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===In the News===
===In the News===
* [http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/october/story97966.html 3D Printing: The Greener Choice] -- Michigan Tech News [http://environmentalresearchweb.org/cws/article/yournews/54933 Environmental Research Web]
* [http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/october/story97966.html 3D Printing: The Greener Choice] -- Michigan Tech News [http://environmentalresearchweb.org/cws/article/yournews/54933 Environmental Research Web], [http://cacm.acm.org/news/168644-3d-printing-the-greener-choice/fulltext Communications of the ACM]
* [http://phys.org/news/2013-10-d-energy-scientist.html 3-D printing: Making your own saves energy, scientist says] - Phys.org
* [http://phys.org/news/2013-10-d-energy-scientist.html 3-D printing: Making your own saves energy, scientist says] - Phys.org
* [http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/home-3d-printing-greener-than-importing-plastic-goods Home 3D Printing Can Be Greener Than Importing Plastic Goods] - Motherboard
* [http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/home-3d-printing-greener-than-importing-plastic-goods Home 3D Printing Can Be Greener Than Importing Plastic Goods] - Motherboard

Revision as of 11:41, 11 October 2013

Source

Greenreprap.jpg

Megan Kreiger and Joshua M. Pearce (2013). Environmental Life Cycle Analysis of Distributed 3-D Printing and Conventional Manufacturing of Polymer Products, ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, Just Accepted Manuscript. DOI: 10.1021/sc400093k [Open access]

Abstract

With the recent development of the RepRap, an open-source self-replicating rapid prototyper, low-cost 3-D printing is now a technically viable form of distributed manufacturing of polymer-based products. However, the aggregate environmental benefits of distributed manufacturing are not clear due to scale reductions and the potential for increases in embodied energy. To quantify the environmental impact of distributed manufacturing using 3-D printers, a life cycle analysis was performed on three plastic products. The embodied energy and emissions from conventional large-scale production in low-labor cost countries and shipping are compared to experimental measurements on a RepRap with and without solar photovoltaic (PV) power fabricating products with acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) and polylactic acid (PLA). The results indicate that the cumulative energy demand of manufacturing polymer products can be reduced by 41-64% (55-74% with PV) and concomitant emission reductions using distributed manufacturing with existing low-cost open-source 3-D printers when using <25% fill PLA. Less pronounced positive environmental results are observed with ABS, which demands higher temperatures for the print bed and extruder. Overall, the results indicate that distributed manufacturing using open-source 3-D printers has the potential to have a lower environmental impact than conventional manufacturing for a variety of products.

See Also

Method

In the News

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