Direct Conversion of McDonald’s Waste Cooking Oil into a Biodegradable High-Resolution 3D-Printing Resin

Abstract

Used cooking oil disposal is a concern at the global scale. Direct disposal from domestic households and restaurants via drains can result in serious environmental issues. In this study, waste cooking oil was collected directly from vats in a McDonald’s restaurant and acrylated via a straightforward one-step reaction. After the addition of a photoinitiator and without any photoinhibitor, the product can be printed using a commercial 3D printer. The formulated resin produced high-resolution prints with features down to 100 micrometers. The rapid prototyped prints show considerable thermomechanical stability, morphological homogeneity, and biodegradability when compared to a state-of-the-art research resin and a commercial resin. This paper introduces the concept that waste cooking oil can be directly converted into a high-value commercial 3D-printing resin, which may have considerable societal benefits including reduction of waste and carbon emissions.