Using Palm Midribs as Structural Elements

USE OF PALM MIDRIBS AS STRUCTURAL
ELEMENTS
By
Tamer Mohamed Ragaa Mohamed El-Sherbeny

B.Sc. Civil Engineering, 1998
Shobra Faculty of Engineering, Zagazig University
A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

of
The Requirement for the Master Degree
in
Environmental Science
Department of Engineering
Institute of Environmental Studies and Research
Ain Shams University
2010
APPROVAL SHEET

ELEMENTS
By
This Thesis Towards A Master Degree In Environmental

Science Has Been Approved By:
Name Signature
Prof. Dr. ADEL YASSIN MOHARRAM

Emeritus Professor of Architecture, Engineering Department,
Institute of Environmental Studies and Research
Prof. Dr. ABDEL REHIM KHALIL DESOUKI

Professor of Steel Structures, Faculty of Engineering,
Prof. Dr. HAMED IBRAHIM EL-MOUSLY

Emeritus Professor in Design & Production Department,
Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University
Prof. Dr. ABDEL WAHAB ABOU EL-ENIEN

Emeritus Professor of RC Structures, Faculty of
Engineering, Ain Shams University
2010
ELEMENTS
By

A Thesis
Submitted in Partial Fulfillment
of The Requirement for the Master Degree
In
Environmental Science
Department of Engineering
Under the Supervision of:
Prof. Dr.
ABDEL WAHAB ABOU EL-ENIEN
Emeritus Professor of RC Structures,
Prof. Dr.
HAMED IBRAHIM EL-MOUSLY
Emeritus Professor in Design & Production Department,
Prof. Dr.
ELSAYED ABDEL RAOUF ABDEL KADER
Professor of Properties and Strength of Materials,
2010
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author is extremely grateful to Allah for without his mercy and help
this work would not have been accomplished.
I wish to thank and express most sincere gratitude and appreciation to

Professor Dr. Abdel Wahab Abou El-Enien for his supervision on this
research, helpful advices, time, assistance, tolerance, and encouragement.
I would like to thank and express my deepest gratitude to Professor Dr.

Hamed El-Mously for his guiding and supervision on my research and
for he is the one by which I knew the subject of DPLM. I would like also
to record my admiration by his high determination and will.
I wish to thank and express most sincere gratitude and appreciation to

Professor Dr. El Sayed Abdel Raouf for his supervision on this
research, assistance and his effort in reviewing and manuscript.
.
I thank also Engineering Consultant Centre, Properties and
Testing of Materials-Research centre in the Faculty of Engineering
Ein-Shams University and the laboratory of Mechanical Engineering
Department at Shoubra faculty of engineering.
Last but not least, my special thanks, gratitude and appreciation to my

Mother and Sister for their continuous encouragement and support.
I
ABSTRACT
Many countries, especially in the Far East, have substituted many
materials in various fields with local environment-friendly materials
achieving coherence with the environment and economical gain by
reducing imports. Most of these materials, if not all, are agricultural
residues or main crops. In the field of construction, materials like
bamboo and residuals like rice straw and rice husk have many
contributions in this field, especially bamboo, it has a significant
contribution in this field. In our nation, Islamic and Arabic Nation,
bamboo is not such dominant. Yet, we have another material that is most
dominant and resembles the bamboo to a certain extent. It is the Date
Palm Leaves Midribs (DPLM). The aim of this thesis is to study the
feasibility of using DPLM as a structural element.
This thesis examines the mechanical properties: tension,

compression and bending strength of the DPLM as whole, in its natural
form, without the removal of the external layer or cutting. This thesis
also explores different types of connections for connecting the DPLM:
glue connections using epoxy, polyester and cement mortar with
additives, and mechanical connections using steel bolts. From the DPLM
mechanical properties tests and from the joinery exploratory tests, it was
found that the truss systems are the most appropriate structural system for
the DPLM to be used in.
After determining the most suitable connection which was the

bolted connection, a serious of tests was conducted on this type of
II
connection to determine its behavior and strength. Twenty specimens for
single DPLM bolted connection at different spacing and bolt number
were tested. Sixty specimens for double DPLM bolted connection, where
it was decided that at least two DPLM will be used in truss, at different
spacing and bolt number were tested.
In this way five different types of DPLM trusses with span of

three meters and depth of half meter were built and tested. Two trusses
using steel plates and bolts, one using steel rods only and the last two
were a modification to the traditional work of crate artisans. The results
of these tests have shown that the DPLM can be used as a structural
element. A feasibility study for using DPLM trusses are also presented in
this thesis. The study has shown that using the DPLM trusses in light
structures like canopies and sheds, where steel is the dominant material,
could reduce the cost from half to one eighth that of steel.
Key Words: Date Palm Leaves Midribs, DPLM, Environment-

friendly building material, DPLM trusses
III
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND TERMS
C-S-H - Calcium Silicate Hydrate
DPLM - Date Palm Leaves Midrib(s)
Lashing - The process of tying two elements or more

using lashes, ropes, wires, strings, strips of
bamboo, or any flexible material
NA2SO4 Sodium sulfate
NACL Sodium Chloride
OPC - Ordinary Portland Cement
RHA - Rice Husk Ash
W/B - Water/Binder ratio
IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENT I
ABSTRACT II
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND TERMS IV
TABLE OF CONTENTS V
LIST OF TABLES X
LIST OF FIGURES XIII
1 INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 GENERAL 1
1.2 SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES 1
1.3 OUTLINE OF THESIS 2
2 LITERATURE REVIEW 4
2.1 INTRODUCTION 4
2.2 STRAW BALE 6
2.2.1 Method of construction in Nebraska style 8
2.2.2 Plastering 8
2.2.3 Cost efficiency 9
2.3 RICE HUSK 13
2.3.1 Preparations of Rice Husk Ash 14
2.3.2 Effect of RHA on fresh concrete properties 15
2.3.2.1 Initial flow 15
2.3.2.2 Rate of flow loss 16
2.3.3 Mechanical properties of OPC/RHA 16
concrete
2.3.4 Durability of reinforced concrete 17
incorporating RHA
2.4 BAMBOO 17
2.4.1 Harvesting, storage and drying 18
2.4.2 Preservation 20
V
2.4.3 Coatings 22
2.4.4 Sampling and selection 22
2.4.5 Testing 23
2.4.6 Mechanical properties 23
2.4.7 Connections and joinery 27
2.4.8 Bamboo structures 34
2.5 TIMBER 38
2.5.1 Timber availability 38
2.5.2 Timber preservation 38
2.5.3 Timber mechanical properties 41
2.5.4 Timber joinery 43
2.6 DATE PALM LEAVES MIDRIBS 46
2.6.1 DPLM availability 47
2.6.2 DPLM mechanical properties 47
2.6.3 DPLM preservation and coating 52
2.6.4 DPLM dimension stability 52
2.6.5 Examples of industrial utilization of DPLM 53
2.6.5.1 Arabesque from palm midribs 53
2.6.5.2 DPLM in blockboard 53
2.6.5.3 DPLM in particleboard 54
2.6.5.4 Lumber-like product from DPLM 54
2.6.6 Use of DPLM for concrete roof 54
reinforcement
2.6.7 DPLM space truss 56
2.6.7.1 DPLM space truss model 56
2.6.7.2 DPLM joinery 56
2.6.7.3 Testing of truss member under 57
compression
2.6.7.4 Testing of DPLM truss 57
2.6.7.5 Economical study of the DPLM truss 58
2.6.7.6 Commentary on the work of Hassan 58
3 DPLM MECHANICAL PROPERTIES 61
3.1 INTRODUCTION 61
3.2 TESTING PROCEDURE 64
3.2.1 Testing of DPLM under tension 64
3.2.2 Testing of DPLM under bending 71
VI
3.2.3 Testing of DPLM under compression 72
3.3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 73
3.3.1 Tensile strength 73
3.3.1.1 Tensile strength using bolted 73
connection
3.3.1.2 Tensile strength using epoxy 77
3.3.1.3 Tensile strength using U-Shaped 79
bolts
3.3.1.4 Tensile strength using the testing 80
machine model SHIMADZU
3.3.2 Bending strength 82
3.3.3 Compressive strength 83
3.4 CONCLUSION 86
3.5SELECTING THE APPROPRIATE STRUCTUR- 86
AL SYSTEM FOR THE DPLM
4 EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TESTING DPLM 88

JOINARY
4.1 INTRODUCTION 88
4.2 JOINARY EXPLORATORY TESTS 89
4.2.1 Testing procedure 89
4.2.1.1 Testing bond between epoxy and 89
DPLM external surface
4.2.1.2 Testing bond between epoxy and 89
DPLM Inner part
4.2.1.3 Testing bond between polyester and 90
4.2.1.4 Testing bond between Megalatex 91
Mortar and DPLM external Surface
4.2.1.5 Testing a single DPLM bolted 92
connection
4.2.1.6 Testing a double DPLM bolted 92
connection
4.2.2 Results and discussion 93
4.2.2.1 Bond strength between epoxy and 93
VII
4.2.2.2 Bond strength between epoxy and 94
DPLM inner part
4.2.2.3 Bond strength between polyester and 96
DPLM external layer
4.2.2.4 Bond strength between Megalatex 98
and DPLM external layer
4.2.2.5 Strength of single DPLM bolted 99
connection
4.2.2.6 Strength of double DPLM bolted 99
connection
4.3 CHOOSING THE DPLM CONNECTION 101
4.4 INVESTIGATION OF THE DPLM BOLTED 105
JOINT
4.4.1 Single DPLM bolted connection testing 106
procedure
4.4.2 Double DPLM bolted connection testing 110
procedure
4.4.3 Results and Discussion 113
5 EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TESTING DPLM 124
TRUSSES
5.1 INTRODUCTION 124
5.2 STRUCTURAL MODELING OF TRUSSES 126
5.3 CONSTRUCTION OF DPLM TRUSSES 127
5.3.1 Truss1 & Truss2 127
5.3.2 Truss3 134
5.3.3 Truss4 and Truss5 142
5.4 TESTING PROCEDURES FOR DPLM TRUSSES 146
5.4.1 Truss1 148
5.4.2 Truss2 & Truss3 151
5.4.3 Truss4 and Truss5 156
5.5 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 157
5.5.1 Truss1 157
VIII
5.5.2 Truss2 159
5.5.3 Truss3 164
5.5.4 Truss4 169
5.5.5 Truss5 171
5.6 ECONOMICAL AND FEASIBILITY STUDY OF 174
TRUSS2 AND TRUSS3
5.6.1 Truss2 174
5.6.2 Truss3 176
6 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND 180
RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1 SUMMARY 180
6.2 CONCLUSIONS 180
6.2 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER 184
STUDIES
7 REFERENCES 186
APPENDIX 193
IX
LIST OF TABLES
TABLE DESCRIPTION PAGE

