Facilities
The Geo-CARE Laboratory houses equipment for additive manufacturing with earthen and cementitious materials alongside a full suite of geotechnical characterisation apparatus, supporting work from element-level testing through to printed structural elements.
Additive Manufacturing 2 systems
Tronxy Moore X2540 Ceramic & Clay 3D Printer
Extrusion printing of clay, ceramic slurry, red porcelain, and other liquid-flowing materials.
The printer uses a 1 L aluminium barrel feeding system with an electric putter, and an exclusive OSG dual-core guide rail. Control is through a 3.5-inch touch screen with USB connectivity and eight-language support, suited to high-speed clay printing.
Models above the X3350 can be configured with an air compressor.
e-Builder Laboratory Scale Concrete 3D Printer
Extendable laboratory-scale concrete printing with tangential nozzle control on three axes.
Hopper capacity is 7 to 8 kg, with round nozzles in 5, 10, 15, and 20 mm. Positional accuracy is 0.2 mm. Machine speeds run from 600 to 1000 mm/s, with printing speeds from 50 to 250 mm/s and a maximum of 400 mm/s.
The system includes perpetual software licensing, Wi-Fi connectivity, a print monitoring camera, and control from smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
Geotechnical Testing 8 setups
Cyclic Triaxial Setup
Repeated axial loading under controlled confining pressure, used to measure dynamic soil properties including stiffness, damping, and liquefaction resistance.
Automatic Consolidometer
Automated one-dimensional consolidation testing for compressibility parameters and time-rate of settlement.
SWCC Measuring Instrument
Measures the soil-water characteristic curve, relating matric suction to water content, which underpins unsaturated soil behaviour.
Direct Shear Testing Setup
Determines shear strength parameters, cohesion and friction angle, under a controlled normal stress.
UCS and CBR Testing Setup
Unconfined compressive strength and California Bearing Ratio testing for subgrades, stabilised soils, and treated materials.
Expansive Index Testing Setup
Quantifies the swell potential of expansive clays, a core measurement behind the lab's work on stabilised subgrades.
Consolidation Testing Setup
Incremental-load consolidation testing for settlement analysis of fine-grained soils.
Resilient Modulus Setup
Repeated-load triaxial testing to determine resilient modulus for pavement subgrade and base characterisation.
Using the laboratory
Prospective students, visiting researchers, and industry partners interested in collaborative testing are welcome to get in touch about access to these facilities.