Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
6th Symposium on Circular Economy and Sustainability, Alexandroupoli, Yunanistan, 16 - 18 Haziran 2025, ss.1, (Tam Metin Bildiri)
Additive manufacturing (AM) is becoming a cornerstone technology while offering a range of sustainability advantages; however, there is a critical need for a comprehensive understanding of the environmental impacts (Ford & Despeisse, 2016; Paris et al., 2016; Torres-Carrillo et al., 2020). AM holds a significant role in the transition to a circular economy framework and promising for Industry 4.0, and it can reduce resource utilisation, lighten product structures, drive down environmental impact, and extend product lifespans through increased capability to repair specific and complex components (Colorado et al., 2020; Tavares et al., 2020; Gouveia et al., 2022; Korner et al., 2020; Santiago-Herrera et al., 2023). Since one of the significant advantages of MAM is its ability to significantly reduce material waste compared to traditional manufacturing techniques, particularly for intricate geometries where conventional methods produce substantial waste (Arrizubieta et al., 2020). Recycling and reusing unfused powder as feedstock for future productions in MAM can mitigate its material usage and environmental impacts (Ma et al., 2017). This study addresses the gap by conducting an in-depth analysis in the production processes by assessing Carbon Footprint with considering its powder and ingot production. A holistic approach followed in this study includes a detailed examination of 23 production units. Energy consumption, waste generation, and water consumption were used in material and energy flow studies, offering a comprehensive view of the system's environmental impact. Where the data was collected from three specific manufacturing facilities: ingot production was done with a vacuum induction furnace at TÜBİTAK Marmara Research Centre, while powder production was carried out with an atomisation machine at the production facility; additive manufacturing and its finishing processes were done by utilising Selective Laser Melting (SLM) and Electron Beam Melting (EBM) methods at the Additive Manufacturing Technologies Application and Research Centre (EKTAM) primarily for prototyping purposes. In addition to the production units, auxiliary units with the potential to generate carbon emissions have been evaluated. The analysis of the carbon footprint for different AM processes (EBM, SLM, and SLM 2) reveals variations in their overall emissions. For producing 1kg of a product, the Electron Beam Melting (EBM ) method results in a carbon footprint of approximately 120.06 kg CO2 equivalent, while the SLM (Selective Laser Melting) method generates around 232.33 kg CO2 equivalent. The SLM 2 machine has the highest carbon footprint among the three, with an emission value of 383.90 kg CO2 equivalent. These differences indicate that each method has distinct energy demands and emission drivers, which can be further analyzed by examining their respective processes in detail. The application of an energy-based 'Carbon Footprint' approach is used to identify carbon-intensive processes and explore opportunities for emissions reduction within the system.
This approach supports transitioning towards more sustainable production and contributes to the detailed discussions on environmental sustainability in MAM. With evaluating various methods found in the literature our study discusses adaptable strategies for the examined system for integrating circular economy principles. Our work highlights the carbon dioxide equivalent emissions from production and auxiliary units. However, the MAM machines are the most significant contributor to emissions. The analysis suggests that optimizing MAM machine operations could significantly reduce emissions. This study highlights the need for continued research and development efforts focused on reducing the environmental footprint and increasing circularity of MAM processes.