Life Cycle Analysis of Distributed Recycling of Post-consumer High Density Polyethylene for 3-D Printing Filament

Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 70, 1 May 2014, Pages 90-96

17 Pages Posted: 25 Feb 2019

See all articles by Megan A. Kreiger

Megan A. Kreiger

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

M. L. Mulder

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Alexandra G. Glover

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

Joshua M. Pearce

Western University ; Michigan Technological University; Aalto University

Date Written: May 8, 2014

Abstract

The growth of desktop 3-D printers is driving an interest in recycled 3-D printer filament to reduce costs of distributed production. Life cycle analysis studies were performed on the recycling of high density polyethylene into filament suitable for additive layer manufacturing with 3-D printers. The conventional centralized recycling system for high population density and low population density rural locations was compared to the proposed in home, distributed recycling system. This system would involve shredding and then producing filament with an open-source plastic extruder from postconsumer plastics and then printing the extruded filament into usable, value-added parts and products with 3-D printers such as the open source self replicating rapid prototyper, or RepRap. The embodied energy and carbon dioxide emissions were calculated for high density polyethylene recycling using SimaPro 7.2 and the database EcoInvent v2.0. The results showed that distributed recycling uses less embodied energy than the best-case scenario used for centralized recycling. For centralized recycling in a low-density population case study involving substantial embodied energy use for transportation and collection these savings for distributed recycling were found to extend to over 80%. If the distributed process is applied to the U.S. high density polyethylene currently recycled, more than 100 million MJ of energy could be conserved per annum along with the concomitant significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. It is concluded that with the open-source 3-D printing network expanding rapidly the potential for widespread adoption of in-home recycling of post-consumer plastic represents a novel path to a future of distributed manufacturing appropriate for both the developed and developing world with lower environmental impacts than the current system.

Keywords: distributed recycling, life cycle analysis, plastic, polymer, recycling, transportation energy

Suggested Citation

Kreiger, Megan A. and Mulder, M. L. and Glover, Alexandra G. and Pearce, Joshua M., Life Cycle Analysis of Distributed Recycling of Post-consumer High Density Polyethylene for 3-D Printing Filament (May 8, 2014). Journal of Cleaner Production, Volume 70, 1 May 2014, Pages 90-96 , Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3331165 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3331165

Megan A. Kreiger

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

512 M&M Building
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, MI 49931
United States

M. L. Mulder

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

512 M&M Building
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, MI 49931
United States

Alexandra G. Glover

Michigan Technological University - Department of Materials Science and Engineering

512 M&M Building
1400 Townsend Drive
Houghton, MI 49931
United States

Michigan Technological University ( email )

Houghton, MI 49931
United States

HOME PAGE: http://www.mse.mtu.edu/~pearce/Index.html

Aalto University ( email )

P.O. Box 21210
Helsinki, 00101
Finland

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