Abstract
Concrete 3D printing is an emerging technology in the construction sector, and it has been undergoing an exponential increase in that field. Nowadays, one of the most challenging subjects in 3D printing is the reinforcing method, particularly at the interface level between printed layers. These interfaces are considered the weakest parts in a printed element, and are the cause of its anisotropic behavior. Therefore, the study at hands first presents a customized 4-point bending test, developed particularly to evaluate the effectiveness of a newly developed inter-layer reinforcing technique. Second, it evaluates the effects and potentials of inserting steel nails or screws across successive layers. The type of reinforcement in terms of surface geometry, as well as the effect of the reinforcement’s number and arrangement over the printed surfaces was extensively assessed. Hence, it was found that inter-layer reinforcement is possible using local reinforcement. Notably, the results demonstrated that the surface geometry of the reinforcing agents greatly influences the quality of the bond generated with printed concrete layers. Precisely, reinforcements having smooth surfaces can be a real advantage to strengthen the interfaces between successive layers if properly distributed and implemented.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Availability of data and material
All data generated and analyzed during this study are included in this published article.
References
Asprone, D., Auricchio, F., et al. (2018). 3D printing of reinforced concrete elements: Technology and design approach. Construction and Building Materials, 165, 218–231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.01.018
Asprone, D., Menna, C., et al. (2018). Rethinking reinforcement for digital fabrication with concrete. Cement and Concrete Research, 112, 111–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.05.020
ASTM C349-18 (2018). Standard test method for compressive strength of hydraulic-cement mortars (using portions of prisms broken in flexure). ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA. doi: 10.1520/C0349-18.
Ayres, P., et al. (2019). SCRIM—sparse concrete reinforcement in meshworks. Robotic Fabrication in Architecture, Art and Design, 2018, 207–220. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-92294-2
Baz, B., et al. (2020a). Mechanical assessment of concrete—Steel bonding in 3D printed elements. Construction and Building Materials, 256, 119457. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2020.119457
Baz, B., Aouad, G., & Remond, S. (2020b). Effect of the printing method and mortar’s workability on pull-out strength of 3D printed elements. Construction and Building Materials, 230, 117002. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.117002
Baz, B. A., Remond, S., & Aouad, G. (2020c). Influence of the mix composition on the thixotropy of 3D printable mortars. Magazine of Concrete Research. https://doi.org/10.1680/jmacr.20.00193
Bos, F.P. et al. (2018). 3D Printing Concrete with Reinforcement. fib Symposium, High Tech Concrete: Where Technology and Engineering Meet, 1. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-59471-2
C348-20, A. (2020). Standard test method for flexural strength of hydraulic-cement mortars. ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2020. doi: https://doi.org/10.1520/C0348-20.
Christ, S., et al. (2015). Fiber reinforcement during 3D printing. Materials Letters, 139, 165–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matlet.2014.10.065
De Schutter, G., et al. (2018). Vision of 3D printing with concrete—Technical, economic and environmental potentials . Cement and Concrete Research, 112, 25–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.06.001
El Cheikh, K., et al. (2017). Numerical and experimental studies of aggregate blocking in mortar extrusion. Construction and Building Materials, 145, 452–463. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.04.032
Feng, P., et al. (2015). Mechanical properties of structures 3D printed with cementitious powders . Construction and Building Materials, 93, 486–497. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2015.05.132
Hack, N. et al. (2015). Mesh Mould: Robotically Fabricated Metal Meshes as Concrete Formwork and Reinforcement. In: FERRO-11: Proceedings of the 11th International Symposium on Ferrocement and 3rd ICTRC International Conference on Textile Reinforced Concrete, pp. 347–359.
Hambach, M., & Volkmer, D. (2017). Properties of 3D-printed fiber-reinforced Portland cement paste. Cement and Concrete Composites, 79, 62–70. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconcomp.2017.02.001
Khalil, N., et al. (2017). Use of calcium sulfoaluminate cements for setting control of 3D-printing mortars. Construction and Building Materials, 157, 382–391. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2017.09.109
Lee, H., et al. (2019a). Correlation between pore characteristics and tensile bond strength of additive manufactured mortar using X-ray computed tomography. Construction and Building Materials, 226, 712–720. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2019.07.161
Lee, H., et al. (2019b). Evaluation of the mechanical properties of a 3D-printed mortar. Materials, 12, 4104.
