Smart 3D Printing for a Circular Economy and Sustainable Manufacturing
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Products and Services".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 August 2026 | Viewed by 17
Special Issue Editors
Interests: sustainable manufacturing; additive manufacturing; industrial automation; circular economy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: smart materials and manufacturing; additive manufacturing; industry 4.0; circular economy; AI and ML; robotics
Interests: sustainable manufacturing; energy-efficient process; sustainable/environmentally friendly machining; metal cutting; finite element modeling; 3D printing-additive manufacturing; sustainable automation with focus on industry 4.0
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
I am pleased to have this opportunity to invite you to submit your work to this Special Issue of Sustainability entitled "Smart 3D Printing for a Circular Economy and Sustainable Manufacturing," which seeks to explore how smart 3D printing technologies can make manufacturing more sustainable and promote circular economy principles. Additive manufacturing offers unique opportunities to reduce material loss, minimize energy use, and enable product life extension through repair, remanufacturing, and recycling. By integrating smart materials, digital technologies, and novel design principles, 3D printing can make more resource-efficient and sustainable production systems possible.
We welcome original research, reviews, and case studies on the following themes:
- Sustainable and biodegradable materials for 3D printing;
- Design for additive manufacturing with circularity in mind;
- Process optimization for energy saving and waste reduction;
- Facilitating smart manufacturing using sensors, IoT, and digital twins;
- Life cycle analysis and techno-economic analysis of additively manufactured products;
- Applications in automotive, aerospace, and consumer industries;
- Approaches for recycling, reuse, and remanufacturing in additive manufacturing.
We look forward to valuable inputs from academia, industry, and policymakers that extend the boundaries of knowledge and applied imagination towards creating a sustainable production model with future-forward additive manufacturing techniques.
Dr. Ibrahim Deiab
Dr. Shafahat Ali
Dr. Salman Pervaiz
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- additive manufacturing
- circular economy
- sustainable manufacturing
- biodegradable materials
- process optimization
- resource-efficient design
- design for sustainability
- waste minimization
- re-manufacturing and reuse
- lifecycle assessment
- recyclable polymers
- bio-based materials
- energy-efficient production
- digital manufacturing
- smart materials
- renewable feedstocks
- low-carbon manufacturing
- closed-loop systems
- sustainable industrial innovation
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