Session: 03-08-01: Computational Modeling and Simulation for Advanced Manufacturing

Paper Number: 119545

119545 - Experimental and Numerical Analysis on Additive Manufacturing of Construction and Demolition Waste-Based Geopolymer Material 

3D concrete printing (3DCP) is a novel technology with numerous advantages, such as lower labor costs, reduced carbon dioxide emissions, time efficiency, user convenience, and design flexibility. However, the current approach in 3DCP involves extensive trial and error methods, which contribute to the higher costs and longer development times of the final product. Particularly in construction at a structural scale, the trial-and-error procedure can result in substantial resource and time wastage in the event of failure. In addition, geopolymers offer a promising alternative to traditional Portland cement (PC) by their reduced energy requirements and carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. One notable advantage of geopolymers is their ability to recycle and utilize by-products and waste materials, enhancing their value-added characteristics. Numerical modeling and simulation of the 3DCP process can help predict the structural behavior during the 3DCP process and premature failure, which allows modifying the printing strategy by changing the material, revising the design, and adjusting the printing parameters such as layer dimensions and print speed. Simulation of the 3DCP process plays a crucial role in predicting structural behavior and identifying potential premature failures, which ensures the attainment of desired structural outcomes and facilitates the optimization of the printing process. Therefore, the presented work aims to use construction and demolition waste (CDW) based geopolymer and analyze the effect of different printing parameters (printing speed and nozzle diameter) and different structural designs (cylinders with different diameters, square, and filleted-square profiles) on the buildability of 3D-printed built environment structures. The presented work performs a detailed experimental analysis of geopolymer-based 3D-printed geopolymer structures under different 3DP process parameters. In the next stage, a numerical model is used to predict the buildability performance of the built environment structures fabricated during the experimentation phase. For numerical modeling, detailed material characterization for the input properties used in the numerical model was performed. The experimental results revealed good processability and buildability of novel CDW-based geopolymer materials. An improved buildability was observed with an increase in nozzle size (i.e., layer height and width); however, buildability decreased with increased printing speed. Three cylindrical structures with diameters of 300 mm, 450 mm, and 600 mm were printed, with the same printing conditions, resulting in buildability of 352.5 mm, 322.5 mm, and 277.5 mm (total height constructed before the collapse), respectively. An overall buildability of 200mm was achieved for a squared profile structure. The numerical model predicted the failure of the 3D-printed structure with an error of 32-45%, whereas the buildability trend was successfully captured.

Presenting Author: Muammer Koç Hamad Bin Khalifa University

Presenting Author Biography: Dr. Muammer Koç has been the Founding Professor of Sustainability at HBKU., He had successful leadership in conceptualizing, founding, and managing industry/university collaborative research as he founded and directed an NSF IUCRC on Centre for Precision Forming (CPF) to support large companies such as GM, Boeing, Honda, and small industries. In addition, he had first-hand experience in founding and managing industrial, applied, and collaborative research addressing the actual needs of the industry. He has vast research management experience in leading multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional teams, as well as his research capacity in multi-disciplines of advanced manufacturing, materials sciences, nanomaterials, nano-surfaces, and heat/mass transfer for construction, structural, mechanical, biomedical, and energy applications.

Authors:

Ramsha Imran Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Ans Al Rashid Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Shoukat Alim Khan Texas A&M University at Qatar
Muammer Koç Hamad Bin Khalifa University