US Army to build largest 3D-printed structures in the Americas
- Reference: 1649520010
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/04/09/army_3d_barracks/
- Source link:
Scheduled to be built at Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas, over the next 10 months, the three [1]3D-printed concrete barracks will each be more than 5,700 square feet (529.55 square meters) each, making them the largest 3D-printed structures yet built on the continent.
That title was previously held by the Texas Military Department, which had additive manufacturing company ICON build [2]3,800 square foot (353 square meters), 72-bunk barracks in 2021. The military was able to order these facilities after changing its Unified Facilities Criteria, used to decide what can be purchased, to include structures made of 3D-printed building materials.
[3]
The barracks are being made out of Lavacrete, ICON's own proprietary building material blend. According to the company, the compressive strength of its high-strength concrete is between 2,000 and 3,500 PSI.
[4]
While it may not match the strength of the toughest modern concrete, Lavacrete is plenty strong enough to serve as the walls of a barracks, and the DoD has plans to continue experimenting with 3D printed buildings at the Defense Innovation Unit, its experimental wing.
"Constructing facilities using this cutting-edge technology saves labor costs, reduces planning time, and increases the speed of construction of future facilities. We are looking at other ways to use this innovative technique for rapid construction of other types of facilities beyond barracks," said Lt Gen Doug Gabram, commander of the US Army Installation Management Command.
[5]Genetically modified E coli bacteria produce ink for 3D printing programmable objects
[6]The paperless office is back again! (But only because print hardware supplies are jammed)
[7]Scientists took cues from helicopter seeds to invent tiny microchips that float on wind
[8]Good news: Japanese boffins 3D print what looks like marbled Wagyu beef. Bad news: It's tiny and inedible
The construction itself is done by ICON's [9]Vulcan 3D printer , a 46-foot wide, 15-foot tall (14 metre x 4.6 metre) robot that can print between 5 and 10 inches (∼12.5cm-25cm) of concrete a second. Vulcan is controlled via a smartphone/tablet app, and only mixes concrete as needed, reducing waste and saving on construction costs.
ICON has build several 3D printed homes, and has made deals with space exploration companies to develop 3D-printing technologies for building structures on the Moon and Mars. ®
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[1] https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/2989152/dod-building-largest-3d-printed-structures-in-western-hemisphere/
[2] https://www.archpaper.com/2021/08/icon-completes-largest-3d-printed-structure-in-north-america/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2YlICFQ@0Sby5YT3JxtpO5QAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_offbeat/bootnotes&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44YlICFQ@0Sby5YT3JxtpO5QAAAMw&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2021/11/23/genetically_modified_e_coli_bacteria/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2021/11/15/printer_hardware/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/24/microfliers_helicopter_seeds/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2021/08/27/3d_printing_wagyu/
[9] https://www.iconbuild.com/vulcan
[10] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Finally- a solution for the homeless
The walls are just the walls, not the floor, not the roof, nor the rest of everything a building or home needs to function. The walls are done in days, then all the other work needs doing yet to make it livable. And the walls actually become an impediment to finishing out the building.
Concrete walls and thatched roofs seem unsatisfactory to me.
Note also these are all single-story buildings. In what city is that a solution?
Re: Finally- a solution for the homeless
If you need multi-story, just put in the parameters of an outside staircase. Use preformed, pre-stressed concrete slabs for floors using epoxy to help fill in the small gaps/level the floors. Then move the printer to the next floor.
Finishing would really not be a problem since there wouldn't be a need for any water supply except for a sink. Power lines wold have to come through a drilled hole, or a previously placed piece of pvc conduit.
Flooring would be industrial carpeting or "grass mat" style covering.
Remember that these would not be used for permanent housing, but a place for the homeless to have an address to use when applying for jobs, relief benefits, and as an anchor place until they can find housing.
Then again, if there is sufficient open land around the city, why make it multi-story?
I wonder if it would be simpler
To use the printer to produce metre-wide lego-style blocks?
Re: I wonder if it would be simpler
Many, many years ago the BBC TV "Tomorrow's World" programme showed the construction of a bungalow in a matter of hours - using Lego-style large plastic bricks.
Re: I wonder if it would be simpler
That would be a good way to recycle waste plastic. I've made the suggestion to use waste plastic to make similar blocks for use in road building where a road has to cross a marsh or narrow body of water.
The most troublesome part of the printing process is the doors...
Watch out for the jambs.
Not yet a home
Read a gushing article about a "luxury home" built by these people near me. Plenty of pictures, so I was finally able to answer the question *always* important - where are the power plugs, how many of them per room. The plugs are in the floor, and few. The power is also available in the ceiling for the lights. But nothing pierces those walls, and even the wall hangers are few.
And that luxury home had *so* much wood in the ceiling and everywhere else that wasn't the 'crete walls. The article mentioned the months after the walls were emplaced that it took to actually make it a livable building. The walls went up fast, then all the other magic had to be done. The complete build was not fast.
The only interest this has for me is the possibility of replicating the experience of a hotel near Le Mont-Saint-Michel, where the 1.5 foot thick stone walls meant the first clue we had of a raging street festival / market day outside below us was on opening the window!
Blast from my past (old technology)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJyAilELhkE
Finally- a solution for the homeless
The 3-D printed concrete housing could be a boon for cities that have a homeless population. Build a central structure with a kitchen and laundry, barracks in clusters of four each, and a shower/toilet facility in the center of each group connected by covered walkways.
Some could be further divided to hold family units for those with small children.
Could also be a way to house those displaced by natural disasters.