “so we don’t have to go to China, we don’t have to go to the United States. We can do it all in house, so to speak.”

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Bishop and his team are examining specific alloys to see if they can be used for the process known as additive manufacturing. It takes about four days for the metal powders to be printed into a part and then they have to be heat-treated.

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The results, so far, have produced parts that are the equivalent to traditionally forged metal parts.

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Bishop said so far none of the test parts had been used in a submarine, but he noted that various firms involved in the project were making arrangements to commercialize the process. “It’s always been our goal from the onset to have some sort of component aboard a vessel within the next two years,” he added.