Sustainable additive manufacturing: Eco-friendly materials, process-material interactions, applications, and challenges

Additive manufacturing (AM) has become an important process for producing useful parts. For the wider adoption of AM at industrial scale, sustainability is a key aspect among various other factors. This review explores sustainable AM through the lens of material–process compatibility and technology-specific sustainability considerations. Major AM technologies, including powder bed fusion, material extrusion, vat photopolymerization, binder jetting, directed energy deposition, and laminated object manufacturing, are analyzed with regard to their ability to process various categories of eco-friendly materials such as polymers, metals, ceramics, and composite materials. In particular, emphasis is placed on process–material interactions, energy requirements, material utilization efficiency, and the resulting mechanical and functional performance of fabricated components. The review also discusses industrial applications of sustainable AM across aerospace, healthcare, construction, energy, and consumer sectors while identifying critical challenges associated with process variability, energy consumption, recyclability, and scalability. Finally, future directions involving digital manufacturing, lifecycle assessment, and circular economy strategies are presented to advance sustainable AM.