Circularity by Design, Materials, and Additive Manufacturing
Fostering sustainable and circular materialities enabled by additive manufacturing
- 📅 · Period:
November 2020 – March 2024 💰 · Collaboration:
FAST Lab, Western University, Canada (visiting research, September 2022 – March 2023)🏛 · Main facility:
Politecnico di Milano, Italy🤝 · Lab collaboration:
FAST Lab (visiting research)⭐ · My Role:
PhD Candidate🏫 · My Affiliation:
PhD Candidate and research fellow, Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering "Giulio Natta", Politecnico di Milano (Italy) PhD Candidate, Design Department, Politecnico di Milano (Italy)🏷️ · Keywords:
circular economy, additive manufacturing, materials library, materials for design, materials design, engineering design, open design, materials engineering
Overview
Circular materials and design strategies can support the development of sustainable products, but their use in real, practical contexts is still limited. Designers, engineers, and practitioners are not always aware of the possibilities offered by these materials, and their experiential and sensorial qualities are rarely considered in the conventional materials development process. New production and consumption patterns based on additive manufacturing are meanwhile emerging from local communities and distributed networks. The Circularity by Design, Materials, and Additive Manufacturing project aims at investigating new circular materials and design strategies for additive manufacturing, and at fostering their use in real contexts. The research is based on two main case studies, each linked to a specific secondary raw material stream: FiberEUse, dealing with recycled glass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymers for small-format 3D printers, and RepMat Library (Replicating Materials Library), dealing with recycled thermoplastics and biomass-derived by-products for large-format 3D printers — see the dedicated project page for details. The experimental work involved materials characterization from both an engineering and design perspective, and led to new circular materials, adapted 3D printing systems, and product applications in the furniture, automotive, and sport sectors. The project developed the Materials Library System, a replicable, open-source experiential tool combining a physical and a virtual component. Its first implementation was the FiberEUse Materials Library, developed within the FiberEUse case study; the system was then generalized and released as open-source through the RepMat Library. 1
Romani, A. (2024). Circularity by Design, Materials, and Additive Manufacturing: Fostering sustainable and circular materialities enabled by additive manufacturing. PhD Thesis, Politecnico di Milano. Available at PoliTesi. Available online
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My contribution:
- State-of-the-art review: Conducted a systematic literature review at the intersection of digital fabrication technologies, circular materials, and real-world product applications, covering academic research, industrial developments, and design practice. Conducted a further review on experiential learning tools for materials design, such as material libraries and databases.
- Materials: Experimental work on recycled glass and carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (FiberEUse case study) and recycled thermoplastics and biomass by-products (RepMat case study), including materials characterization from both an engineering and design perspective, physical-technical properties and expressive-sensorial qualities.
- Additive manufacturing: Process optimization of small-format UV-assisted Direct Ink Writing (DIW) and large-format 3D printing systems for circular material feedstocks, including modification/redesign of open hardware.
- Product design: Development of product concepts and applications for circular design and upcycling through 3D printing and ciruclar materials. Development of the Materials Library System, leading to the creation of two libraries, i.e., the FiberEUse library and the RepMat library (Replicating Materials Library), an open-source replicable materials library for circular materials.
- Dissemination: Publications, conference presentations, project exhibitions, academic webinars, participation in community outreach events and design exhibitions, and MOOC lectures.
Research and dissemination output connected to my work
- 📚 Publications: 1 PhD Thesis, 14 Journal articles, 3 Book chapters, 4 Conference papers, 1 Poster abstract
- ⚙️ Technology Transfer: 4 on OSF, 4 on Zenodo.
- 🎤 Presentations: Work presented at academic conferences, webinars and workshop presentations, and industrial events, such as EKSIG 2023 (2023) or Open Hardware Summit 2025 (2025).
- 📢 Dissemination & outreach: Work presented at project exhibitions, such as Design4Materials 2024 and DesignXDesigners 2024, and featured in academic webinars, news press, and a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course).
- The FiberEUse Project: Tackling the Challenges of Composite Recycling AZO CleanTech, May 2021.
- FuoriSalone 2021 in Tortona: an investigation into the future Interni, Sep 2021.
