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标题: Metal 3D Printing Company Jiuhe Raises Tens of Millions of Yuan and Delivers to Leading Commercial Space Customers [打印本页]

作者: admin 时间: 2026-10-27 15:34
标题: Metal 3D Printing Company Jiuhe Raises Tens of Millions of Yuan and Delivers to Leading Commercial Space Customers
Source: 36Kr HardTech

36Kr HardTech learned that Beijing Jiuhe Advanced Science and Technology Co., Ltd. (“Jiuhe”), a supplier of additively manufactured structural parts and specialty materials, has completed a Pre-A+ round worth tens of millions of yuan. Zhuzhou Beidou Spacetime Industry Fund was the sole investor.

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Founded in 2024, Jiuhe centers its business on materials science and technology. It provides high-performance additively manufactured (3D-printed) structural parts, specialty materials, and related solutions for aerospace, nuclear fusion, the low-altitude economy, humanoid robotics, and other advanced manufacturing fields. Founder Dr. Xia Tian is a youth expert committee member of the China Additive Manufacturing Industry Alliance and a director of the China Laser Manufacturing Technology and Industry Innovation Alliance. He has long worked in material composition design, property control, additive manufacturing industry research, and investment.

Xia told 36Kr HardTech that, as metal 3D printing matures, industry demand is shifting from “can it be printed?” to “can it be printed quickly, well, and inexpensively?” Competition is similarly moving from a focus on equipment and printing processes toward coordinated optimization of materials, processes, and forming capabilities. Materials technology is becoming a key factor in additive manufacturing costs and product performance.

The complete materials workflow for metal additive manufacturing comprises four main stages: alloy melting, powder atomization, 3D printing, and heat treatment. Temperatures, melt-pool dimensions, and cooling rates at each stage can affect the final properties.

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Xia said the path from master alloy to powder and printed part involves both slow solidification in large melt pools and rapid solidification in small melt pools, sometimes in alternating stages. Designing material only around the small, rapidly solidifying printing melt pool can create problems in powder production or master-alloy preparation. Yet the final microstructure is determined by printing. Composition design must therefore account for the entire workflow rather than optimize one process in isolation.

Jiuhe combines materials design with control of the forming process to address this problem.

On the materials side, the company uses the rapid solidification of small melt pools to model relationships between elemental distribution, phase structure, crack sensitivity, and mechanical properties. It then applies AI-enhanced materials computation to optimize alloy composition against multiple objectives. Small-batch experimental preparation and characterization progressively validate and establish the target composition.

For microstructure and property control, Jiuhe uses material characteristics and grain and phase features in additive manufacturing to predict the microstructure of powder particles, laser melt pools, and finished parts. Powder microstructure design, solidification control, and optimization of hot isostatic pressing and heat treatment then tailor the internal structure to the final application.

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To address cracking in metal 3D printing, Jiuhe developed a low-cost, high-strength printable aluminum alloy that requires no rare-earth elements. It achieves yield strength above 500 MPa at a material price a little over RMB 100 per kilogram. The approach designs special in-situ nanoparticles in the alloy and controls the process so the particles remain stable in molten aluminum for tens of minutes to about one hour. The company coordinates the duration of melting and powder production so that, during printing, dissolution and reprecipitation of the particles improve the microstructure and reduce crack risk.

Forming-process control is a second core capability. Jiuhe builds multiscale simulation models linking microstructure, melt-pool structure, and part properties to predict and optimize printing parameters, reducing defects such as pores and cracks. Stress-control and anti-deformation techniques adjust residual stress and its distribution to improve dimensional accuracy. Fine-feature printing and integrated manufacturing of complex structures address the needs of advanced manufacturing.

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These capabilities have been applied to several critical structural components in commercial space.

For liquid rocket engine turbopump housings, Jiuhe uses integrated forming and a low-stress process to control stress distribution and dimensional accuracy. For closed liquid rocket engine impellers, it has achieved support-free printing with no supports inside the flow passages, reducing support material by 96% compared with conventional methods. The company says microstructure control eliminated undesirable features such as acicular phases and increased elongation after fracture at −196°C by about 50%, meeting the relevant requirements.

Its Hall thruster pressure-and-flow regulator has also operated in orbit. To treat the fine internal channels in such components, Jiuhe developed a polishing process for channels as small as 1 mm, controlling internal diameter to within ±0.1 mm.

Jiuhe has completed validation with leading commercial space customers and has become the exclusive supplier of certain critical products to several leading commercial space companies. It plans to expand further into the low-altitude economy, nuclear fusion, humanoid robotics, and other areas, providing critical structural parts and materials solutions.

AI-translated from an article by Beijixiong on Nanjixiong, originally published on 2026-10-26. Text and images retain the original source attribution.
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