2020 ARCC Research Incentive Award

The ARCC Research Incentive Award aims to support and promote high‐quality architectural research and scholarship activities in ARCC member schools. The program provides faculty in with a one-year $5,000 grant to support and enhance their research and creative activities, and to develop their research agendas.

Flexi-Form: Design and Fabrication of Additive Flexible Formwork for the Design of Concrete Interlocking Modules

Principal Investigator: Niloufar Emami, Ph.D. (Louisiana State University)

The project will study 3D printed concrete fabrication methods that can accommodate the creation of complex and cost effective formwork geometries at scale. The proposed research involves optimization of a wide range of process parameters, including temperature, extrusion speed (flow rate), printing speed (feed rate), extruder nozzle diameter, and effects of mixes with different densities. The outcomes of the study will produce sufficient data to better understand the influence of these aspects, narrowing the gap between design and fabrication.

Niloufar Emami, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Architecture and holds the A. Hays Town Professorship at Louisiana State University. She is a researcher, educator, and designer looking for gaps, intersections, and overlaps between architecture and multiple other disciplines, using computational tools and fabrication techniques to provide creative yet performing solutions. Niloufar holds a Ph.D. in Architecture with a major in building technology from the University of Michigan, a post-professional Master of Science in Architecture from the University of Michigan, a Master of Architecture from Iran University of Science and Technology, and a Bachelor of Architecture. Niloufar is the recipient of numerous awards, including first runner-up award in DIVA Day competition, Barbour Scholarship and the Helen Wu Award, among other honors.