CHAPTER 2
2.1 Variation of compression strength with culm 24
diameter
2.2 Variation of tension strength with culm 24
diameter
2.3 Variation of bending strength with culm 25
diameter
2.4 Variation of compression elastic modulus with 25
culm diameter
2.5 Variation of tension elastic modulus with culm 25
diameter
2.6 Variation of bending elastic modulus with culm 25
diameter
2.7 Shear strength in bamboo 26
2.8 Difference in the mechanical properties test 26
results of bamboo from different sources
2.9 Comparison between the mechanical properties 26
of Spruce, bamboo and Steel37
2.10 Recommended approximated values of the 27
mechanical properties for "guadua angustifolia"
bamboo for design purposes
2.11 Mechanical properties of different timber 43
species
2.12 Comparison between the mechanical properties 51
of spruce, bamboo, steel and DPLM
2.13 Comparison between the price/weight ratio of 51
spruce, bamboo, steel and DPLM
X
2.14 Comparison between the price/strength ratio of 51
CHAPTER 3
3.1 Tension test results using bolted connection- 74
(Shear strength)
Tension test results using bolted connection- 74
3.2 (Bearing strength)
3.3 Bond strength between epoxy and the external 77

layer of DPLM
3.4 Tension test results using U-shaped bolts 80
3.5 Tension test results using machine model 81
SHIMADZU
3.6 Bending test results. 82
3.7 Compressive test results. 84
CHAPTER 4
4.1 Bond strength between epoxy and the DPLM 94
internal surface
4.2 Bond strength between polyester and DPLM 96
external layer
4.3 Bond strength between DPLM and Megalatex 98
mortar
4.4 Double DPLM bolted connection Shear 100
strength
4.5 Double DPLM bolted connection Bearing 100
strength
4.6 Comparison between the different types of 103
DPLM connections
XI
4.7 Group I connection parameters 107
4.8 Group II connection parameters 108
4.9 Group III connection parameters 111
4.10 Group IV connection parameters 111
4.11 Shear strength results of Group I & II 117
connections
4.12 shear strength results of Group III & IV 118
connection using 6mm bolts
4.13 shear strength results of Group III & IV 119
connection using 8mm bolts
CHAPTER 5
5.1 Deflection values obtained from Truss1 testing 158
5.2 Deflection and strain values obtained from 160
Truss2 testing
Truss3 testing
Truss4 testing
Truss5 testing
5.6 Material and labors cost of Truss2 175
5.7 Material and labors cost of Truss3 177
5.8 Comparison between Truss2, Truss3 and 179
Hassan space truss
XII
LIST OF FIGURES
FIG. DESCRIPTION PAGE

CHAPTER 2
2.1 Examples of some straw bale buildings 10
2.2 Straw bale connecting elements 11
2.3 Elevation of straw bale wall built by Nebraska 12
style Showing pins (stubs) in bales
2.4 Cross section in straw bale wall built by 12
Nebraska style & Light weight framing
2.5 Storage and drying of bamboo culms 19
2.6 Bamboo fumigator 20
2.7 Preserving bamboo using water 21

2.8 Piercing bamboo to preserve the inside 22
2.9 Longitudinal fracture in bamboo due to bending 24
or compression
2.10 Connecting bamboo using lashes 30
2.11 Clamping the bamboo culms between two plates 31

of wood or steel by bolts
2.12 Bamboo joint reported by DANIDA 31
2.13 Bamboo joint proposed by duff using aluminum 32
and steel fittings
2.14 Bamboo connection proposed by Spoer 32
2.15 Arce-Villalobos bamboo connection system 33
2.16 Photos of some bamboo structures 35
XIII
2.17 Photos of some bamboo structures 36
2.18 Photos of various bamboo connections 37
2.19 Photos of some timber structures 45
2.20 Mosque roof covered with DPLM tied together 46
2.21 Photomicrograph showing a complete vascular 48
bundle
2.22 Cross section in the DPLM showing the DPLM 49
three zones
2.23 Elevation of Concrete Vault reinforced using 55
DPLM
2.24 DPLM space truss made by Hassan (2001) 60
2.25 DPLM space truss joint 60
CHAPTER 3
3.1 DPLM cross-sections at different portions of 62
DPLM
Area of DPLM corresponding to maximum 63
3.2 circle diameter contained in DPLM section
3.3 View of VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen 65

Leipzig" 20 tons capacity machine, used in
testing
3.4 DPLM and steel pipe connection 66
3.5 Specimens A, B and C of bolted connection in 67

tension test
3.6 DPLM U-shaped bolt connection in the testing 69

machine.
3.7 View of SHAMADZU testing machine 20tons 71
capacity, used in testing
XIV
3.8 View of VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen 71
Leipzig" 5 tons capacity testing machine, used
in bending test
3.9 Schematic arrangement of DPLM specimen in 71
bending test
3.10 View of load cell testing machine used in 72
compression test
3.11 Shear, splitting, failure of specimen A 75
3.12 Bearing failure of specimen B 76
3.13 DPLM slippage and removal of part of external 78
layer
3.14 DPLM slippage from epoxy 78
3.15 Failure of the U-shaped DPLM tension specimen 79
3.16 Failure of tension specimen tested in 81
SHIMADZU testing machine
3.17 Pattern of failure in the DPLM bending 83
specimen
3.18 Pattern of failure in the DPLM compression 85
specimen
CHAPTER 4
4.1 Toothed DPLM in epoxy, polyester, or 90
Megalatex mortar test specimens
4.2 Epoxy - DPLM inner part specimen 90
4.3 Double DPLM bolted connection 93
4.4 Removal of part of DPLM in epoxy-DPLM 95
inner part specimen
4.5 Sketch magnifying the coarse groove lines in the 95
epoxy-DPLM inner part specimen
4.6 DPLM slippage and polyester fracture in 97
DPLM-polyester specimen
XV
4.7 DPLM slippage from polyester and removal of 97
part of DPLM in DPLM-Polyester Specimen
4.8 Slippage of DPLM in DPLM-Megalatex 98
Specimen
4.9 Splitting of DPLM in the double DPLM bolted 101
connection
4.10 Typical connection detail for Group I and Group 107
II bolted connections
4.11 Group I connection pattern 108
4.12 Group II connection pattern 109
4.13 Group III Connection pattern 112
4.14 Group IV Connection pattern 113
4.15 Relation between the connection length and 121
shear strength
4.16 Relation between the connection length and 121
shear strength (excluding long and close to end
connections)
4.17 Relation between spacing and shear strength for 122
a connection length of 10cm

CHAPTER 5
5.1 Elevation of Truss1, 2, 3, 4 &5 125
5.2 Detailed elevation of Truss1&2 129
5.3 Truss1&2 two parts separated 130
5.4 Truss1&2 steel plate details 131
XVI
5.5 View of Truss1&2 top chord DPLM members 132
tightened by a plastic wire
5.6 View of sample connections of Truss1&2 133
5.7 Truss3 in the testing machine 135
5.8 3d-schematic drawing for Truss3 136
5.9 Truss3 elevation, plans and sections 137
5.10 Folding of Truss3 139
5.11 Connection between vertical, diagonal and 140
bottom chord in Truss3
5.12 Connection between vertical, diagonal and 141

bottom chord at midspan in Truss3
5.13 Connection between vertical and bottom chord at 141

support in Truss3
5.14a Steps of construction of truss4&5 143
5.14b Steps of construction of truss4&5 144
5.15 View of Truss4&5 end showing sides A and C 145
5.16 The extra diagonal members in Truss5 145
5.17 Steel frames used to prevent the DPLM trusses 146
from twisting and buckling
5.18 Elevation of the DPLM truss between the steel 147
frames
5.19 Test setup for Truss1 148
5.20 Installation of deflectometers at the bottom 149

chord in the midspan connection in Truss1
5.21 View of Truss1 between the steel frames at 150
support
XVII
5.22 View of Truss1 between the steel frames at 151
midspan
5.23 Test setup for Truss2&3 152
5.24 View of Truss2&3 between the steel frames at 153
midspan
5.25 Strain gauge glued to the DPLM 154
5.26 Reinforcement of the compression members in 155
Truss3 to resist buckling
5.27 Truss4&5 test setup 156
5.28 Twisting of Truss1 at the support due to the 157
bending of the steel plate
5.29 Twisting of Truss2 at support 161
5.30 Failure of the vertical member connection at 161
support due to the twisting of Truss2
5.31 Failure of the bottom chord connection at 162

support due to the twisting of Truss2
5.32 Plot of the analytical and actual deflection 163

against load (P) for Truss2
5.33 best fit Stress-Strain curve (Truss2) 163

5.34 Truss3 Top chord in-plan buckling 165
5.35 Failure of Truss3 166
5.36 Plot of the analytical and actual deflections 168

against load (P) for Truss3
5.37 The best fit Stress-Strain curve (Truss3) 168
XVIII
5.38 Severe deflection of Truss4 169
5.39 Twisting of Truss5 171
5.40 Diagonal Failure in Truss5 172
XIX
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 GENERAL
The environmental issue is becoming more and more a persisting
issue. A trend is growing to change every material- if feasible- with an
environment-friendly and renewable material. This will lead to less
consumption of non-renewable materials, already at the edge of
depletion, less pollution and reservation of the non-renewable resources
for the next generations and thus achieving sustainable development. In
the field of construction many agricultural materials and agricultural
residues are being used in construction. Bamboo is used in sheds,
canopies, house roofs and even bridges. The rice husk is used in concrete
and straw bale in cottages, villas and buildings. The aim of the thesis is to
use an agricultural material that is available in large quantities in Egypt
in the field of construction. One of these materials is the Date Palm
Leaves Midrib (DPLM), which results from date palm tree pruning. The
DPLM mechanical properties resemble that of the wood and even higher
if considering the outer layer. Thus, its use in construction is promising.
Therefore, this thesis aims to study the feasibility of using the DPLM as a
structural element.
1.2 SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES

The main objective of this thesis is to study the feasibility of
using the DPLM as a structural element. Also, the most suitable
structural system will be identified, in which the DPLM will best fit in. In
order to fulfill this objective, the following elements should be studied:
1
Chapter 1
Identifying the mechanical properties of the DPLM as

whole without cutting or removal of the external layer.
Examining different types of connections between the
DPLM members and then choosing the most feasible
connection. A comprehensive study on the chosen
connection will be performed to find the connections
strength and behavior.
Different types of DPLM structures will be constructed
and tested. Then, a comparison between these types will
be conducted to find the most feasible one. An economical
feasibility study will be performed for using the DPLM as
a structural element.
1.3 OUTLINE OF THESIS

This thesis is divided into six chapters. Following this
introduction (chapter 1), chapter two literature review presents various
environmental and agricultural materials used in the field of construction.
The chapter also presents different fields in which the DPLM is used, as
well as previous studies on using the DPLM as an engineered material in
the field of construction.
Chapter three DPLM Mechanical Properties introduces the

experimental work, results and discussion of the mechanical properties of
the DPLM.
Chapter four Experimental Program for Testing DPLM Joinery

investigates different types of joinery for DPLM and assigns a suitable
2
Chapter 1
connection for the DPLM joinery. The chapter also includes

comprehensive tests conducted on the chosen joint to study its behavior
and strength.
Chapter five Experimental Program for testing DPLM Trusses

introduces the experimental work of different types of the DPLM
structures and their economical feasibility study.
Chapter six Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations presents a

summary, results and conclusion for the work presented in this thesis and
recommendations for further studies.
3
Chapter 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
Chapter 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 INTRODUCTION
The environmental issue is becoming more and more a persisting
issue. Many countries have taken huge steps to adequately modify the
daily life of their individuals to become more environment-friendly. Most
of these steps are: conserving non-renewable sources, adhering to the
principle of sustainable development and using environment-friendly
materials. Countries, such as India and China, have condemned cutting of
old forests, and other countries have taken regulations that for each tree
cut another tree has to be planted (Tree-Urban Forest Management,
2009). In the field of construction environment-friendly materials, such
as bamboo and straw, are used in construction instead of the traditional
building materials. The use of these materials makes buildings more
coherent and rhythmic with the environment. In the field of construction
there are three main materials used: wood, concrete and steel.
Wood now is becoming high in price due to the regulations and

laws condemning trees cutting. Moreover, trees cutting leads to less
reduction of carbon dioxide absorption. In addition, the wood processing
itself uses toxic materials which are harmful to the environment. So,
wood could be considered, from a particular point of view, non
environment-friendly material, not because of the nature of the material,
but because of the effects resulting from cutting and manufacturing.
Steel points of weakness come mainly from its high price,

pollution resulting from manufacturing, as well as the energy consumed
4
Chapter 2
in manufacturing. For the production of one ton of steel, energy of

