OrCA - Fishy Filaments by Fillamentum

The "Fishy Filaments by Fillamentum" family of materials is a collaboration between Fishy Filaments and Fillamentum. contains filaments made from 100 % recycled nylon monofilament fishing nets. Apart from the unfilled Porthcurno filament, this group of materials includes the engineering OrCA filament composed of recycled PA6 reinforced with 10 % carbon fibers for exceptional strength and stiffness. Furthermore, the high-performance OrCA filament is characterized by creep resistance (resistance against deformation under long-term load), wear resistance, and low thermal expansion. 

Image 1: Part 3D printed with the OrCA filament. Source: Fillamentum.

Another very valuable feature of this material is its temperatures resistance. Parts 3D printed with the OrCA filament will work well in very high temperatures (up to 180 ºC), retain their high tensile strength even at very high temperatures, and the great impact resistance of the material will be preserved even under temperatures as low as -20 ºC. What's more OrCA is UV stabilized and safe to use in electrical and electronic equipment.

Image 2: Part 3D printed with the OrCA filament. Source: Fillamentum.

The idea for recycling fishing nets into filament was born in 2016 in Cornwall when Ian Falconer, the founder of Fishy Filaments, realized the wasted potential of nylon monofilament fishing nets. Out of the total of over 200 000 tonnes of fishing nets manufactured each year, only about 15 % is recycled and the rest is disposed of (burnt or buried). 1-2 % gets lost at sea where it takes up to 600 years to decompose and poses a threat to sea life that gets trapped in the nets (ghost netting).

Image 3: The life cycle of fishing nets. Source: Fillamentum.

Since the material used to produce fishing nets is an engineering-grade highly resilient material, Ian Falconer took it as his mission to transform these end-of-life nets into a valuable resource. In 2021, Fillamentum joined Fishy Filaments in these efforts and this is how the "Fishy Filaments by Fillamentum" project was born. The fishing nets used in the production of the OrCA filament are sourced directly from commercial fishing fleets to ensure the quality, traceability and continuity of the supply chain (as opposed to using found marine plastic).

Video 1: Interview with Ian Falconer about the Fishy filaments. Source: Fillamentum.

Thanks to its excellent thermal and mechanical properties, the OrCA filament is a great choice for engineering applications, where strength and stiffness are essential (for example, mobility or high speed components), along with a certain degree of chemical resistance. Since both the PA 6 and carbon fibers used in the production of OrCA are recycled, the OrCA filament itself has an incredibly low carbon impact, one of the lowest in its class. This makes OrCA a highly resilient enginnering material that is also sustainable.