Energy Efficient Modeling and Optimization of Additive Manufacturing Process

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a leading technology in various industries including medical and aerospace for prototype and functional part fabrication. Despite being environmentally conscious, avenues pertaining to further reducing the impact of AM on the environment exist. Material wastage and energy consumption are two major concerns of the process that requires immediate attention. In this research, a multi-step optimization enabling additive manufacturing process towards energy efficiency is developed. Process objectives such as material waste and energy consumption are minimized both in part and layer domain. Numerous examples are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the developed approach. The models formulated here for selective laser sintering (SLS) process can be easily extended to other additive manufacturing technologies.