PLA is one of the synthetic polymers, also known as "bioplastics". These are obtained from renewable raw materials instead of mineral oil. The thermoplastic was discovered as early as 1845 by Théophile-Jules Pelouze. In the 1950s, Dupont patented a process for mass production of the material, which belongs to the polyester group. In Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), PLA does much more than the ABS originally used for 3D printing. The common industrial plastic ABS is used in the production of tameless everyday objects and plastic parts (e.g. in cars). LEGO bricks, for example, are also made of ABS. Another example is the ABS all-plastic body of the Citroën Méhari off-road vehicle built from 1968 to 1988.

PLA is used, among other things, in the food industry (e.g. for short-lived packaging), for diapers, bubble bags, hygiene products and office supplies. Polylactide is also used in medicine (e.g. for temporary implants without removal surgery, as the body breaks them down itself) or agriculture (e.g. for mulch films that can be ploughed under or supports that do not have to be collected after harvesting). The relatively low flammability and density make the material attractive for many other applications, such as functional clothing.

The bioplastic offers similarly good properties for 3D printing as ABS. For example, high scratch resistance, resistance to water, alcohol, oils and greases. It also has a high modulus of elasticity, so it has good dimensional stability. Less pronounced are the temperature resistance and impact resistance. In addition, the organic filament is classified as food-safe per se. However, printing cutlery or (cookware) dishes is not recommended: the object will not survive the dishwasher due to the low PLA melting point. And in the tiny grooves of a 3D print, germs and bacteria can also settle and thrive. All this information refers to pure PLA in the first place. Filaments made of modified polylactide can therefore also show significantly different properties.

One argument in favor of using polylactide for 3D printing is its advantageous properties in terms of disposal. Despite being classified as biodegradable according to DIN EN 13432, pure PLA is also stable under normal environmental conditions. The term biodegradability refers to the sufficiently fast decomposition of the material. However, this is mainly possible under the special conditions of industrial composting. This means that polylactide material residues and waste are less suitable for composting in your own compost heap. This is because it usually does not reach the necessary temperature of at least 55 °C. In nature (buried) or on the compost heap, decomposition can take more than a year. However, this also means that you don't have to worry about PLA print objects rotting just like that. Even garden faucets can easily last for several years, depending on the intended use.

Another option for disposal is recycling the material. In this process, the molecular chains are thermally broken up again and the polymer is thus returned to a monomeric state. This can then be used again as a starting material for polymerization into polylactide without any loss of quality.