Supernova awarded $2M contract to 3D print military-grade energetic materials

Supernova Industries Corp, has been awarded a $2 million subcontract by the American Center for Manufacturing & Innovation (ACMI) to 3D Print military-grade energetic materials. The award is being distributed under ACMI’s Critical Chemicals Pilot Program through the Department of Defense Information Analysis Center's (DOD IAC) multiple-award contract (MAC) vehicle to support the United States Department of Defense’s (DOD) Industrial Base Policy Manufacturing Capability Expansions and Investment Prioritization (MCEIP) Pathfinders portfolio.

“Supernova is proud to support the U.S. Department of Defense through this program,” says Roger Antunez, Founder and CEO of Supernova. “Our technology has the potential to overcome the design constraints of conventional manufacturing methods to produce the next generation of military-grade energetic material components, including solid rocket motors (SRMs), explosives, and pyrotechnics.”

Supernova’s proprietary technology, Viscous Lithography Manufacturing (VLM), is a lithography-based Additive Manufacturing (AM) process that uses a transparent film to transfer high viscosity materials onto a build platform, where they are cured by light to form printed parts. Unlike conventional processes which require low viscosity resins, VLM can handle materials of unlimited viscosity which enable new formulations such as the high solid-loading used in energetic materials. Supernova has previously been successful in printing simulant energetic materials, and they are currently developing printing of energetic formulas, which will represent a major breakthrough in the field of additive manufacturing.

“The technology that Supernova is developing will enable the production of critical components for weapon systems that are essential for national security,” says Victor Boelscher, Head of Federal Programs at ACMI Federal. “ACMI’s Critical Chemicals Pilot Program is designed to support Defense Industrial Base (DIB) resilience by taking commercial solutions and rapidly adapting them for DOD use. Supernova’s innovative technology fits this role, and we're excited to be partnering with them to meet a critical capability for the DOD.”

Military-grade energetic materials are capable of rapidly releasing significant amounts of energy through chemical and physical reactions, used in explosives, propellants, and pyrotechnics. These materials are necessary for the proper functioning of defense systems. However, traditional processing techniques limit their potential. Supernova’s new VLM processing techniques will provide key innovations crucial to enhance safety, ensure material consistency, reduce waste stream and unlock new performance capabilities, particularly in applications such as solid rocket motors, bombs, countermeasure flares, or bullet grains.