Kristian Friessen (aka Greenboy3D) has been working extremely dilligently on creating an affordable pellet extrusion system that looks so very promising.

We hope to provide more detailed information about the extrusion system from personal experience soon, as one of them is destined to become part of a large concept printer that the folks at D3D here in Winnipeg are building.

Why does it matter? Well, it is just another way that 3D printing can be used in an environmentally thoughtful, and (re-) useful way.

Pellet extruders/pellet printing can simplify recycling and reuse of plastics, possibly even helping hyper-localizing creation of recyclable material. We may have more on that later as well.

As noted by GreenBoy3D on his website –

“With a Greenboy Pellet-Extruder-Printhead, you can recycle any plastic waste—like empty filament spools, water bottles, yogurt cups, and failed prints—into new objects.

Simply shred the plastic into pieces smaller than 0.2 inches (5 mm) and 3D print with them again. This method offers a sustainable future, turning plastic waste into new, purposeful items instead of discarding it.”

In the meantime, check out this video by Kristian to see, and hear, more about an exciting product being developed;