MonoMat: Cascaded monomaterial approach for automated resource-efficient manufacturing of digitized, personalized applications in medicine, sports and lifestyle

Lightweight construction and recycling are two key topics with regard to future-oriented and sustainable product development. Although additive manufacturing is in principle extremely well-suited for the realization of lightweight construction potentials, satisfactory recycling strategies at the end of the product life cycle do not yet exist. This problem comes to the fore particularly in the case of consumer products, which are subject to relatively short replacement intervals. The planned research project in the area of CO2 savings through resource efficiency and substitution aims to close this gap and demonstrate at an industrial level the extent to which innovative design principles and digital engineering tools can be used in conjunction with the various processes of additive manufacturing across industries for lightweight construction and material substitution in complex, personalized applications. To achieve these goals, a cascaded monomaterial approach for automated resource-efficient manufacturing of digitized, tailored applications in medicine, sports and lifestyle is being developed. In terms of design, multi-material systems are adapted in such a way that they can be substituted by a mono-material system due to locally heterogeneous component properties. In terms of process technology and materials science, strategies for the reuse and recycling of components and residual powder from additive manufacturing are being developed and implemented and validated in concrete applications. The greenhouse gas reduction potential of the approach will be evaluated in this project based on the CO2 balances of the cascades and the life cycle analyses of the prototypes to develop a methodology for the holistic evaluation of circular material concepts and recycling processes in additive manufacturing. By applying the approach to concrete products, the end of the research project will be the demonstration in use.