Outreach Program: Plastics are all around us.Support: NSF Polymer Program NSF-1308617 (PI: Chang Ryu)/RPI Polymer Center

Ananya Seetharaman

Holliston High School, Holliston, MA

3D Doodle Pen

3D Printing

● FormLabs stereolithographic printer - uses UV

light to form plastic through

photopolymerization - creates layers that

must then be exposed to UV light again for

optimal durability

Mini-Me Project

● Head and chest were scanned in order to

create a 3D design, which was then fed into

the printer and printed in FormLabs clear

resin

Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene:ABS Plastic

● One of two types of plastic used in the 3D

Doodle Pen

● Relatively strong and tough, and non-toxic

ABS Plastic

Wave number (cm-1)

C=O Peak

in ABS?3000 cm-1

C=C-H

In Styrene

of ABS

This C=O peak in FTIR must come from coloring additive (not from ABS itself.)

ABS Plastic

glass transitiontemperature

(Tg)

Exo

Note: ABS is amorphous, no Tm

Polylactic Acid: PLA Plastic

● Biodegradable, thermoplastic, low melting

point (150-160℃), non-toxic

● Commonly used for medical implants

PLA Plastic

Wave number (cm-1)

C=O

FTIR Spectrum

glass transition

melting

Exo

Tg

Tm

What Did I Learn - Tools for Polymer Analysis

Measuring viscosityUV Curing of Plastic Resin

What Did I Learn - Tools for Polymer Analysis

SLA

(also used for mini me

3D printing)

Liquid Nitrogen

(used to make rubber

band brittle)

What Did I Learn - Scanning Electron Microscope

● Uses a beam of electrons, and thusly

requires a metallic surface

● Non-metallic objects are coated in gold

and palladium atoms (making sample

surface conductive)

● in order to return an image

We looked at coin surface using this SEM.