Architectural 3D Printing With Glass

I’ve had a lot of admiration for MIT since learning Noam Chomsky once taught there. But more recently its MIT’s engineering prowess which draws attention. Their work on drones - and the swarm mathematics which drive them - is especially innovative. But for this post I wish to focus on news this week MIT’s Material Lab has introduced a method for3D printing glass. A technology which they are calling “G3DP” effectively prints molten glass, which, when cooled, can be used for a variety of architectural features. Left missing from the article is specifications as to its strength. One of the architecturally useful characteristics of glass, if manufactured with a minimum of imperfections, can be its high compressive strength. Normally 3D printed materials can be assumed to be weaker than their traditionally produced counter-parts. If, in the meantime, only smaller architectural features are feasible with the technology I think the process will be a boon for great design. Vimeo Video.