Page 51 - Luke Lister

Polyactic Acid(PLA)

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3

The swatch is painted with Lighter acrylic paint is applied Darker acrylic paint is applied
grey primer. using a horizontal brush stroked. in horizontal brush strokes to add
Light first coat followed by multiple light spots to the ridged
applications till no primer base coat.
is visible.

Material History

Grew

Production commercially Popularity
process due to it being increased due
developed. biodegradable. to 3D printing.

1954 1990s 2000s

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Production Properties

PLA is produced from Lactic Acid using a fermentation process which causes polymerisation Biodegradable.
using polycondensation. The PLA is then formed into pellets which are blended with pigments Thermoplastic.
and left to dry. The dried pellets get placed into an extruder which melts them down and Non-toxic.
extrudes them into a monofilament. This filament needs to be cooled down and then it can be
wound onto spools for
shipment.
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