3D-Printed Lightweight Earth Fiber: From Tiles to Tessellations

3D-printed earth materials that incorporate natural raw soils have been recently emerging due to their ecological and affordability potential. However, earth materials applications in additive manufacturing have been limited to thick mass assemblies with little to no fiber reinforcement. The addition of natural plant fibers within earth-based mixtures may advantageously increase ductility while allowing for lightweight assembly types, such as thin and perforated elements. This article presents a novel research development on natural, raw, and untreated earth-fiber compositions with maximized wheat straw fiber content for 3D-printed lightweight architectural tiling applications. Initiated with an experimental printability apparatus of a range of mix designs, a printable “light straw clay” mixture is defined through extrudability and buildability tests. Then, combining the digital craft of weaving with natural fibers for earthen lightweight artifacts, a geometric analysis explores potential super lightweight and structurally sound tessellations to allow for minimum material in the production of perforated panels. The third phase of the research included structural bending tests to assess the number of layers required for the final tile production. Finally, the resulting 3D-printed modular components were assembled to create a lightweight installation, hung and exhibited with an interplay of light and shade. By maximizing co-product vegetable fiber content within an earthen and bio-based paste, this research aims to increase the carbon storage capabilities of digital earth construction while enhancing its lightness and tensile possibilities. Learning from vernacular “recipes” of natural earth- and fiber-based construction, the developed paper-thin partition assemblage presented in this article contributes to wider possibilities of natural, nonconventional, and radically low-carbon material systems and geometries in digital fabrication.