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Contract Opportunity

TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY

Laser Vaporized Feedstock Powder Production for Additive Manufacturing

A new method capable of producing powder for additive manufacturing with uniform, spherical, and mixed phase particles.

Opportunity: Idaho National Laboratory (INL), managed and operated by Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC (BEA), is offering the opportunity to enter into a license and/or collaborative research agreement to commercialize this new powder production method. This technology transfer opportunity is part of a dedicated effort to convert government-funded research into job opportunities, businesses and ultimately an improved way of life for the American people.

Overview: Traditional powder production utilizes mechanical attrition or atomization. Mechanical attrition creates non-uniform and non-spherical powders which can hinder the additive manufacturing process, resulting in pores or entrained impurities. Atomization is capable of creating uniform and spherical powders but requires liquid precursors or melts which can be expensive and can introduce challenges through phase instabilities and segregation. There is an industry need for producing uniform, spherical, and mixed phase particles from a bulk solid.

Description: Researchers at Idaho National Lab have designed a new method capable of producing uniform, spherical, and mixed phase particles from a bulk solid or coarse powder. This process was initially designed from processes used for nano-particle production, but also includes stages to create larger particles that are suitable for applications like nuclear materials. This method address alloy and phase segregation via the use of laser light to produce molecular vapors, and controlled nucleation to adjust the size of feedstock powders that are produced. These powders may be used in a variety of additive manufacturing and other fabrication processes.

Benefits:

• Able to produce uniform, spherical, and mixed phase particles.


• Wide applicability to any specialized alloy fabrication used for additive manufacturing.

Applications:

• Designed for use in the additive manufacturing of nuclear fuels.


• May be applied to any specialized alloy fabrication used for additive manufacturing in non-nano material industries.

Development Status: TRL 3, currently undergoing proof-of-concept work.

IP Status: PCT Application No. PCT/US20/66518, “Laser Ablation Methods and Systems for Producing Feedstock Powder Suitable for Laser-Based Additive Manufacturing,” BEA Docket No. BA-1065.

INL is seeking to license the above intellectual property to a company with a demonstrated ability to bring such inventions to the market. Exclusive rights in defined fields of use may be available. Added value is placed on relationships with small businesses, start-up companies, and general entrepreneurship opportunities.

Please visit Technology Deployment’s website at https://inl.gov/inl-initiatives/technology-deployment for more information on working with INL and the industrial partnering and technology transfer process.

Companies interested in learning more about this licensing opportunity should contact Andrew Rankin at td@inl.gov.

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