3D Printing Plastic – PLA Bioplastic – PLA plastic, whose full name is Polylactic Acid, is a kind of plastic that belongs to the group of Thermoplastic, manufactured from renewable resources such as corn starch and sugar cane.
3D Printing Plastic – PLA Bioplastic
Characteristics:
PLA plastics share characteristics with Polypropylene (PP) and Polyethylene (PE). Because this kind of plastic can be manufactured by existing manufacturing machinery that were originally meant for petroleum-based plastic, PLA is highly cost-effective. Moreover, PLA stands second largest production volume of all bioplastics (Creative Mechanisms, 2017)
3D Printing Plastic – PLA Bioplastic
Comparison with other types of plastic:
Firstly, PLA is a biodegradable plastic material, therefore it is very environment-friendly. In the same condition of salt water, PLA plastic can degrade in 6-24 months, whereas petroleum-based plastic such as PP and PE take hundreds, if not thousands of years.
Furthermore, because of its biodegradable characteristic, PLA plastic has high application in products with short lifespan, such as water bottles and nylon packages for fruit and vegetable.
Moreover, PLA plastic is recyclable. Upon reaching high temperature, PLA plastic liquifies and thus able to be reformed. On the other side, Thermosetting plastics, though they can be heated and molded in the first time, will transform chemically. The second time heating will simply set it ablaze.
Finally, PLA plastic, despite being harmless in solid form, can be potentially toxic in liquid or vapor form during the 3D printing process. Users should avoid making contact with PLA plastic during this time (Creative Mechanisms, 2017)
3D Printing Plastic – PLA Bioplastic
3D Printing service at Smart Design Labs Vietnam:
Công ty TNHH Smart Design Labs
Địa chỉ: Phòng 305B, số 86 Lê Trọng Tấn, Khương Mai, Thanh Xuân, Hà Nội.
Số điện thoại: 024 7300 1262
Hotline: 039 595 5749 | 035 873 6772
Email: contact@3dshop.com.vn
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Tags: Smart Design Labs, 3D Printing, 3D Printing Plastic – PLA Bioplastic
