HOW MUD BRICKS WORK:

USING UNSATURATED SOIL MECHANICS TO EXPLAIN THE MATERIAL PROPERTIES OF EARTH BUILDINGS

A YEAR OF RESEARCH
DR PAUL JAQUIN
EDINBURGH, RAMBOLL UK

Introduction
Paul Jaquin, MEng and PhD at Durham, now a Civil engineer for Ramboll in Edinburgh This presentation - a year of research Last years paper Mud bricks and unsaturated soil The state of research into earth building Comparisons to other more conventional building materials Structural and mechanics research Low carbon and building physics Heritage structures The way forward...

Unsaturated soil and mud bricks

Based on my PhD work, where we showed that mud bricks are basically like sandcastles, held together by little bridges of water. Potentially a step change in understanding of mud bricks, enabling a more scientific understanding.

Sandcastles Weston-super-mare beach

5m spheres with water bridges between

Mud brick home. Pokara ,Nepal

Existing research in earth building

Materials specification method based and improvement based on experience Structural design based on empirical methods and very simple testing Most NGOs work to simple guidelines which are not developed from year to year. Only New Zealand has developed full design guidelines

Scale model earthquake tests. Minke (2001)

Steel,concrete, timber and masonry

1781 - Ironbridge. 1824 - Portland Cement developed 1884 - Reinforcement using twisted steel. 1917 - ASTM develop standard formula for Portland Cement. 1992 2010 - Eurocodes developed International Building Code - United States
Little mention of earth building Little scientific understanding, therefore difficult to develop codes of practice.

Research this year Materials testing and structural mechanics

Durham University Chris Beckett Bristol University on next! University of Western Australia Cyclone loading

Poured particle arrangement

Shaking table

Wind loading test apparatus

Research this year Low carbon and building physics

RHexternal = varies RHexternal = 100%
Water vapour flow

RHexternal = 50%
Water vapour flow

RHexternal = varies

Visiting research fellow at Bath University Continued by Antonio Borges Thermal modelling by Celia Macaedo. Oxford Brookes

RH internal = varies

RH internal = 50%

RH internal = 75%

RH internal = 75%

Building construction

100% RH outside, raining. Water vapour flow through the wall, increasing internal RH

Introduce water vapour source (eg cooking), water Over time RH of the inside vapour flow through wall, of the building becomes reducing internal RH constant

RH = 50% 1 RH= 50%

RH = 70% 2 RH = 50%
Water vapour flow

RH = 70% 3 RH = 60%
Water vapour flow

RH = 60% 4 RH = 50%
Water vapour flow

RH =change 50% Air Initial conditions, RH of room and pore air are equal at 50% Introduce water vapour source, increase in water content of the earth wall, RH of room remains constant as water vapour is absorbed into the wall Remove water vapour source, RH of room increases Air change, different RH from outside

Research this year Heritage structures

University of Seville - Jacinto Canivell Pan- European New Integrated Knowledge Based Approaches to the protection of cultural heritage from Earthquake induced Risk (NIKER)

The way forward

Recent posters by UN Habitat Long way from Eurocodes

New Zealand has developed Standards. These should be used by NGOs when building with earth Research such as that presented here to be integrated into design codes and allow engineers for NGOs to design these buildings correctly. Eurocode for earth buildings please

Earth building

THANK YOU

PAUL.JAQUIN@RAMBOLL.CO.UK