Paper Title
3D Printing of Nanomaterials for Concrete Construction
Abstract
This paper proposes nanomaterials as a structural material that can be used to 3D print concrete structural
members. Such suggestion hold promises to overcome housing crisis that is taking place in many regions. Traditional
concrete/mortar is not a suitable material to be printed due to issues with aggregate jamming in the printer’s nozzle,
compacting problems, and the layer-by-layer placement issues. Enhancement of mechanical properties and durability of
concrete/mortar can be achieved by modifying the nanostructure through the inclusion of nanomaterials into cement matrix.
It was proven that some nanomaterials such as nano-alumina, nano-titania, nano-silica, nano-magnesium oxide, nano-zinc
oxide, silver nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes, or graphene have enhanced hydration, microstructure, porosity, and
accordingly the mechanical properties. This makes nanomaterials suitable to be printed in terms of mechanical strength but it
should be tested to verify if it is printable material or not.