but ABS in 3D print is safe or not safe?
It’s perfectly safe.
That what they say. Depending on what ABS i am using i can get irritated eyes and a sore throat.
They say potential problem will be thermal degradation of Acrylonitrile-, Acrylonitrile- is inside ABS (Acrylonitrile–Butadiene Stirene)
@Stefano_Corinaldesi “Safe” is a rather relative term. If I make some assumptions about your question I’d say “it depends”.
If I sit in the same room as my printer for a few hours printing ABS I do get affected by the ABS fumes, which results in irritated airways/coughing. This might be because of the specific formula of my ABS or pigments. It might have to do with the temperature I extrude at. It might be that my respitory system is pretty sensitive in general.
I keep my 3D printer in a dedicated room for hobbies, along with my 2d laser printer, soldering-, hot air stations, glues etc and I vent that room after ANY activities that involve releasing fumes, smoke or smell.
Ugh, this article again. If you read the entire article, 3d printing is compared to using other household appliances that are benign as well. In general, if it the smell bothers you, stay away, if not, you’re probably fine… except for CO and radon of course
the toaster bakes the bread, blender mix fruits, pan fried oil with chips, none of the existing appliances melts the plastic of today because no one eats plastic … … better to work in a special garage
@Stefano_Corinaldesi , this is true, it doesn’t hurt to isolate the printer, unfortunately in Florida, the mosquitoes tend to dine on you in the garage :-\
I’m also from Florida, and can tell you this is true.
The main concern with ABS and HIPS is styrene. The smell you may get when printing these materials is primarily styrene. It’s one of those things that may be carcinogenic but not definitively known. It has been found to have reasonable likelihood of being carcinogenic in humans: http://oehha.ca.gov/prop65/CRNR_notices/admin_listing/intent_to_list/010413_NILstyrene.html It can affect many organs in other ways as well. It’s best to isolate the printer if possible and/or ensure you have good ventilation. Styrene is also a chemical that people can become sensitized to which means that after prolonged exposures you suddenly have elevated allergic reactions to it or irritated respiratory tract, skin, and eyes.
Our material supplier at Ultimaker warned us on HIPS printing and the styrene fumes, they do supply us with ABS without that warning. So I think HIPS is worse then ABS. HIPS also has the added problem that production is very unfriendly to the environment.
Frying with oil. Releases oil and fumes into air. A car or truck on diesel pollutes lots of particles yet most of you guys dont even realise how dangerous it is.
Even walking down a sandy beach on a windy day will fill your lungs with particles. Its how often you do this that causes problem.
It’s all down to the type and amount of particles/fumes. If the particles would be the same as the particles from asbestos, well, then we would have a problem. So far there is no indication this is the case. Apples and oranges if you are just comparing “there are particles”.
Styrene fumes however, are real, and can cause issues.
Point is Acrylonitrile inside ABS (Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene) because at high temeprature produce hydrogen cyanide, you can find this info also on the EPA GOV web. HIPS haven’t Acrylonitrile then is more safe of ABS. Both ABS and HIPS have styrene then is better work in air and ventilating space.
I understand the concern about acrylonitrile decomposition. In general the plastics are not reaching such temperatures though. To allow them to do so would be counterproductive to the 3D printing process. A longer residence time in the hot end can lead to decomposition but this should not occur frequently either, both because of common practices and also the firmware safeties to shut off heaters after a long period of time. The only time the material would reach such temperatures is when a thermistor fails etc but there are firmware safeties for that too.
The article in question is addressing UFP’s though and it was determined that the number of UFP’s emitted by a 3D printer are comparable to those emitted when cooking. However, keep in mind the exposure time plays into this. Additionally, the UFP’s are not generally carcinogenic in the sense that asbestos fibers are.
Styrene is a much more immediate concern when it comes to 3D printing because it evaporates readily at room temperature but especially when the material is heated in the hot end.