A team of Purdue faculty including Jan Olek, James H. and Carol H. Cure Professor in Civil Engineering and Director of the North Central Superpave Center (NCSC); Chris Williams, Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering; Pablo Zavattieri, Jerry M. and Lynda T. Engelhardt Professor in Civil Engineering; and Jeff Youngblood, Professor of Materials Engineering, is among the multi-university group of researchers led by Arizona State who received a 5-year, $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for development of a 3D Concrete Printing Network (3DConnect) for accelerating progress in additive manufacturing of concrete.

The objective of the proposed work is to develop new connections, and to strengthen existing connections, between the partner institutions in an effort to forge a viable collaboration in the novel area of concrete 3D printing for multi-functional structural systems that contribute to materials, energy, and environmental sustainability. Establishment and further development of such connections will allow for leveraging a broad-range of resources, including research expertise, educational and outreach activities, experimental and computational facilities, and industrial contacts, all of which are critical for creation of new knowledge and further development of the multi-disciplinary field of concrete 3D printing.

The Accelerating Research through International Network-to-Network Collaborations (AccelNet) program is designed to accelerate the process of scientific discovery and prepare the next generation of U.S. researchers for multi-team international collaborations.  The AccelNet program supports strategic linkages among U.S. research networks and complementary networks abroad that will leverage research and educational resources to tackle grand scientific challenges that require significant coordinated international efforts. The partners included in the AccelNet proposal are leaders in additive manufacturing of concrete and include academic institutions, research centers, and industrial organizations in Canada, Switzerland, Italy, Germany, China, United Arab Emirates, India, Singapore, Australia, South Africa, and Brazil.