Chemical and engineering materials company 5N Plus has announced the launch of a new metal powder-scandium metal powder product portfolio to enter the 3D printing market.
The Montreal-based company first started its powder engineering business in 2014, initially focusing on microelectronics and semiconductor applications. 5N Plus has accumulated experience in these markets and has invested in expanding its product portfolio in the past few years, and is now expanding into the field of additive manufacturing to expand its customer base.
According to 5N Plus, its goal is to become a leading engineered powder supplier in the 3D printing industry.
5N Plus is a global manufacturer of engineering materials and specialty chemicals, headquartered in Montreal, Canada, with R&D, manufacturing and commercial centers in Europe, America and Asia. The company’s materials are used in a variety of fields, including advanced electronics, pharmaceuticals, optoelectronics, renewable energy, health and other industrial applications.
Since its establishment, 5N Plus has accumulated experience and learned lessons from the smaller technically challenging market it initially entered, and then decided to expand its functionality. In the past three years, the company has secured multiple plans in the handheld electronic device platform due to its investment in a high-performance spherical powder product portfolio. These spherical powders have low oxygen content and uniform size distribution, and are suitable for electronic device applications.
Now, the company believes it is ready to expand its business into 3D printing, with a focus on metal additive manufacturing applications. According to data from 5N Plus, by 2025, the global metal 3D printing application powder market is expected to reach US$1.2 billion, and the aerospace, medical, dental and automotive industries are expected to benefit the most from metal additive manufacturing technology.
For the additive manufacturing market, 5N Plus has developed a new product portfolio of engineered powders based on copper and copper-based alloys. These materials are engineered with optimized structures to show controlled oxygen content and ultra-high purity, while having uniform surface oxide thickness and controlled particle size distribution.
The company will also obtain other engineered powders, including scandium metal powder from external sources, which are not available in its own local product portfolio. Through the acquisition of these products, 5N Plus’ product portfolio will cover 24 different metal alloy compositions, with melting points ranging from 60 to 2600 degrees Celsius, making it one of the most extensive metal alloys on the market.
New powders of scandium metal powder continue to qualify for metal 3D printing, and new applications of this technology are constantly emerging.
Earlier this year, digital prototyping expert Protolabs introduced a new type of cobalt-chromium superalloy for its metal laser sintering process. Heat-resistant, wear-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials are designed to disrupt industries such as oil and gas, where custom chrome chrome parts could not be achieved before. Soon after, metal additive manufacturing expert Amaero announced that its high-performance 3D printed aluminum alloy Amaero HOT Al has entered the final stage of international patent approval. The newly developed alloy has a higher scan content and can be heat treated and age hardened after 3D printing to improve strength and durability.
At the same time, Elementum 3D, a developer of additive manufacturing materials based in Colorado, has received investment from Sumitomo Corporation (SCOA) to expand the marketing and sales of its proprietary metal powder, which combines ceramics to improve additive manufacturing performance.
Recently, EOS, the leader of the LB-PBF system, released eight new metal powders and processes for its M 290, M 300-4 and M 400-4 3D printing systems, including one PREMIUM and seven CORE products . These powders are characterized by their technical readiness level (TRL), which is the technology maturity classification system launched by EOS in 2019.
Subscribe to the 3D printing industry news to get the latest news on additive manufacturing. You can also keep in touch by following us on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Looking for a career in additive manufacturing? Visit 3D printing jobs to choose roles in the industry.
Featured images show that 5N Plus aims to become a leading engineered powder supplier in the 3D printing industry. Picture from 5N Plus.
Hayley is a 3DPI technical reporter with a rich background in B2B publications such as manufacturing, tools and recycling. She writes news and feature articles and has a keen interest in emerging technologies that affect the world of our lives.