Waste Plastics to 3D Printer Filament: An Overview on Industrial Applications

Abstract

Waste plastics have become a major threat to the environment and the inhabitants causing both land and water pollution. The incineration of waste plastics for energy generation results in air pollution that is more dangerous than disposing into landfills. Using 3D printing filament produced from recycled polymer materials (i.e., Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles) could turn the waste plastic into re-usable additive manufacturing feedstock. This decreases the negative impact of waste plastics on our environment. The current applications for using recycled plastics in the design and fabrication of parts in additive manufacturing are highly laudable. 3D printing recycled filament through a step of manufacturing processes which include sorting, shredding, grinding, blending, melting, extruding, and spooling. This work aims to conduct a full assessment of the waste plastics recycling process for the production of 3D printing filament used for polymer-based part fabrication. This paper documents the review of the recent available literature on the production of filaments used for 3D printers from recycled polymer materials as the alternative way to reduce the harmful effect of waste plastics in the environment. Various conducted research works have shown that the application of 3D printed filament produced from recycled polymer materials has been widely utilized in medical, automotive, architecture, aerospace, food packaging, and engineering applications