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FiberEUse: and life (from waste) returns to circulate AT Superstudio Magazine, Aug 2021.
- Coffeefrom Break #5 - Wonder Matter(s) @Milano Design Week Video interview (Italian only), Apr 2023.
- Plast 2023 CoffeeFrom, Sep 2023. Exhibition, +LAB research group
- Wonder Matter(s) CoffeeFrom, Materially, Apr 2023. Exhibition, +LAB research group
- ID-EXE 2024 IoArch, Apr 2024. Exhibition feature, MaDe/Trans research group
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Design4Materials Società Italiana di Design, Jun 2024. Exhibition, MaDe/Trans research group
Journal articles
- Romani A, Rognoli V, Levi M (2026) Opening circular materials knowledge through design: the contribution of fab labs and makerspaces to circular economy adoption. The Design Journal, 1-25. DOI: 10.1080/14606925.2026.2666269
- Romani A, Perusin L, Ciurnelli M, Levi M (2024) Characterization of PLA feedstock for Large-format Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing after multiple recycling processes. *Materials Today Sustainability, 25, 100636. DOI: 10.1016/j.mtsust.2023.100636
- Paramatti M*, Romani A, Pugliese G, Levi M (2024) PLA feedstock filled with spent coffee grounds processed by Large-format Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing for new product applications. *ACS Omega, 9(6), 6423-6431. DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.3c05669
- Romani A, Paramatti M, Gallo L, Levi M (2024) Large-format material extrusion additive manufacturing of PLA, LDPE, and HDPE compound feedstock with spent coffee grounds. *The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, 134, 1845-1861. DOI: 10.1007/s00170-024-14214-2
- Romani A, Levi M (2024) Large-Format Material Extrusion Additive Manufacturing for Circular Economy Practices: A Focus on Product Applications with Materials from Recycled Plastics and Biomass Waste. *Sustainability, 16(18), 7966. DOI: 10.3390/su16187966
- Romani A, Levi M, Pearce JM (2023) Recycled polycarbonate and polycarbonate/acrylonitrile butadiene styrene feedstocks for circular economy product applications with material extrusion additive manufacturing. Sustainable Materials and Technologies, 38, e00730. DOI: 10.1016/j.susmat.2023.e00730
- Romani A, Caba S, Suriano R, Levi M (2023) Recycling glass and carbon fibers for reusable components in the automotive sector through additive manufacturing. *Applied Sciences, 13(10), 5848. DOI: 10.3390/app13105848 Selected as the issue cover paper
- Rattan RS, Nauta N, Romani A, Pearce JM (2023) Hangprinter for large scale additive manufacturing using fused particle fabrication with recycled plastic and continuous feeding. HardwareX, 13, e00401. DOI: 10.1016/j.ohx.2023.e00401
- Romani A, Suriano R, Levi M (2023) Biomass waste materials through extrusion-based additive manufacturing: A systematic literature review. Journal of Cleaner Production, 386, 135779. DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.135779
- Romani A, Tralli P, Levi M, Turri S, Suriano R (2022) Metallization of Recycled Glass Fiber-Reinforced Polymers Processed by UV-Assisted 3D Printing. Materials, 15, 6242. DOI: 10.3390/ma15186242
- Romani A, Mantelli A, Tralli P, Turri S, Levi M, Suriano R (2021) Metallization of Thermoplastic Polymers and Composites 3D Printed by Fused Filament Fabrication. Technologies, 9, 49. DOI: 10.3390/technologies9030049
- Romani A, Rognoli V, Levi M (2021) Design, Materials, and Extrusion-Based Additive Manufacturing in Circular Economy Contexts: From Waste to New Products. Sustainability, 13, 7269. DOI: 10.3390/su13137269
- Mantelli A, Romani A, Suriano R, Levi M, Turri S (2021) Direct Ink Writing of Recycled Composites with Complex Shapes: Process Parameters and Ink Optimization. Advanced Engineering Materials, 23, 2100116. DOI: 10.1002/adem.202100116
- Mantelli A, Romani A, Suriano R, Diani M, Colledani M, Sarlin E, Turri S, Levi M (2021) UV-Assisted 3D Printing of Polymer Composites from Thermally and Mechanically Recycled Carbon Fibers. Polymers, 13, 726. DOI: 10.3390/polym13050726
