Food Safe 3D Printing: A Study
[Matt Thomas] wanted to answer the question of whether 3D printed structures can be safe for food or even medical care, because there is so much opinion but not much real science on the topic. As a mechanical engineer who dabbles in medical technical issues, he devised a series of tests using a wide range of nasty-sounding pathogens, to find once and for all what works and what doesn't. /p>
A common argument arose from the makers movement's response to Covid-19; 3D printed masks and visors. Many of us (this scribe included) have printed many thousands of visor frames and hearing protectors, using the 
400vw) of 3D printers we had, then distributed to nursing homes and medical practices, and everywhere else that couldn't get "proper" medical grade items. There were many opinions about the risks associated with contamination of such 3D printed structures, due to the supposedly porous nature of the prints. [Matt] showed with SEM imaging that a typical 3D print has no detectable porosity and that grooves due to layer lines are so positively huge compared to your average bacteria that they are also irrelevant .
Straight to the point, [Matt] shows that regular dish soap and water are quite sufficient to kill 90% or more of all the pathogens he tested, and that by using a mixture of culture exchange samples as well as protein detection, that 3D printed parts could be cleaned to medical standards, not to mention those of food handling. Even those pesky biofilms could be quickly removed with a quick bleach rinse or scrub with baking soda. Does this article finally clear that up? Only you can decide!
Obviously we've covered the subject of 3D printing masks a bit, but it's not just about PPAs, sometimes fans need a little 3D printing love too. Prusa has done some work on the topic of food safety, looking specifically at post-processing 3D prints, and produced some interesting results.
Thanks to [Keith] for the tip!
[Matt Thomas] wanted to answer the question of whether 3D printed structures can be safe for food or even medical care, because there is so much opinion but not much real science on the topic. As a mechanical engineer who dabbles in medical technical issues, he devised a series of tests using a wide range of nasty-sounding pathogens, to find once and for all what works and what doesn't. /p>
A common argument arose from the makers movement's response to Covid-19; 3D printed masks and visors. Many of us (this scribe included) have printed many thousands of visor frames and hearing protectors, using the 400vw) of 3D printers we had, then distributed to nursing homes and medical practices, and everywhere else that couldn't get "proper" medical grade items. There were many opinions about the risks associated with contamination of such 3D printed structures, due to the supposedly porous nature of the prints. [Matt] showed with SEM imaging that a typical 3D print has no detectable porosity and that grooves due to layer lines are so positively huge compared to your average bacteria that they are also irrelevant .
Straight to the point, [Matt] shows that regular dish soap and water are quite sufficient to kill 90% or more of all the pathogens he tested, and that by using a mixture of culture exchange samples as well as protein detection, that 3D printed parts could be cleaned to medical standards, not to mention those of food handling. Even those pesky biofilms could be quickly removed with a quick bleach rinse or scrub with baking soda. Does this article finally clear that up? Only you can decide!
Obviously we've covered the subject of 3D printing masks a bit, but it's not just about PPAs, sometimes fans need a little 3D printing love too. Prusa has done some work on the topic of food safety, looking specifically at post-processing 3D prints, and produced some interesting results.
Thanks to [Keith] for the tip!
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