3700kilowatt per hour is to be consumed (American Iron and Steel
Institute, 2005). The power of 3700 KWatt/Hour can operate 13 houses
for one month. Environmental problems come from steel manufacturing
exhausts and the use of water in cooling. Steel is considered a high priced
construction material when compared to other materials such as concrete.
Concrete is perhaps the most dominant construction material in

the field of construction especially in the developing countries due to its
low cost. The main environmental problems concerning concrete
construction are pollution resulting from cement manufacturing, exhausts
and debris resulting from construction. Concerning the cement
manufacturing, the cement industry produces 7% of global man-made
CO2 emissions, which is the cause of global warming (Zahran, 2003).
SO2 and NO2 emissions cause acidic effects, such as acidic rains and
increase in the acidity of water areas. Also SO2 and NO2 along with dust
emissions cause respiratory diseases. Moreover, cement kilns emit
mercury emissions that cause pregnancy risks, such as birth defects,
learning disabilities and developmental problems (Earthjustice/EIP,
2008). Cement production consumes about 1100KWatt/Hour for the
production of one ton of cement (Zahran, 2003). The power of 1100
KWatt/Hour can operate 4 houses for one month.
In many countries a trend is growing to use agriculture residues in

many industries and substitute other materials with environment-friendly
materials. One of these industries is the construction industry. In the
USA they use the rice straw in building medium size apartments.
5
Chapter 2
America production of straw is about 200 million tons per year, which
are not properly used or just wasted away (U.S. Department of Energy,
2003). Therefore, a trend evolved to try using straw material in
construction.
In East Asia one of the most important agriculture material used

in construction is bamboo. Due to the high strength of bamboo and light
weight, it is used in trusses and roofing and even in traffic bridges. The
use of bamboo in building has been transferred to the USA.
Egypt and the Arab countries do not grow bamboo in large

quantities. Instead, there are date palms. The Arab countries possess
about 99 million date palms. Arranging the Arab countries according to
the number of date palms comes in descending order: Iraq, Saudi Arabia,
Egypt, Emirates and Oman. By pruning the palm trees an annual amount
of 1.34 millions of tons DPLM (Date Palm Leaves Midribs) and 1
million tons of spadix stems dry matter become available (El-Mously,
2003). With such huge quantities of DPLM, a serious attempt should be
taken to use DPLM in the field of construction. The following paragraphs
present some agricultural materials used in the field of construction.
2.2 STRAW BALE

The common use of the straw bale in building in America began
around 1890s, where the first settlers used the bales as a shelter in Sand
Hill in Nebraska. The straw bale construction has revived again in 1980's
by building owners and inventors using new and various techniques
(King, 2001). Building with straw bale has proved cost and energy
6
Chapter 2
effectiveness. Fig. 2.1 shows examples of some straw bale buildings.

There are two main types of construction using the straw bales: the
structural method (Nebraska Style) and non-structural method. The
non-structural method depends on using beams and posts made of steel or
wood, and the straw bales fill in between. In the Nebraska styles the bales
are staked together, and the roof is supported on the straw bale walls.
Stucco and plaster are added to reach the structure integrity. Another two
methods are the light weight framing and the mortar straw bale buildings.
The light weight framing depends on carrying the loads through wooden
posts and the straw bale. The wooden posts are erected first and braced;
they only exist at the corners of the building and at the locations of
openings. The roof is supported on wall plate which is slotted on the
posts to allow for the compression of the bales as illustrated in Fig. 2.2.
This gap is essential to allow for the compression of the straw, so that the
whole structure works together. Once the compression of the bales is
settled, pins are secured to the base plate and the wall plate externally as
shown in Fig. 2.4(Information guide to straw bale building, 2001).
The mortar straw bale is very simple; it is just like the ordinary
bricks in which the bales are joined together by mortar not less than 25
mm thickness. This style was tested in Canada and took the approval of
the building code (Information guide to straw bale building, 2001). Most
of the American straw bale building code specifies that for the load
bearing walls the maximum load should not exceed 0.19kg/cm2
(Interpretations and Applications of building codes and Regulations #98-
8,1998), though the straw bale wall could stand stress of 4.8kg/cm2
(Information guide to straw bale building, 2001).
7
Chapter 2
2.2.1 Method of construction in Nebraska style

This section explains this method of construction in general.
Nebraska construction method was chosen to be illustrated, because it is
a more engineered technique, since it is a load bearing wall, than the
other methods. The foundation is made so that to allow the moisture
flowing downward inside the wall to be drained in soil. Foundation
should be 450mm minimum above the ground level to protect the wall
from splashes. Dowels are standing out from the foundation and the
plywood (at top of bales) so that to be inserted in the bale. Each course of
bales should be pinned by a stub made of steel or wood and each bale
should be pinned by two stubs as illustrated in Fig. 2.3. This way of
pinning will help bale act together. At the top bale, plywood is added
with tie strings as illustrated in Fig. 2.2. These strings are used to push
the plywood downward to compress the bales. This compression has a
significant effect in giving the straw bale its strength and stability. After
the compression, any straw bale moves out of the wall due to
compression is pushed again to its place. At the end, the roof is added at
the top and plaster is added at the walls. Fig. 2.4 shows a cross section in
a straw bale wall built in Nebraska style. (Information guide to straw bale
building, 2001).
2.2.2 Plastering
Plastering is lime or cement plastering. No isolation is made
between straw and plastering so that the wall can be breathable; that is to
allow moisture in and out. A wire mesh could be used as an interface
between the bale and plaster to hold the plaster. (Information guide to
straw bale building, 2001).
8
Chapter 2
2.2.3 Cost efficiency

The following is an outline range of straw bale construction costs per
square foot (sf) in the USA (U.S. Department of Energy, 2003).
Very Low: 120-1000 sf @ $5-$20
a-scavenging, salvaging materials
b-material costs only, owner-builder labor throughout
c-initial start-up costs, ongoing improvements,
pay as-you-go
d-Nebraska-style, timber frame, and post and beam
Low: 1000-1500 sf @ $30-$50
a-contractor-built, owner-build wall, finishes
b-subcontract foundations, plumbing, mechanical, roof
c-experienced job-site supervisor
d-materials at market cost
e-typically post-and-beam or Nebraska-style
Moderate: 1500-2500 sf @$50-$80
a-standard, contractor-built
b-production housing
c-speculative development
d-typically post-and-beam
High: 2500-4000 sf @ $80-$120
a-luxury homes
b-custom design
c-site specific
d-marginally less than conventional construction
e-typically post-and-beam with custom features
9
Chapter 2
Wild Animal Park Seed Storage Building

North County, CA (sustainable building systems, Inc., 2007)
House made of straw bale before

plaster is applied
(home.howstuffworks.com,2009)
Patterson, Straw Bale Cottage,

Beals, Maine (mhc.com, 2009)
Fig. 2.1 Examples of some straw bale buildings
10
Chapter 2
Strapping tie down Plastic pipe for

protection
Wall plate
Polythene or metal
strap
strings used to pull down the bales to make them stable
150x50mm cross-
Cladding beams
M12 threaded
Half lap joint
150x50mm Wall plate

softwood
Height of
bale wall 200mm
7 or 6
bales Timber extended
to take 100mm gap to
overhanging roof allow bales to be
fitted beneath
12mm cladding
12mm cladding Compression post
Gap between compression post and roof beam to allow for compression
Fig. 2.2 Straw bale connecting elements (Information guide to straw
bale building, 2001)
11
Chapter 2
Plywood
Fig. 2.3 Elevation of straw bale wall built by Nebraska style

Showing pins (stubs) in bales
Nebraska style
Light weight
Fig. 2.4 Cross section in straw bale wall built by Nebraska style &
Light weight framing (Information guide to straw bale building, 2001)
12
Chapter 2
2.3 RICE HUSK

Rice husks are a by-product of the rice paddy milling industry.
The husks make up about one-fifth (by weight) of the harvested and dried
rice paddy. The yearly world production of rice paddy is approximately
500 million tons. Thus, about 100 million tons of rice husks are available
for disposal. On the average each ton of the rice husks, on completion of
combustion, produces 200 kg of ash. So, the yearly potential availability
of incinerated rice husk ash is about 20 million tons, and this is mostly
available in developing countries where Portland cement is very costly,
and often is in short supply. (Zahran, 2003).
Rice husk is usually disposed by burning in the open field causing

pollution and environmental problems. If used, it is used as a filler
ingredient in cheap pet food or used as fertilizers after decomposition.
But due to its high lignin, earthworms are used to accelerate the rate of
decomposition. Rice husks can also be burnt and used as fuel in steaming
engine; some rice paddy mills dispose rice husks this way (Zahran,
2003).In India the rice husk was successfully used in making
particleboard without any mentioned residuals. Moreover, the high
content of silica in rice husk makes the boards more resistant to insects
(El-Mously, 2001).
In the field of construction, rice husk ash can be used as

cementatious material (Zahran, 2003). Due to that the manufacturing of
Portland cement is an energy intensive process and the extraction of the
material used in cement production has a diverse impact on environment,
a trend is growing to substitute partially Portland cement with another
13
Chapter 2
cementitious material. A material containing silica in a finely divided

form is considered cementitious, because silica in this form can react
with calcium hydroxide in presence of water to form stable calcium
silicate (Zahran, 2003).
The rice plant is one of the plants that are able to absorb silica
from earth and store it in its structure. It contains high concentrations of
silica that when burnt in temperature of 500 to 700oC results in producing
amorphous ash with a porous structure which can be used in concrete.
Many studies were made to investigate the use Of RHA with concrete
and the effect of RHA on mechanical properties. But on the contrary a
fewer investigations were made on the effect of RHA on fresh Concrete
properties (Zahran, 2003). The following sections will present studies
made on RHA concrete.
2.3.1 Preparations of Rice Husk Ash

The production of amorphous rice husk ash (RHA) requires the
burning of rice husk in a degree between 500o and 700oC, which requires
special furnaces. According to a study made by Naser el al (Zahran,
2003) the production cost for one ton of RHA is 3400 L.E. This is mainly
because the burning process was not done in special furnaces made for
burning the rice husk. When the number of trays increased to enable the
burning of larger quantities, the cost is reduced by 100 L.E. per ton. The
high cost of burning rice husk will lead to an increase in the total cost of
RHA concrete. Yet, the higher cost of the new concrete can be justified
by a better environmental impact and a higher strength concrete (Zahran,
2003).
14
Chapter 2
In a study made by Zahran (2003) the rice husk was burnt in a

digital furnace made for chemical uses. Thus, small quantities of rice
husk were burnt at intervals. The husks were burnt in a steel vessel
(100x400x100mm) for 50 minutes. This period was sufficient to turn the
husk into ashes and in the same time not to produce crystalline ashes.
The heap is withdrawn from the furnace and left for 20 hours to turn to
white ashes (amorphous material). The white ashes produced were about
20% by weight of the rice husk.
Grinding of the ashes was made by a ball mill with maximum

capacity of 10kg of klineker. The grinding was made in patches of
600gm for 30 minutes each to ensure a surface area not less than that
specified in ASTM C618-92a. The specific surface area was measured
and found to be 42.1m2/gm.
2.3.2 Effect of RHA on fresh concrete properties

It is meant by the fresh concrete properties flow, the rate of flow
and rheology. For the following sections experiments where done with
water/ binder ration (w/b) of 0.5. For w/b less than or equal 0.3, the
OPC/RHA have poor performance and will require adding large
uneconomical amounts of superplasticizer much higher than specified by
the manufacturer (Zahran, 2003).
2.3.2.1 Initial flow

