3D Printing and ABS Recycling: Assessing Virgin and Re-used Filament - 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing

2022-08-15 09:41:37 By : Ms. Coco Liu

3D Printing Webinar and Event Roundup: August 14, 2022

3D Printing News Briefs, August 13, 2022: Natural Fibers, Robotic Gripper, & More

3D Printing News Unpeeled, Live with Joris Peels Friday 12th of August

Metals Market Data: Q4 & Annual 2021

Market for Bound Metal Additive Manufacturing 2022

The Market for Additive Manufactured Polymer Automotive Parts: Europe and North America Regions

DED and Large-Format Additive Manufacturing Markets: 2021-2030

3D Printed Metals: A Patent Landscape Analysis 2019

3d Printed Polymers: A Patent Landscape Analysis – 2016

3d-printed Metals: A Patent Landscape Analysis – 2016

Metal Parts Produced 2021: Additive Manufacturing Applications Market Analysis

Additive Manufacturing with Metal Powders 2020

Copper Additive Manufacturing 2020–Market Database and Outlook

Surface Finish Study by Fraunhofer IAPT

Additive Monitoring Study by Fraunhofer IAPT

Additive Fatigue Study by Fraunhofer IAPT

A curated collection of industry and product deep-dives.

Videos, podcasts, product reviews and free downloadable resources.

Powerful search with product databases and business directories.

Dig Deeper, Search Our Message Board 3dprintboard.com

Feature Your Job Posting Here

3D Printing Webinar and Event Roundup: August 14, 2022

3D Printing News Briefs, August 13, 2022: Natural Fibers, Robotic Gripper, & More

3D Printing News Unpeeled, Live with Joris Peels Friday 12th of August

3D Printing Webinar and Event Roundup: August 14, 2022

3D Printing News Briefs, August 13, 2022: Natural Fibers, Robotic Gripper, & More

3D Printing News Unpeeled, Live with Joris Peels Friday 12th of August

In the recently published ‘Investigation of closed loop manufacturing with Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) over multiple generations using Additive Manufacturing,’ authors Mazher Iqbal Mohammed, Daniel Wilson, Eli Gomez-Kervin, Bin Tang, and Jinfeng Wang explore the impacts of FFF 3D printing on acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) during multiple recycling processes.

As 3D printing increases in popularity, so does the amount of discarded plastic. And while PLA is biodegradable, ABS is a typical plastic that is not—presenting environmental issues. In this study, the researchers hoped to explore FFF systems in regard to their low power consumption which may lend themselves to a path of greater manufacturing sustainability.

The researchers began using virgin ABS, put through two successive closed-loop filament extrusion and 3D printing phases. In this study they used 100 percent recycled 3D printed ABS, made into filament for re-use—allowing them to investigate parameters and potential for defects along the way.

“Studies have previously reported that changes in melt flow index and mechanical properties occur with ABS after recycling using injection and cast-molding,” stated the researchers. “However, to our best knowledge, no study has examined the influence of multiple closed-loop recycling phases using AM, where the grade of ABS and the thermal process regimes differ from manufacturing by molding processes.”

Virgin ABS pellets were extruded as filament and then 3D printed into parts. The researchers made sure to use plastic from one source only to make sure any differences would be directly comparable. Granules were produced in a uniform size, separated with a sieve with a mesh size of 5 mm.

“To determine the average pellet/granule size, 20 ABS pellets or granules were randomly collected from the source batch and their longest lengths were measured and averaged,” stated the researchers.

(a) Relative print orientations of the tensile and compression test coupons and (b) universal testing machine on which mechanical tests were performed.

While the study centered around the use of virgin ABS, the research team also experimented with one-time, two-time recycled ABS, as well as samples of 90, 80, 70, 60, 50, 40, 30, 20, and 10% virgin ABS. They assessed extrusion flow rate, 3D printing and characterization, polymer analysis, and mechanical property characterization.

In some cases, ‘nonuniformity of granules’ causes blockages, as well as ‘pinning’ because of sharp edges. The researchers tried agitating granules during extrusion to keep filament flowing correctly. Ultimately, the research team found that the FFF 3D printer performed very well with recycled ABS, and over multiple recycling generations too. They deemed the process successful and one that could indeed serve as a valid method of manufacturing with ‘several generations of use.’

(a) (i) A graph depicting the change in extruded filament diameter for changes in extrusion temperature; for clarity, only results for virgin,10% recycled, 50% recycled, and 100% recycled ABS are illustrated. (a) (ii) Temperature differences when extruding a respective ABS blend relative to obtain a filament diameter of 1.75 mm. (b) (i) Extrusion flow rate for various ABS blends comprising varying percentages of recycled to virgin material; for clarity, only results for virgin, 10% recycled, 50% recycled, and 100% recycled ABS are illustrated. (b) (ii) Extrusion flow rate for the various ABS blends when forming filaments with a diameter of 1.75 mm.

“Arguably, FFF has currently had its greatest commercial success in production of concept prototype devices by design companies or in the manufacturing of ornamental items such as toys and models, which generally have no strict mechanical strength requirements. Therefore, we believe that the use of recycled ABS of either one-time or two-times recycled variants could feasibly replace virgin polymer filaments in such applications, as the measured decline in mechanical strength would not impact the function of the end parts or prototypes,” concluded the researchers.

“FFF holds considerable potential for sustainable management of ABS plastics through its reintroduction into wider industrial manufacturing, potentially creating value from what is otherwise a growing burden to resource-recovery sites and landfill.”

ABS is one of the most popular 3D printing materials, for users on every level whether they are creating new materials and composites, refining issues with adhesion, or even making workstations. What do you think of this news? Let us know your thoughts! Join the discussion of this and other 3D printing topics at 3DPrintBoard.com.

Comparison in compressive stress for compression samples 3D printed using (a) virgin, (b) one-time recycled, and (c) two-times recycled ABS. (d) Summary of the compressive strain for the various ABS samples printed in the two spatial orientations. (e) Summary table of results for all compression test samples.

Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and recieve information and offers from thrid party vendors.

3D Printing Webinar and Event Roundup: August 14, 2022

3D Printing News Briefs, August 13, 2022: Natural Fibers, Robotic Gripper, & More

First up in today’s 3D Printing News Briefs is Formnext + PM South China, which returns to Shenzhen next month. Next, Lithoz won an award from Licensing Executive Society International....

I’m always fascinated by MIT textile researcher and 3D designer Ganit Goldstein‘s work. Before completing her MA in Textiles at London’s Royal College of Art, she majored in fashion and...

Our solar system has an incredible variety of worlds, and recent research has identified several off-Earth locations as potentially habitable for humans, like Mars, Europa, Enceladus, and the Moon. With...

Silicon Valley startup Sakuu is using some of the funds from its total $62 million raised to open a new facility for its battery 3D printing platform. The multi-million-dollar site...

Upload your 3D Models and get them printed quickly and efficiently.

Networking & Intelligence Summit, February 7-9, 2023

3D Printing jobs around the world.

Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter

© 2016 - 2022 3DR HOLDINGS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Register to view and download proprietary industry data from SmarTech and 3DPrint.com Questions? Contact info@3dprint.com