RII Track-2 FEC: Developing a Circular Bio-Based Framework For Architecture, Engineering and Construction Through Additive Manufacturing

Nonrenewable resources underpin our country’s critical infrastructure and as a result, many of our renewable resources are underutilized or wasted. The current housing economy operates on a model that damages the environment rather than a circular one that coexists with it. For example, buildings emit more than one-third of greenhouse gases globally and lumber mills producing housing construction materials currently convert only 40% of wood volume to lumber, leaving the remainder to be disposed of.

This Research Infrastructure Improvement Track-2 Focused EPSCoR Collaboration (RII Track-2 FEC) award will allow University of Idaho and Auburn University project teams to create a foundational framework to utilize renewable and waste feedstocks to make and utilize 100% bio-based materials for the Advanced Housing Manufacturing Industry of the Future. This project’s research activities and those developing the future workforce for this industry will be performed by a diverse interjurisdictional and interdisciplinary team, laying the foundation for transformational change in one of the country’s largest industries, housing construction.

It will provide outreach to high school chemistry students and educate college undergraduate and graduate students, as well as mentor postdoctoral scholars and early-career faculty members. Two NSF EPSCoR states, Idaho and Alabama, will experience economic enhancements from this project’s technology developments and industry partnerships that capitalize on their strong timber industries.

The overall goal of this project is to develop the science, technology, and educational frameworks required to enable an Advanced Housing Manufacturing Industry of the Future through the necessary intersection of unique interdisciplinary collaborations. Specifically, project teams at the University of Idaho and Auburn University will: 1) fractionate and characterize (via spectroscopy) bio-oils, chemically transform the oils into resins, and incorporate nanofibrillated cellulose to improve their properties; 2) develop additive manufacturing technology that is compatible with thermosetting type wood/bio-resin composites, incorporate reinforcing agents, such as biochar and long natural fibers, evaluate the properties of the composites via rheometry, thermal analysis, and spectroscopy, and 3-D print prototype building wall panels for evaluation; 3) evaluate, simulate, and predict composite material performance through ASTM tests, and incorporate fire and durability test data into neural network models to optimize material performance; and 4) promote housing construction market transformation toward more resilient building paradigms by developing resilience assessment tools for the architecture, engineering and construction industry and municipalities, and to develop curricular and pedagogical strategies for educating these stakeholders.

These and other project activities will educate approximately 100 high school, 40 undergraduate, and nine graduate students, as well as train three postdoctoral scholars, and mentor six early-career faculty members. This project also utilizes a mentor-network approach to achieve a superior mentoring experience for the and foster broader collaborations among the team’s researchers.

The scientific knowledge gained from this project will allow for better use of timber waste materials in two EPSCoR states, Idaho and Alabama, thereby increasing housing affordability and sustainability, ultimately contributing to the mitigation of climate change.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.