Future Trends in Green Additive Manufacturing

Dear Colleagues,

According to Eurostat [1], the major sources of greenhouse gas emissions are the energy industries, fuel combustion by users, and transport. Additive Manufacturing (AM) is part of the technological solution for lowering greenhouse gas emissions by enabling the creation of local production chains, the specific demand-triggered production of goods and spare parts, and short development cycles supported by the related digital design process [2].

Estimates show that the global production volume for AM will grow from around 12 billion US$ at present to 30 billion US$ in the next 4 years [3]. The technology is therefore on the threshold of moving from a niche technology to a mass technology. Two opportunities are behind this development:

(1) AM technology allows the development of innovative products [4]. This is where the advantage of the technology becomes apparent, as it enables the creation of a great complexity of shapes while at the same time allowing a great variety of materials to be used.

(2) AM technology offers the possibility of producing components and products in a way that saves resources and energy and therefore contributes to green manufacturing [4].

AM therefore represents a great opportunity to close the gap between economic and ecological product manufacturing. However, there are still many questions to be discussed along this path:

• Which materials are suitable for green manufacturing—e.g., using cradle to cradle product cycles—and can be produced industrially to a sufficient extent?
• How does an industrial manufacturing cycle using robotics and automation look likely to make additive manufacturing economical for larger lot sizes?
• How should products be designed to optimize them for additive manufacturing at the same time as making them recyclable?
• What incentive models need to be created to make green manufacturing profitable for the environment and industry at the same time?
• What opportunities and pitfalls will be experienced as additive manufacturing evolves from niche product manufacturing to mass product manufacturing?

We invite experts in product and material development, developers and implementers of industrial manufacturing processes using AM technology, and experts in technology assessment. We also invited consumers who use AM products and anyone who is passionate about sustainable production through green AM.

Topics of interest include but are not limited to the following:

AM Technology and Process:

• Printhead and machinery;
• Path planning;
• Measurement and monitoring;
• Process optimization.

AM Materials and Design:

• Novel and green materials;
• Design strategies for green components;
• Design optimization;
• Recycling strategies.

AM Technology Impact

• Economical studies;
• Life-cycle analysis;
• Start-up or network development in the AM area;
• Opportunities and pitfalls for AM mass production.

Dr. Lisa-Marie Faller
Prof. Dr. Franz Oswald Riemelmoser
Prof. Dr. Christian Schmid
Dr. Martin Kraft
Dr. Herfried Lammer
Guest Editors

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• additive fabrication
• materials
• recycling
• 3D-printing strategies
• processes