this post was submitted on 05 Mar 2025
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Do you know if it yellows over time or with sun exposure? Friends with transparent phone cases usually end up with yellow cases, unless they specifically have some specially treated plastic. I don’t know if that is rare in filaments
Depends on the type of plastic. PLA is what I have and it's the most commonly used material, and it will definitely degrade in UV light.
ASA is the most common, seriously UV resistant plastic, but it is inherently opaque (and printing it releases styrene which is toxic and requires special ventilation).
PETG is relatively easy to print, can be printed even more transparently than PLA, and has some UV reistance, so would probably be your best bet.
It will still eventually yellow or structurally degrade over time from sunlight though. I also suspect some of that phone case yellowing might not be UV exposure but absorbing oil from your skin.
Huh. Turns out UV resistance is a consistent consideration when making sun-exposed 3D prints! Thanks for the response!