Home #3dprinting is fun. I like making fun things like #ttrpg minis, and useful things, like a spice rack organizer.
I like how they fit into #solarpunk story telling.
But until/unless one can recycle and more importantly, produce filament, it's still a centralized technology based on plastic.
I've only worked with basic PLA, and read a bit about PETG & the differences.
Are there any filament technologies that are recyclable / reusable or that can be produced locally from raw materials?
Thank you!
As that one still needs extra metal hardware (the frame is 3d printable) I went down a rabbit hole to see if there were complete consumer machines to do this.
Found this current Kickstarter (Indigogo) project.
https://crowdfunding.creality.com/
Looks like about $1200 USD for a pair of shredder / extruder devices together.
More expensive than my use case can justify, but I love seeing folks working on this.
@pseudonym Hmm. I don't see them selling the entire kit (it came with all the parts) anymore. Maybe it was a one time thing at the time of their kickstarter? https://creative3dp.com/products/extrudex-diy-filament-recycling-machine
But I bet as soon as my husband sees the link you shared, he'll be drooling. ;)
Yes, please. I'd be interested.
@pseudonym in Germany we have a company called recycling Fabrik. They recycle used PLA and PETG
https://www.recyclingfabrik.com
I like their stuff. You should have something like this in CA too!
What an awesome service. Yes, that's exactly what I'm looking for, but surprisingly, I can't find one in California.
Best I can find is
Printerior offers recycling programs for businesses, schools, maker spaces, and hobbyists. We know that most failed prints end up going straight into the garbage, and with your help we can do something about that. For every KG of waste plastic you recycle you'll receive discounts on filament purchases. If you are a hob
Cost for mailing, and the mass I'd have to save up and store to make it at all useful. I'm a small print user.
It would take me a while to accumulate even a kilogram of waste.
@pseudonym In addition to some of the options mentioned in other replies about recycling filament from scraps/previous prints, there are also companies recycling PET bottles into filament (e.g. https://bpetfilament.com/)
From what I hear it can be more finicky to work with than PLA and PETG, but it does work!
Some of the early ones worked with wood chips and laminated them together. Wish somebody would go back to that tech. Or even recycled paper, it can be super strong when laminated.
I can't speak about recyclable filament technologies, and I know there are a lot of people actually working on the subject, but a simple way I've seen of reusing wasted filament from supports and failed prints is taking a simple silicone mold and heating the plastic into it so it takes its shape. I've seen people make dominos, legos and other small objects from that approach, and practically all you need is the mold and the filament scraps.
Most thermo-plastics are recyclable into filament to an extent, but quality degrades too much after a few cycles.
PLA is a plant-based plastic. It's possible to produce from local materials, but the chemistry and infrastructure to get from growing plants to a consistent 1.75mm filament you can use takes some real dedication. Even the last step of transformation from good quality pellets and colorant to filament has factories dedicated to it.
That's all to say, it's not really feasible for an individual to do, but it could make a good sci-fi story. Get enough people together and they could probably make a try at small scale PLA production, but it would be guaranteed uneconomical unless global supply chains are effectively gone.
Today I learned.
Thanks. That's great background, that fits with my general sense. I didn't know PLA was plant based.
Wish there were more readily accessible recycling options. Good to know it is ultimately biodegradable. I've been throwing away supports from prints, as it can't go into the usual home recycling stream, and I don't have a melter/extruder to reuse it.
The biodegradability, as you note, isn't really home biodegradable, so it's another case where you'd need some dedication to make it happen.
Supposedly PHA is the really good alternative that can break down easily, but it's presently expensive. It's probably the one I'd shoot for if I were to get a group together to make local filament.
On the other hand, I've kept this paper in the back of my head for years and really want to experiment with slurry printers. Coffee may not be local, but I'd bet I could find local plants that would work or revisit what printing with clay slip takes.
Yup. That's what I found as well, on both counts.
@pseudonym so we get our PLA for m overture 3d and they actually have a 100% recycled filament available. It's glossy black but that's ok for minis.
Dunno how to recycle from failed prints. That'd be fantastic but at least it's biodegradable (afaik)
This is a main reason why I haven't gone for 3D printing.
When I was growing up, schools didn't teach "recycle." They taught "reduce, reuse, recycle", in that order. Add the conservationism I learned in the Boy Scouts (and growing up fishing and hunting) and it made me into somebody who considers the environment maybe more than others.
3D printing as a whole does not accomplish or promote reduction or reuse of materials. In my view it seems to promote the opposite.
Many of the things I see which are 3D printed could be made out of wood, using hand tools and simple nails or screws, or metal, using hand tools with enough patience, or durable machine tools. The tools and materials will eventually rot or rust and safely go back to the land when they are no longer needed.
3D printing requires use of things made of materials that don't break down easily, if at all, and are toxic to the land while they do break down.
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