A Longitudinal Study of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Feedstock Reuse in a Certified Medical Device Manufacturing Facility

A Longitudinal Study of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Feedstock Reuse in a Certified Medical Device Manufacturing Facility | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article A Longitudinal Study of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Feedstock Reuse in a Certified Medical Device Manufacturing Facility Duncan William Gibbons, Andre Francois van der Merwe This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 3 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Powder feedstock is the primary input to metal additive manufacturing processes such as laser powder bed fusion. The characteristics and quality of this input feedstock are crucial for producing high-quality components. To realize the waste reduction benefits that laser powder bed fusion offers, unused powder feedstock must be reclaimed, processed, and reused in future production cycles. Successfully implementing such powder reuse activities can lead to significant cost savings. However, there are challenges related to the reuse of powder feedstock. These relate to changes in the powder characteristics and overall variable quality caused by their repeated reuse in industrial settings. This variability can have both negative and positive effects on the quality of the produced components, but ultimately leads to uncertainty in the prediction of the properties and quality of such components. This is a challenge for both users and regulators, and means material and process qualifications are difficult to achieve when powder feedstock is being repeatedly reused. This research aims to investigate the effects of repeated powder reuse on the powder characteristics and quality. A continuous top-up powder rejuvenation approach was performed after each build cycle in an industrial facility certified for the production of medical devices. The study was conducted over 175 reuse cycles, whereby powder flowability and particle morphology improved, particle size distribution coarsened, and the concentration of interstitial elements increased. The concentration of interstitial elements and microhardness of the produced material were also analyzed as an indicator of the quality of the produced material and both increased with repeated reuse. The findings of this study suggest that such extensive reuse campaigns can be implemented while fulfilling the requirements of industry powder material specifications, although such reuse processes do induce variability in the properties of both the powder and produced material. Powder Feedstock Characterization Material Properties Laser Powder Bed Fusion Medical Device Manufacturing Material Qualification Powder Feedstock Reuse Full Text Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers invited by journal 28 Apr, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 27 Apr, 2026 First submitted to journal 25 Apr, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9528035","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":631195728,"identity":"0dcfacda-8d0f-48da-9483-be7b2168f7a3","order_by":0,"name":"Duncan William Gibbons","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA1UlEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDCCA1Da/ngDkDSwIEELwxkQy0CCFC03EkAkEVr4buQe/PBzx2G7xpnPr274USDBwN/enYBXi+SNvGTJ3jOHk5ulc8pu9gAdJnHm7Aa8Wgxu5Jgx8LbdTmaTzkm7wQPUYiCRS1gL41+gFh7JM2k3/xCrhRloi52EBPux20TZInnmjbG0bNv/BAOeHLbbMgYSPAT9wnc8x/Dj27Y0ewP2489uvvljI8ff3otfCwwkNjDwGIAYPEQpBwF7Bgb2B0SrHgWjYBSMgpEFALD9Sr3un+YzAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7641-4221","institution":"National Institute of Standards and Technology","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Duncan","middleName":"William","lastName":"Gibbons","suffix":""},{"id":631195729,"identity":"08bdf930-bd63-42ab-940b-4742e420817e","order_by":1,"name":"Andre Francois van der Merwe","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Andre","middleName":"Francois van der","lastName":"Merwe","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2026-04-25 20:06:56","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":108805520,"identity":"051adfe7-1ecd-4970-b149-7b6b87ab9ada","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-05-08 15:26:09","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":3152475,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-9528035/v1_covered_f8b88d24-03fb-451c-a434-8d57416d01d6.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"","formattedTitle":"A Longitudinal Study of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Feedstock Reuse in a Certified Medical Device Manufacturing Facility","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"the-international-journal-of-advanced-manufacturing-technology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"jamt","sideBox":"Learn more about [The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology](https://www.springer.com/journal/170)","snPcode":"170","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/170/3","title":"The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"Powder Feedstock Characterization, Material Properties, Laser Powder Bed Fusion, Medical Device Manufacturing, Material Qualification, Powder Feedstock Reuse","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Powder feedstock is the primary input to metal additive manufacturing processes such as laser powder bed fusion. The characteristics and quality of this input feedstock are crucial for producing high-quality components. To realize the waste reduction benefits that laser powder bed fusion offers, unused powder feedstock must be reclaimed, processed, and reused in future production cycles. Successfully implementing such powder reuse activities can lead to significant cost savings. However, there are challenges related to the reuse of powder feedstock. These relate to changes in the powder characteristics and overall variable quality caused by their repeated reuse in industrial settings. This variability can have both negative and positive effects on the quality of the produced components, but ultimately leads to uncertainty in the prediction of the properties and quality of such components. This is a challenge for both users and regulators, and means material and process qualifications are difficult to achieve when powder feedstock is being repeatedly reused.\nThis research aims to investigate the effects of repeated powder reuse on the powder characteristics and quality. \nA continuous top-up powder rejuvenation approach was performed after each build cycle in an industrial facility certified for the production of medical devices. The study was conducted over 175 reuse cycles, whereby powder flowability and particle morphology improved, particle size distribution coarsened, and the concentration of interstitial elements increased. The concentration of interstitial elements and microhardness of the produced material were also analyzed as an indicator of the quality of the produced material and both increased with repeated reuse. The findings of this study suggest that such extensive reuse campaigns can be implemented while fulfilling the requirements of industry powder material specifications, although such reuse processes do induce variability in the properties of both the powder and produced material.","manuscriptTitle":"A Longitudinal Study of Laser Powder Bed Fusion Feedstock Reuse in a Certified Medical Device Manufacturing Facility","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2026-05-07 05:29:12","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-9528035/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2026-04-28T15:30:39+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2026-04-27T14:53:40+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology","date":"2026-04-25T16:06:35+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"the-international-journal-of-advanced-manufacturing-technology","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"jamt","sideBox":"Learn more about [The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology](https://www.springer.com/journal/170)","snPcode":"170","submissionUrl":"https://submission.nature.com/new-submission/170/3","title":"The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"em","reportingPortfolio":"Springer Hybrid","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"27646a3e-e05d-44e6-b82a-171292f573c2","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 7th, 2026","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"under-review","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-05-07T05:29:12+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2026-05-07 05:29:12","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-9528035","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-9528035","identity":"rs-9528035","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}