Researchers at the University of Maine, USA, houses 3D printing with the world’s largest 3D printer.
Faced with a housing shortage in United States of Americafor researcher of the University of Maine has found a solution to the problem. use one 3D printer the largest in the world, the university’s Center for Advanced Structures and Composites (ASCC) recently created its first 3D printed house made entirely of green materials.
Finding a way to 3D print houses at scale has been a challenge that many have tried and overcome over the last few years. Until recently, most solutions have involved the use of concrete or clay and traditional methods such as wood framing. But ASCC’s BioHome3D is different.
The 55.7 sq m prototype home features a 3D printed floor, walls and roof made from sustainably sourced wood fibers and organic resins. Reported by Engadget (11/24), the home is also fully recyclable and does not require weeks and months of on-site construction time to assemble.
After 3D printing four modules, ASCC assembled BioHome3D in half a day. Then it took an engineer about two hours to connect the house to electricity.
The ASCC says BioHome3D can help address the US housing shortage by reducing the materials and labor needed to build affordable homes. In Maine alone, there is a statewide shortage of about 20,000 housing units.
It should be noted that the US housing shortage predates the pandemic and the supply chain problems that accompanied it. Jenny Schuetz, a senior fellow at The Brookings Institution, argues that current housing problems in the US can be traced to zoning laws that allow residents to block efforts to build more homes in their neighborhoods. In other words, it’s best to see the housing crisis as a political issue, not a technology one.
That’s not to say that technology doesn’t have a role to play in improving housing. Cement, the main ingredient from which concrete is made, has a very high carbon footprint. In 2018, global production of this material contributed about 8% of annual greenhouse gas emissions, or more pollution than the entire aviation industry produces. Reducing or completely eliminating the need for concrete in home construction can be a breakthrough for the environment.
