CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES

WITH ADOBE & BAMBOO

MANPREET KAUR 871516 IX-SEM

INTRODUCTION
y Adobe mud blocks are one

of the oldest and most widely used building materials. Use of these sundried blocks dates back to 8000 B.C. y The use of adobe is very common in some of the worlds most hazard-prone regions, traditionally across Latin America, Africa, Indian subcontinent and other parts of Asia, Middle East and Southern Europe.

World Distribution of Earth Architecture

CONTI
y It is evaluated that about 1.7 billion people of the

worlds population live in earthen houses: About 50 % of the population in developing countries, and at least 20% of urban and suburban populations. y The worlds oldest earthen building still standing is about 3,300 years old. The Ramasseum, made of adobes, was built around 1,300 BC in the old city of Thebes. y In India, the oldest earthen building is Tabo Monastery, in Spiti valley - Himachal Pradesh. It was also built with adobe and has withstood Himalayan winters since 996 AD.

Worlds oldest earthen buildings

Ramasseum, on the left shore of the Nile

Tabo Monastery, in Spiti valley

Definition
y Adobe is a technique

which consists in making mud bricks using moulds but without compaction and letting them dry in sun. y Adobe is a natural building material made from sand , clay, water, and some kind of fibrous or organic material (sticks, straw, and/or manure), which is shaped into bricks using frames and dried in the sun.

SOIL SELECTION
y It is easier to excavate the

soil from pit where there are no large stones, root or top soil. y Soil made up of sand, silt and clay in the following proportion are the best suited to making adobe. SAND:55 to 75% SILT :10 to 28% CLAY :15 to 18% ORGANIC MATTER: Less than 3%

About the soil

Soil which is to be used for any kind of construction, must have a standard composition of silt, sand, gravel and clay. It cant be used directly for construction other wise problems may appear.
There is too much clay: cracks will appear in the brick during drying. This is due to the volumetric instability of clay when exposed to water which makes them vulnerable to erosion. y There is too much sand: the particals are too numerous to all adhere together sufficiently. There will be inadequate cohesion and the bricks will crumble. y There is too much organic matter: it makes it porous and of poor durability when exposed to water.
y

Cracks in brick

Cracks in wall

SOIL TESTING FOR ADOBE

y A quick way to test if the earth is suitable for

y y y

adobe production consists in rolling in the palm of the hand a sausage of the earth in a plastic state. It is carefully flattened between the fingers to form as long a ribbon as possible. The length of ribbon is measured from the point where it breaks. If it breaks at between 5-15 cm long, the earth is suitable for adobe. For less than 5 cm, clay must be added. If it breaks at more than 15cm, sand must be added.

Various steps before preparation of Adobe bricks.

y Excavation. y Sieving. y Preparing the earth. y Stabilization .

Various steps before preparation of Adobe bricks.

Excavation: Earth suitable for adobe production can be excavated from a single location or mixed from several, but they should be as close as possible to the building site. Top soil is set aside for possible later use. The volume occupied by loose earth is 30% higher than that of mud bricks.

Sieving: Sieves with mesh diameters of 6 to 12 mm should be used, the finest being for stabilized brick production. Sieving is normally done at the point of excavation.

Various steps before preparation of Adobe bricks.

Preparing the earth: The object of traditional preparatory hydration is to saturate the clay particles with water and break down all the small clods of earth. For adobe production soaked earth is allowed to rest for 24 hours. This makes it easier to mix, improves the quality of the bricks and lessens the likelihood of cracks caused by shrinkage. The amount of water needed is quite considerable and the proximity of water is one of the considerations to be taken into account in choosing the brick production area. As the mixture is made up of one third water, a daily production of 500 bricks measuring 30 x 15 x 10 cm (by a team of 4) requires 650 liters of water.

Various steps before preparation of Adobe bricks.

Stabilization: Vegetable or animal fibers are often added. It varies region to region. Peru: Grass which grows on upper plateaus (ichu-fesuca) is used. Trinidad: A plant with a strong durable fiber chopped into pieces is used. India: straw, husk, animal hairs Africa: millet husks. Iran: Rice husks, small palm leaves as well as goat and camel hairs are used to improve the bonding. Mexico: pine needles. Fibers makes up 20 to 30% of the volume of the bricks. Australia: 56 to 67kg of straw are required to produce 1000 bricks measuring 45 x 30 x 10 cm. Egypt: in Building the village of Gourna, Hassan Fathy used 20kg of straw for every 660 bricks measuring 23 x 17 x 7 cm, equivalent to 1 cubic Meter of bricks. The vegetable fibers are normally mixed into mud and left to soak for quite a long time to allow the non-fibrous matter to decompose. USA: Conventional stabilizers like cement, lime bitumen.

Dimensions for Adobe Bricks

Shapes practically in use

MOULD AND HOW TO USE THEM

Moulds are generally made of wood but can also be made of metal. They can be reinforced at the corners either with metal strips or using any other system. Very smooth internal surfaces prevent the earth from sticking and give the bricks a neat finish, as well as making the moulds easier to clean.

Moulds in various shapes and layout

Laying pattern for rectangular bricks

Laying pattern for square bricks

Treatment methods for corners to provide strength against earthquake

Detailing for strengthing corners and in wall against earthquake

TYPICAL DAMAGE TO ADOBE STRUCTURE

Guidelines for earthquake resistant in Adobe construction

Various Low Cost Construction Technique In Bamboo

y Bamboo Belt.

y World Bamboo Production and Consumption map.