RHA mortar reduces flow and the effect increases with the
increase of RHA. In OPC mortar, when OPC is replaced with 10% and
20% RHA, the initial flow is reduced to 10% and 15% respectively. This
15
Chapter 2
is attributed to the high surface area of RHA leading to more water

absorption than OPC (Zahran, 2003).
.
2.3.2.2 Rate of flow loss
The rate of workability loss is important for site engineers in
order to estimate the period of mixing, casting and transporting. Also it is
required to estimate the effort required for compactness and any additives
if required. The relative flow decreases with the increase of RHA in OPC
mortars, where the relative flow is the percentage of flow at any elapsed
time to the initial flow. At OPC mortars, where 10% and 20% RHA
substituted the OPC, the relative flow reached 85 and 75% respectively
(Zahran, 2003)
.
2.3.3 Mechanical properties of OPC/RHA concrete
The effect of RHA content on the compressive strength of
OPC/RHA specimen made with 0.5w/b was an increase of the
compressive strength until a RHA of 25% of OPC, then the compressive
strength decreases. The amount of improvement in compressive strength
after 28 days cured in water reaches 3, 6, 12, 19, and 22%, when 5, 19,
15, 20 and 25% of OPC was replaced by RHA. While the amount of
improvement in compressive strength after 56 days cured in water,
reaches 6, 10, 13, 18, and 20% when 5, 19, 15, 20 and 25% of OPC was
replaced by RHA (Zahran, 2003). The enhancement of the compressive
strength is attributed to the pozzolanic reaction of RHA which combines
with CaoH2 resulted from the hydration process of OPC to form fine C-S-
H. The reduction in the compressive strength in higher contents of RHA
is obtained from the extra RHA not combining with CaoH2 and thus not
16
Chapter 2
contributing in the compressive strength. As mentioned above the results

were obtained from specimen made with 0.5w/b. For high performance
concrete a lower w/b is required for the manufacturing of the high
performance concrete. Experiments were made using 0.4, 0.3 and
0.25w/b ratio with 10% RHA is used. An amount of improvement
reached 22, 11 and 5% respectively, while a remarkable reduction is
observed, when using 0.25w/b with 20% RHA (Zahran, 2003)
.
2.3.4 Durability of reinforced concrete incorporating RHA
In tests conducted by Zahran (2003), where a specimen of
OPC/RHA was submerged in 10% Na2SO4 and 10% Na2SO4 + 5%
NaCL, it was found that the compressive strength after 52 weeks for the
specimen was reduced from 5 to 11% and 25% for OPC/RHA and OPC
respectively. This indicated a higher durability performance than OPC.
2.4 BAMBOO
For countries growing bamboo, bamboo is considered a very
promising green construction material in terms of sustainability, low
energy consumption, low cost, and environmental friendliness. Bamboo
from the structural point of view is considered a very adequate material
in construction due to its mechanical properties. Yet, despite the various
qualifications of bamboo, the use of bamboo in construction is not widely
spread. This is mainly due to two main reasons. First, in many regions
where bamboo is grown, using bamboo in construction is related only to
poor man home. Therefore, in south East Asia, bamboo is used in
construction as a last source of building material, Meaning, that
manipulating bamboo in construction is highly affected by the traditions,
17
Chapter 2
culture, and moral concepts of man. The second reason is that engineers
like to use materials that are fully predictable in behavior and extensively
have been in use and experience, such as concrete, steel and timber. In
fact, many people who have been using bamboo in the field of
construction, based on traditions in the way of building rather than
technical methods, have been producing many critical mistakes (Janssen,
1981). But since there are a foregoing trend all around the global to use
green materials and substitute polluting and non-renewable resources,
materials like bamboo will be a valuable material in construction.
The problem of the existence of viable data on the behavior and

properties of bamboo in construction is being resolved by the effort of
many researches through the testing and modeling of bamboo structures.
In fact, codes have been produced for bamboo such as: DIS 22157,
determination of physical and mechanical properties of bamboo.
The existence of acceptable code of design of bamboo is the

most important step in verifying the bamboo as a structural material. The
International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO) is one of the
primary code writing organizations in the USA. It is responsible for
developing criteria for the acceptance of building materials. The ICBO
has established criteria for bamboo to be used in structures Acceptance
Criteria for Structural Bamboo, AC162 (ICBO, 2000).
2.4.1 Harvesting, storage and drying

The harvesting of mature bamboo canes starts from two to four
years and only 30% are cut while the rest are left to support the young
18
Chapter 2
shoots and maintain the power of the rhizomes. The age of bamboo best
used in building is between two to five years. Bamboo is best cultivated
in dry seasons so that the moisture content is minimum, or cool seasons,
where insects are inactive; moisture attracts insects. The branches should
be carefully removed to prevent damaging the outer skin of the cane.
Storage should be horizontal and frequently supported to prevent
sagging. Storage should be away from moisture and sun. Fig. 2.5 shows
the storing of bamboo culms. There are two processes of drying: the first
one is done in frames, and it lasts between 6-12 weeks, and the second is
oven drying, which takes about 2-3 weeks. Yet, some species do not
tolerate oven drying and might develop cracks (Bamboo as a building
material, 2002).
Fig. 2.5 Storage and drying of bamboo culms

(Bamboo as a building material, 2002)
19
Chapter 2
2.4.2 Preservation
There are five ways of preservation:
1) Smoking: the bamboo is fumigated using its own leaves and
branches making the culms inedible for the insects. The idea is
preventing the tar from condensing on the culms and instead perforates in
a gaseous state inside the culms tissues. The culms should be holed to
allow the smoke entering inside (Conbam.de, 2002). Fig. 2.6 shows
bamboo fumigator.
Fig 2.6 Bamboo fumigator (Conbam.de, 2002)

2) Watering: the bamboo is put inside a pool of water for 4-12
weeks to reduce the starch and carbohydrates, which attract insects and
bugs, by washing away. Fig. 2.7 shows bamboo in a water pool.
20
Chapter 2
Fig. 2.7 Preserving bamboo using water (Conbam.de, 2002)
3) Heating: the culms are heated to 150C giving more resistance to the
outer layer from insects. The disadvantage of these methods is that cracks
might develop and culms might burst in the heat.
4) Boiling: it takes about 50-60 minutes of cooking bamboo to remove
starch and carbohydrates.
5) Impregnation coating: using water with Borax.
All these methods prevent the insect from entering from outside
by changing the outside and reducing the starch. To protect culms from
inside, the diaphragms of the bamboo is pierced as shown in Fig. 2.8. To
prevent fungi, moisture must be kept away. The life time of unpreserved
bamboo is about 2.5 years and that of the preserved is 10 years
(Conbam.de, 2002).
21
Chapter 2
Fig. 2.8 Piercing bamboo to preserve the inside (Conbam.de, 2002)
2.4.3 Coatings
Lime sludge, lime and cow dung, rangoon oil, and a cream of wax
(wood care) with tar dissolved in paraffin, are all types of used coatings.
This is an ancient recipe from Lebanon. With this paint the bamboo
culms develop a very attractive dark brown patina. The painting
procedure must be repeated regularly according to sunlight and driving
rain load. (Conbam.de, 2002)
2.4.4 Sampling and selection

For the scientific research, the culms selected for testing shall be
sound and free from any defects, and shall be representative of the
average dominant bamboo culms of the locality. For commercial tests,
they must fairly represent the total population since it is to be used for the
construction purposes, even if the entire population has its drawbacks.
Broken, damaged and discolored bamboo shall be discarded (ICBO,
2000).
22
Chapter 2
2.4.5 Testing
Testing is done to determine the following main properties for the
design bases: bending strength, modulus of elasticity, tensile strength
parallel to the grain, compressive strength parallel to the grain, and shear
strength. Moisture content, shrinkage and mass per volume should also
be determined. Testing has proved that there is a great fluctuation in
strength results in case of different diameters, nodes, ages and humidity,
even if the tests are done on the same species (Mechanical properties of
bamboo, 2002).
2.4.6 Mechanical properties
The outer layer of the bamboo is the hardest, in which extremely
stiff fibers are lined longitudinally and parallel. Theses fibers are
responsible for the bamboo strength. In the thinner-walled bamboo, the
ratio of the outer layer, responsible for the strength, to the total area of
the cross section is larger than that of the thicker-walled bamboo. Thus,
the strength (force/Area) in the thinner-bamboo is larger than that in the
thicker-walled bamboo. In fact, there is a certain range of diameter above
and below which, its strength decreases. The external layer, which is
formed mainly of these fibers, has a strength in tension of 40KN/cm2. As
a comparison, timber has a strength of 5KN/cm2 and steel37 has
36KN/cm2. The external layer consists 40% of the wall thickness
(Ghavami, 2001). In compression and bending fracture happens
longitudinally due to the tangential stresses (Mechanical properties of
bamboo, 2002).
Fig. 2.9 shows fracture due to bending and compression in bamboo.
Tables 2.1 to 2.10 give the values of mechanical properties of bamboo
and their variation with the culm diameter. The researcher doubts the
23
Chapter 2
values of bending strength given in Table 2.3 as they arent logic and
contradicts with those given in Tables 2.8, 2.9 and 2.10. Also the author
did not mention the culm wall thickness in these tables but he mentioned
that the wall thickness should range from 15mm to 20mm.
Fig. 2.9. Longitudinal fracture in bamboo due to bending or

compression (Conbam.de, 2002)
Table 2.1. Variation of compression strength with culm diameter

Diameter (mm) 60 32
Compression strength (KN/cm2) 6.36 8.63
Source: (Mechanical properties of bamboo, 2002)
Table 2.2. Variation of tensile strength with culm diameter

Diameter (mm) 80 30
Tensile strength of outer fibers (KN/cm2) 31.71 37.09
2
Tensile strength of inner fibers (KN/cm ) 14.93 17.16
Tensile strength (KN/cm2) complete wall 18.89 25.42
thickness
24
Chapter 2
Table 2.3. Variation of bending strength with culm diameter

Diameter (mm) 100 80 70
Bending strength (KN/cm2) 1.519 1.890 1.650
Table 2.4. Variation of the compression elastic modulus with culm
diameter
Elastic modulus in 1519 1890 1650
2
compression (KN/cm )
Table 2.5. Variation of the tensile elastic modulus with culm

diameter
Elastic modulus in tension 1700 1790 1400
2
(Min) (KN/cm )
Elastic modulus in tension 2200 2410
2
(Max) (KN/cm )
Table 2.6. Variation of the bending elastic modulus with culm

diameter
Elastic modulus in bending 1690 2270 3250
2
(Outer fibers) (KN/cm )
Elastic modulus in bending 1360 1890
2
(Inner fibers) (KN/cm )
Elastic modulus in bending 1700 200
2
(KN/cm )
25
Chapter 2
Table 2.7. Shear strength in bamboo

Diameter (mm) Min Max Avg
Shearing strength (KN/cm2) 1.69 2.31 1.98
at stem
Shearing strength (KN/cm2) 1.47 2.22 1.67
at tube
Table 2.8. Difference in the mechanical properties test results of
bamboo from different sources
Source of Tensile Compression Modulus Of Bending
Examination Strength Strength Elasticity Strength
kN/cm kN/cm kN/cm kN/cm
Db-magazine 14.8-38.4 6.2-9.3 2000 7.6-17.6
Dr..S.Eicher 5.6 1800 7.4-10
Dr.H.Lopiz 19.19 3.93 2150
Prof.Janssen 1760 14.48
Table 2.9. Comparison between the mechanical properties of Spruce,

bamboo and Steel37
kN/cm Spruce Bamboo Steel37
Elastic modulus 1100 2000 21000

Compression 4.3 6.2 9.3 14
strength
Tensile strength 8.9 14.8 -38.4 24
Bending strength 6.8 7.2 - 27.6 14
Shear strength 0.7 2 9.2
26
Chapter 2
Table 2.10. Recommended approximated values of the mechanical

properties values for "guadua angustifolia" bamboo for
design purposes
Mechanical property Value (kN/cm)
Elastic modulus 1800

