Reformative Coral Habitats - Rethinking Artificial Reef structures through a robotic 3D clay printing method.

Abstract

In 2018 after Typhoon Mangkhut hit Hong Kong, the city lost around 80% of its existing corals. As a consequence, a team consisting of marine biologists and architects have developed a series of performative structures that will be deployed in Hong Kong waters intending to aid new coral growth over the coming years. This paper describes the present research that focuses on the design and fabrication of artificial reef structures utilizing a robotic 3d clay printing method addressing the specificities of Hong Kong marine ecologies. The paper describes further the algorithmic design methodology, the optimization processes in the generation of the printing path, and the methodology for the fabrication processes during the production cycle to achieve even quality and prevent cracking during the drying process.