Binder Jet Printing of Partial Denture Metal Framework from Metal Powder

Introduction Rapid prototyping technologies are the most extensively applied methods based on additive manufacturing (AM) principles, but the first complex-shaped AM parts are already in serial production for commercial aircrafts [1]. The main advantage of rapid prototyping includes the fabrication of models and prototypes for concept assessment as well as functional testing of new products. AM methods have been used to manufacture dental prostheses such as removable partial denture frameworks that retain artificial replacement teeth [2], implants [3], and substructures for crowns and bridges [4]. Additive manufacturing, in general, is best suited for production of small to medium parts with complex geometry in which customized design is desired. Recently, binder jet printing has attracted attention for biomedical applications [5]. Binder jet printing (BJP) is an additive manufacturing method in which powder is deposited layer-by-layer and selectively joined in each layer with binder. Binder jetting is a fast, low-cost manufacturing stress-free structures with complex internal and external geometries. In this study, binder jetting is used to produce metal frameworks for removable partial dentures. An existing framework was scanned using micro-computed tomography and printed. Sintering resulted in >99% density with controlled shrinkage. Presented results demonstrate that binder jetting can be used to produce thin walled complex-shaped overhanging structures as shown here on a denture metal framework model.