Compression strength 3.9
Tension strength 15
Bending strength 7.6
Shear strength 0.9
2.4.7 Connections and joinery
The most ancient method used in the connection of bamboo is
lashing, and it can be tracked thousands of years ago. Lashes were made
of strings and organic materials and even pieces of the bamboo itself. In
china they use the technique of lashing in building scaffolds for building
rising as high as 40 stories high. In Thailand the same technique is used
using plastic bands and small pieces of wood and metal to twist and tie
the lashes. Using lashes in real construction is not really favored, because
of the weak stiffness of the lashes (Janssen, 1981). Yet, the researcher
has seen photos of trusses built using lashing connection. The problem
with lashing, from the researcher point of view, is the connection will be
flexible and will allow a considerable amount of movement. Yet, a
friction-tight lashing connection is possible. Friction-tight rope
connections are the common connecting methods. Traditionally natural
materials are used such as cocos/sago palm fiber, bast, strips of bamboo,
and rattan. For tight connections, green bamboo strips are used. The
fibers are watered before tying around the bamboo, while drying, the
fibers shorten and the connection becomes stronger (Bamboo
connections, 2002). Fig. 2.10 shows example of lashed bamboo culms.
27
Chapter 2
The technique of connecting bamboo have evolved and there

emerged the suggestion of joining the bamboo culms to plywood or a
steel plate using bolts as shown in Fig. 2.11. A proposal by Sonti (Arce-
Villalobos, 1993), the bamboo culms may be lashed to the steel plates.
The author reported that a dome has been constructed in India using this
technique. Another joint was reported by DANIDA (Arce-Villalobos,
1993), as shown in Fig. 2.12, it was claimed that this joint may be
applicable for axial loads. In this joint external ties are used to transmit
forces from the pins (dowels) of one culm to the pin of another. Wires are
used to tie the area of stress concentration. The author reported that after
testing of such joint in a full scale the culms split, which suggests that
these wires are not effective. Another joint was proposed by Duff (Arce-
Villalobos, 1993) using aluminum and steel fittings, shown in Fig. 2.13.
A joint was proposed by Spoer (Arce-Villalobos, 1993) shown in Fig.
2.14. This joint has been employed in a truss and proved its effectiveness
(Arce-Villalobos, 1993).
Arce-Villalobos (1993) specified a number of items for the design of

adequate bamboo connection. These are:
Avoid penetration with screws and bolts.
Avoid open ends, culms end should be filled with material to
reduce stress concentrations.
Solve the problem of size adaptability.
Transfer the forces axially to the direction of the culm fibers.
Arce-Villalobos suggested using a wood fitting that is glued to the

inside of the culm end. The piece of wood inserted inside the culm
28
Chapter 2
increases the area at the end, which reduces stress concentrations. He also
used steel plates that are glued by epoxy and Portland cement to wood
plug, so that different bamboo members can be connected together. Fig.
2.15 shows connection suggested by Arce-Villalobos (1993). The main
principle of the system is to take the forces out from inside the culm,
distributing contact stresses over as much area as needed. In order to
achieve this, a cylindrical piece of wood is glued to the culm internally.
The first gain comes from the presence of the piece of wood, it changes
the internal distribution of stresses because of the enlarged net second
moment of area in the region of the connection. Obviously, the bamboo
thickness is small compared to the diameter of the total cross-section thus
the bond strength required and designed to the shear flow is minimum.
The culm is slotted to control the cracking during the insertion of wood
cylinder into culm as shown in the Fig. 2.15. Also, the culm has to be
cleaned from inside. This can be done using sandpaper wrapped around a
hand driller. After this, the steel plate C is introduced in the slot of the
wood cylinder and glued to it with a mixture of epoxy and Portland
cement. The plate is projected, so that its outer extreme can be adapted
for different applications, as shown in the details D and E.
29
Chapter 2
Connecting bamboo using bamboo strips (Bamboo as a building material,

2002)
Sisal Lashes
Lashing of bamboo truss members, by Darren Port

(bamboofurniture.com, 2003)
Fig. 2.10 Connecting bamboo using lashes

30
Chapter 2
Bolts
Two steel
plates
Fig. 2.11 Clamping the bamboo culms between two pieces of wood or
steel by bolts (Arce-Villalobos, 1993)
Node Tie Internode
Dowels
Tie A
Split Reinforcment
Culm
Tie Tie
Dowel
Section A-A
Tie
A
Fig. 2.12 Bamboo joint reported by DANIDA (Arce-Villalobos, 1993)
31
Chapter 2
Wood
pieces
Steel dowels
Steel fittings
``
Fig. 2.13 Bamboo joint proposed by duff using aluminum
and steel fittings (Arce-Villalobos, 1993)
Bamboo Ingluing tube Morter Welding Nodal sphere
Rope 14mm Screw

reinforcement
Ingluing tube
Fig. 2.14 Bamboo connection proposed by Spoer (Arce-Villalobos, 1993)
32
Chapter 2
Fig. 2.15 Arce-Villalobos bamboo connection system (Arce-Villalobos,

1993)
33
Chapter 2
2.4.8 Bamboo structures

As mentioned previously, bamboo is very weak in the tangential
and transverse direction due to the parallel assemblage of the fibers in the
longitudinal direction only. Thus, it is then likely to withstand a
minimum of shear stresses and bending moment. But due to the
irregularities and tapering of the bamboo culms, there will always be
bending moments. Thus, it is preferred to keep the stresses in the
direction of the fibers, which is the case in truss structures. Whether it is
preferable to have a tensile or compressive stresses, tension stresses are
preferred from the structure point of view. This is because the
compressive stresses are always accompanied with problems of buckling.
As it is being experimented, the best slenderness ratio obtained to keep
the member free from bucking is equal to 50 (Janssen, 1981). Therefore,
due to the slenderness of the bamboo culms, bamboo members have to be
short or otherwise the required inertia of the section should be increased.
This can be achieved by choosing adequate culms diameter or forming
members of a number of culms connected together. Bamboo is
adequately used in sheds and roofing and light structures. Surprisingly it
has also been used in heavy live loaded structures such as bridges. Fig.
2.16&2.17 show examples of some bamboo structures, and fig. 2.18
shows various bamboo connections.
34
Chapter 2
Building bamboo scaffolding

in Hong kong (gadling.com,
2007)
Shwedagon pagoda under repair
covered with traditional bamboo
scaffolding in order to process
burnishing the gold plates, Myanmar
(yelwinoo.com, 2009)
factory hall in Pennsylvania, Colombia (Modern bamboo architecture,

2009)
Fig. 2.16 Photos of some bamboo structures
35
Chapter 2
Bamboo stage canopy (deboerarchitects.com, 2009)
Bamboo structure, water and air caf located southern Binh Doung
province (Vietnews, 2009)
An automobile bamboo bridge with span up to 52m have been built

by Jorg Stamm in Colombia (deboerarchitects.com, 2009)
Fig. 2.17 Photos of some bamboo structures
36
Chapter 2
bamboo are connected using

metallic plates by Renzo Piano
(Modern bamboo architecture,
2009)
typical fish mouth connection
(Conbam.de, 2002)
Bolts and steel plate are used to

transmit the force (Conbam.de, The bamboo is cut at the end
2002) axially crosswise to generate a
cone by tightening a steel clamp.
This cone is filled up with mortar
as well. This cone should transfer
the force to the outer high-tensile
fibers. (Conbam.de, 2002)
Fig. 2.18 Photo of various bamboo connections
37
Chapter 2
2.5 TIMBER
Timber is perhaps one of the first materials used by mankind in
building. It has been used from windows and flooring of buildings to
heavy framing and heavy traffic bridges (Miller, 1999). Timber as a
building material is retreating back against concrete and steel. Moreover,
the regulations for using wood is very restrictive: it requires that for
every tree cut another tree is to be planted, which makes getting timber
difficult (Tree-Urban Forest Management, 2009). In addition, the
regulations for manufacturing of wood and preserving are also restrictive,
which raises the timber price. Yet, from environmental point of view,
especially from the point of energy consumption, timber is superior over
steel and concrete. Fig. 2.19 shows examples of some timber structures.
2.5.1 Timber availability

In Egypt most of the timber used is imported and even the
imported types are mostly from grade 6 or 7 which have less quality.
Egypt imports timber for about three billion pound (USDA Foreign
Agricultural Service, 2006). Therefore, using timber as a main element in
the construction industry is certainly uneconomic.
2.5.2 Timber preservation

The preservation quality depends on the degree of penetration and
retention of the preservative into the wood. To ensure efficient
penetration and retention, wood should be properly treated before
applying the preservative. The treatment includes peeling, drying and
incising if required. Also, machinery such as bolt holes should be done
38
Chapter 2
before preservation to prevent exposure of untreated areas of the wood

(Ibech, 1999).
Peeling is essential to remove the outer layer, thus removing
decayed and insect infected areas, allowing preservative penetration, and
making drying faster. Drying of wood before treatment is necessary to
prevent decay and stain and to obtain preservative penetration. However,
treatment using waterborne preservatives, with using certain procedures
in treatment, allows high percentage of moisture content. Drying before
treatment allows checks to open and thus allowing more penetration of
the preservative. If checks opened after treatment, this means that inner
untreated areas of the wood are exposed, which could lead to spread of
decay into wood (Ibech, 1999). Wood that is resistant to penetration of
preservatives may be incised to allow the penetration of the preservative
inside the wood (Ibech, 1999).
Preservation process
There are two kind of applying preservative: pressure process and
non pressure process.
In the pressure process wood logs are entered into cell where preservative
is entered under pressure for a certain period of time until the desired
amount of preservative is absorbed (Ibech, 1999).
Non-pressure process, theoretically, if the wood had the same penetration

and retention level of that of the pressured treated wood, the non-
pressured preserved wood will last as long as that of the pressured treated
one. Unfortunately, in practice this is not true (Ibech, 1999).
Non-pressure treatment consists of:
39
Chapter 2
(a) Surface application of preservatives by brushing or brief dipping,

(b) Soaking in preservative oils or steeping in solutions of waterborne
preservatives,
(c) Diffusion processes with waterborne preservatives,
(d) Vacuum treatment,
Wood preservatives
Wood preservatives can be divided into two general classes:
(1) oilbrone preservatives, such as creosote and petroleum solutions of
pentachlorophenol and (2) waterborne preservatives that are applied as
water solutions. Many different chemicals are in each of these classes,
and each has differing effectiveness in various exposure conditions. The
three exposure categories for preservatives are (1) ground contact (high
decay hazard that needs a heavy-duty preservative), (2) aboveground
contact (low decay hazard that does not usually require pressure
treatment), and (3) marine exposure (high decay hazard that needs a
heavy-duty preservative or possibly dual treatment) (Ibech, 1999).
a. oilbrone preservatives:
Wood does not swell from treatment with preservative oils, but it
may shrink if it loses moisture during the treating process. Creosote and
solutions with heavy less volatile petroleum oils often help protect wood
from weathering, but may adversely influence its cleanliness, odor, color,
paint ability, and fire performance. Volatile oils or solvents with oilborne
preservatives, if removed after treatment, leave the wood cleaner than do
the heavy oils, but may not provide as much protection. Wood, treated
with some preservative oils, can be glued satisfactorily, although special
40
Chapter 2
processing or cleaning may be required to remove surplus oils from

surfaces before spreading the adhesive (Ibech, 1999).
b. Waterborne preservatives:
Waterborne preservatives are often used when cleanliness and
paint ability of the treated wood are required. Several formulations
involving combinations of copper, chromium, and arsenic have shown
high resistance to leaching and very good performance in service.
Waterborne preservatives are included in specifications for items such as
lumber, timber, posts, building foundations, poles, and piling.
Waterborne preservatives leave the wood surface comparatively clean,
paintable, and free from objectionable odor (Ibech, 1999).
2.5.3 Timber mechanical properties

