The project seems crazy. A new dam will be built on the Tibetan plateau
without using any human labor. The construction will be entirely supported by
machines controlled by artificial intelligence, which will erect the structure
layer by layer, using the same process as a 3D print. Once completed, the
Yangqu Hydroelectric Power Station will supply nearly 5 billion kilowatt hours
of electricity to east-central China's Henan Province annually.
"The largest 3D printer in the world", it is in these terms that the
scientists involved in the project evoke this 180 meter high structure,
located on the banks of the Yellow River. No human employees will be present
on the construction site: all construction machinery (excavators, trucks,
bulldozers, rollers, etc.) will all be unmanned and controlled by artificial
intelligence. The plant, which is expected to be completed in 2024, will
supply electricity to the entire Henan province, some 100 million people.
China currently occupies first place in the ranking of hydroelectricity
producing countries: its power stations represent nearly 31% of the
hydroelectricity produced in the world and 17% of the country's electricity
production. The Three Gorges Dam power station, located on the Yangtze River
in Hubei Province, central China, is the most powerful in the world. In
2021, it generated
103.6 billion kWh of electricity, according to operating company 'China Three Gorges Corporation'. The
Yangqu plant will not be as productive, but is distinguished by its
particularly innovative method of construction.
A completely autonomous construction project
This unique project was presented in the newspaper of Tsinghua University,
which is responsible for carrying it out. The article mentions “a 3D
printing system using intelligent robots for the rapid and efficient filling
of large construction projects”. This system includes a construction
planning device and an assembly line. The planning system is responsible for
slicing the digital design model into layers to calculate infill material
data, and then planning haul routes for each stage of the construction
process.
Construction robots will collect fill materials when needed and transport
them through a smart paving and rolling system. The machines will be
equipped with sensors to verify that the structure acquires the necessary
solidity. After each layer is completed, the robots will send construction
status information to the planning system; the process will repeat like this
until the dam is complete. Details of the manufacturing process have not
been released by the scientists.
Note that China is far from new to this: the largest 3D printed pavilion in
the world and the first
3D printed retractable bridge
were both built in China. The latter, just over nine meters long, is located
in Wisdom Bay Park in Shanghai. The district is also well known for
promoting this technology: in addition to a museum dedicated to 3D printing
and several companies in the sector, it is also home to one of the longest
3D printed bridges in China, 26 meters long on 3.5 meters wide.
Nevertheless, these additive manufacturing projects have always involved
human workers during their construction. With this 100% autonomous dam
project, China is taking a new step: it is the first demonstration combining
3D printing and artificial intelligence in the field of construction. The
objective being, according to those responsible for the project, to free
humans from heavy, repetitive and dangerous work. This approach also
eliminates human error (for example when the compactor roller operators do
not keep a perfect straight line), but above all, allows the site to operate
24 hours a day, without interruption.
The largest 3D construction in the world
With its 180 meters in height, this hydroelectric dam will become the
largest installation in the world printed in 3D. The record so far is held
by a two-storey office building, 9.5 meters high, built in Dubai in 2020:
640 m² of office space has been erected by a single printer, accompanied by
three employees responsible for controlling the works. Mohamed Al Gergawi,
Minister of Cabinet Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, announced at the
inauguration that by 2030, a quarter of constructions would be carried out
with this technique, which he considers 50% faster and half the cost. .
According to Scott Santens, a universal basic income advocate in the United
States, his country would not consider carrying out such a project, because
it considers job creation to be the best solution to poverty. “The United
States will never undertake such a project (at least not before having
adopted the universal basic income). Why? Because we worship creating jobs
instead of believing that the purpose of work like this is to do it, not to
employ people in the process,” he said on his
Twitter account.
The replacement of human labor with advanced technologies is a long-standing
debate. But with this large-scale project, one can also wonder about the
priorities of the Chinese government, which in the face of an outbreak of
COVID-19 cases - to which are added major logistical problems and food
shortages - is not not able to ensure the supply of the inhabitants of
Shanghai cloistered at home for weeks.