Since commercially available 3D printers came out a few years ago, their capabilities have radically expanded. At first, they could only print little things out of plastic, but now people have begun to print working cars and even bridges. People are actively experimenting with how to print with more materials like metals and, more recently, concrete.

This summer, I participated in the Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) program at NIST. Upon being accepted, I was assigned to a project titled “Additive Manufacturing of Cement.” I was intrigued by the title alone, as I had experience with 3D printing—but I had not, however, worked with cement or concrete. I found this project to be a good opportunity for expanding my knowledge of materials and their applications in manufacturing. My advisor, Scott Jones, told me that he had not even studied cementitious materials until he started his Ph.D., which was reassuring to me.

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