Investigation in Environmental and Safety Aspects of Additive Manufacturing (AM)

Environmental impacts of every manufacturing procedure are a major consideration in every industry. These impacts include human health and safety and environmental burdens are known as vital concerns in the industrial world. Before accepting any new process as a part of manufacturing procedure, a clear landscape from every aspect of that process should be provided. Additive manufacturing (AM) is growing from a prototyping method to the level of manufacturing functional products which require specific and accurate characterization information about every step of the whole production line. In this paper, attempts are made to address environmental impacts and safety considerations of metallic AM-based processes as well as their applicable solutions. AM processes are compared to the conventional manufacturing methods from environmental aspects. Moreover, benefits of metal AM as a fabricating and repairing method are presented. In conclusion, AM potential as a substitution or even complement for conventional manufacturing methods are discussed, where safety is considered vital.