Residual Powder Recycling Methods in 3D Printing

A recycling device for FDM 3D printing waste that can crush, melt, and granulate the waste material to regenerate new printing filament. The device has a hopper with a heated screen to chop the waste. The chopped material falls into a melting extruder and is extruded as filament. A granulating device with a rotating cutter cuts the filament into granules that are collected. This allows recycling and reusing FDM printing waste from each stage of the printing process to reduce material waste and costs.

Source

System for recycling waste materials into 3D printing feedstock with stable quality, enabling recycling of heterogeneous waste materials containing various components. The system generates manufacturing parameters for the recycled materials and device settings to compensate for variability in the waste materials. It analyzes the physical properties of each waste material batch and adjusts the 3D printing process parameters and device settings accordingly. This allows using recycled materials with varying properties in additive manufacturing while mitigating issues like warping and shrinkage.

Source

Additive manufacturing system with closed material handling to improve efficiency, quality, and safety compared to manual loading and unloading. The system has separate powder and liquid material handling systems that connect to the additive manufacturing machine. Powder is transferred gastight from a drum to the powder system, then to the machine. Liquid materials like binders and cleaners are similarly transferred gastight. This prevents exposure to oxygen and contamination. The machine can also receive blended powder from a sieve that mixes virgin and recovered powder. The closed handling reduces time, improves efficacy, and increases safety for reactive materials.

Source

Device for automated recovery and reuse of metal powder during selective laser melting (SLM) 3D printing to improve efficiency and reduce waste compared to manual powder recovery. The device has multiple powder collection chambers in series connected to the main powder conveyor. After each chamber fills, powder is automatically transferred to a sieving chamber, then to storage. This allows continuous powder flow during printing without stopping. The sieved powder is returned to the process. The chambers are interconnected pipes and valves.

Source

Recycling method for spherical titanium powder used in 3D printing that allows reducing the oxygen content in the powder to improve print quality and product properties. The recycling process involves grinding and deoxidation of the 3D printed titanium powder in a hydrogen-rich atmosphere. This breaks the conventional barrier of not being able to reduce titanium oxide with hydrogen. The reduced powder is then 3D printed again to create products with lower oxygen content compared to using the original recycled powder.

Source

Three-in-one powder recycling mechanism for 3D printers that allows efficient and clean powder recovery during printing without contamination or dust. The mechanism has a printer material tray with divided powder collection ports: two side strip-shaped openings and a horizontal strip-shaped opening. Each bar has a detachable screen. This pre-screens powder before collection to remove larger impurities. The tray has bottom funnels for central and side powder collection. The tray slides on frames with hooks matching pressure holes in the frames. This allows lifting the tray to disconnect the funnels for emptying. The top corner has a sliding tube with an outer ring and spring to lift and disconnect the screen. This enables full screen removal for deep cleaning.

Source

Powder circulation system for 3D printing to automatically recycle excess powder without manual intervention. The system has a storage device, molding device, spreading device, collection device, and feeding device connected to a mounting piece. Powder is fed to the storage, spread to the molding, collected from excess, and recycled through the feeding. This eliminates manual powder handling steps and prevents exposure while improving efficiency and reducing waste.

Source

3D printing powder recovery equipment with residual material detection that allows efficient and convenient recycling of unused powder from 3D printers. The equipment has a movable starting plate that pushes the collection tank to collect the powder. It also has a filter plate to separate the powder from contaminants. The starting plate has a handle to move it up and down. When the handle is pulled, the starting plate separates from the vertical groove and moves up. This releases the limit on the horizontal block, allowing it to move the collection tank. The starting plate then pushes the collection tank to move the powder into the filter plate. The filter plate moves down and locks, separating the powder from contaminants. The filtered powder can be easily removed from the collection tank. The starting plate can then be pushed back down to release the collection tank. The filter plate and collection tank are connected to a multi-determination component to move together

Source

Recycling and reusing metal powder for 3D printing to reduce waste and costs. The method involves crushing and screening the powder from printed parts to separate usable powder from waste. The crushed powder is then screened to separate fine particles. This recycled powder can then be used in 3D printing again. The process avoids needing expensive specialized metal powders and reduces environmental impact from powder waste.

Source

3D printed metal powder screening system and method to improve recovery efficiency and reusability of metal powder from 3D printing residue. The system uses a multi-stage combined screening device with air flow and vibrating screens configured based on powder attributes. It simultaneously screens powder at multiple sizes to recover usable powder. The screens are monitored by cameras to determine when to turn them over. Analyzing images helps assess when to purge airflow screens to prevent clogging. The screens are reconfigured based on analysis to optimize screening. This improves metal powder recovery and reduces cost compared to traditional screening methods.

