Concerns about black plastic filament?
There have been recent concerns raised about black plastic in household items containing toxic levels of flame retardants:
Washington Post coverage [gift link]
Is anyone concerned about the implications of this study with respect to black filaments? I’m curious if someone from Prusa could weigh in on any safety concerns in black Prusament filaments? I know they’re not officially food safe, but the coverage does mention avoiding black plastic in toys, and certainly many people are making toys or toy-like objects with their Prusa printers and filaments!
This *might* be a concern if you plan to make your own filament from unsorted recycled plastic but not otherwise.
Cheerio,
RE: Concerns about black plastic filament?
Please forgive me, as I don’t know much about how the filaments are made, besides what’s been shared in some Prusa promos/behind-the-scenes videos. Where are the raw materials for the filaments sourced? Are any of them recycled in such a way that they could be affected by this?
This is a user to user forum. Prusa staff rarely drop in. To contact Prusa directly use Chat or Prusa's github.
Most filament is made from new plastic, either from oil or, increasingly, from biological sources. Only a few filaments are made from recycled material - and advertised as such; to ensure consistent quality these are usually sourced from other manufacturing procedures with known properties. Printable filaments have tight technical requirements and mixed plastic waste doesn't cut the mustard.
General recovered waste isn't used. There are a couple of exceptions, for example:
.. and the home-made filament favourite, PET soft drinks bottles.
The products mentioned in the articles you linked seem to be injection moulded - and the colour is probably irrelevant. In most of the world plastics for child use and for food use are strictly regulated and tested, I don't know US regulations and enforcement but this looks like a legal problem.
But if you *do* need flame retardent filament, see:
https://www.prusa3d.com/product/prusament-petg-v0/
Cheerio,