Sustainability
3D printing with recycled powder
Materialise announces the launch of Bluesint PA12, a plastic that enables the printing of a component with up to 100 percent recycled powder. This allows laser sintering waste to be almost completely eliminated and reduces the negative impact on the environment.
In laser sintering, up to 50 percent of the powder remains unused. The resulting powder residues can only be recycled to a very limited extent and are mostly disposed of. In addition, 3D printing with only used powder has so far led to problematic surfaces, making the components produced in this way unsuitable for most applications. Bluesint PA12 significantly increases the resource efficiency of laser sintering. The powder, which is normally disposed of as waste, can be used for new components. The company plans to use several laser sintering machines equipped with Bluesint PA12 in 2021.
The problem with laser sintering is that 3D printing with only used powders causes a surface that is also known as "orange peel". The effect is caused by shrinkage, which occurs when the powder cools down between two successive sintering processes. Recovered powder is therefore currently mixed with fresh powder, but this is not a sustainable solution. By using a 3D printer with multiple lasers, Materialise was able to use one laser beam to sinter the powder and another to keep the powder above a certain temperature threshold. This prevents the powder from cooling during the transition from one layer to the next and thus also the shrinking process. The result is an object whose mechanical and visual properties are comparable to conventionally 3D-printed components.
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