Concrete printing: fast and saves a lot of space

https://www.ad.nl/amersfoort/betonprinter-is-snel-en-bespaart-veel-afval~a1abc9a7/

Amersfoort wants to be a waste-free and CO2-neutral city by 2030 that runs on a 'circular economy'. A foretaste of this was on display tonight at the theme meeting 'Acceleration of the Circular Economy'.


Switching to so-called circular entrepreneurship—where raw materials are not wasted but reused—can generate 57 million euros per year and create 400 new jobs for the city, according to Menno Tigelaar, alderman for environment and raw materials. This is in addition to innovation and environmental benefits. Tigelaar quantified this during the meeting ‘Acceleration Circular Economy region Amersfoort’ today at World of Technology, part of MBO Amersfoort.

Here, a striking piece of technology was demonstrated that resulted from a collaboration between residents, businesses, and the municipality to kickstart the circular economy. For those present, a concrete structure of a bench was printed. The initiator is Jiri Gregor from the Fablab. Steel company Voestalpine, construction company Heijligers, concrete supplier Van der Kamp, Stadslab033, and Bouwmensen also worked on it.

Speed

The speed at which the concrete printer does its work amazed the interested parties. Within five minutes, part of the concrete bench was printed. "Any desired shape can be printed," says Volker Ruitinga on behalf of all partners. "Moreover, hardly any material is wasted with this technique, so there is almost no construction waste." This is precisely the reason why this printer fits into the circular economy. A concrete printer on the construction site also saves costs and CO2 emissions from transport.

The technique is not yet fully circular: the mortar is not yet made from recycled raw materials. However, work is being done on that: ultimately, the mortar should be made from rubble.

Knowledge about concrete printing is hardly shared. "That is why we are working on an open-source technology," says Ruitinga. This is partly thanks to the Future Fund for Sustainable Development.

January 28, 2018