Digital Concrete: Opportunities and Challenges
Robert J. Flatt, Professor, Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering Department from ETH Zurich (Switzerland), will give a lecture about Digital Concrete fabrication, the 10th january.
Le 10/01/2019 :
13:30 à 15:00
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2025-05-12 18:38:29
2025-05-12 18:38:29
Digital Concrete: Opportunities and Challenges
Robert J. Flatt, Professor, Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering Department from ETH Zurich (Switzerland), will give a lecture about Digital Concrete fabrication, the 10th january.
Leonard de Vinci building, E-media amphi
ENS-PARIS-SACLAY
webmaster@ens-paris-saclay.fr
Europe/Paris
public
Digital fabrication has been termed the third industrial revolution [1] and promises to revolutionize the construction industry with the potential of freeform architecture, less material waste, reduced construction costs, and increased worker safety. Substantial interest for cementitious materials has developed within recent years [2-9].
Digital fabrication with concrete
In general, 3D printing has been successful with polymeric materials extruded in a liquid state and subsequently hardened, so the application of the technique to concrete, a material that undergoes a similar phase transition, seems natural, although there are some limitations with upscaling. The enormous potential of the nexus of concrete and digital fabrication is not limited only to 3D printing, however. Other digital fabrication techniques, can also be considered for concrete, overcoming certain limitations of 3D printing.
The primary advantages of digital fabrication - freeform architecture and precision material placement - can be combined with the additional advantages of increased construction speed, reduced costs for labor and formwork, and increased worker safety. Additionally, digital fabrication is expected to lead to more sustainable construction due to more efficient structural design by placing material only where it is needed, reducing waste generation due to more efficient construction techniques, especially with respect to formwork.
Interdisciplinary research
With this in mind, major challenges and recent advantages in the field will be reviewed examining recent developments since a first review on the subject [10]. In particular, it will be underlined that controlling both rheology and hydration kinetics is a common challenge for many of these processes [11-13].
A major conclusion is that for the concrete technologist, material placement, hydration control, and implementation of reinforcement remain major research problems, while the formation of cold joints and the impact on durability is an open question.
To close, it is essential to point out the importance of interdisciplinary research. Digital fabrication with concrete will require the intense collaboration of architects, materials scientists, roboticists, and structural engineers, among others. Major advancements in digital concrete can only occur when each party brings the constraints imposed by their respective fields to the table, and a realizable solution is put forth.
To know more, visit the ETZ, Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering