Concrete produced with waste glass was found to have better insulating properties than traditional mixes, according to an article in The Engineer. The Additive Manufacturing Technology in Construction Research Group at Brunel University London found that when they replaced a conventional aggregate with waste glass, thermal conductivity reduced.

The team speculated that these findings could be useful for organisations looking at 3D printing in construction, and that the environmental benefits could be significant. Published in the Journal of Building Engineering, glass waste had a thermal conductivity a fifth lower than basalt aggregate.

The team estimated that 2,000 recycled beer bottles could be used per square metre of structure. They intend to attempt to scale the project and printing demonstration walls.