Filament Extension Atomization of Polymer Melts: A Novel Approach for Generating Powders for Selective Laser Sintering

Abstract

Leveraging on recent developments on PARCs Filament Extension Atomizer (FEA), we present a novel approach for generating micron-sized powders out of a wide range of thermoplastics, for use in selective laser sintering. PARCs FEA can generate aerosol out of highly viscoelastic fluids by exploiting elastocapillary thinning in the fluids as they undergo extensional flow in a roll-to-roll process. These polymer droplets are then cooled and harvested to generate nearly monodisperse powders. FEA can be easily integrated in a polymer processing line and can serve as an additional non-energy intensive unit operation for creating powders. Our approach should enable a wider application of SLS at the industrial scale by offering an alternative cost-effective way for generating powders for additive manufacturing.