Arconic
Arconic 2062 skyscraper
Materials science company, Arconic has envisioned a three-mile high skyscraper made with 3D-printed parts which could work to make cleaner air.
Materials science company, Arconic has envisioned a three-mile high skyscraper made with 3D-printed parts which could work to make cleaner air.
The tower includes smog-eating surfaces which, in theory, would make the air cleaner and less toxic. Arconic believe a skyscraper of this kind should be buildable by 2062.
Already-existing Arconic innovative technologies enable high-thermal performance to meet growing demand for energy efficiency and increased resiliency to protect against hurricanes and natural disasters.
Arconic suggest 3D printed building and construction materials would enable more organic shapes, inspired by nature. 3D-printed materials would not only modernise the way skyscrapers look, but also allow towers to withstand high winds and unique climates.
"Once we're actually able to 3D print a wall, we no longer have the need for flat walls," said Thomas Frey, Senior Futurist and Founder of he DaVinci Institute, appearing in an Arconic YouTube video exploring the future of cityscapes. "Every wall can be an artistic centrepiece. We're going to gave lots of freeform structures that are unlike anything that we have today."
The skyscraper would be built with Arconic’s EcoClean surface treatment enables architectural panels to harness the power of sunlight, water vapour and oxygen to clean, not only themselves, but also the air around them. EcoClean works using light and water vapour, which mix with the chemicals in the coating to produce atoms know as free radicals. These free radicals pull in pollutants from the air and break them down to get sloughed off the side of the building along with dirt and grime, surrounding the building with cleaner air.
“The functional coating provides aesthetics, it provides maintenance benefits, and it also provides a benefit to the surrounding environment by reducing the content of pollutants around it,” Sherri McCleary, an Arconic chief materials scientist said. “We’re (also) looking at optimising the materials that can be 3D-printed to give more and more options to designers and architects.”
The tower was devised through the company’s ‘The Jetsons’ campaign, inspired by a 1962 cartoon series of the same name. Set 100 years into the future, the cartoon made a number of futuristic predictions. In homage to the cartoon series, Arconic has reimagined the year 2062 through the eyes of leading futurists, its own engineers and filmmaker, Justin Lin. Together they have shared their thoughts on what Arconic could help realise by 2062 and brought the vision to life with the help of Lin.
“It’s amazing to see how much The Jetsons got right, predicting things like smartwatches, tablets and 3D printing,” reads the Arconic website. “That made us wonder what else might still be in store. Flying cars? Extraordinary buildings?”
