Production of Thermoplastic Starch Pellets and Their Robotic Deposition for Biodegradable Non-standard Formworks

The climate crisis challenges architects, designers, and engineers to explore alternative opportunities for more sustainable fabrication processes. Biopolymers have emerged as a potential material to replace petroleum-based plastics used in building and construction processes. This research aims to re-evaluate the production of non-standard building elements and introduce bio-based and biodegradable materials for formworks in architecture. This research paper investigates the production of thermoplastic starch (TPS) pellets and connected digital fabrication techniques. It studies the effects of varying ratios of the plasticizer on the behavior and properties of the material. TPS pellets are further processed using a large-scale robotic 3D printing setup, utilizing the Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) method. The initial printed results using a robotic pellet extrusion system are presented, analyzed, and evaluated. The advantages and challenges of this approach are discussed within the scope of the architectural research field. This paper focuses on the production and digital fabrication techniques of TPS pellets, with the primary goal of developing a sustainable, bio-based, and bio-compostable system for concrete formwork in architecture.