3D Printing Concrete Incoroprating Environmentally Friendly Materials

With the development, the world is experiencing, building methods have had to be innovated to maintain the demands of the new world. 3D printing concrete (3DPC) has demonstrated its potential advantages over traditional building methods. This project aims to explore the technology of 3D concrete printing application and the ways by which it can be innovated through the research of using environmentally friendly partial replacements for Portland cement. Portland cement is the main component in the mixtures used in 3D printing worldwide; however, while this technology is gaining momentum in developed countries cement has disadvantages as it contributes significantly to the increase of CO₂ emissions for the construction process. Accordingly, this research aims to partially reduce the cement content with an environmentally friendly alternative. Proposed 3D concrete mixes were composed of Fly Ash, Silica Fumes and Ground Granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBS) or Water Hyacinth Ash (WHA). Properties of the 3D printed mixes are challenging to achieve as the 3D concrete should have a certain flow ability to not have extrudability or buildability problems. Through experimental work it was found that WHA 10% and GGBS 30% partial replacements samples had acceptable 28-day compressive strength results which could be recommended for more investigation and use in the future.