The lifespan of a road structure can be evaluated only based on a traffic forecast. After a road is open to traffic, degradations are starting to developed, even at light and moderate traffic levels. Thus, at a specific time moment during... more
The lifespan of a road structure can be evaluated only based on a traffic forecast. After a road is open to traffic, degradations are starting to developed, even at light and moderate traffic levels. Thus, at a specific time moment during the structure’s lifespan, the residual life expectation of a road can be determined as a function of the degradation state and the forecasted traffic. The degradation state can be evaluated either by using the approximated characteristics of the road construction materials or, based on the real material properties that are experimentally determined on core samples. If the residual life is estimated based on up-to-date traffic forecasts and real road materials properties, the common reinforcement methods used to prologue the lifespan of the structure can be optimized and adapted to the specific conditions of each type of pavement.
Three-dimensional printing with cement-based materials is a promising manufacturing technique for civil engineering applications that already allows for the design and the construction of complex and highly customized structures using a... more
Three-dimensional printing with cement-based materials is a promising manufacturing technique for civil engineering applications that already allows for the design and the construction of complex and highly customized structures using a layer-by-layer deposition approach. The extrusion mechanism is one of the most expensive parts of the 3D printer. Also, for low-scale 3D printers, based on the shape of the extruder and the geometry limitation of the mixing blade, the 3D mixture is often limited to a narrow range of materials due to the risk of layer splitting or blockage. Therefore, there is a need to develop affordable and feasible alternatives to the current design–fabrication–application approach of 3D printers. In this paper, various newly designed mixtures of fiber-reinforced mortars that can be 3D printed using only a commercially available screw pump are analyzed based on their fresh properties and mechanical characteristics. The results, in terms of extrudability, buildabili...
3D printing with cement-based materials is a promising manufacturing technique for civil engineering applications that already allows for the design and the construction of complex and highly customized structures using a layer-by-layer... more
3D printing with cement-based materials is a promising manufacturing technique for civil engineering applications that already allows for the design and the construction of complex and highly customized structures using a layer-by-layer deposition approach. Usually, in this type of additive manufacturing, a mixture of cement, water, aggregate and additives is extruded through a specific print head and deposited in successive layers to form the desired shape. The extrusion mechanism is one of the most expensive parts of the 3D printer. Also, for low scale 3D printers, based on the shape of the extruder and the geometry limitation of the mixing blade, the 3D mixture is often limited to a narrow range of materials due to the risk of layer splitting or blockage. Therefore, there is a need to develop affordable and feasible alternatives to the current design-fabrication-application approach of 3D printers. In this paper, various new designed mixtures of fiber reinforced mortars that can be 3D printed using only a commercially available screw pump are analyzed based on their fresh properties and mechanical characteristics. The reduced facility requirements in this approach allow 3D-printing to be more available for civil engineering applications. With further innovation in the future, this method and mixtures can be extended for sustainable and economically feasible printing of single-family housing units.
