Recently the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Texas at Austin released a study on the emissions of ultrafine particles (UFPs) (particles less than 100 nanometers in diameter) and volatile organic compounds (VOC) from desktop 3D printers. The study, entitled 'Emissions of Ultrafine Particles and Volatile Organic Compounds from Commercially Available Desktop Three-Dimensional Printers with Multiple Filaments,' can be found online here.
The study used several different desktop 3D printers, one of which was a LulzBot Mini. Since the LulzBot Mini is compatible with a larger variety of different filament types, they were able to test with ABS, PLA, HIPS, t-glase, Laybrick, Laywoo-D3, PCTPE, Nylon, and even polycarbonate.
An important takeaway from this study is that, as always, be sure to operate your LulzBot desktop 3D printer in a well-ventilated environment. You can also find more information about all of the materials we sell on their respective product pages here on LulzBot.com, including links to the safety data sheets from the manufacturers themselves.
Additionally, we are proud to carry several premium 3D printing filaments with low UFP emissions, such as INOVA-1800 by Chroma Strand Labs, nGen by colorFabb, and n-vent by Taulman 3D. These quality co-polyester filaments are made from Eastman Amphora™ 3D polymer for dimensionally stable parts that print accurately and have low odor, all while engineered to release fewer UFPs than other common 3D printing filament options. You can learn more about nanoparticle and VOC emissions when 3D printing Amphora™-based materials in a recent study by Eastman Chemical Company, entitled 'Clearing the air about 3D printing emissions,' available online here.