I've recently bought myself a preassembled Prusa i3 MK3S printed and made my first projects. One of them was making a cup with my name on it. I want to use it to drink tea, water etc. I know, however, that I need to chose my filament wisely, as using the wrong one might be unsafe. I know that PLA for example is Polylactic acid which is a safe substance and occurs naturally in our body. Another thing is the dye, which can is a chemical substance I know nothing about. Do You recommend any specific type/model? Thanks.
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1@Greenonline Editing the question so significantly after it already has two answers isn't that great of an idea. Now the answers do not make sense any more. Moreover, there are thousands of different kind of dye so I think the current question is unreasonably broad. – Tom van der Zanden Jun 21 '19 at 10:20
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Answer was moved to this question: Which are the food-safe materials and how do I recognize them?
cmm
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I think this site will answer some questions about food safe 3D printing: 12 Vital Facts About Food Safe 3D Printing
PLA is not a good choice for hot substances because it will deform at hot water temperatures which is no good for a cup (very dangerous!)
I would recommend a filament like PETG, PETE, HDPE, and LDPE: What Plastics Are Approved for Food Contact Applications?
Those types of plastic require very high printing temperatures and an all metal hot end. You don't want PTFE in your hot end when printing at those temperatures (265 °C) as it will emit toxic gasses.
I've seen food safe filaments for sale so it might be best to search Google for one of them to use.
Please keep in mind that printing anything will cause voids and gaps that will allow bacteria to grow. Personally I don't think I would want to risk it for daily use items but a coffee/tea cup might be alright. This is covered in the first link.
Greenonline
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naps1saps
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