Continuum Powders, the leader in sustainable metal powder, today announced the company 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’s customers a sustainable powder alternative that delivers the same high-quality, spherical metal powder they source today, while also contributing significantly to their decarbonization and sustainability programs.

Following a rigorous process administered by Velo3D and its contract manufacturer Knust-Godwin, Continuum Powders’ OptiPowder 718 was qualified for use in Velo3D’s Sapphire family of printers. The extensive qualification confirms that the powder produced and supplied by Continuum Powders meets all material property requirements that are achieved with conventional powders in the same alloy, when using specified parameters.

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, like 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,” stated Zach Detweiler, Velo3D VP 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.”

“Velo3D’s endorsement of OptiPowder as the first sustainable metal powder for Sapphire printers highlights the significant benefits Continuum brings to the market. We didn’t just want to raise the bar, we wanted to recreate the bar from the ground up to make sustainability core to the additive manufacturing process,” stated Phil Ward, chief executive officer of Continuum Powders. “Providing Velo3D’s customers with the first truly viable decarbonization option is a game changer for additive manufacturing—and the collaboration between Knust-Godwin, Velo3D and Continuum Powders is just the beginning.”

Continuum Powders is a portfolio company of Ara Partners, a private equity firm specializing in industrial decarbonization investments.