(663a) Sustainability Assessment in Additive Manufacturing End-of-Life Material Management Practices

Additive manufacturing (AM) offers a variety of novel material manufacturing
techniques for a wide range of applications across many industries, allowing for on-demand
production of complex, customized materials. Most system engineering evaluation and
improvement efforts for AM are centered at the manufacturing process stage. However, AM
create unintentional environmental releases in end-of-life (EoL) pathways, affecting overall life
cycle sustainability. Traditional sustainability assessment tools often fail to enable a
comprehensive, risk-based approach to chemical safety decision-making. This research finds
potential material allocation and occupational exposure in EoL management, then analyzed the
overall sustainability of AM EoL material management practices using resource-efficiency,
environmental, energy, and economic indicators from the GREENSCOPE (Gauging Reaction
Effectiveness for the Environmental Sustainability of Chemistries with a multi-Objective Process
Evaluator) tool. The trade-off analysis finds potential process modifications for material/energy
source reduction, pollution prevention, risk mitigation, and overall sustainability improvements.
The AM EoL-specific sustainability analysis serves as a resource to offer insights and empower
policymakers and stakeholders to enhance pollution prevention strategies and optimize the AM
EoL supply chain.