3D Printing of Mechanical Recycled PA12/CF Composite
- 1Center of Excellence Polymer Processing, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, 47 Domneasca, 800 008 Galati, Romania
- 2Department of Chemistry, Physics and Environment, Faculty of Sciences and Environment, “Dunarea de Jos” University of Galati, 111 Domneasca, 800 201 Galati, Romania
Abstract
The management of small volumes of polymer and composite waste poses a major challenge for the polymer processing industry because standard recycling plants rely on a continuous, high-volume flow of sorted materials to run. Additive Manufacturing (AM) offers high potential to reprocess small volumes by turning the waste into usable filaments. Although carbon fiber-reinforced polyamide (PA/CF) composites are widely used in engineering applications, comprehensive experimental studies are needed to assess how the end-use properties are retained when recycled PA/CF composites are processed by AM. This study investigates the feasibility of recycling and remanufacturing PA12/CF waste using Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF). The mechanically recycled PA12/CF composite was extruded into filament and 3D printed under different configurations. The physical, chemical, thermal, rheological, microstructural, and mechanical properties of the recycled PA12/CF (rPA12/CF) composite were systematically investigated and compared with those of the virgin counterparts. Experimental results indicated that the recycled PA12/CF composite exhibited very good chemical and thermal stability. However, the mechanical recycling process led to a decrease in the mean CF length, from 0.203 mm in vPA12/CF to 0.147 mm in rPA12/CF, as well as a reduction in melt shear viscosity. The mechanical properties of the rPA12/CF composite depend on the printing configuration. The rPA12/CF samples printed at 0° orientation retained at least 90% of the elastic modulus or bending modulus values of the vPA12/CF counterpart, while the tensile strength and ductility increased by 10%. This study confirms the potential of FFF technology to reprocess small volumes of recycled composite waste into specialized parts where the balance between the cost and end-use properties justifies the use of recycled materials.
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BibTeX
@article{sandu2026printing,
title = {{3D Printing of Mechanical Recycled PA12/CF Composite}},
author = {Ionut-Laurentiu Sandu and Felicia Stan and Catalin Fetecau and Andreea-Veronica Botezatu},
journal = {Polymers},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/polym18202522},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2522},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - 3D Printing of Mechanical Recycled PA12/CF Composite
AU - Ionut-Laurentiu Sandu
AU - Felicia Stan
AU - Catalin Fetecau
AU - Andreea-Veronica Botezatu
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Polymers
DO - 10.3390/polym18202522
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4360/18/20/2522
AB - The management of small volumes of polymer and composite waste poses a major challenge for the polymer processing industry because standard recycling plants rely on a continuous, high-volume flow of sorted materials to run. Additive Manufacturing (AM) offers high potential to reprocess small volumes by turning the waste into usable filaments. Although carbon fiber-reinforced polyamide (PA/CF) composites are widely used in engineering applications, comprehensive experimental studies are needed to assess how the end-use properties are retained when recycled PA/CF composites are processed by AM. This study investigates the feasibility of recycling and remanufacturing PA12/CF waste using Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF). The mechanically recycled PA12/CF composite was extruded into filament and 3D printed under different configurations. The physical, chemical, thermal, rheological, microstructural, and mechanical properties of the recycled PA12/CF (rPA12/CF) composite were systematically investigated and compared with those of the virgin counterparts. Experimental results indicated that the recycled PA12/CF composite exhibited very good chemical and thermal stability. However, the mechanical recycling process led to a decrease in the mean CF length, from 0.203 mm in vPA12/CF to 0.147 mm in rPA12/CF, as well as a reduction in melt shear viscosity. The mechanical properties of the rPA12/CF composite depend on the printing configuration. The rPA12/CF samples printed at 0° orientation retained at least 90% of the elastic modulus or bending modulus values of the vPA12/CF counterpart, while the tensile strength and ductility increased by 10%. This study confirms the potential of FFF technology to reprocess small volumes of recycled composite waste into specialized parts where the balance between the cost and end-use properties justifies the use of recycled materials.
SN - 2073-4360
ER -