Submitted by Sanjana Bushra on Fri, 14/07/2023 - 13:29
Digital Roads of the Future researchers at University of Cambridge have helped develop the first 3D-printed piece of concrete infrastructure to be used on a National Highways project. This has been achieved in collaboration with Costain Group PLC, Versarien® plc, Jacobs and of course, National Highways.
The wall will provide real-time information on temperature, strain and pressure, using sensors embedded in its structure and could help spot and correct faults before they occur. The 2.3-tonne curved headwall is constructed using an alkali-activated cementitious material and a 3D printer, seen in the video below.
Professor Abir Al-Tabbaa, Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of Cambridge, added: “I am delighted that my team and I are part of this highly innovative project and that our sensors, both developed in-house and commercially hand-picked systems, have successfully been implemented within the wall structure during the manufacturing phase and will continue to monitor the performance for longer-term performance under field stresses.”
Members of the team included Sripriya Rengaraju, Christos Vlachakis, Yen-Fang Su, Damian Palin, HussamEldin Taha, Dr N'zebo Richard Anvo and Dr Lilia Potseluyko Amobi; as well as Costain’s Head of Materials Bhavika Ramrakhyani, and Ben Harries, Architectural Innovation Lead at Versarien.
To read more, click: First 3D-printed headwall trialled on National Highways’ A30 road upgrade, National Highways and Cambridge researchers help develop smart, 3D printed concrete wall for National Highways project, University of Cambridge.