The Future of Building - 3D Printer Can Build Moon Bases

(PhysOrg.com) -- An Italian inventor, Enrico Dini, chairman of the company Monolite UK Ltd, has developed a huge three-dimensional printer called D-Shape that can print entire buildings out of sand and an inorganic binder. The printer works by spraying a thin layer of sand followed by a layer of magnesium-based binder from hundreds of nozzles on its underside. The glue turns the sand to solid stone, which is built up layer by layer from the bottom up to form a sculpture, or a sandstone building.

The D-shape printer can create a building four times faster than it could be built by conventional means, and reduces the cost to half or less. There is little waste, which is better for the environment, and it can easily “print” curved structures that are difficult and expensive to build by other means. Dini is proving the technology by creating a nine cubic meter pavilion for a roundabout in the town of Pontedera. The printer can be moved along horizontal beams and four vertical columns, and the printer head is raised by only 5-10 mm for each new layer. The printer is driven by a computer running CAD software and prints at a resolution of 25 dpi (dots per inch). The completed material resembles marble, is stronger than concrete, and does not need iron reinforcing. The printing process can successfully create internal curves, partitions, ducting, and hollow columns.

This is what I would consider a huge technological leap in the right direction. This is incredible and makes one wonder if civilizations of the past had similar knowledge. Regardless, the benefits of this are staggering to think of and the applications of it are even more incredible.

Enjoy!

~Namaste

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Cool invention indeed.

Now I want to print a pyramid or a nice sandcastle next time I am at the beach.

wowzers.

that's worth repeating. WOWZERS. in capitals letters.

That is awesome, reminds me of Jacque Fresco talking about buildings being built by them selves in the Venus Project

reply to post by SonOfTheLawOfOne


Just imagine what these machines could do for Haiti right now to rebuild their infrastructure, or Chile. I can easily envision this in years to come as being able to rebuild an entire city in months or even weeks. The ability to provide shelter to homeless people with nothing more than sand... that would be incredible and should be how we use technology to better all of mankind.

This technology could spur a REAL movement that allows us to build any structures we want, from nothing more than dirt. The jobs in steel manufacturing and drywall and construction would shift into this new paradigm and could ignite a new period of great wealth! Instead of swinging a hammer, the same folks would instead do inspections or construct the machines themselves, if done right, nobody would lose here. Just imagine the trillions of dollars spent right now to ship building supplies and construction equipment all over the world being reduced to pennies and replaced by a new industry; after all, the money doesn't dissolve, it gets re-purposed for other things. This could bring places like Africa, Haiti, North Korea and others to an entirely new level of civilization. With the idea of lunar bases being developed, it might even be possible to see full colonization of the moon in our lifetimes.

With this technology, it is only a matter of time before they are able to construct things out of other materials, such as boats, cars, possibly even simple organics. IMO, this opens the doors to things we have only imagined.

Have you seen on the Discovery Channel when they use computers to re-construct what people looked like based on their skulls? Or when they re-create dinosaurs out of fossils that take years (in some cases) to replicate or create? Think of what this has the capability to do for the entire human race.

If there has ever been a technology that looks to be game-changing and able to hit the market within this decade without unfathomable amounts of money, it is this. It is shocking that it hasn't gotten more attention but I hope it does going forward. I sure hope this doesn't just fall off the radar as others have, this isn't theoretical, it is 100% real and being used, not developed.

~Namaste