You might be able to watch a video that shows a 3d printer making objects, but eventually, you probably are going to wonder 

“What is that stuff made of?”   

Well, the number of materials used in 3d printing is quite large ranging from paper, to plastics, and even human skin!

 (Yes, I did say human skin) 

Actually, pretty much anything can be used as a 3d printing material as long as you find the right machine to use it with. 

Anyway, modern science makes one new development after another so the list of materials used is going to continue to keep growing and growing which makes you wonder what will these machines be using to make objects with in the future?

 (chin scratch) 

So while you are thinking about objects being made from magical materials I am going to go on and explain the most common materials used for 3d printing.

Thermoplastics

A lot of the 3d printing articles you see online will have pictures of the various types of models that tend to be inspired by very random things like cartoon characters, models of people, and other things that like that don’t really seem to serve a purpose other than demonstrating that 3d printing machines can make cool random stuff. Well, these random objects are almost always going to end up being made of thermoplastic which is a type of plastic (bet you never thought that) but the unique thing about this material is the ability to be heated (hence thermo) to a more flexible form which is very useful for the creation of prototyping and making random stuff as mentioned earlier. Once the thermoplastic cools down, it maintains the shape it was meant to be in for a decent period of time depending on the quality grade of the thermoplastic and as long as the environmental conditions allow it.

What are the different types of thermoplastics?

• ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) - probably the most popular among thermoplastics used in 3d printing because of its light weight, affordability, and wide range of colors. Various versions of ABS exist for different needs of the object(s) being printed. ABS is most popular among machines that are designed for beginners who want to give it a try for themselves without having to worry about spending a lot of money on materials. This specific type of thermoplastic is usually what the random printed objects you see online are made of (as mentioned earlier). The main downfalls of this material are its low weight resistance as well as low heat resistance. (don’t take ABS to the beach)
• PLA (polyactive) – is a type of plastic that is similar to ABS, but it is actually biodegradable which makes it an interesting choice for 3d printing because it would mean the material is environmentally friendly so an industry like the farming industry could benefit from it.
• PC (polycarbonate) – a well-liked material because of its durability and precise dimensions when produced. It has great mechanical properties and also a very high heat resistance of 280 °F (138 °C) compared to other plastics like ABS that usually end up melting when in higher temperatures.
• Nylon – is very strong with high fatigue resistance meaning it won’t weaken over time after extended use. A good example of the use of this material would be a plastic shovel handle that carries various loads of weight but does not bend or break. Nylon is definitely a good choice for various tools that don't necessarily need the strength of metal to support the machine.
• PPSF/PPSU (polyphenylsulfone) - material has the strongest heat and chemical resistance of all of the thermoplastic materials mentioned so far. The strong resistance against heat and chemicals makes it a great fit for aerospace, automotive and medical applications which makes perfect sense if you think about all of the processes that take place in those industries that deal with high amounts of heat and chemicals. Although, like anything that is higher quality it comes with a higher price, but for those who can afford this material they will not be disappointed with their purchase.

Metal Alloy

A popular material for the industries that need a strong material for a variety of different conditions and uses. An alloy is a material that is a combination of a metal and another element. The combining of a metal with another element makes it a very useful 3d printing material because it opens a large number of options to choose from instead of being limited like some other materials used. 

What are some metal alloys that I might recognize you ask?

Well, a  few metal alloys that you would recognize are steel, brass, and cheap gold ( fools gold) which is a combination of a metal and gold as compared to pure gold which is (you guessed it) pure gold! Metal alloys are used in a number of 3d printing processes and will most likely be used across more and more over time as technology adapts to the needs for printing metals such as high temperatures and stronger machines.

The two major benefits of using this material for 3d printing is the high heat and weight resistance which also means it is a good choice for long term needs such as something like a support beam which you would obviously not want collapsing soon after it is put into use. The only major downfall of using this material is the higher cost compared to other materials, but as I mentioned earlier, higher quality usually means a higher price.

Plaster 

Yes, this is the plaster that you are probably very used to seeing in almost any home improvement store you walk into and is very useful for 3d printing.

 Even though you might be familiar with the term plaster you might not actually know what plaster is made of so here it comes...

 Plaster usually comes in two different combinations. The first combination is sand mixed with limestone and the other combination that makes up plaster is sand mixed with cement. The plaster used by the 3d printing machines is in powder form unlike some of the tubs of liquid plaster you might see in the home improvement stores. 

Although I am sure some machines will be capable of using liquid form plaster in the future, the powder form is much more efficient for the machines that use plaster powder. The 3d printing process that uses plaster powder is Powder Bed Printing which, once again, is pretty self explanatory if you read the name. Powder is on a bed that is used for printing.

 I always like it when words are self explanatory especially when it involves technology because people usually assume that some advanced vocabulary is required to understand technology like 3d printing but as you can see throughout this article, it is not always the case.

Paper, Foil, and Plastic Film

I am not sure if I need to really explain what these materials are unless you are from a different planet but I will take my chances... 

These materials are obviously a good choice for a beginner looking for an inexpensive material to experiment with making 3d models. The materials mentioned are used in a process called Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM). Unfortunately the use of the mentioned materials is pretty much limited to only being useful for prototyping, but as I said it is good for a beginner who wants to test the ropes. 

    Photopolymer

      A photopolymer is simply a large molecule that experiences a change in its properties when exposed to light, and in the process of SLA which a photopolymer is the material of choice, the type of light being used would be ultraviolet light. The material is a sort of plastic photopolymer that is in a liquid form before going through the process.

Anyway, the photopolymer liquid becomes hardened in the areas that is contacted by the ultraviolet light and the platform that holds the liquid is lowered as more and more layers are created. 

If you break up the word photopolymer it helps to better understand the meaning without being scared off by the fancy science word that it seems to be. (try saying photopolymer without getting the chills lol) Photo refers to light, poly means many, and mer means parts, but in this case the parts would obviously be molecules that make up the plastic.

Although 3d printing is a miraculous technology, the current issue is that a lot of machines are limited to the material that they are able to print except for a few that are probably either in the developmental stages or are very new on the market which are likely to be extremely expensive as well as have a good chance for errors. Once machines are able to print multiple materials at once it would mean that fully functional products ranging from smart phones to automobiles would have the ability to be generated in a very short amount of time.