ETH researchers have developed a fast, robot-assisted printing process for earth materials that does not require cement.

Zurich, September, 10th 2024.Entire houses can be built from clay or earth. The material is cheap, available almost everywhere and sustainable in construction because it does not require cement. However, conventional construction methods are very labour-intensive, slow and therefore expensive.

ETH researchers have now developed a fast, robot-assisted printing process for earth materials that does not require cement. In what is known as ‘impact printing’, a robot shoots material from above and gradually builds a wall. On impact, the parts bond together so that very few additives are required. Unlike concrete 3D printing, the process does not require any pauses during which the material can solidify. A mixture of excavated material, silt and clay is currently used.

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Source: ETH Zurich