Chemical characterization of particulates and volatile organic compounds emitted during fused deposition modeling

Abstract

Additive manufacturing (AM) is largely regarded as an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional manufacturing techniques. However, some studies have pointed out that AM may carry its own environmental implications. It has been reported that high concentrations of ultrafine particle emissions as well as volatile and semi volatile organic compound emissions from the fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printing process. The health consequences of exposure to these ultrafine particles and organic compounds are unknown. Determining the chemical composition of the ultrafine particles and the volatile organic compounds is the first step toward understanding potential health risks of FDM process. In this study, we collect air emissions from FDM printing using ABS plastic filament for chemical characterization. Using solid phase microextraction (SPME), compounds in samples are adsorbed or absorbed on a fiber coating and analyzed with gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC–MS). Several compounds are successfully identified in printer emissions and compared with samples collected from filament wash prior to extrusion. The most predominant compound was styrene, followed by various benzene aromatics, nitrogenated aromatics, and siloxanes. Measurements identifies substantial cross over between compounds found from printer emission and filament wash tests, suggesting that some emissions could possibly be reduced, or in some cases, even eliminated by washing 3D printer filament prior to use.