Constellium Aluminium’s 3D printing powder has been approved for use in Formula 1

Aluminium foundry Constellium Aluminium said this week that its Aheadd CP1 aluminium additive manufacturing powder has been approved for use in Formula 1 racing cars starting next year. As a result, the company will work with Velo3D and PWR Advanced Cooling Technology to begin supplying Formula One teams with new, more efficient aluminium heat exchangers.

Constellium powder is a mixture of aluminium, iron and zirconium and is designed specifically for 3D printing. The blend has the advantages of high strength and ductility, excellent thermal/electrical conductivity, high productivity processing and simplified post-processing, with no disadvantages such as volatile elements, rare earths, silicon or the addition of ceramic particles.

Alireza Arbab, head of Constellium C-TEC’s Additive Manufacturing team, said the approval for use in Formula 1 cars is an important step forward.

“We are proud that our aluminium powder for high-performance additive manufacturing has been approved for use in Formula 1 racing cars. Our customers can now develop a wide range of high-performance components, from highly complex heat exchangers to structural parts. Benefits include previously impossible designs, cost-effective parts, reduced machine uptime and improved ROI’.

Constellium, based in France, was founded in 1855 as Henri Merle et Compagnie and later renamed Pechiney in 1950. In 2003 Pechiney was bought by Alcan, which was acquired by Rio Tinto in 2007. In 2011 Rio Tinto sold Alcan Engineered Products to Apollo Management (51%) and FSI (10%). Constellium produces rolled and extruded aluminium products of various alloys, with a turnover of EUR 6.2 billion in 2021.