Coral reefs are often called the “rainforests of the sea”. They are one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world. They protect coastlines from storms and erosion, they support fishing and tourism industries, they provide shelter for marine organisms and they are a source of new medicines to treat cancer, arthritis, Alzheimer’s, etc.

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Chapters
0:00 Introduction
0:37 Threats to coral reefs
1:18 Old artificial reefs
3:00 3D printed reefs
3:58 Advantages
4:43 Calanques National Park
5:34 Monaco
5:56 Cap d'Agde
6:29 Conclusion

Unfortunately, coral reefs are under constant threat from pollution, excess nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus, overfishing, rising ocean temperatures, climate change, increased carbon dioxide levels and ocean acidification. When corals are stressed, they eject algae that live inside them, lose their color, become bleached and eventually die.

In the past, humans have dropped old subway cars, tugboats, tanks and barges into the ocean to stimulate coral reef growth. Just like with shipwrecks, these have proven to be very effective. However, large subway cars don’t allow microstructural developments so there’s no potential for developing a more abundant and varied marine life.

Humans have also dumped tires, PVC pipes and plastic tubs in the ocean under the guise of creating new coral reefs. Predictably, these leached toxic chemicals and hurt the growth of corals. Scientists are also using underwater coral nurseries to restore damaged reefs. Small, broken fragments of corals are hung on secured PVC pipes and allowed to grow for several months. Then, they are transplanted to degraded reefs in the hope that they bring them back to life.

Now we come to the next generation of artificial coral reefs - 3D printed concrete one. Xtreee a French 3D printing company has teamed up with Seaboost a marine life restoration company. They are developing biomimetic designs - which means that they understand and copy elements of nature to solve human problems. They use 3D scanners to scan existing coral reefs and create digital versions of them. Xtreee then prints this structure using a mix of concrete, local sand and local seawater so that flora and fauna will recognize the structure and be attracted to it.

There are many advantages of using 3D printed concrete to create artificial reefs. We can design intricate, porous forms that mimic local reefs. We can create modular structures that can be handled by single divers with no extra help. These modular structures can be attached to one another to form large, heavy artificial reefs that don’t move. We can also use concrete that is resistant to chemical attack. These artificial reefs don’t have any steel reinforcement that will rust over time. Instead of concrete, we can also use natural materials.

Xtree and Seaboost’s first project was at Calanques National Park in France in 2017. The module was taken into the Sea on a barge. It was bolted in place so that it wouldn’t move. The narrow, complex crevices allow marine life to find enclosed spaces while maintaining contact with the open environment.

The second project was in Monaco in 2018. 5 artificial reefs were bolted to the Mediterranean Sea floor. The parametric design of the reef was catered to the Grouper fish whose presence ensures a biological balance.

The third installation was in 2019 at Cap D’Agde, also in France by the Mediterranean Sea. These are similar to the first reef, but have smaller gaps and crevices. They also have a large, heavy base to make sure that they don’t move around.

Obviously, if ocean temperatures continue to rise and waters get more acidic, no amount of 3D printing is going to save our coral reefs. We need to address the cause and not just the effect. However, 3D printers are a tool to safely explore the possibility of restoring damaged reefs. These experiments have helped scientists identify heat-tolerant corals and algae that thrive in warm waters and may be able to adapt to climate change.
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#3dprinting #coralreef #greatbarrierreef #maldives #globalwarming #climatechange

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