As regular readers will know, I am all in on 3D printing. This area of dentistry is really starting to take root and continues to grow. The profession is rapidly moving to delivery of common "bread and butter" removable appliances and crowns to in-office. The design process has gotten much easier as AI is integrated more and more into the workflow. More 3D printing in being done in dental offices and even more is being done in dental labs. The dental lab industry was quick to see the benefit of digital dentistry and incorporating 3D printing into their workflows has given labs increased speed while cutting costs.
This product category is growing, yet there is one area of this change that we all need to think about. 3D printing does create some excess cured resin and how can that be recycled in an environmentally friendly way? As the image above shows, when a device is 3D printed, it's necessary to create supports. These small pieces literally 'support' the project while it is being printed. These supports are then trimmed off, the project is polished, and the supports are normally tossed in the trash. Obviously we're all trying to reduce the amount of plastics that end up in landfills and despite my love of 3D printing, I think we need to think about this.
The good new is, now there's a way to recycle this excess cured resin. You read that right, recycle. DRNA (Dental Recycling North America) is now offering a way to dispose of the pieces without sending them to a landfill.
Back when amalgam disposal was still a minor concern in the industry, DRNA began selling amalgam separators that removed amalgam from dental suction. Their system is a canister that connects to the suction unit and removes the amalgam dust and particles before they go into the municipal sewer lines. Amalgam separators are new required in dental offices, but back when I had one installed, I did it simply because I thought it was environmentally responsible. I've been using their product ever since.
Recently the company came out with a system to recycle 3D printed resins and, again, I think it's a great idea for the environment. As we are all aware, taking care of the planet is something we should all be concerned with and this is great idea to help with that. The company can safely dispose of both cured and uncured (liquid) resin.
The process is simple. You simply purchase a 2.5 gallon bucket from the company, place the cured resin pieces into it, and when the bucket is full it is shipped back to DRNA who then recycles the material. It's a simple, turnkey solution, that simplifies the process of recycling the cured resin leftovers. Occasionally a 3D printer will make a mistake and misprint something. It isn't common, but it happens and you can recycle those as well. I like the idea because it makes recycling consistent, easier, and provides paperwork to the office that the materials have been responsibly disposed of.
The idea came to the folks at DRNA when the SprintRay Midas 3D printer came to market. The Midas uses the same concept as the Keurig Coffee Pod. It uses a small cartridge that contains enough resin to print a single crown. It cuts waste by reducing the amount of resin used and streamlines the workflow for offices that are 3D printing crowns. However, in addition to the left over resin, there is also the pod to consider as far as waste. The folks at DRNA decided to create a solution that was easy and environmentally friendly to make recycling easier. Yet you don't need to be a Midas user to recycle. Now DRNA has brought 3D recycling to any office using a 3D printer. As the 3D printing market expands and printers evolve, there will also be other 'pod' type solutions on the market and getting started with recycling now is a good thing for everyone.
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