Project Results

About This Project

This project is a first step in making the research laboratory a self-sustaining environment. This initiative aims to 3D print necessary laboratory utensils (labware) by using as feedstock the typical products that are discarded on a large scale in the laboratory, allowing their reuse. We will test if the reuse of plastic wastes from laboratories will be compatible with the production of filaments for 3D printing; and if this method we can make a laboratory more self-sustaining.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

This project was born from the participation of the Greenimim Team in the I Nanotechthon of the Laboratory of Nanobiotechnology (LNANO).

In the laboratory we make use of numerous objects on a large scale, like tips and polypropylene tubes. Some experiments can use up to 500 tips and dozens of tubes per day, generating a huge volume of plastic waste in the long term. These residues generate high costs in the treatment processes, as well as negative impacts on the environment. As an alternative, we suggest the implementation of 3D printing so that these materials can be reused in the form of filaments for 3D printing of new objects useful to the own laboratory.

What is the significance of this project?

We want to demonstrate with this project that it is possible to reduce part of the plastic waste and to bring sustainability to the routine in laboratories that require high demand for plastic materials, as a result of daily experiments like biological assays, production and characterization of nanomaterials, and related projects. With this, a cycle of sustainable technological practices will begin to be formed.

What are the goals of the project?

The main goal of this research project is to test if the reuse of plastic wastes from laboratories will be compatible with the production of filaments for 3D printing; and if through this method we can make a laboratory more self-sustaining. We will start by evaluating the carbon footprint of recycling lab materials, before implementing the project. We will then separate (uncontaminated) plastic waste and sterilize them and use these residues in the filament extruder to produce the feedstock for the 3D printer. The CAD models of the objects to be printed will be prepared and printed; printed objects will be tested for their function; and finally we will evaluate the carbon footprint after project implementation.