A research team led by Dr. Giulia Colombini at the Department of Engineering "Enzo Ferrari," University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, has conducted a cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment of metal laser powder bed fusion to quantify greenhouse gas emissions from raw material extraction through to finished parts leaving the factory.
The study, published on October 21, 2025 in the open access journal Carbon Research (Volume 4, Article 67), links this assessment to a phased decarbonization strategy that manufacturers can apply step by step rather than relying on a single disruptive technology change.
Researchers examined how electricity consumption, the choice of shielding gas, the sourcing and reuse of metal powder, and broader facility operations contribute to the total carbon footprint of laser powder bed fusion.
They then structured a cumulative action plan and evaluated each measure under the Greenhouse Gas Protocol to show how specific interventions can be combined over time to reduce emissions.
The roadmap begins with a shift to renewable electricity supplies, which the authors identify as the most effective single intervention, with the potential to cut operational emissions by up to 70 percent.
The plan also calls for replacing argon with nitrogen as the process shielding gas, which the team describes as a lower-impact and increasingly practical alternative for many applications.
Further steps include increasing the proportion of recycled metal powder in the process, showing that greater circular use of feedstock can be achieved while maintaining part performance.
The researchers also point to on-site nitrogen generation as a way to reduce transport-related emissions and improve supply security for factories that depend on continuous gas delivery.
Finally, the roadmap highlights design optimization for printed components, reducing build time and energy use per part while preserving required functionality and mechanical properties.
"This isn't about waiting for perfect technology," says Dr. Giulia Colombini, corresponding author of the study. "It's about making measurable progress today. Sustainability in advanced manufacturing must be practical, scalable, and transparent."
Working from Modena, a center of Italian precision engineering, the team combines environmental analysis with systems and industrial engineering to translate life cycle data into process choices that can be implemented on existing shop floors.
Because the article is published open access, its methodology and staged roadmap can be consulted directly by engineers, policymakers, and corporate sustainability staff seeking to lower the carbon footprint of metal additive manufacturing.
The authors argue that future evaluations of high-performance manufacturing should focus not only on design complexity and material efficiency but also on the overall cleanliness of production measured across the life cycle.
They conclude that laser powder bed fusion can serve as both a precision manufacturing method and a contributor to emissions reduction when users adopt the sequence of measures detailed in their plan.
The work suggests that metal components used in sectors such as renewable energy and medical devices can, in principle, be produced with significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions if factories follow the proposed pathway.
Research Report:Asymptotic pathways to carbon minimization in laser powder bed fusion
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University of Modena and Reggio Emilia
Space Technology News - Applications and Research
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