Degree
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Construction Management
Document Type
Dissertation
Abstract
To realize critical infrastructures on Earth and beyond, Construction 3D Printing (C3DP) with resilient materials can be leveraged as a robotic construction platform, owing to its numerous benefits and potentials. To this end, this study explores the use of steel fiber-reinforced cementitious materials and sulfur concrete as two viable materials for terrestrial and extraterrestrial construction, respectively. The experimental results revealed that printing material incorporating up to 2.5 vol.% steel fibers can be successfully 3D printed. The mechanical properties of the reinforced material improved significantly at high fiber dosages (2% and 2.5% vol.). Furthermore, the 3D printed beams demonstrated anisotropic behavior even at very high fiber dosages. Hence, the flexural strength of beams tested in the X and Y directions surpassed that of the beams tested in the Z direction. The favorable performances in the X and Y directions are attributed to the high steel fiber dosage and the extrusion-induced fiber alignment in the longitudinal (printing) direction. Furthermore, the fiber orientation analysis conducted confirmed that fibers in the 3D printed specimens were more aligned relative to the printing direction compared to the mold-cast specimens. Interestingly, the mold-cast specimen outperformed the 3D printed specimen at high fiber dosages, owing to the combined effect of the favorable random distribution and orientation of the fibers in the mold-cast specimen, potentially preventing the propagation of cracks. This investigation also shows that waterless Martian sulfur-regolith concrete (SRC) can be successfully formulated, and 3D printed. A lower substrate layer temperature was found to be beneficial for shape stability but comes at the cost of flexural strength. The printed SRC specimens demonstrated a significantly faster strength development rate compared to the printed PCC. The printed SRC specimens also outperformed the PCC specimens in vacuum conditions at higher temperatures. Furthermore, modifying the SRC materials with Dicyclopentadiene resulted in up to 44% strength increase and minimized the sublimation rate of the printed specimens in vacuum conditions, demonstrating an effective approach for enhancing the resilience of the waterless printing material.
Date
7-3-2024
Recommended Citation
Giwa, Ilerioluwa S., "ENHANCING THE RESILIENCE OF PRINTING MATERIALS USED FOR EXTRUSION-BASED CONSTRUCTION 3D PRINTING ON EARTH AND BEYOND" (2024). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 6542.
https://repository.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/6542
Committee Chair
Kazemian, Ali
DOI
https://doi.org/10.31390/gradschool_dissertations.6542
Included in
Civil Engineering Commons, Construction Engineering and Management Commons, Polymer and Organic Materials Commons, Structural Materials Commons, Transportation Engineering Commons