Characterization of Emissions in Fab Labs: An Additive Manufacturing Environment Issue

Author:

Khaki Shirin,Rio MaudORCID,Marin Philippe

Abstract

The emergence of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies, such as 3D printing and laser cutting, has created opportunities for new design practices covering a wide range of fields and a diversity of learning and teaching settings. The potential health impact of particulate matter and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from AM technologies is, therefore, a growing concern for makers. The research behind this paper addresses this issue by applying an indoor air quality assessment protocol in an educational fabrication laboratory. The paper presents the evaluation of the particle emission rate of different AM technologies. Real-time monitoring of multiple three-dimensional Polylactic Acid (PLA), Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) and Thermoplastic Elastomers (TPE) printers and Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) laser cutters was performed in different usage scenarios. Non-contact electrical detectors and off-line gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) were used to detect VOCs. The results show that the emitted particle surface area concentrations vary between 294 and 406.2 μm2/cm3 for three-dimensional printers, and between 55.06 and 92.3 μm2/cm3 for laser cutters. The experiments demonstrate that the emission concentrations were highly dependent on the filtration systems in place. The highest quantities of VOCs emitted included Cyclohexene and Benzyl Alcohol for PLA, ABS and TPE 3D printers, and formic acid and Xylene for PMMA laser cutters. The experiment concludes that signature emissions are detectable for a given material type and an AM technology pair. A suitable mitigation strategy can be specified for each signature detected. Finally, this paper outlines some guidelines for improving indoor air quality in such specific environments. The data provided, as well as the proposed indoor air quality protocol, can be used as a baseline for future studies, and thus help to determine whether the proposed strategies can enhance operator and bystander safety.

Publisher

MDPI AG

Subject

Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law,Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment,Geography, Planning and Development

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3