Prohibited Laser Cutter Materials

There will be consequences to cutting these materials due to the serious health & safety implications. There will be no exceptions to this list.

Type	Material	Toxic Gas	Fire/Smoke	Burns/Melts	Damages Equipment	Notes
Fabric	Felt, Fleece (Wool)	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)
Fabric	Artificial, Acetate, Nylon, Cellophane, Viscose, Rayon, Spandex, etc.	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)
Food	Any		Both	Both		Even cutting approved materials results in the laser cutters being an unsafe environment for food, in addition to the damage that laser cutting food could cause.
Metal	Any Unlisted				Optics, Motion-Control System	Our C02 laser cutters can etch certain coated metals; they cannot cut metal.
Plastic/Polymer	ABS (Stratasys 3D Prints)	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)	Fire	Both	Cutting Grid, Bed
	Carbon Fiber	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)	Both	Both
	Epoxy, Resin, Fiberglass, Ecoresin	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)	Both	Both
	Polycarbonate, Lexan	Chlorine (Cl2)	Both	Both		The window on the laser cutter is made from this due to its resistance against radiation and being laser-cut. The material will melt and turn brown instead of cutting, etching, or engraving.
	Polyethylene (HPDE, PETG), Tyvek, Polyester, Fleece (Artificial)	Formaldehyde (CH2O)	Fire	Both	Cutting Grid, Bed
	Polytetrafluoroethylene (PFTE), Teflon	Carbonyl Fluoride (COF2), Fluoroform(CHF3)
	Polyoxymethylene, Delrin	Formaldehyde (CH2O), Hydrogen Fluoride (HF)
	Polypropylene		Fire	Both	Cutting Grid, Bed
	Polyurethane	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)
	PVC (polyvinyl chloride), Vinyl, Pleather/Faux Leather, PVB (polyvinyl butyrale), materials containing halogens	Chlorine (Cl2), Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)			Optics, Motion-Control System	Please note that the Co-op sells material that looks like acrylic but is made of PVC and styrene. There is an entire shelf of banned materials in the Co-op.
	Self-adhesive, or material with sticky or glue backing				Optics	Examples include cork tiles, thin wood laminate, acrylic tiles, and paper stickers.
	Rubber, Elastomer	Carbonyl Fluoride (COF2),, Hydrogen Fluoride (HF)
	Styrene, Polystyrene, foamboard, Foam Core, styrofoam, Depron foam, Gator foam	Benzene (C6H6)	Fire	Both	Optics	The main cause of laser cutter fires. Please note that the Co-op sells material that looks like acrylic but is made of PVC and styrene.
Wood*	Coniferous, Oily, Exotic		Both			Examples: pine, spruce, teak. Their hardness varies, so they can't be cut consistently.
	MDF, HDF, Engineered	Formaldehyde (CH2O)	Both			Extreme charring.
	Plywood with Formaldehyde-based glue	Formaldehyde (CH2O)	Both			Extreme charring. Wood naturally has trace amounts of formaldehyde, we require that any plywood have a formaldehyde-free glue, such as a soy-based glue. The plywood must conform to OSHA-PEL-TWA 0.75ppm.
	Adhesive/Resin-Filled	Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN)	Both		Optics	Baltic Birch plywood is an example.

*Some types of wood are approved, but the specific ones listed above are prohibited.

Questionable Materials

Consult with Tech Desk Staff for approval

Wood, ie. plywood with potentially flammable adhesives
Reflective materials