Bamboo properties- Great advantage for housing :y Bamboo has a long and well established tradition for being used as a

construction material throughout the tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world.
y With the rising global concern, bamboo is a critical resource as it is very

efficient in reducing carbon and helps in reduction of Green House gas emissions.
y In the modern context when forest cover is fast depleting

and availability of wood is increasingly becoming scarce, the research and development undertaken in past few decades have established and amply demonstrated that bamboo could be a viable substitute of wood and several other traditional materials for housing and building construction sector and several infrastructure works.

Bamboo properties- Great advantage for housing :y

Its use through industrial processing have shown a high potential for production of composite materials and components which are cost-effective and can be successfully utilized for structural and non-structural applications in construction of housing and buildings Main characteristic features, which make bamboo as a potential building material are its high tensile strength and very good weight to strength ratio. Tensile strength = 1000-4000kg/cm2 Compression strength = 250-1000kg/cm2 Bending strength = 700-3000kg/cm2 Modulus of elasticity = 100000-300000kg/cm2 Density = 500-800kg/m3 The strength-weight ratio of bamboo also supports its use as a highly resilient material against forces created by high velocity winds and earthquakes. Above all bamboo is renewable raw material resource from agro-forestry and if properly treated and industrially processed, components made by bamboo can have a reasonable life of 30 to 40 years.

y y y y y y

Bamboo properties- Great advantage for housing :y Though natural durability of bamboo varies

according to species and the types of treatments.

y Varied uses and applications in building construction

have established bamboo as an environmentFriendly, energy-efficient and cost-effective construction material.

y The commonly used species in construction are :-

Bambusa balcooa, Bambusa bambos, Bambusa tulda,endrocalamus giganteous, Dendrocalamus hamiltonii,Dendrocalamus asper, etc.

Low cost Bamboo Houses :y Low cost bamboo houses are a cheap and safe alternative to the shelters of

traditional buildings material. y They are produced from natural materials that are abundant in tropical and sub-tropical regions and are safe in adverse weather conditions and earthquake prone areas. y They can be produced in arrange of standard sizes and can be adapted to different terrain. The low production cost make them available to poor people and a good option for various govt. and non govt. agencies concerned with social housing programs.

Need Of Low-cost Bamboo-based Houses :-

y With millions of poor and homeless people in the world and the presence of

extensive bamboo resources in many regions the need for low-cost bamboo houses is extensive. y Such houses are an adequate and necessary solution for rural and urban dweller in need for an affordable, efficient and fast shelter and particularly in case of natural disaster and other emergencies. y The potential to increase the manufacturing of low cost bamboo houses is enormous in countries that have bamboo resources

Construction technique:1. Pre- fabricated bamboo composite house

y Modular Building specifications of Pre-fab Houses y Structural : All structural components are composed rolled steel section. y Base : Steel grid framed structure of size 4 x 4 for interior support. The base

will rest on 16 x16 pillar type brick / stone foundation. If it is resting on cement concrete platform, steel grid base is not required. In that case, the structural frame will directly be bolted above the platform. y Wall Panels and Floor Panels : 8 x 4, 6mm thick BMB are attached to structural member with fasteners (Exterior and interior). Flooring consists of one layer 8 x 4, 16mm thick BMB fixed on the steel grid y Ceiling : 6 x 3.5 Bamboo mat corrugated sheet fixed purlins and rafters and trusses. y Doors and windows : Standard 16mm thick BMB has been used as door panels. Standard outfitted windows having char glass panes are used. Toilet and Bath : 4 x 8 attached toilet with a shower, wash basin and greaser facility. Polyvinyl sheets are fixed to the interior wall to avoid water splashing.

Bamboo housing

Roof trusses

Completed framework

Roof framework

Rafter-purlin connection

2.Design of the house with a solid foundation of reinforcement and rod inside the pillars to tie the roof.

Treatment of Bamboo: Bamboo can be treated mainly two ways) y 1. Non chemical Treatment y 2. Chemical Treatment 1. Non-Chemical Treatment: y Traditionally the following treatment methods are adopted. y a) Water immersion treatment y b) Smoking y c) Using diesel 2. Chemical treatment: y Several permanent treatment method are available to protect bamboos and from insect attack and fungal attack. y These methods are both preventive and remedial. y For such kind of treatment many kind of chemicals are in use like creosote oil, Borax and Boric Acid.

Fabrication: - cutting, joints and finishing: y The dimension and size of the bamboo are mainly depends on structural component and loading. y While designing any shelter or house, the built up area as well as the spacing between two partitions is more important. 11 feet to 15 feet between two partitions generally are suitable without having a support in between. y In bamboo houses generally, the slant of the roof of GI or corrugated bamboo roofing sheet are used so the height will have to be maintained not more than 8 feet on lower side and 11 feet on top side.
y

Bamboo Column

Only basic carpentry, Masonry tools and skills are necessary for the construction of bamboo houses. y Figure below shows end profiles of bamboo poles for use in construction. For the joints and other clamping points these kind of cutting or y fabricating is preferred. With clear instruction and proper workmanship we may get such a kind of joint arrangement with using steel clamps and nut arrangement.
y

In the proposed bamboo house the columns are constructed from whole bamboo poles.

The poles are fixed at the level of foundations/plinth. For this purpose the end 500 mm of the pole is injected with cement based mortar and reinforced with a steel bar- see Figure . The bamboo should be reinforced in this way before mounting them in the foundations.

y All bamboo columns are connected at the top to a timber or bamboo with some

steel plate. y This beam has a rectangular cross section for timber and hooking arrangement of reinforcement from bamboo. y The bamboo pole column is connected to this beam through an anchor bolt. y The anchor bolt is embedded in the pole where cement based mortar is injected- see Figure .

Thank You