"We developed a robotic tool and a method that could take common material, which is the excavated material on construction sites, and turn it back into usable building products, at low cost and efficiently, with significantly less CO2 than existing industrialized building methods, including 3D printing," Dr. Lauren Vasey, project lead at ETH Zurich, told Ars Technica.

The earth mixture used in impact printing is composed primarily of locally sourced materials like excavated soil, silt, and clay – materials that can often be obtained directly from construction sites. Currently, only about 1-2 percent mineral stabilizer is required, which is far less than the cement content in conventional concrete.