Hello 3D Hubs!
3D Printlife has just released Enviro, a premium quality biodegradable ABS filament, and we are offering free shipping to anyone in the 3D Hubs community that wants to try it out or test it for themselves.
We have bonded a proprietary bio-additive with ABS that allows the material to degrade when exposed to the bacteria in a landfill leachate. Even the spool itself is made of biodegradable recycled cardboard and secured with a recyclable tin end cap. We are also making a donation to the Nature Conservancy’s “Plant a Billion Trees” fund to plant a tree for every spool we ship.
3D Printlife is so excited about everything 3D Hubs is doing to make 3d printing more accessible, and we are happy to offer anything we can to its members. So if you are printing with ABS, we just want you to know that there is now an eco-friendly option available.
To receive your discount just visit us at http://www.3dprintlife.com and enter the promo code 3DHUBS at checkout. Enviro is also available for prime shipping on Amazon.com if that is more convenient for you.
We are still in the process of setting up international distribution so if you are outside of the US send us an email at info@3dprintlife.com and we will try to set up special rates or link you with one of our international resellers as they come online.
Thanks guys!
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This is interesting to say the least. When the material breaks down does it leave hydrocarbon bonds intact? If so would a bacteria “softened” material be ready for something like mycoremediation? Will this material in any way effect bench-top recycling of fails/scrap with equipment like a Filabot? Will you be licensing out your formula for use by 100 mile certified recycle plants around the country?
Thanks for the response and those are all good questions! It seems like you already have an excellent grasp of chemistry so forgive the junior high level explanation. The bio additive attracts the bacteria in landfill leachate, once bacteria starts consuming the additive it moves onto the ABS and eventually converts it completely into CO2 and methane. In active landfills the methane is captured, refined, and burned to create electricity. The entire process is carbon neutral. Overall the material is still ABS in and should not alter print quality in Filabot style recycling at all. Depending on the percentage of source material being recycled it may well add to its eco-friendliness. (If that was your question.) Finally, we’d love to license the formula but without bonding the additive to the plastic prior to extrusion or injection molding it wouldn’t allow for bacterial consumption. Also the formula is not universal to all plastics and would have to be formulated to bond properly various types. I hope that answers your questions and thanks again for asking. Please let me know if I missed anything!