Lim, S., et al. (2012). Developments in construction-scale additive manufacturing processes. Automation in Construction, 21(1), 262–268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2011.06.010
Lloret, E., et al. (2015). ‘Complex concrete structures: Merging existing casting techniques with digital fabrication. CAD Computer Aided Design, 60, 40–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cad.2014.02.011
Lloret Fritschi, E. et al. (2017). Smart Dynamic Casting: Slipforming With Flexible Formwork - Inline Measurement and Control. In: second concrete innovation conference. doi: https://doi.org/10.3929/ethz-a-010782581.
Ma, G., et al. (2018). Mechanical characterization of 3D printed anisotropic cementitious material by the electromechanical transducer. Smart Materials and Structures. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-665X/aac789
Marchment, T., & Sanjayan, J. (2020). Mesh reinforcing method for 3D concrete printing. Automation in Construction. Elsevier, 109, 102992. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2019.102992
Nerella, V. N., Hempel, S., & Mechtcherine, V. (2017). Micro-and Macroscopic Investigations on the Interface between Layers of 3D- Printed Cementitious Elements. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Advances in Construction Materials and Systems, Chennai, India, September 3–8, 2017; RILEM, Paris.
Nerella, V. N., & Mechtcherine, V. (2016). Studying printability of fresh concrete for formwork free Concrete on-site 3D Printing technology.
Panda, B., et al. (2019). The effect of material fresh properties and process parameters on buildability and interlayer adhesion of 3D printed concrete. Materials (Basel), 12(13), 2149. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma12132149
Panda, B., Chandra-Paul, S., & Jen-Tan, M. (2017). Anisotropic mechanical performance of 3D printed fiber reinforced sustainable construction material. Materials Letters, 209, 146–149. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matlet.2017.07.123
Paul, S. C., et al. (2018). Fresh and hardened properties of 3D printable cementitious materials for building and construction. Archives of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, 18(1), 311–319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acme.2017.02.008
Perrot, A., et al. (2020). Nailing of layers: a promising way to reinforce concrete 3D printing structures. Materials (Basel), 13, 1518. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma13071518
Perrot, A., Rangeard, D., & Pierre, A. (2016). Structural built-up of cement-based materials used for 3D-printing extrusion techniques. Materials and Structures, 49, 1213–1220. https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-015-0571-0
Roussel, N. (2018). Rheological requirements for printable concretes. Cement and Concrete Research, 112, 76–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cemconres.2018.04.005
Sakin, M., & Kiroglu, Y. C. (2017). 3D printing of buildings: construction of the sustainable houses of the future by BIM. Energy Procedia., 134, 702–711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.egypro.2017.09.562
Sanjayan, J. G., et al. (2018). Effect of surface moisture on inter-layer strength of 3D printed concrete. Construction and Building Materials, 172, 468–475. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2018.03.232
Wangler, T., et al. (2016). Digital concrete: opportunities and challenges. RILEM Technical Letters, 1, 67–75. https://doi.org/10.21809/rilemtechlett.2016.16
Zareiyan, B., & Khoshnevis, B. (2017a). Effects of interlocking on interlayer adhesion and strength of structures in 3D printing of concrete. Automation in Construction, 83, 212–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2017.08.019
Zareiyan, B., & Khoshnevis, B. (2017b). Interlayer adhesion and strength of structures in Contour Crafting—Effects of aggregate size, extrusion rate, and layer thickness. Automation in Construction, 81, 112–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2017.06.013
Funding
No funding has been associated to this work.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Baz, B., Aouad, G., Khalil, N. et al. Inter-layer reinforcement of 3D printed concrete elements. Asian J Civ Eng 22, 341–349 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42107-020-00317-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42107-020-00317-0