A new program has been proposed to test and certify 3D printing (3DP) filaments for emissions safety. To engineers who've used 3D printers at home this is a no-brainer, and commenters on Design News in the last couple years have frequently stated concerns over breathing fumes from melting plastic.

Is this program from a standards body? A coalition of 3DP filament makers or other industry group? How about the privately/publicly funded America Makes institute? No to all of those. It's from a consumer on Kickstarter, and targets 3DP use in homes and schools.

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Rachel Spieczny founded Clean Strands as a consumer of 3D printer filament for at-home use, a mom, and a PMP Certified Project Manager working in industry. While there are some ongoing efforts in research on 3DP filament emissions, she thinks this is the first approach from a consumer's perspective, she told us.

Spieczny has lined up a couple of organizations to help with emissions testing and certification. Up to 75 filaments will be tested and the results will be issued in a free report. Clean Strands will work with the Built Environment Research Group (BERG) at Illinois Institute of Technology to test ultrafine particles and total volatile organic compounds emitted from 3DP filaments at different temperatures. While a few articles have been published on the problem, the BERG lab is the only one to have published an extensive study of 3DP and indoor air quality, said Spieczny. Also planned are tests for the presence and concentration of specific chemicals such as styrene and hydrogen cyanide.

Spieczny also aims to set an indoor air quality safety standard for 3D printing in homes and schools. Filament manufacturers that qualify, established with the help of global environmental consultancy Ramboll ENVIRON, would be awarded with the Clean Strands Seal of Approval for product packaging, the first of its kind in the 3DP industry.

Although her aim is to provide in-depth testing and certification for 3DP filaments used in homes and schools, that includes filaments used in FDM (fused deposition modeling), aka fused filament, 3D printers, as well as filaments used in 3D printers sold to consumers for under $3,000. "I am limiting our testing to filaments like PLA, ABS, nylon, and composites like brick, wood, and carbon," Spieczny said. "Long-term, I envision Clean Strands performing an annual testing and reporting cycle like a J.D. Power report, as lots of new filaments will be coming to market every year."

"While vent hoods and breathing masks are standard in industrial settings, there are currently no regulations controlling air quality when 3D printing in homes and schools," she said. "With little oversight into the chemicals that make up 3D printing filament, Clean Strands' goal is to ensure that more regulations are in place by the time we think of 3D printers as just another common household appliance."

Spieczny said the project has received an enthusiastic response from several 3D printer and filament makers, and has been in correspondence with Underwriter Laboratories.

Additional information can be found on the Clean Strands Kickstarter page, as well as the company's blog.

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Ann R. Thryft is senior technical editor, materials & assembly, for Design News. She's been writing about manufacturing- and electronics-related technologies for 27 years, covering manufacturing materials & processes, alternative energy, and robotics. In the past, she's also written about machine vision and all kinds of communications.