Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing for an Efficient Concrete Beam

This paper presents the design and fabrication of an efficient steel–concrete composite beam prototype using structural optimization methods and innovative 3D concrete printing (3DCP). In traditional building industry, concrete objects like slabs or beams are cast by using low-cost standardized formwork, resulting in their high material usage and large carbon footprints. Although the development of large-scale 3DCP offers a formwork-free and rapid construction method, the elements created are like those created by standardized formwork. To achieve formwork-free construction of efficient concrete structures, this paper proposes the method of structural performance-based 3DCP. The work in this paper uses multi-material BESO technique and non-horizontal 3D printing to fabricate an efficient steel–concrete composite beam prototype with a span of 4 m. According to rough calculations, the optimized structure saves approximately 60% of concrete and 50% of steel compared to a conventional concrete beam. Combined with previous studies, this paper summarizes and proposes an important shift that is taking place in 3DCP. The general workflow of Structural Performance-Based 3D Concrete Printing is summarized, and future research topics are discussed. The study in this paper demonstrates the valuable outlook of the combination of structural performance-based design and precise material deposition methods, which could contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.