Utilizing Industrial By-Products for Sustainable Three-Dimensional-Printed Infrastructure Applications: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract

Industrial secondary products (e.g., fly ash, blast furnace slag, and silica fume) have found extensive application as alternative construction materials in conventional manufacturing methods to reduce carbon emissions due to cement usage and solve the waste management problem. To date, additive manufacturing or 3D printing has been massively developed for every material, including cement-based materials. Some possibilities have arisen to incorporate industrial wastes in cement mixtures in 3D printing applications. However, a comprehensive study about fly ash (FA), ground granulated blast-furnace slag (GGBFS), and silica fume (SF) usage in 3D-printed materials needs to be conducted. This paper shows that some aspects of 3D printing, such as printability, buildability, and rheological properties, need to be considered, and waste materials affect these fresh mixture properties. Applying waste materials as supplementary cementitious materials also gives different mechanical properties and durability performances. Furthermore, the environmental and economic benefits of 3D-printed and conventional materials are compared. The results show that 3D printing methods can enhance the environmental and economic benefits while maintaining the performance of materials created using traditional methods. Studying industrial waste application in 3D printing has become a promising way to develop sustainable materials in this digitalization era.