Advancements made by the Rotherham-based Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research centre in the additive manufacturing industry have the potential to save the taxpayer hundreds of millions of pounds.
The additive process allows metals to be built layer-by-layer instead of being machined away from a single block, saving materials and creating a more precise product.
However, the process is only around 90% efficient, with 10% of powder being lost as waste.
The Nuclear AMRC’s EnerAM project researched ways to recycle metal powders which otherwise go to waste in the additive manufacturing process.
Stephen Bloomer, Technical Lead at the Nuclear AMRC said the question they wanted to answer was: “can we take all this material and recycle it and re-use it, so we can have an impact on the supply chain and sustainability by not having to remake powder for every batch.”
The project was done in conjunction with South Yorkshire partners Atomising Systems, Laser Additive Solutions among other parties.
One major saving that recycling metal powder could be used for is with nuclear waste box manufacturing.
Currently, nuclear waste containers cost manufacturers such as Sellafield around £50,000 each to make – a cost that could be exponentially reduced if waste materials can be recycled.