C3PO – Concrete ! 3D Printed Objects

Project duration: August 1, 2021, to July 31, 2026

For the construction industry, additive manufacturing technologies can bring significant ecological and economic benefits to building and civil engineering and open up entirely new possibilities. Possible applications include, for example, the production of optimized structural concrete components. “C3PO – Concrete ! 3D Printed Objects” conducts application-oriented research into 3D printing of concrete objects and components with the aim of expanding their range of applications in the construction industry.
Researchers are focusing on targeted, efficient material application that leads to reduced use of concrete. This should help conserve primary resources and reduce the ecological footprint of concrete components. The optimization of cross-sectional topologies also leads to a significant reduction in the weight of concrete structures, which should allow the use of slimmer load-bearing elements in construction projects, e.g. for custom structures.

The concrete 3D printing process is documented

The project will develop and build an additive manufacturing facility for concrete and mortar mixes with and without fiber reinforcement. Optimized cross-sections are to be produced with high precision, even for small component dimensions. Further steps under consideration include the integration of sensor technology for the further development of components and Predictive Maintenance.

The three main research areas of C3PO:

Developing high-strength, printable concrete mix designs (1K and 2K materials) with and without fiber reinforcement
Setting up a printing system consisting of a robot and an external axis
Optimizing production through the application of Machine Learning Approaches

Students of the bachelor's and master's degree programs in civil engineering – construction management are also involved in the material development and design of the manufacturing facility as part of their final theses.