Evaluation of formaldehyde, particulate matters 2.5 and 10 emitted to a 3D printing workspace based on ventilation

Recently, the development of 3D printing (3DP) technology and its application in various fields have improved our quality of life. However, hazardous materials that affect the human body, such as formaldehyde and particulate matter (PM), are emitted into the air during 3DP. This study measured the formaldehyde, PM(10), and PM(2.5) emitted by 3DP with the ventilation operation using six materials in material extrusion (ME) and vat photopolymerization (VP) and compared them between the 3DP workspace and the control setting with test–retest validation by two researchers. The experiments were divided into four stages based on the 3DP and ventilation operation. A linear mixed model was used to analyze the mean differences and tendencies between the 3DP workspace and the control setting. The change as ventilation was switched from off to on was evaluated by calculating the area. The differences and tendencies were shown in the statistically significant differences from a post-hoc test (α = 0.0125) except for some cases. There was a significant difference in formaldehyde depending on the ventilation operation; however, only a minor difference in PM(10,) and PM(2.5) was confirmed. The amount of formaldehyde exceeding the standard was measured in all materials during 3DP without ventilation. Therefore, it is recommended to operate ventilation systems.