3D printing sustainable structures using local soil

The construction industry is currently facing two major challenges: the demand for sustainable infrastructure and the need to repair deteriorating buildings, bridges and roads. While concrete is the material of choice for many construction projects, it has a large carbon footprint, resulting in high waste and energy expenditure. Researchers from the American Chemical Society (ACS) report progress toward a sustainable building material made from local soil. They have created a load-bearing structure using this material and a 3D printer.

We’ve covered many of the developments in the construction industry over the years. It’s undeniable that additive manufacturing technologies offer many benefits over conventional methods such as geometric freedom (even though this is more interesting for artistic constructions) and being able to produce locally from raw materials. However, in actual fact, most of the time AM construction companies still use concrete, which is far from being the most sustainable material. Today, concrete manufacturing is responsible for approximately 7% of carbon dioxide emissions according to the International Energy Agency, and cannot be recycled.

Most AM constructions are using concrete

At the American Chemical Society, the project’s principal investigator, Sarbajit Banerjee explains: “The environmental impact of the construction industry is an issue of growing concern. Some researchers have turned to additive manufacturing, or building structures layer by layer, which is often done with a 3D printer. That advance has begun to transform this sector in terms of reducing waste, but the materials used in the process need to be sustainable as well.”