Wood is characterized by being an orthotropic material. That is
the mechanical properties vary from one direction to other: the properties
in the tangential, vary from the radial and longitudinal directions. The
mechanical properties vary widely from one species to another, and even
among the same species, due to moisture content, knot existence,
direction of the fibers, or even the existence of natural pockets (Green,
Winandy, and Kretschmann, 1999). Knot existence reduces most of the
mechanical properties of wood due to: a) the clear wood is replaced by
knots, b) the fiber around the knot is distorted, c) the discontinuity of the
fibers leads to stress concentration, and d) checks usually occur around
knots. Knots have a greater effect on the axial tension and less effect on
axial compression in short columns and less effect in bending than in
axial tension. Therefore, a simply supported beam containing knot at the
41
Chapter 2
edge should be supported with the knot near the top- compression zone,
rather than the bottom, tension zone (Green, Winandy, and Kretschmann,
1999). The direction of grains is not always coinciding with the main
standard axes. Instead, an inclination might occur due to the nature of
growth of tree or the way of cut of the wood product. This leads to a
reduction of the strength of wood according to the angle of grain
inclination (Green, Winandy, and Kretschmann, 1999).
Reaction wood, tension or compression wood has abnormal

properties. That is why it is desirable to eliminate this wood.
Compression wood suffers a longitudinal shrinkage about 10 times the
normal wood when it losses moisture, while tension woods shrink about
5 times the normal wood. When compression and normal wood exists in
the same board shrinkage might lead to warping or even failure due to
tension stresses evolved (Green, Winandy, and Kretschmann, 1999).
Moisture content affects most of the mechanical properties. In

general as the moisture content decreases, the mechanical properties
increase for most species. For other species the mechanical properties
increase with the decrease of moisture content to a certain limit, then it
decrease with continual drying. Some other factors that affect the
mechanical properties are juvenile wood, pitch pockets, bird pecks and
temperature (Green, Winandy, and Kretschmann, 1999) table 2.11 gives
the mechanical properties of different wood species.
42
Chapter 2
Table 2.11 Mechanical properties of different timber species
Source: (Green, Winandy, and Kretschmann, 1999)
2.5.4 Timber joinery

Members in timber are joined using steel nails, spikes, staples,
drift bolts, wood screws, bolts, and side steel plates. Connections in
timber depend on the withdrawal resistance and lateral resistance (Soltis,
1999). Connectors that are used to produce withdrawal resistance are
43
Chapter 2
nails, spikes, staples, drift bolts, wood screws and lag screws. The
withdrawal resistance depends mainly on wood density, connector
diameter and depth of penetration. Also, whether the connector is driven
perpendicular or parallel to the grains affect the withdrawal strength. In
general, withdrawal in the direction perpendicular to the fibers is higher
than that in parallel direction (Soltis, 1999). The shape of the nail or
screw helps increasing the withdrawal resistance. For example the
withdrawal resistance of the spiral or helically threaded nails is higher
than that of the smooth wire nail. The lateral resistance depends on the
wood density, spacing between connectors and diameter of the connector
(Soltis, 1999). Several modes of failure have been assumed to predict the
lateral resistance of the connection. It is preferred that connectors are
applied perpendicular to grain whatever the angle of the applied load
(Soltis, 1999).
Another way of wood connection is adhesion. Adhesion depends

on two actions: valence force and the interlocking force. Valence force
depends on the reaction of atoms, ions, and molecules of the adherent
and the adhesion. Interlocking, which is considered as a mechanical
bonding, depends on the penetration of the adhesive in the porous of the
adherent (Vick, 1999). The effectiveness of the adherent depends on the
type of adhesive; some types of adhesives are more suitable to one kind
of timber than others. It also depends on the kind of adherent; some types
of wood have a tendency to repel the adhesive (Vick, 1999). The surface
that receives the adhesive contributes in the effectiveness of adhesion.
The surface must be cleaned to remove the extractives that separate the
adhesive from the surface of wood. The surface is sanded by a sandpaper
44
Chapter 2
to remove the extractives and to expose the pores, in which the adhesive
will fill. Care must be taken when preparing the wood surface, so that not
to damage the surface (Vick, 1999).
Timber truss with all its members connected using steel plates and bolts
(americanpoleandtimber.com, 2009)
Timber bridge (utsdesign, 2009)

Fig. 2.19 Photos of some timber structures
45
Chapter 2
2.6 DATE PALM LEAVES MIDRIBS

The Date Palm Leaves Midribs (DPLM) have been used in
building long ago. DPLM has been used in building for indoor shading or
open corridors shading. It has also been widely used in roofing in EL-
Wahat and El-Wadey El-Gaded in which midribs are assembled in a
horizontal number of layers tied together with robes, made of palm coir
and rested over wooden beams. Fig 2.20 shows a roof but in that way.
Over these layers a layer of clay is laid. The roof is used for the storage
of cotton or rice straw. In Saudi Arabia the same system has been used,
but a mat made of palm leaflets is added. The system of DPLM layers for
roofing is still used until now, but a layer of polyethylene is added to
prevent rain water leakage in roof (Hassan, 2001).
Another way of using DPLM in roofing was made by Hassan
(2001). He constructed a space truss system made of DPLM that covered
3mx3m area. The idea was successful. Yet, a serious problem of joint
slipping occurred in the tension members joints. Later on following
sections will illustrate the work done in the constructed DPLM truss.
DPLM
Rope to tie DPLM
Fig. 2.20: Mosque roof covered with DPLM tied together
46
Chapter 2
2.6.1 DPLM availability

The Arab countries possess about 99 million date palms.
Arranging the Arab countries according to number of palms comes in
descending order: Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Emirates, and Oman. By
pruning the palm trees an annual amount of 1 million ton of dry matter of
DPLM becomes available in the Arab countries (El-Mously, 2003). In
Egypt there are about 10 million date palms. The amount of pruned
DPLM is estimated to be 150 thousand tons dry weight per year (El-
Mously, 2003)
2.6.2 DPLM mechanical properties

The anatomical structure of palm leaves midrib corresponds to the
general structure of stems of monocotyledons, represented by collateral
vascular bundles embedded in ground parenchyma (Megahed, 1995). The
vascular bundles consist of the conducting tissue, phloem and xylem and
fibers which provide structural support. The phloem and xylem of
vascular bundle are each surrounded by sclerenchyma sheaths (fiber).
The fibers consists a separate strands on inner and outer side of the
vascular bundle (Fig. 2.21). Sometime, especially on the outer zone, fiber
composed a complete sheath around the vascular bundle. The size and
shape of fiber strands in the vascular bundle appears to be the most
important structural factor that determines the palm leaves midrib
behavior (Megahed, 1995).
47
Chapter 2
The DPLM consists of 3 main parts: an outer periphery layer, a

transitional layer and core part. In the periphery and transitional part the
fibers density increase to a depth of 1.25mm as shown in Fig. 2.22. The
fibers are responsible for the DPLM strength and that is why the
periphery layer has a higher tensile strength than that of the inner. The
outer layer tensile strength is 248N/mm2 (El-Mously, 2003). The mean
bending, compression and tensile strength of the inner part for different
species are 76, 36 and 71N/mm2 respectively. The mean values of
bending, compression and tensile modulus of elasticity are 4950, 18 and
45N/mm2 (El-Mously, 2003).
Fig. 2.21: Photomicrograph showing a complete vascular bundle

(Megahed, 1995)
48
Chapter 2
Periphery layer
Transition Zone
Core Zone
Fig. 2.22: Cross section in the DPLM showing the DPLM three zones
(Megahed, 1995)
Abdel-Azim (1992) -in using the DPLM in the reinforcement of

concrete- conducted experiments on the DPLM and the leaflets to find
the mechanical properties. He reported the ultimate tensile strength of the
peripheral portion of the DPLM was 175N/mm2, which is higher than the
core zone (88N/mm2). The ultimate compression strength was found to
be 60N/mm2 and modulus of elasticity was 20000N/mm2. The leaflets
ultimate tensile strength was 1600N/mm2.
49
Chapter 2
Tests made on the DPLM were done on the core part of DPLM
and the external fibers separately. No tests were done on the DPLM as a
whole to determine its mechanical properties, except the compression
strength and modulus of elasticity reported by Abdel-Azim (1992).
A comparison between the mechanical properties, price/weight

ratio, and price/strength ratio of different construction materials is given
in tables 2.12, 2.13 and 2.14 respectively. It is logic to compare between
the mechanical properties of DPLM and bamboo only since the reported
properties are the ultimate strengths. On the other hand, comparing
bamboo and DPLM is unfair since the DPLM properties are that of the
core only-weaker part- while that of the bamboo is the whole cross
section properties. It should be noted, in Table 2.13, the price of bamboo
given is that purchased in the U.S, where it was difficult to find the actual
price in Egypt. It should also be noted that wood price is high because
its an imported wood, as Egypt doesnt have natural forests. From Table
2.12 it is obvious that materials could be arranged in descending order,
according to their tensile strength as following: steel, bamboo, spruce,
and DPLM. From Table 2.14, materials could be arranged in descending
order, according to their price /tensile strength as following: bamboo,
DPLM, spruce, and steel. Wood should be excluded from comparison
because most of our woods, if not all, are imported woods. Also, bamboo
is not much dominant in Egypt as the DPLM. Therefore, if the
comparison is restricted to steel and DPLM, it will be found that DPLM
is twenty three time cheaper than steel.
50
Chapter 2
Table 2.12 Comparison between the mechanical properties of spruce,

bamboo, steel and DPLM
Mechanical Spruce Bamboo Steel 37 DPLM
property (ultimate) (inner part)
(KN/cm) (ultimate)
Bending elastic 1100 2000 21000 495
modulus
Compression 4.3 6.2 9.3 14 3.6
strength
Tension strength 8.9 14.8 -38.4 24 7.1
Bending strength 6.8 7.2 - 27.6 14 7.6
Table 2.13 Comparison between the price/weight ratio of spruce,

bamboo, steel and DPLM
Material Price/One Kg
Steel 5 L.E
Wood (pine wood) 11 L.E
(thedailynewsegypt.com,
2009)
Bamboo 0.8L.E
DPLM 0.6L.E
Table 2.14 Comparison between the price/tensile strength ratio of

Material Price/one KN/cm2
tensile strength
Steel 0.163 L.E
Wood (pine wood) 0.06 L.E
Bamboo 0.002L.E
DPLM 0.007L.E
51
Chapter 2
2.6.3 DPLM preservation and coating

Studies were conducted by (El-Mously et al, 1993) to investigate
the most effective methods in preserving and treating infected DPLM. It
was found that one of the most effective ways was the use of Kerosene. It
was found that using Kerosene alone was very effective in killing all
insects and preventing the DPLM from getting infected. Also, it has
been found that for DPLM samples left in the sun in open air for seven
months, they were free from insects for about year and half, which was
the period of the experiment. It was assumed that leaving the DPLM in
the sun will prevent the infection. Yet, as cited by (El-Mously) leaving
the DPLM in the sun in open air does not prevent the DPLM from
infection.
2.6.4 DPLM dimensional stability

Studies have proved that DPLM has a great tendency for swelling
when submerged in water than many other wood species. When
submerging DPLM in water for 38 hours, the swelling ratio in different
DPLM species ranged from 98% to 176%, while that of pitch pine and
mahogany ranged from 13% and 29% (El-Mously, 2003). The swelling
of DPLM, especially with these high ratios of swelling, could lead to
serious problems especially, concerning the internal stresses and glued
joinery if not treated. To overcome this problem DPLM has to be painted
with insulation material to prevent damping.
52
Chapter 2
2.6.5 Examples of industrial utilization of DPLM

The following section will present several examples of industrial
uses of DPLM
2.6.5.1 Arabesque from palm midribs

Arabesque is part of our cultural heritage. This handcraft is
diminishing due to the increase in prices of the imported beech woods.
Therefore, the DPLM is used to substitute the imported wood in the
Arabesque handcraft. The Centre of Small-Scale Industries founded a
training center in the Dakhla oasis in the New Valley governorate to train
and supply machines for the processing of DPLM to the beneficiaries.
The project was a great success in changing the poor, especially women,
into producers (EL-Mously, 2003).
2.6.5.2 DPLM in blockboard

Due to the reliance of the blockboard industry on the imported
spruce, it was decided to substitute the inner core of the blockboard with
DPLM. Therefore, machines were designed and manufactured to turn
DPLM into uniform strips that can be used in blockboard core. The
samples of blockboard with DPLM in core have shown mechanical
properties close, and sometimes even superior, to spruce-core
blockboard. The Centre of Small-Scale Industries has established a pilot
factory in EI-Kharga, the New Valley governorate; this new product has
been successfully marketed and used in communities school furniture,
established all over Upper Egypt by the UNICEF (EL-Mously, 2003).
53
Chapter 2
2.6.5.3 DPLM in Particleboard

