Study on the properties of polypropylene fiber concrete for 3D printing technology

Abstract

3D concrete printing technology is a high-tech development in concrete construction. The main advantage of this technique is the faster construction because of the formwork unnecessity. Materials for 3D concrete printing included: cement, sand, water, chemical additives, activated mineral additives, including silica fume and fly ash. In addition, the use of polypropylene fiber (PP fiber) improved the properties of the concrete, especially in the bonding ability of the elements during extrusion, resulting in continuous 3D filament without any break or interruption. Concrete mixtures using 1% PP fiber, 1:1 sand to binder ratio, and the water to binder ratio from 0.32 to 0.34 were found to be suitable for making 3D concrete printing.