science

Recyclebot

Recyclebot is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Recyclebot rather than just read about it. In short: A recyclebot (or RecycleBot) is an open-source hardware device for converting waste plastic into filament for open-source 3D printers like the RepRap. Making DIY 3D printer filament at home is both less costly and better for the environment than purchasing conventional 3D printer filament.

Key takeaways

Recyclebot belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Recyclebot to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Recyclebot from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A recyclebot (or RecycleBot) is an open-source hardware device for converting waste plastic into filament for open-source 3D printers like the RepRap. Making DIY 3D printer filament at home is both less costly and better for the environment than purchasing conventional 3D printer filament. In following the RepRap tradition there are recyclebot designs that use mostly 3-D printable parts. This machine, license GPLv3, can be seen in the Figure.

Motivation and benefits RepRap 3D printers have been shown to reduce costs for consumers by offsetting purchases that can be printed. The RepRap's plastic feedstock is one area where cost can still be reduced. In 2014, professor Joshua Pearce pointed out that "Filament is retailing for between $36 and $50 a kilogram and you can produce your own filament for 10 cents a kilogram if you use recycled plastic" The device can thus further enhance RepRap affordability by reducing operating costs. In addition, by reducing prosumers' reliance on purchased products, the RepRap and the recyclebot have made it feasible for 3D printing to be used for small-scale manufacturing to aid sustainable development. It has been postulated that recycled filament production could also offer an alternative income source by the Ethical Filament Foundation or as a form of "fair trade filament". It has also been shown to improve the energy payback time of even known green energy technologies like solar photovoltaics.

Technology The RecycleBot is an open-source hardware project – thus its plans are freely available on the Internet.

RecycleBot curated by academics in Canada and the U.S. on Appropedia (here) and at the RepRap Wiki (here). For example, the full parts list (or bill of materials) for the metal and electronic components and the controls are available on Thingiverse. Lyman filament extruder – a DIY recyclebot

History The history of the RecycleBot was largely derived from the work on the RepRap Wiki under GNU Free Documentation License1.2. The first recyclebot was developed by students at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. This design was a proof of concept and was hand-powered, and so had a small ecological footprint, but did not create filament of high enough quality to be useful for 3D printers. The design for the waste plastic extruder (Recyclebot v2.0 and v2.1) developed at Queen's University Canada and Michigan Tech was heavily influenced by the Web4Deb extruder, which extrudes HDPE for use as a growth medium in aquaponics. This design for the recyclebot was developed, tested and published in the peer-reviewed rapid prototyping literature. This device proved viable for producing 3D printing filament. The Recyclebot v2.2 is being developed by the Michigan Tech in Open Sustainability Technology Research Group. Many makers or DIY enthusiasts have made various versions of RecycleBots. The most notable is the Lyman filament extruder. Lyman, a retired engineer, won a design contest to make a low-cost 3D filament fabrication system. As of 2014, there were many types of recyclebots, many of which are at the early stages of commercialization. Recyclebot technology has been applied to hangprinters to allow for fused particle fabrication of large prints without first having to form filament.

Futurist speculation Jeremy Rifkin has hypothesized that such recycling with recyclebots and distributed production with 3D printing will lead to a zero marginal cost society. The science-fiction author, Bruce Sterling wondered in Wired if recyclebots and 3D printers might be used to turn waste into guns. Recyclebots can provide a new method of recycling.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Recyclebot

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Recyclebot claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Recyclebot before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Recyclebot ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Recyclebot

In research: Recyclebot appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Recyclebot in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Recyclebot is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 3D printing, Fused filament fabrication, Plastic recycling, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Recyclebot outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Recyclebot in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Recyclebot means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Recyclebot out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Recyclebot in simple terms?

Why does Recyclebot matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Recyclebot?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Recyclebot.