This tiny tick-shaped robot ledges itself into concrete, then expands, making a crack, and then advances deeper, to start over. A swarm of them in line can silently break up the concrete without manually drilling or using explosives.
To get it started, it may have to be assisted at first by a woodpecker-like robot.
To expand, either it uses mechanical energy or one of the following techniques (see links)
1. Waterjet concrete cutting technique
2. Aligned wedge and feathers concrete cutting.
3. Concrete busting-powder technique.
4. Tick's quick energy release for jumping.
5. Using bullets to break up rock.
6. The woodpecker
In the case of waterjet or powder, it may have to pull behind it a storage bag or a hose supply of the material.-- pashute, Jan 31 2024 1. Waterjet concrete cutting https://www.youtube...watch?v=0gxBjM-YRv4 [pashute, Jan 31 2024] 2. Wedge and shim (also called feather) technique https://www.youtube...watch?v=NueQ2Lx6eKo [pashute, Jan 31 2024] 3. rock demolition powder https://www.youtube...watch?v=domJccXnAp8betonamit or dexpan [pashute, Jan 31 2024] 4. Tick quicly releasing energy for jump https://www.youtube...watch?v=A5KvNcNz9aQ [pashute, Jan 31 2024] 5. Woodpeckers https://www.youtube...watch?v=wFTm3A7HpxM [pashute, Jan 31 2024] An alternative would be to use lime-tolerant and vigorous plants like buddleia. You could crack a concrete slab neatly in two by drilling a line of tiny holes in it, planting buddleia in each hole, and then waiting a month or two. Searching for images of buddleia breaking through concrete gives plenty of evidence that this should work.-- hippo, Jan 31 2024 [+] What the hell do you feed it?-- minoradjustments, Jan 31 2024 Anything it wants.-- RayfordSteele, Jan 31 2024 [hippo [+]]-- pashute, Feb 01 2024 I quite like the Concrete Breaking Beetle. Our insect friends have much to teach us.-- xenzag, Feb 01 2024 random, halfbakery