The Effect of Curing Conditions on the Service Life of 3D Printed Concrete Formwork

Complex concrete elements are typically produced with lost formwork made out of timber or plastic. After usage, these timber or plastic panels are disposed of. This makes complex lost formwork a polluting and high-cost-inducing aspect of concrete construction. A possible solution for this problem could be 3D printing of concrete. This high degree of freedom construction process could easily be used to produce complex formwork. As the formwork stays in place, it has a function during and after the hardening of the inner concrete. Before hardening, the formwork keeps the fresh concrete in place. After hardening, the printed formwork takes the function of a concrete cover. The concrete cover protects the steel reinforcement against aggressive environmental substances such as chlorides and carbon dioxide. To properly execute this function, the printed material and the transition between printed material and inner concrete need to perform at least as well as the inner material. This experimental research investigates the usability of a 3D printed concrete mixture as a concrete cover in a combined concrete structure. The effect of the curing condition as well as two different surface finishing techniques of the printed formwork are taken into account. The effect of the different parameters is compared based on existing service life models. Results indicate that proper curing of the printed formwork is of key importance in order to obtain significant resistance against carbonation- and chloride-induced corrosion. Adjusting the nozzle with side trowels improves the resistance of the printed material against chloride intrusion and carbonation but has only a limited effect on the service life extension.