Regenerative resources can be extracted from cyclic processes without reducing the capacity of that cycle without progressive depletion. Earthen materials, when not used in concrete and within non-cyclical hydration processes, are such materials which can be sourced, shaped, and reused in endless cycles. They recently gained popularity in Additive Manufacturing in Construction, where clay is used as a regenerative binder in various AM processes. In this project, we will study a novel process referred to as Intrusion Earth Additive Manufacturing (IEAM), in which a clay paste is intruded into a particle bed, compacted (similar to rammed earth manufacturing), and demoulded for the prefabrication of building components. Following a fabrication-aware design methodology, IEAM will act as a driver for building design and construction.

The project is structured in five parts; we will start off with a research task related to various aspects of the research context, such as material cultures, earthen materials, digital fabrication, circular construction engineering, and more. We will continue with manual material mixing and fabrication studies as a basis to develop preliminary design ideas on the level of components and how these come together. We will subsequently synthesise these learnings in the design of a small building, a guest house located in Munich, in a building gap in Neureutherstrasse and the corner of Arcisstrasse. Finally, we aim to robotically manufacture segments of your design proposal at a 1:1 scale.

We are excited to welcome young researchers for presentations on their research topics and to participate as guest critics for our project proposals. Specifically, we look forward to hosting Sacha Cutajar (Earth Formworks, USI Mendrisio), Petrus Aejmelaeus-Lindström (Rockprint, ETHZ, Gramazio Kohler Research), Patrick Bedarf (Architected Porosity, ETHZ, Digital Building Technologies) and Joschua Gosslar (Robotic Rammed Earth, TU Braunschweig).

Teaching team:
Kathrin Dörfler, Prof. Dr.
Ema Krakovská, MA.

Support:
Pierluigi D'Acunto, Prof. Dr. (Professorship of Structural Design, TU Munich)

Collaboration:
Leipfinger Bader Ziegelwerke

Booklet: 
Link to PDF