Abstract
Abstract With the 26% annual growth rate of additive manufacturing, especially in the area of 3D polymer printing, the amount of waste is increasing at a rapid rate. Limited research in the area of recycling has been produced, yet there are several recycling machines being developed for home use. Despite this work there is no published mechanical data on components produced with filament recycled from 3D printed parts. There is very limited data on mechanical properties of any 3D printed materials. This article compares the properties of parts 3D printed with virgin polylactic acid (PLA) to those printed with recycled PLA. Using commercially available PLA and an entry level 3D printer, tensile and shear specimens were produced and then tested for tensile yield strength, modulus of elasticity, shear yield strength, and hardness. The specimens were then ground up and re-extruded into filament, and a second set of specimens were produced and tested using this recycled PLA filament. Mechanical testing showed ...
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