Book chapters
- Mantelli A, Romani A, Suriano R, Levi M, Turri S (2022) Additive Manufacturing of Recycled Composites. In: Colledani M, Turri S (eds) Systemic Circular Economy Solutions for Fiber Reinforced Composites. DIAEC Series. Springer, Cham, 141-166. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-22352-5_8
- Romani A, Suriano R, Mantelli A, Levi M, Tralli P, Laurila J, Vuoristo P (2022) Composite Finishing for Reuse. In: Colledani M, Turri S (eds) Systemic Circular Economy Solutions for Fiber Reinforced Composites. DIAEC Series. Springer, Cham, 167-190. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-22352-5_9
- Romani A, Prestini F, Suriano R, Levi M (2022) Material Library System for Circular Economy: Tangible-Intangible Interaction for Recycled Composite Materials. In: Colledani M, Turri S (eds) Systemic Circular Economy Solutions for Fiber Reinforced Composites. DIAEC Series. Springer, Cham, 363-384. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-22352-5_18
Conference papers
- Romani A, Rognoli V, Levi M (2023) Speculative tinkering on circular design materials through 3D printing. In: Vaes K, Verlinden J (eds) Connectivity and Creativity in Times of Conflict. Cumulus Proceedings, Academia Press, 317-321. DOI: 10.26530/9789401496476-063
- Romani A, Rognoli V, Levi M (2023) Materials Libraries. Designing the Experiential Knowledge Transfer through Prototyping. In: Ferraris S, Rognoli V, Nimkulrat N (eds) From Abstractness to Concreteness: experiential knowledge and the role of prototypes in design research. International EKSIG 2023 Conference, Politecnico di Milano, 398-411. ISBN 978-88-9416-7436
- Romani A, Levi M, Rognoli V (2023) Sustainable Development Goals enabled by Additive Manufacturing: a design perspective. In: Duarte E, Di Roma A (eds) Developments in Design Research and Practice II. Senses 2021. Springer Series in Design and Innovation, vol 31. Springer, Cham, 382-397. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-031-32280-8_27
- Romani A, Levi M (2021) Indirect 3D Printing of recycled glass fibres from end-of-life products: towards a design engineering approach to circular design. In: Schnitzer H, Braunegg S (eds) Proceedings of the 20th European Roundtable on Sustainable Consumption and Production. Verlag der Technischen Universität Graz, 515-530. DOI: 10.3217/978-3-85125-842-4-10
Poster abstracts
- Romani A, Rognoli V, Levi M (2023) Fostering circular materials within the design practice: materials and product library system. In: Lazet A (ed) Design for Adaptation. Cumulus Conference Proceedings Detroit 2022, 862-863. ISSN 2490-046X
Tools
- FiberEUse Library, Virtual library. Available at: fibereuselibrary.com/
- RepMat Library. Available at: repmatlibrary.github.io
Technology transfer repositories
- Romani A, Prestini F (2024) FiberEUse Library - Virtual library. Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10562543
- Romani A (2023) Circularity by Design, Materials, and Additive Manufacturing - Applications and 3D Printing systems. OSF. DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/RWAFY
- Romani A (2023) FiberEUse Library - Physical structures. Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4672607
- Pearce JM, Romani A (2023) GigabotX Improvements. OSF. Available at: osf.io/gxuqf
- Pearce JM, Rattan RS, Romani A (2023) Open source hang printer with direct screw auger FPF. OSF. DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/WPCF7
- Pearce JM, Romani A (2023) Designs for Recycled PC and PC-ABS feedstock project. OSF. Available at: osf.io/z9fnk
- Romani A, Mantelli A (2021) FFF Finishing Torture Test for PVD. Zenodo. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.4672609
MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses)
- Materials from waste and 3D printing (2025) Two lectures in the MOOC "Materials design for transitions: toward regenerative ecologies", part of the POK series (Polimi Open Knowledge), Politecnico di Milano. Available at: https://www.pok.polimi.it/course/view.php?id=170#tab2