Sustainable Additive Manufacturing for Construction

Additive manufacturing (AM) has emerged as a transformative technology in the construction sector, enabling the automated fabrication of complex geometries with reduced material waste, labor demand, and construction time. In particular, 3D concrete, polymer, and metal printing, together with related digital fabrication techniques, have attracted growing attention for their potential to reshape conventional construction practices. However, the widespread adoption of AM in construction remains constrained by several critical challenges, including limited material performance, anisotropy induced by layer-by-layer deposition, weak interlayer bonding, insufficient structural reliability, and uncertainties in long-term durability. Moreover, the integration of AM with structural design principles, reinforcement strategies, and existing construction standards remains underdeveloped, particularly for load-bearing and large-scale applications. These challenges highlight the need for systematic investigations that link materials, manufacturing processes, and structural performance to facilitate the practical implementation of AM technologies.

This Research Topic aims to bridge the gap between the promising potential of AM in construction and its practical application. Despite notable progress, challenges related to material performance, digital fabrication, structural evaluation, and sustainability continue to limit their wider adoption. This Topic welcomes contributions that build on recent advances in additively manufactured construction systems, including printable materials, intelligent and integrated fabrication processes, experimental and numerical studies on structural behavior, and sustainability assessment. By integrating experimental, numerical, and design-oriented research, this collection seeks to foster interdisciplinary collaboration and support the development of scalable, reliable, and sustainable AM solutions for construction and infrastructure.

This Research Topic focuses on AM technologies for construction. Contributions are welcome on topics including, but not limited to:

1. Printable cementitious, polymeric, and metallic materials for construction

2. Mix design, rheology, and material characterization for AM processes

3. Printing processes, process control, and interlayer behavior

4. Reinforcement strategies and hybrid construction systems

5. Mechanical performance under static, dynamic, and impact loading

6. Durability, resilience, and long-term performance of additively manufactured structures

7. Bio-inspired, architected, and functionally graded structures enabled by AM

8. Artificial intelligence and machine learning for material design, process optimization, quality monitoring, and performance prediction

9. Numerical modeling, simulation, and data-driven approaches for AM-based construction

10. Sustainability, life-cycle assessment, and large-scale or real-world applications

The Research Topic welcomes original research articles, review papers, and methodological or technical studies. Both fundamental research and application-oriented contributions are encouraged. Interdisciplinary studies integrating materials science, structural engineering, digital design, and manufacturing technologies are particularly welcome.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review

Keywords: Additive manufacturing, Printable materials, Digital fabrication, Performance-based design, Sustainable construction

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.