CHARACTERIZING EMISSIONS FROM DESKTOP 3D PRINTERS: STUDYING THEIR HEALTH EFFECTS AND VALIDATING SOLUTIONS
Open Access
- Author:
- Mcdonnell, William Brian
- Area of Honors:
- Mechanical Engineering
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Timothy William Simpson, Thesis Supervisor
Zoubeida Ounaies, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- 3D Printing
emissions
health
fine particles
volatile organic compounds
metal
additive manufacturing - Abstract:
- Additive manufacturing is a popular method for prototyping and manufacturing custom parts, especially on college campuses. While there is widespread use of 3D printers as a part of many engineering classes, there is little regulation or knowledge regarding their emissions and safe usage and ventilation. Many plastics, including polycarbonates, acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), and polytactic acid (PLA), are known to emit high counts of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM). This study focuses on VOC and PM counts in several natural environments and dedicated maker spaces on a large college campus to gauge the exposure that students and operators experience. Emissions were measured using a photoionization detector and two particle sizers. The photoionization detector measured total VOCs, and the particle sizers measured both total fine particles and individual micro-particles based on relative particle diameter. Measurements were taken in hourly increments and then analyzed to determine the extent to which desktop printers emitted VOCs and PM. This data prompted a follow-up experiment to test the same parameters under conditions with improved ventilation; i.e., the same maker spaces were tested under the same initial conditions, but with increased airflow and circulation. This thesis also delves into the details of the health effects from the VOCs, Ultrafine Particles (UFPs), and fine PM emitted from 3D printers, and provides some insight into how regulations may be impacted as the 3D printing industry begins to expand into future applications.