Source

Device for recycling selective laser melting (SLM) gradient powders in 3D printing to increase powder recycling rate, prevent mixing and adhesion of different powders, and enable manufacturing of gradient functional parts with different material compositions. The device separates, screens, and recovers SLM gradient powders in a vacuum environment to reduce air contact and avoid contamination. It uses an ultrasonic powder suction device, vertical support frame, screening device, waste material recovery device, powder conveying pipe, cooling device, and controller. A metal powder sensor identifies powders and a cooling device reduces explosion risk. This automated vacuum recycling helps prevent pollution, waste, and inefficient manual powder recovery.

Source

3D printing powder recovery and processing device to improve efficiency and reduce waste in 3D printing by automating powder collection, screening, and recycling. The device has a storage barrel, vibrating screen, and mixing barrel connected in sequence above the printer. A suction pipe and isolation device above the storage barrel prevent powder loss during suction. The vibrating screen removes clumps. The mixing barrel with a fan blends the powder. This automated powder handling prevents spillage, knotting, and waste compared to manual transfer.

Source

A printing powder recovery device for printing presses that can separate agglomerated printing powder from the fine powder during recovery. The device has a dust collection box connected to the fan air inlet. The fan blows the printing powder into a recovery component with two storage boxes. One box has a vibrating screen plate and a scraper slides on the bottom. The other box has a chute with a scraper. An electric push rod moves the scraper to push the agglomerated powder into the second box. This separates the fine powder in the first box from the larger agglomerates.

Source

A method for recycling and regenerating nylon powder used in selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing. The method involves molecular level control to improve the properties of the recycled powder compared to physical additives like friction reducers. The stages are: (1) isolating the residual powder from the printed part, (2) dissolving the powder in a solvent, (3) separating the nylon chains using a specific solvent and temperature treatment, (4) neutralizing the chains to restore their original structure, (5) evaporating the solvent, and (6) spheroidizing the regenerated powder for consistent size and shape. This molecular level regeneration process improves the flowability, melt viscosity, and toughness of the recycled nylon powder compared to physical additives.

Source

Using recycled thermoplastic powders in 3D printing to reduce waste and lower costs. The process involves recycling thermoplastic materials like PEEK from injection molding, grinding, or other processes, converting them into powder form, and using the recycled powder in a composite-based additive manufacturing (CBAM) process. The CBAM process involves printing the powder onto a substrate, heating and compressing the printed layers, which allows using recycled materials with inconsistent molecular weight and melt flow compared to virgin powder. This opens up applications for recycled thermoplastics in 3D printing, reducing waste, and lowering costs.

Source

Depowdering additively manufactured parts containing bound metal powder by immersing the parts in a liquid-filled container, agitating the liquid to dislodge unbound powder from the parts, and filtering the liquid to recover the powder. The agitation may be mechanical vibration, gas jets, or heating to create currents that carry away the loose powder. The filtering separates the powder from the liquid for reuse or disposal.

Source

A build material recovery system for additive manufacturing that uses humidified air to improve the flow and handling of powdered build materials. The system includes a humidifier that adds moisture to the air used to transport the powder between stations in the recovery process pneumatically. The humid air helps to dissipate electrical charges on the powder particles, preventing clumping and sticking that can hinder flow.

Source

A powder processing unit for binder jetting additive manufacturing that allows efficient curing, sieving, and recycling of build material powder without manual transfer between containers. The unit has dedicated stations for curing new powder, sieving used powder, feeding powder to printers, collecting excess powder, and de-powdering finished parts. This enables automated powder processing optimized for binder jetting compared to legacy methods.

Source

An in-situ material regeneration system and method for additive manufacturing, such as 3D printing, enables recovery, reconditioning, and reuse of used powders and liquids collected during the AM process. The system and method involve extracting portions of the powder/liquid at various stages, such as after deposition, wetting, and binding, into separate containers. This allows targeted regeneration processes for each type of material. The collected powders/liquids are regenerated separately or mixed and then reused in subsequent print jobs. The in-situ regeneration reduces waste and material costs compared to discarding and replacing used powders/liquids.

Source

Improved additive manufacturing process for 3D printing using a continuous substrate and segmented carrier frames, along with in-situ material regeneration to reduce waste. The process involves depositing powder on a continuous substrate, removing portions for regeneration at intermediate stations, compacting and drying the powder, and then moving the remaining powder to subsequent stations for binding and printing. The regenerated powders are mixed and reused. This allows selective removal and processing of powder sections instead of entire layers. The regeneration reduces waste compared to external powder recycling.

Source