Concrete in Space? MTSU Students Are Working Toward Goal

Jeff Adkins

When marrying the science of concrete with 3D printing, there are no better experts than the students and faculty in Middle Tennessee State University’s Concrete Industry Management (CIM) program in Murfreesboro, TN.

That’s why administrators at Drake State Technical and Community College, based in Huntsville, Alabama, reached out to MTSU when the college was awarded a NASA Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) grant to train additive manufacturing technicians and advance 3D printing research. 

As a result of the partnership, MUREP student interns at Drake State and MTSU worked together to learn about robotics, concrete material properties and ways to address issues with the print medium, while developing structural health monitoring protocols. The students’ designs and protocols are currently being adopted by engineers and NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center for the Artemis missions, which will take astronauts to Mars by way of Moon habitats and launchpads. 

“Many of the problems faced in 3D concrete printing require a knowledge of plastic and hardened concrete properties, along with the methodologies and chemicals to manipulate the behavior of the building material,” says Jon Huddleston, associate professor and CIM program director at MTSU. 

Not only does MTSU bring its concrete expertise to the table, but Rutherford County is also not far from Drake State, creating a strategic partnership between the two schools. 

“MTSU has the oldest and largest concrete industry management program in the nation, and while many engineering programs have a course on concrete, the CIM program dives deep into the engineering, chemical and physical properties of the world’s most utilized material, next to water,” Huddleston says. 

Career Opportunities

The CIM program offers a rewarding four-year degree program focused on preparing students to enter the concrete and construction industries in management positions, but Huddleston also points out that the partnership with NASA creates an opportunity for students to immerse themselves in emerging technologies not yet fully adopted by the industry. 

“Additionally, the hands-on work during the internship experience gives students valuable real-world experience and networking opportunities with representatives from the industry,” Huddleston says. “The partnership with Drake State bridges the path from a two-year degree program to a four-year degree program that broadens the horizons of underrepresented portions of society in the concrete and construction industries.” 

Thus, those students are offered the opportunity to make an impact that goes beyond this world and influences the future of life in space. 

“When NASA conducts research, the goal is not only for the developed technology to be used in space, but it is also to expand beyond space exploration and be utilized in our daily lives,” Huddleston says. “We have benefited from products developed as a part of NASA research in our daily lives through technological developments that have led to things such as cordless tools, microprocessors and camera phones.”