[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 12, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Page 62545]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-19647]



[[Page 62545]]

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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology


Additive Construction by Extrusion (ACE) Consortium

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Department of 
Commerce.

ACTION: Notice of research consortium.

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SUMMARY: The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an 
agency of the United States Department of Commerce, in support of 
efforts to establish the measurement science required for development 
of the standards and industry for Additive Construction by Extrusion 
(ACE), is establishing the Additive Construction by Extrusion (ACE) 
Consortium (``Consortium''). The Consortium will bring together 
stakeholders to identify and address gaps in current standards related 
to materials, methods, structural performance, and engineering design. 
The Consortium efforts are intended to study the measurement science 
needs for the successful adoption of ACE by the construction industry, 
and to identify and propose new standards to address industry needs not 
met by existing standards. Participation fees will be at least $10,000 
annually or in-kind contributions of equivalent value. Participants 
will be required to sign a Cooperative Research and Development 
Agreement (CRADA). At NIST's discretion, entities which are not 
permitted to enter into CRADAs pursuant to law or other governmental 
constraint may be allowed to participate in the Consortium pursuant to 
a separate non-CRADA agreement.

DATES: The Consortium's activities will commence on October 15, 2023 
(``Commencement Date''). NIST will accept letters of interest to 
participate in this Consortium on an ongoing basis.

ADDRESSES: Completed letters of interest or requests for additional 
information about the Consortium can be directed via mail to the 
Consortium Manager, Dr. Shawn Platt, Materials and Structural Systems 
Division of NIST's Engineering Laboratory, 100 Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 
8615, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, or via electronic mail to 
[email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: J'aime Maynard, Consortia Agreements 
Officer, National Institute of Standards and Technology's Technology 
Partnerships Office, by telephone at (301) 975-8408, by mail to 100 
Bureau Drive, Mail Stop 2200, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899, or by 
electronic mail to [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Additive construction by extrusion (ACE) 
technology has the potential to revolutionize the construction industry 
by eliminating the need for formwork and enabling architectural and 
structural designs that cannot be achieved through current standard 
practices. As ACE remains in the early stages of development, this 
Consortium will study the measurement science needs for the successful 
adoption of ACE by the construction industry. The objective of this 
Consortium is to identify and then translate cementitious material 
measurements to in-line or in-process measurements for quality control 
and quality assurance in the ACE process. Participants in the 
Consortium will work with NIST toward the following goals:

(1) Correlating Off-Line Measurements to Print Quality

    A focus will be on correlating off-line measurements of fresh and 
hardening ink to a measure of print quality. The objectives are to 
determine material performance characteristics that are critical to the 
success of ACE.

(2) In-Situ and In-Process Measurements

    A focus will be on developing in-situ and in-process measurements 
that may be used to provide feedback into the control of the ACE 
process. The objective is to implement material property measurements 
in line to the ACE process.

(3) Hardened Properties and Scaling up From Paste to Concrete

    A focus will be on measurements at the structural scale, including 
a proper consideration of in-field issues. This includes, but is not 
limited to, hardened property measurements; studies on curing practices 
and finishing procedures; and development of numerical simulations of 
material deposition. The objectives are to develop measurement 
techniques to assess hardened properties of 3-D printed structures and 
investigate how early age properties and measurements may inform ACE 
through the use of numerical simulations.

Participation Process

    NIST is soliciting responses from all sources, including other 
Federal Government agencies, State or local governments, foreign 
government agencies, industrial organizations (including corporations, 
partnerships, and limited partnerships, and industrial development 
organizations), public and private foundations, and nonprofit 
organizations (including universities). Eligibility will be determined 
by NIST based on the information provided by prospective participants 
in response to this notice. NIST will evaluate the submitted responses 
from prospective participants to determine eligibility to participate 
in this Consortium. Prospective participants should provide letters of 
interest with the following information to NIST's Consortium Manager:
    1. Narrative of interest in ACE and description of related 
experience and expertise to contribute to the Consortium.
    2. List of anticipated participating individuals.
    3. If proposing in-kind participation instead of a fee 
contribution, description of anticipated in-kind donation and its 
equivalent value to fee.
    Letters of interest must not include business proprietary 
information. NIST will not treat any information provided in response 
to this notice as proprietary information. NIST will notify each 
organization of its eligibility. In order to participate in this 
Consortium, each eligible organization must sign a CRADA for this 
Consortium. Entities which are not permitted to enter into CRADAs 
pursuant to law or other governmental constraint may be allowed to 
participate in the Consortium, at NIST's discretion, pursuant to 
separate non-CRADA agreements with terms that may differ, as necessary, 
from the Consortium CRADA terms.
    Participants will contribute US $10,000 annually in funds or 
equivalent in-kind contributions to be members of the Consortium. NIST 
does not guarantee participation in the Consortium to any organization 
submitting a letter of interest. This phase of the Consortium will be 
for up to five years.
    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 3710a.

Alicia Chambers,
NIST Executive Secretariat.
[FR Doc. 2023-19647 Filed 9-11-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-13-P