Digitally engineered membrane materials: Additive manufacturing as an emerging solution for wastewater treatment

Wastewater treatment technologies based on conventional membranes continue to face major limitations associated with fouling, hydraulic resistance, energy consumption, and limited operational stability. In this context, additive manufacturing has emerged as a promising strategy for engineering next-generation membrane systems with tailored structural and functional properties. This systematic review critically evaluates the role of three-dimensional (3D) printing in the fabrication of membranes and auxiliary components for wastewater treatment. The review focuses on transport performance, fouling mitigation, hydrodynamic optimization, operational durability, and techno-economic implications. The review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines and the PICO framework. A total of 691 records were retrieved from the Scopus database (2015–2025), from which 37 studies were selected after screening and eligibility assessment. The analyzed evidence demonstrates that 3D-printed membranes achieve removal efficiencies ranging from 94.5% to 99.77%, while improving permeate flux, mass transfer, and operational stability relative to conventional membranes. Hierarchical porous architectures, reduced tortuosity, and controlled surface wettability significantly decrease hydraulic resistance and fouling propensity, enabling flux recovery values above 90% after multiple regeneration cycles. Additionally, additive manufacturing enables the integration of multifunctional features, including photocatalytic, electrochemical, and self-cleaning properties, expanding membrane functionality beyond conventional separation mechanisms. Despite these advantages, industrial implementation remains constrained by high manufacturing costs, limited scalability of high-resolution printing techniques, material restrictions, and the lack of standardized long-term techno-economic assessments. Overall, this review indicates that additive manufacturing offers promising opportunities to improve membrane design and performance for wastewater treatment. However, its large-scale industrial implementation and economic competitiveness require further validation through pilot-scale studies, standardized techno-economic assessments, and long-term operational evaluations.