Benjamin Davis: A Desktop Machine That Turns Plastic Waste into 3D-Printing Filament
A Desktop Machine That Turns Plastic Waste into 3D-Printing Filament.
Benjamin Davis designed a desktop recycling system that converts discarded PET bottles and 3D-printer purge material into reusable filament. By combining pultrusion and extrusion, he reportedly made filament production around 45% more efficient while targeting a machine cost far below commercial alternatives. The project addresses a frustrating circular-economy gap: additive manufacturing can create useful objects but can also produce substantial plastic waste.
Innovation mindset: Look for waste created by an otherwise useful technology, then close the loop at the same scale and location where that waste is generated.
Official project title: From Crude to Extrude: A Novel Approach to Combining Pultrusion and Extrusion Technologies Into a Single Filament Production System to Recycle PET Bottle Waste and 3D Printing Purge Materials Into Additive Manufacturing Filament (Engineering Technology: Statics & Dynamics).
IP note
No public IP record; any filing made around the May 2025 fair would not yet be published under the 18-month rule — register check due from late 2026.
Recognition
Regeneron ISEF 2025 — First Award ($6,000); Regeneron Young Scientist Award ($75,000).
What this means for a student inventor in India
[Editor: 120–200 words connecting this story to the Indian route — Section 6 (any true inventor may apply), provisional vs complete specification, disclosure at fairs (Section 31), renewals, and who owns what when a school is involved. Link to the relevant MYCrave guide.]
Related young innovators
- Boyan Slat — The Ocean Cleanup
- Gitanjali Rao — Tethys
- Deepika Kurup — Solar photocatalytic water purifier
Sources
[Editor: list the 2–4 primary sources from the research notes for this entry, with the date checked.]
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