Successful attempts were made in using the DPLM in
particleboard. In El-Nasr Company for Particleboard and Resins DPLM
was used in manufacturing one-layer particle boards, size
2240x1220x16mm. Specimens were taken from the plant and were tested
according to Egyptian particleboard standard 906/1991. The modulus of
rupture was 20.3 N/mm2. In another experiment held in the Modern
Company for Wood Manufacturing (MATIN), particleboards of size
4300x1830x8mm were manufactured from DPLM. Specimen from the
plant production were tested and the modulus of rupture was found to be
21.9 N/mm2, the face strength-1.07 N/mm2 and internal bond-0.91
N/mm2 (El-Mously, 2003).
2.6.5.4 Lumber-like product from DPLM
A successful attempt has been made in manufacturing pieces with
any required section from DPLM. These sections have physical and
mechanical properties similar to imported lumber, such as Red European
Pine and spruce. This will open the field of replacing lumber with DPLM
in many uses (El-Mously, 2003).
2.6.6 Use of DPLM for concrete roof reinforcement

A study was made by Abdel-Aziz (1992) using DPLM as a heat
insulation and reinforcement in a concrete vault. The vault structure has
1m long repeatable module of 3m span and height of 2m. The module
consists of one layer of DPLM tied together to form the vault structure.
The structure is shown in Fig 2.23. The leaflets were not removed but
split using steel comb to act as fiber for concrete. The author has reported
that the structure was stable and rigid but not yet airtight. Therefore, a
54
Chapter 2
sand cement mortar of 50mm thickness was poured on the DPLM vault.
The vault was tested under a vertical load of 200kg/m2 and a
concentrated load of 130kg at the top of vault. The deflection measured
after 30 minutes was found to be 0.4mm. The vault was also tested under
horizontal load of 80kg/m2, which represents a wind pressure, and sway
was found after 30 minutes to be 0.2mm. the author reported that all
deflections disappeared after the removal of load indicating elastic strains
and the results, as commented by the author, were very promising.
PLASTER
1500TO2000
DPLM
MORTER
BEARINGWALL
DPLM
1800
500
3000
Fig. 2.23: Elevation of Concrete Vault reinforced using DPLM
2.6.7 DPLM space truss

In a study made by Hassan (2001), a space truss has been
constructed made from DPLM. The following sections will present the
work made and the results obtained from this study
55
Chapter 2
2.6.7.1 DPLM Space Truss model

Hassan suggested a DPLM truss to cover an area of 3mx3m,
which is close to a typical room dimension in the rural areas; the truss is
shown in Fig. 2.24. The model was chosen to achieve the following:
Standard member length in the inclined and horizontal members
for the simplicity of construction.
Standard cross-section for all the members to simplify the process
of design.
Standard connection for all the members. The connection is
shown in Fig. 2.25.
Therefore, the truss was constructed as following:
The truss was a 4-faced triangular truss system with its diagonal
length equals to one meter.
The truss depth is 70.72cm, so that all the members are equal in
length
the truss was loaded under 25, 50, and 75kg/m2 plus the truss own
weight which equals 250kg
Truss members cross section is equal to 10 cm2 of DPLM
A structural analysis was made for the proposed truss system to estimate
the maximum strains in the members and deflections expected. A review
of SAP90 input file shows that the DPLM modulus of elasticity was
50000kg/cm2 and the area cross section was 10 cm2.
2.6.7.2 DPLM joinery
The joint, designed by Hassan to connect the DPLM, was a steel
plate with 2 U-shaped bolts holding down the DPLMs to the steel plate.
Hassan tested a DPLM member of lengths 65cm in tension and
56
Chapter 2
compression to examine the joint. The member was chosen short to

exclude the effect of buckling in the compression cycle.
The member was tested under cycling load of 2000 Newton
tension and compression, then under cycling load of 4900 Newton
tension and compression with no slippage observed between the DPLM
and the steel joint. Yet, a movement was observed. This is because of the
movement of the U-shaped bolts in the load direction plus the extension
and compression of the DPLMs themselves.
2.6.7.3 Testing of truss member under compression

The aim of this test was to estimate the buckling load of the truss
member. The member tested was one meter in length, to resemble the
truss member, average diameter of 4.7cm, and average area of 17.34 cm2.
The maximum buckling load was 5310 Newton and the force-
displacement curve was approximately straight until a load of 4000
Newton, corresponding to a compressive strain of 2.8mm.
2.6.7.4 Testing of DPLM truss

A steel framing made of 2 inches pipes was built to act as a
platform for the DPLM truss. The steel joints of the four corners of the
DPLM truss were welded to the platform to restrain the movement in the
three directions. Loads were prepared as weight bags weighting 25
kilograms each to act as a concentrated load at the truss top joints, and
strain gauges were installed at bottom joints. The truss was loaded with
25, 50 and 75kg at each joint except at the supports. These loads
represent 25, 50, and 75kg/m2 respectively plus the own weight of the
truss itself, 250 kg, which represent about 25 kg/m2.
57
Chapter 2
According to the results of the study, the maximum deflection

under the maximum load (75kg/m2+ own weight) was 13.2mm. Also,
Hassan has mentioned that during the test, the compression members
would be the truss point of weakness, because of buckling. Instead all the
problems were from the tension members. Some tension members
slipped from the joinery at the final stage of loading (75 kg/m2). He
suggested that bolts should be tightened with a torque wrench.
2.6.7.5 Economical study of the DPLM Truss

Hassan has mentioned that there are several items that have lead
to the increase of the truss cost. These are:
Confining the member length to one meter only, while the
DPLM can give 2.5 meters of uniform section.
Using steel joinery, while cheaper and lower strength
joinery could have been used.
Using a 4 quadrant pyramid as a unit in the truss while
using a 6 faced pyramid might have reduced the material.
The cost reported by Hassan was 417L.E. for materials and
250L.E. for craftsmanship. This is equivalent to 74L.E. per square
meters.
2.6.7.6 Commentary on the work of Hassan

In truss constructions, space trusses are very complicated,
because of manufacturing, erection and joinery. In steel, for example, a
space truss will require joinery of special shape, which in some cases, it
is a sphere with various holes to join the incoming members. Erection
requires special expertise, this is because space truss behaves as one unit,
58
Chapter 2
unless it is supported by scaffold in special points, it will be unsafe to

erect. Instead, it is rather common to build trusses in one direction and
the other direction is covered with purlins spanning the trusses.
For the joinery used, Hassan suggested that to prevent slippage

the bolts have to be tight with torque wrench. Actually this is not
applicable except for high strength bolts not a typical U-shaped bolt
made of ordinary steel.
Hassan has noticed a difference in the deflection values between

the theoretical and that measured from the test. One main reason for this,
is the use of bending elastic modulus in the analysis, while the axial
elastic modulus should have been used. The axial elastic modulus can be
easily obtained from compression test made by Hassan on actual truss
member to obtain the buckling load.
From the compression, test conducted on one truss member to
measure the buckling load, the axial modulus of elasticity can be
calculated from the test results as follows:
Maximum load, where the stress strain curve was almost straight (P)=
4000N
Member area (A) = 1734 mm2
Member length (L) = 1000mm
Strain measured (L) = 2.8mm
Then
E= P/A/(L/L) = 824 N/mm2
59
Chapter 2
Fig. 2.24: DPLM 3mx3m Space truss made by Hassan (2001)
Fig. 2.25 DPLM 3mx3m Space truss joint
60
Chapter 3
DPLM MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES
Chapter 3
DPLM MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
3.1 INTRODUCTION
As previously mentioned the purpose of this thesis is to use the
DPLM in its natural form as a structural unit. Three main issues are
necessary to be identified for adequate usage of DPLM as structural
element. First, is estimating the strength of the DPLM as whole in its natural
form without cutting. Second, is finding the suitable connection for the
DPLM units. And third, is finding adequate structural system for the DPLM
to be used in
The DPLM bending and axial strength will affect the choice of
suitable structural system. More important is the connection between the
DPLM. Actually the connection will have the most significant effect on
choosing suitable structural system. This is due to the complexity of joining
the irregular shape of the DPLM.
This chapter presents the experiments performed to determine the

DPLM mechanical properties. These experiments were performed in the
Faculty of Engineering, Ain-Shams University, Engineering Consultant
Centre, Properties and Testing of Materials-Research centre. The kind of
DPLM used was air-dried Balady species from Bany Swief governorate.
Specimens were sawn from the middle portion of the DPLM, except for
some tension test specimens, which were sawn from the top portion of the
DPLM. Fig. 3.1 shows DPLM cross sections at different portions. The area
used in calculation was the actual area of the DPLM cross-section or from
61
Chapter 3
Fig. 3.2 depending upon the largest circle diameter contained in the DPLM
cross section.
Fig. 3.1 DPLM cross-sections at different portions of DPLM
62
Chapter 3
Fig. 3.2 Area of DPLM corresponding to maximum circle diameter

contained in DPLM section (EL-Mously, 2003)
63
Chapter 3
3.2 TESTING PROCEDURE

3.2.1 Testing of DPLM under tension
The purpose of this test is to measure the tensile strength of the
DPLM as a whole. The testing machine used was VEB
Werkstoffprfmaschinen Leipzig" 20tons capacity shown in Fig. 3.3. Due to
the irregular shape of the DPLM cross-section, preliminary attempts were
made to grip the DPLM in the testing machine using various vice grips. All
attempts of testing failed due to the slippage of the DPLM from the vice
grips. It should be noted that the installation and griping of a specimen, any
specimen whether a DPLM, bars, steel plate etc, in the vice grips begins
as following. The specimen is initially griped in the vices due to the force
exerted by the operators weight over the steel bars in the bottom vices,
shown in Fig.3.3. Then due to the movement of the machines part A
upward, the lower and upper vices firmly grip the specimen, and
consequently the specimen becomes under tension. After the failure of all
the attempts to grip the DPLM, a special connection was made to connect
the DPLM to the machine grip. The connection consists of two pieces, each
connected to one end of the DPLM. Each piece consists of a steel tube 30cm
in length and one inch in diameter with 9 holes 5mm diameter, spaced
25mm. At one end of the piece a 5mm steel plate 15cm in length and 7cm in
width is welded to the steel tube. Fig. 3.4 shows the steel connection. The
steel plate is used so that it can be gripped by the machine. Three specimens
of length 75cm were cut from the middle portion of three DPLM. The
DPLM specimen A with an average thickness 15mm was inserted into the
tube and bolted by nine 4mm bolts grade 8.8. Another two specimens were
tested. Specimen C, with an average thickness 14mm, fastened with one bolt
at 10cm from the DPLM end, and the other Specimen B, with an average
64
Chapter 3
thickness 12mm, fastened with 2 bolts spaced 10cm. The average thickness
was measured as the smaller width of the DPLM. Test specimens are
shown in Fig. 3.5. All specimens failed in shear and not in tension.
Steel bar
Machine upper part

(Part A)
s
Upper vice
grips
Lower vice
grips
Fig. 3.3 View of VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen Leipzig" 20 tons

capacity testing Machine, used in tests
65
Chapter 3
DPLM Steel
Bolt pipe Steel
hole plate
Fig. 3.4 DPLM and steel pipe connection
66
Chapter 3
DPLM
BOLT DPLM
Steel Plate Steel Tube
P P
9 Bolted Connection - Specimen A
DPLM
BOLT DPLM
P P
BOLT
2 Bolted Connection - Specimen B

