From powder to planet: University of Modena engineers forge a low-carbon future for advanced metal manufacturing

What if the factories building tomorrow’s aerospace components, medical devices, and clean energy systems could do so without fueling the climate crisis?

That future is now within reach—thanks to groundbreaking research from Dr. Giulia Colombini at the Department of Engineering “Enzo Ferrari,” University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.

Laser powder bed fusion of metals (PBF-LB/M) has long been celebrated for its extraordinary precision and near-zero material waste. By selectively melting fine metal powder with a high-powered laser, it creates complex, high-performance parts that traditional methods simply can’t match. But behind this engineering marvel lies a hidden cost: massive energy demand, reliance on carbon-intensive gases, and supply chains built on virgin resources.

Until now, the environmental impact of PBF-LB/M has been more assumption than analysis. Dr. Colombini’s team changed that.

Published on October 21, 2025, in the open-access journal Carbon Research (Volume 4, Article 67), their study is the first to combine rigorous cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment with a practical, phased strategy for decarbonization—offering manufacturers a realistic path toward truly responsible production.

Beyond Efficiency: Rethinking the Full Environmental Ledger

Yes, PBF-LB/M uses only the material needed—minimizing scrap. But sustainability isn’t just about what you save; it’s about what you emit. Electricity consumption, shielding gas choice, powder sourcing, and facility operations all add up.

Dr. Colombini’s team mapped every major source of greenhouse gas emissions across the entire production chain—from raw material extraction to the finished part leaving the factory gate. Then, they asked: What if we optimize not everything at once—but one smart lever at a time?

A Realistic Roadmap for Real-World Factories

The result is a tiered, cumulative action plan—each step quantified under the GHG Protocol:

1. Switch to renewable electricity: The single most powerful move, cutting operational emissions by up to 70%.
2. Use nitrogen instead of argon as the process shielding gas—a lower-impact, increasingly viable alternative.
3. Increase recycled metal powder content, proving circularity and performance can coexist.
4. Generate nitrogen on-site, eliminating transport-related emissions and supply risks.
5. Optimize component design to reduce build time and energy per part—without sacrificing function.

Critically, these aren’t theoretical ideals. They’re actionable upgrades that factories can adopt incrementally, based on their resources and readiness.

“This isn’t about waiting for perfect technology,” says Dr. Giulia Colombini, corresponding author of the study. “It’s about making measurable progress today. Sustainability in advanced manufacturing must be practical, scalable, and transparent.”

Innovation Rooted in Modena’s Engineering Legacy

Based at the Department of Engineering “Enzo Ferrari” in Modena—Italy’s historic heartland of precision engineering—the research underscores the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia’s rising role in shaping Europe’s green industrial future. By merging environmental science, systems engineering, and industrial pragmatism, Dr. Colombini’s work turns data into decisions that matter on the shop floor.

And because the study is published open access, its roadmap is freely available to engineers, policymakers, and sustainability officers worldwide—accelerating global adoption.

The Bottom Line: Precision Meets Responsibility

The future of high-performance manufacturing won’t be defined by how complex a part we can make—but by how cleanly we can make it. This research proves that laser powder bed fusion can be both a technological triumph and an environmental asset.

Thanks to Dr. Colombini and her team at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, the blueprint for low-carbon metal production is no longer aspirational. It’s analytical. It’s actionable. And it’s ready to implement—layer by optimized layer.

So the next time you see a high-integrity metal component powering a wind turbine or saving a life in a hospital, remember: its true value isn’t just in its form—but in the footprint it leaves behind. And now, that footprint can be dramatically lighter.

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Journal reference:  Colombini, G., Defanti, S., Denti, L. et al. Asymptotic pathways to carbon minimization in laser powder bed fusion. Carbon Res. 4, 67 (2025).   

https://doi.org/10.1007/s44246-025-00236-2  

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About Carbon Research

The journal Carbon Research is an international multidisciplinary platform for communicating advances in fundamental and applied research on natural and engineered carbonaceous materials that are associated with ecological and environmental functions, energy generation, and global change. It is a fully Open Access (OA) journal and the Article Publishing Charges (APC) are waived until Dec 31, 2025. It is dedicated to serving as an innovative, efficient and professional platform for researchers in the field of carbon functions around the world to deliver findings from this rapidly expanding field of science. The journal is currently indexed by Scopus and Ei Compendex, and as of June 2025, the dynamic CiteScore value is 15.4.

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