A new study by researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology shows that commercially available desktop 3D printers can have substantial emissions of potentially harmful nanosized particles in indoor air. The study, which was recently published in the journal Atmospheric Environment, is the first to measure airborne particle emissions from commercially available desktop 3D printers. Desktop 3D printers are now widely accessible for rapid prototyping and small-scale manufacturing in home and office settings. Many desktop 3D printers rely on a process where a thermoplastic feedstock is heated, extruded through a small nozzle, and deposited onto a surface to build 3D objects. Similar processes have been shown to have significant aerosol emissions in other studies using a range of plastic feedstocks, but mostly in industrial environments.
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