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Investigation of steel wire mesh reinforcement method for 3D concrete printing

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Abstract

3D concrete printing has received widespread attention and been developed for an increasing number of applications. However, a major challenge facing this technology is an effective way to introduce reinforcement into continuously deposited cementitious material. In this study, different layers of steel wire meshes (SWM) are employed to reinforce the 3D printed structures to improve mechanical capacities. Both destructive (bending, compression and splitting) and non-destructive (using electro-mechanical impedance) tests are employed to characterize the impact of this reinforcement method. The damage accumulation process is measured through the smart PZT patches based on the electro-mechanical impedance method. The results indicate that reinforced 3D-printed components with SWM change their failure modes from brittle to ductile. The peak loads are increased by 59.2–173.3% and the deflection capacity can be increased by more than 11 times than the non-reinforced one. Different mechanical responses of print and cast samples under compression are studied. The splitting tensile strength of wire mesh reinforced concrete is also measured, which is 43.7% higher than the non-reinforced sample. The calculating methods of the cracking moment and ultimate moment of steel wire mesh reinforced 3D printed concrete are presented. Comparison between the calculated and the experimental results verifies the effectiveness in predicting the ultimate moment. Experimental results show that it is feasible and effective to employ steel wire mesh for strength and toughness enhancement of 3D printed structures.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the support by the Academic Research Council of Australia Discovery Projects (Grant no. DP180104035) and the School Enterprise Cooperation Project of Zhong Dian Jian Ji Jiao Expressway Investment Development Co., Ltd.

Funding

The research was supported by the Academic Research Council of Australia Discovery Projects (Grant no. DP180104035) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51627812, No. 51808183).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering, The University of Western Australia, Perth, 6009, Australia

    Miao Liu & Guowei Ma

  2. School of Civil and Transportation Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, 5340 Xiping Road, Beichen District, Tianjin, 300401, China

    Li Wang & Guowei Ma

  3. College of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Beijing University of Technology, 100 Pingleyuan, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100124, China

    Zhijian Li

  4. Zhong Dian Jian Ji Jiao Expressway Investment Development Co., Ltd., 670 Chengjiao Street, Qiaoxi District, Shijiazhuang, 050090, China

    Qiyun Zhang & Zhendong Tan

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  1. Miao Liu
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  2. Qiyun Zhang
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  3. Zhendong Tan
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  4. Li Wang
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Correspondence to Li Wang.

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Liu, M., Zhang, Q., Tan, Z. et al. Investigation of steel wire mesh reinforcement method for 3D concrete printing. Archiv.Civ.Mech.Eng 21, 24 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43452-021-00183-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s43452-021-00183-w

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