Niobium alloys: Key material for Europe's space ambitions

Additive manufacturing Pioneering niobium alloys for space travel

2025-07-31 Source: Taniobis | Translated by AI 2 min Reading Time

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Europe's ambitions in space are currently picking up speed, which means that a crucial material is increasingly becoming the focus of the space industry: niobium. With niobium-based alloy powders, Taniobis GmbH supplies solutions for the increasing demands placed on modern space systems.

Additive manufacturing enables a high degree of fineness and precision in the production of engine elements.([Image: , Image: ] Taniobis) — Additive manufacturing enables a high degree of fineness and precision in the production of engine elements.
([Image: , Image: ] Taniobis)

The demand for high-temperature materials in the aerospace industry has risen sharply in recent years. However, conventional nickel-based alloys reach their limits in terms of mechanical stability at around 1050 °C. Niobium-based metal alloys are clearly superior to nickel-based alloys in this respect. Taniobis has been developing customized alloy powders based on niobium (Nb) for years, such as AMtrinsic C-103 and AMtrinsic FS-85, both of which are used in additive manufacturing. With the help of additive manufacturing, AMtrinsic alloy powders can be used to produce complex, geometry-optimized components that are difficult or impossible to produce using conventional methods, such as engine nozzles, control segments or satellite propulsion systems.

The manufacture of heat-resistant components for space systems places the highest demands on materials and production technology. This is precisely where Taniobis comes in. In close cooperation with relevant research institutions and international companies, the powders are constantly being further developed in order to actively shape the next development steps in space technology.

From precise satellite drives to reusable launch systems: Niobium alloys combine high-temperature stability with mechanical resistance and thus provide the material basis for new space missions.

Dr. Bahar Fayyazi

Withstand extreme thermal loads

A recent NASA study shows just how important niobium alloys are for precisely these applications. The Glenn Research Center, a NASA research center in Cleveland, has additively manufactured various niobium alloys, including C-103, FS-85 and Cb-752, and tested them mechanically at elevated temperatures. The result: FS-85 and Cb-752 exhibited higher mechanical strength and improved creep behavior at high temperatures compared to C-103. These results underline the advantages of these less common niobium alloys and their potential for use in demanding aerospace environments, such as thermal protection components or thermally stressed areas of propulsion systems. "Our alloys for additive manufacturing have been developed for precisely these demanding conditions," explains Dr. Bahar Fayyazi, Product Manager at Taniobis. "From precise satellite drives to reusable carrier systems: Niobium alloys combine high-temperature stability with mechanical resistance, providing the material basis for new space missions."

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