Revista UIS Ingenierías

Vol. 23 No. 2 (2024): Revista UIS Ingenierías
Articles

Additive manufacturing of soil-based materials: state-of-the-art and future perspectives of this environmentally friendly construction technology

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  • Nathalia Conde-Caicedo ,
  • Mónica A. Villaquirán-Caicedo ,
  • Ruby Mejía de Gutiérrez
Nathalia Conde-Caicedo
Universidad del Valle
Mónica A. Villaquirán-Caicedo
Universidad del Valle
Ruby Mejía de Gutiérrez
Universidad del Valle
DOI: https://doi.org/10.18273/revuin.v23n2-2024006

Published 2024-06-24

Keywords

  • additive manufacturing,
  • soil 3D printing,
  • soil-based materials,
  • adobe,
  • cob

How to Cite

Conde-Caicedo , N. ., Villaquirán-Caicedo , M. A. ., & Mejía de Gutiérrez , R. . (2024). Additive manufacturing of soil-based materials: state-of-the-art and future perspectives of this environmentally friendly construction technology. Revista UIS Ingenierías, 23(2), 91–110. https://doi.org/10.18273/revuin.v23n2-2024006

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Abstract

In recent years, there has been great interest in sustainable construction, which has led to an increased interest in 3D printing or additive manufacturing. However, the use of this technique with conventional materials is not enough to reduce the large environmental impact generated by the construction sector. Although most of the research and advances are focused on the 3D printing of Portland concrete, this review has been oriented towards the 3D printing of building materials based on soils and clays, which can provide an affordable (as it is a locally available material in many regions of the planet), environmentally sustainable, and low-cost approach, which is highly beneficial for housing construction. This paper has been oriented towards the search of scientific literature and prototypes that have been elaborated using ancestral materials, such as soil-clay-sand-sand-fibers like straw and water, for the elaboration of constructive pieces such as 3D printed walls or adobes. The objective of this paper is to close the gap on the use of mixtures based on soils, which, although they seem to have been fully studied for several centuries, to date their application in 3D printing is reduced. Readjustments in properties of soil mixtures such as fluidity for pumping or extrusion, buildability and good working time are variables that are reported in this paper. In addition, this review describes the mixtures that have been developed for 3D printing from soils and clays, and the main characteristics that have been found. Finally, the challenges that still remain for the blends to be applied on a massive industrial scale are presented.

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