Continuum Powders Provides Sustainable Metal Printing

Continuum Powders, a provider of sustainable metal powder, is the first 100% recycled metal powder provider to have an alloy qualified for use in Velo3D’s Sapphire family of printers. The partnership gives Velo3D system users a sustainable powder alternative that delivers high-quality, spherical metal powder, while also contributing to their decarbonization and sustainability programs.

OptiPowder 718, based on Ni 718 alloy, is often found in structural parts that encounter extreme operating temperatures and corrosive environments. It has an exceptional combination of strength, hardness and corrosion resistance. The properties of OptiPowder 718 make the material attractive for aerospace applications, such as turbomachinery, valves, heat exchangers and other mission-critical parts. The material is also beneficially applied in industrial gas turbines, liquid-propelled rocket motors and combustion chambers, fuel cells such as solid oxide fuel cells and downhole/undersea tubing and tools for oil and gas.

“For customers who are sustainability-minded or have company objectives to reduce their carbon footprint, utilizing metal powders that are sourced through carbon-neutral means can streamline their adoption of additive manufacturing technology,” says Zach Detweiler, Velo3D vice president of technology. “We’re pleased to offer Continuum as a powder option and have validated that OptiPowder 718 delivers the performance and quality customers require from their powder while also meeting their decarbonization and sustainability goals.”