3D Printing Applications and Sustainable Construction

Dear Colleagues,

In the 21st century, new techniques and methodologies have been appeared to design, plan, and build. New and advanced techniques such as 3D printing can be used in the construction field to develop new sustainable methodologies and processes. The current literature of 3D printing in the field of construction is focused on technical advances. However, 3D printing also provides significant benefits to improve sustainability in construction.

This Special Issue is focused on the use of 3D printing technology to improve the sustainability of the construction field. Paper topics can be related to applications of 3D printing techniques to industrial, civil, and architectural construction or rehabilitation. This new technique may reduce time, materials, costs, and risks in the construction site compared with traditional construction techniques. Recycled, new, local, and natural materials can be used in 3D printing to build efficiently. The current scientific knowledge in cementitious and other materials must be increased considering sustainability. At this point, computational methods are very useful to reduce the number of laboratory tests and apply design optimization techniques to develop sustainable solutions.

The present Special Issue welcomes research papers with the application of 3D Printing methodologies to improve efficiency and sustainability in the construction field. A collection of research works and applications in this topic can be very useful to improve the current construction methods and make experts aware of the newest technologies available. Finally, the papers published in this Special Issue will increase current knowledge to include sustainability criteria in the current building codes.

References:

Lim, R.A. Buswell, T.T. Le, S.A. Austin, A.G.F. Gibb, T. Thorpe. Developments in construction-scale additive manufacturing processes. Automation in Construction 21 (2012) 262–268.

Gosselin, R. Duballet, Ph. Roux, N. Gaudillière, J. Dirrenberger, Ph. Morel. Large-scale 3D printing of ultra-high performance concrete – a new processing route for architects and builders. Materials and Design 100 (2016) 102–109.

Bos, F. P., Wolfs, R. J. M., Ahmed, Z. Y., & Salet, T. A. M. (2016). Additive manufacturing of concrete in construction: potentials and challenges of 3D concrete printing. Virtual and Physical Prototyping, 11(3), 209-225.

Duballet, O. Baverel, J. Dirrenberger. Classification of building systems for concrete 3D printing. Automation in Construction 83 (2017) 247–258.

Babak Zareiyana, Behrokh Khoshnevis. Effects of interlocking on interlayer adhesion and strength of structures in 3D printing of concrete. Automation in Construction 83 (2017) 212–221.

Yu Chen, Fred Veer, Oguzhan Copuroglu. A Critical Review of 3D Concrete Printing as a Low CO₂ Concrete Approach. Heron 62(3) (2017).

Freek P. Bos, Zeeshan Y. Ahmed, Evgeniy R. Jutinov and Theo A. M. Salet. Experimental Exploration of Metal Cable as Reinforcement in 3D Printed Concrete. Materials 2017, 10, 1314.

Seyed Hamidreza Ghaffar, Jorge Corker, Mizi Fan. Additive manufacturing technology and its implementation in construction as an eco-innovative solution. Automation in Construction 93 (2018) 1–11.

Yiwei Weng, Bing Lu, Mingyang Li, Zhixin Liu, Ming Jen Tan, Shunzhi Qian. Empirical models to predict rheological properties of fiber reinforced cementitious composites for 3D printing. Construction and Building Materials 189 (2018) 676–685.

R.A. Buswell, W.R. Leal de Silva, S.Z. Jones, J. Dirrenberger. 3D printing using concrete extrusion: A roadmap for research. Cement and Concrete Research 112 (2018) 37–49.

Geert De Schutter, Karel Lesage, Viktor Mechtcherine, Venkatesh Naidu Nerella, Guillaume Habert, Isolda Agusti-Juan. Vision of 3D printing with concrete — Technical, economic and environmental potentials. Cement and Concrete Research 112 (2018) 25–36.

Delphine Marchon, Shiho Kawashima, Hela Bessaies-Bey, Sara Mantellato, Serina Ng. Hydration and rheology control of concrete for digital fabrication: Potential admixtures and cement chemistry. Cement and Concrete Research 112 (2018) 96–110.

Zhixin Liu, Mingyang Li, Yiwei Weng, Teck Neng Wong, Ming Jen Tan. Mixture Design Approach to optimize the rheological properties of the material used in 3D cementitious material printing. Construction and Building Materials 198 (2019) 245–255.

Bing Lu, Yiwei Weng, Mingyang Li, Ye Qian, Kah Fai Leong, Ming Jen Tan, Shunzhi Qian. A systematical review of 3D printable cementitious materials. Construction and Building Materials 207 (2019) 477–490.

A.V. Rahul, Manu Santhanam, Hitesh Meena, Zimam Ghani. 3D printable concrete: Mixture design and test methods. Cement and Concrete Composites 97 (2019) 13–23.

Dr. Mar Alonso-Martinez
Dr. Felipe Pedro Álvarez-Rabanal
Guest Editors

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• 3D concrete printing (3DCP)
• Additive manufacturing
• Design optimization
• Life-cycle assessment
• Material properties
• Sustainable materials
• Topological optimization