DPLM
BOLT DPLM
P P
1 Bolted Connection - Specimen C
Fig. 3.5 Specimens A, B and C of bolted connection in tension test
Another attempt for tension test was performed using epoxy. Three
specimens were sawn as mentioned previously with length of 60cm and
thicknesses of 1.6 to 2cm. These specimens were first cleaned using a wire
brush and sand paper to remove the waxy layer on the surface. The DPLM
was then inserted in a hollow steel box35x35mm to a length of 20cm. epoxy
(SIKADUR100) was mixed and then poured inside the steel box. Due to the
high viscous form of epoxy, it was difficult to be poured. Instead, a trowel
67
Chapter 3
was used to insert the epoxy inside the steel box. Another experiment was
made using a toothed DPLM. The DPLM was grooved at interval to let the
epoxy enter the grooves and thus increasing the bond. The results of the
different experiment were similar. Most of the modes of failure were
slippage between the DPLM and epoxy.
Another attempt for tension tests were made using U-shaped

connection as shown in Fig. 3.6 where the DPLM was inserted within a U-
shaped connection and the bolts were fastened until the U-shaped bolt
firmly gripped the DPLM. Ten specimens of length 60cm and thickness
averaging from 1cm to 1.6cm were prepared. Two specimens were sawn
from the top portion of the DPLM and 8 from the middle portion. The
specimens were tested and failed in tension.
Because the results of the U-shaped tension test were not logic, as
the strength of the whole DPLM was less than that of the inner zone,
another set of tests were performed in a different machine type, shown in
Fig. 3.7. The new set of specimens needed no special connection to be held
in the machine vice grips as the machine is characterized by having vice
grip able to hold the DPLM without additional accessories. The machine
used is SHIMADZU of capacity 20tons. All specimens failed in tension.
The specimens were tested in Shoubra faculty of engineering, laboratory of
Mechanical Engineering Department.
68
Chapter 3
U-Shaped bolt
DPLM
U-Shaped bolt
Section showing
Elevation showing the machine vices U-shaped bolt
gripping the DPLM U-shaped bolt gripping DPLM
specimen
Figure 3.6 DPLM U-shaped connection in the testing machine
69
Chapter 3
DPLM tensile
test specimen
Handles controlling
the vice grips to grip
the specimen
Fig. 3.7 View of SHAMADZU testing machine 20tons capacity, used in

testing
70
Chapter 3
3.2.2 Testing of DPLM under bending

The purpose of the test was to measure the strength of the DPLM in
bending. The testing machine used was VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen
Leipzig" 5 tons capacity shown in Fig. 3.8. Three specimens with length of
25cm and thicknesses: 1.8, 1.8 and 2cm were sawn from the middle part of
three DPLM. The specimens were inserted in the machine, so that to span
23cm, as shown in Fig. 3.9, and loaded until failure. To determine the
specimen circumferences, area of cross-section, elastic modulus, and inertia,
the specimen cross section profile was drawn on paper and scanned into the
computer. Using AutoCAD software the previous parameters were easily
determined.
Fig. 3.8 View of the VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen Leipzig" 5 tons

capacity testing Machine, used in bending test
Fig. 3.9 Schematic arrangement of DPLM specimen in bending test

71
Chapter 3
3.2.3 Testing of DPLM under compression

The purpose of the test was to measure the strength of the DPLM in
compression. The testing machine used (Fig. 3.10) was equipped with a 5-
tons load cell. Nine specimens with length of 6cm and thicknesses ranging
from 1.4 to 2.1cm were sawn from the middle part of five DPLMs open air
dried. The specimens were cut short to exclude the effect of buckling. The
specimens were inserted in the machine and loaded until
failure.
Fig. 3.10 View of load cell testing machine used in compression test
72
Chapter 3
3.3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

3.3.1 Tensile strength
3.3.1.1 Tensile strength using bolted connection
In the tension test conducted using bolts, the test specimens A, B and
C carried 1800, 880 and 400kg respectively until failure, which represents
an average shear strength of 38kg/cm2. For specimen A the failure was a
splitting failure, (Fig.3.11) where specimen failed suddenly with a crushing
sound. Specimen B and C failed in a bearing like failure (Fig. 3.12) as in
woods, where bolts moved in the DPLM fibers until the testing machine
indicated failure. The difference in the two modes of failure could not be
explained. On the other hand as explained by Janssen, this is not really a
shear strains; it is rather a combination of different types of straining
actions. These strains are bearing, cleavage and shear (Janssen, 1981).
Stresses will be calculated according to two different behaviors, as shear
stress, as Janssen did with Bamboo, and as bearing stress. Yet, it is more
appropriate to be calculated as a shear stress due to two reasons. The first is
the DPLM is more similar in the anatomical structure to bamboo rather than
wood. The second is the mode of failure, splitting, is closer to shear strains
rather than bearing. A detailed analysis for the behavior of the bolted
connection will be presented in the chapter of DPLM joinery. Shear and
bearing stresses can be calculated as following:
73
Chapter 3
Shear = P/ (L x T)
Where:
L: Length of connection (from the farthest bolt to the DPLM end), as
shown in Fig. 3.5
T: DPLM thickness
Table 3.1 Tension test results using bolted connection- (Shear strength
results)
Bolt Spacing Length DPLM
NO of diameter Thickness
Shear
bet (L) Force
Specimen bolts (d) (T) Strength
Bolts (cm) (kg)
(N) (cm) (cm) (kg/cm2)
(cm)
A 9 0.4 2.5 22.5 1.5 1800 53
B 2 0.4 10 20 1.4 800 29
C 1 0.4 10 10 1.4 440 31
bearing = P/ (N x d x T)
Where:
N: No of bolts
d: Bolt diameter
T: DPLM thickness
Table 3.2 Tension test results using bolted connection (Bearing

strength results)
Bolt Spacing Length DPLM
Bearing
bet (L) Force
Specimen bolts (d) (T) Strength
Bolts (cm) (kg)
(N) (cm) (cm) (kg/cm2)
(cm)
A 9 0.4 2.5 22.5 1.5 1800 333
B 2 0.4 10 20 1.4 800 714
C 1 0.4 10 10 1.4 440 786
74
Chapter 3
Fracture DPLM test specimen
Figure 3.11 Shear, splitting, failure of specimen A
75
Chapter 3
Line of failure
Line of failure
DPLM test specimen
Figure 3.12 Bearing failure of specimen B
76
Chapter 3
3.3.1.2 Tensile strength using epoxy

For the tension test using epoxy, grooves did not have an effect
because epoxy was too viscous to enter the grooves. Most of the modes of
failure were slippage between the DPLM and epoxy. Only one test showed a
slippage combined with a removal of part of the external surface of the
DPLM. The specimens carried 1100, 1990 and 2700kg. The specimen that
carried 2700kg, that is 600 kg/cm2, is the one combined with removal of
part of the external surface. This stress is approximately equals to the tensile
strength of the inner part (El-Mously, 2003). This of course, does not give
the actual tensile strength of the DPLM as a whole. The strength should
have increased noticeably due to the contribution of the harder external part.
Fig. 3.13&3.14 show the bond failure between epoxy and DPLM. Table 3.3
gives the results and the calculation of bond strength.
The bond strength has been calculated as follows:
bond = P/ (C x L)
Where:
C: DPLM circumference
L: Length of DPLM in bond with epoxy
Table 3.3 Bond strength between epoxy and the external layer of DPLM
length
Circumferenc Contact
Thickness inside
Specimen e Area Force Strength
(T) DPLM
ID (C) LxC (kg) (kg/cm2)
(cm) (L)
(cm) (cm2 )
(cm)
2 2 4.9 20 98 1990 20
8 1.8 6 20 120 2700 23
A 1.6 6 8 46.8 1100 24
Avg. 22
77
Chapter 3
Slippage Slippage with removal of

part of DPLM
DPLM
Epoxy
Fig. 3.13 DPLM slippage and removal of part of external layer
Slippage
DPLM
Epoxy
Fig. 3.14 DPLM slippage from epoxy
78
Chapter 3
3.3.1.3 Tensile strength using U-Shaped bolts

The tension test using U-shaped was successful; that is all the
specimens failed in tension. The tension specimen carried from 600 to
1500kg, which represents an average strength of 587kg/cm2, excluding the
specimen of 1105 kg/cm2. The average tensile strength for DPLM inner part
for Balady species obtained from previous studies El-Mously (2003) was
715 kg/cm2. The results here are less than those from previous studies by
18% and less than expected. A significant increase was expected due to the
existence of external layer since the outer layer has a tensile strength of
2400 kg/cm2 El-Mously (2003). Perhaps the method of griping the DPLMs
specimens, using U-shaped bolt, in the testing machine was inappropriate.
The researcher believes that due to the movement of the U-shaped bolt
during testing, the bolt squeezed the DPLM from one side leading to
splitting or tearing of the DPLM. Table 3.4 gives the tension test results.
Tearing of DPLM
Splitting of the
DPLM due to the
movement of the
U-shaped bolt
during testing
Fig. 3.15 Failure of U-shaped DPLM tension specimens
79
Chapter 3
Table 3.4 Tension test results using U-shaped bolts

Specimen Thickness Length Area Force Strength Remarks
ID (cm) (cm) (cm2) (kg) (kg/cm2)
A 1.1 60 0.95 1050 1105 DPLM
1 Top
B 60 0.9 650 722 Portion
C 1.1 60 1.23 600 488 DPLM
D 1.1 60 1.27 700 550 Middle
E 1.6 60 3 1100 Failed Portion
F 1.5 60 1.75 900 514
G 1.5 60 2.75 1500 546
H 1.2 60 1.75 1200 686
I 1.1 60 1.75 1200 686
G 0.9 60 1.2 600 500
Avg. 587
3.3.1.4 Tensile strength using the testing machine model SHIMADZU

The specimens carried loads ranging from 1688kg to 2300kg, which
represents an average tensile strength of 994 kg/cm2. This tensile strength is
39% higher than the average tensile strength of the inner zone for Balady
species obtained by El-Mously (2003), indicating that the external layer has
contributed to the strength of DPLM. Yet, this tensile strength does not
represent the DPLM actual tensile strength. This is because the DPLM
tensile failure was accelerated due to the cut of the outer fibers by the
machine vice grips as shown in Fig. 3.16. Yet, this will not affect the use of
DPLM as a structural element because, as has been noticed from the various
attempts to grip the DPLM in the tension test, the DPLM connection will be
the controlling criterion. Table 3.5 gives the tension test results.
80
Chapter 3
Table 3.5 Tension test results using machine model SHIMADZU

Specimen Thickness Length Area Force Strength
ID (cm) (cm) (cm2) (kg) (kg/cm2)
A 1.7 60 2 2014 1007
B 2 60 2.1 1960 933
C 1.7 60 1.44 1688 1172
D 1.8 60 1.8 1752 973
E 2 60 2.2 1828 831
F 2 60 2.2 2300 1045
Avg. 994
Location where
fibers are cut due
Location where the to vice grip
vices gripped the
DPLM
Fracture
due to
tension
failure
Location where
fibers are cut due to
vice grip
Fig. 3.16 Failure of tension Specimen tested in SHIMADZU testing

machine
81
Chapter 3
3.3.2 Bending strength

The specimens carried a load of 128, 144, and 153kg, which
represents an average bending strength of 1150kg/cm2. This bending
strength is 51% higher than the average bending strength of the inner zone
for Balady species obtained by El-Mously (2003), indicating that the
external layer has contributed in the strength of DPLM. The failure, shown
in Fig. 3.17, is thought to be initiated first in the compression zone and then
fibers began to fail in the tension zone. This could be justified as following.
The centeroid or the neutral axis is almost in half the depth of DPLM.
Therefore, the DPLM cross section has almost two equal section modules
one in the tension zone and the other in compression. Thus, the DPLM
bending strength will depend on which is higher, the compressive or tensile
strength. Since the compressive strength is less than the tensile, it is most
properly the failure began in compression zone, shown as a local buckled
part in Fig. 3.17. Yet, the compression failure was not a complete failure.
The local compressive failure led to an increase of the tensile stresses in the
tension zone, because of the reduction of the compression area. This is
followed by the fracture of the external fibers and then failure of the DPLM
as whole indicated by the testing machine as a retrieval of the gauge. Table
3.6 gives the bending test results.
Table 3.6 Bending test results
Thickness Span Area Inertia Force Strength
Specimen (cm) (cm) (cm2) (cm4) (kg) (kg/cm2)
A 2.1 23 4.48 0.83 153 1039
B 1.8 23 3.90 0.59 144 1263
C 1.8 23 3.68 0.57 128 1149
Avg. 1150
82
Chapter 3
Fracture of external
Tension side
fibers
Local compression
failure
Compression side
Fig. 3.17 Pattern of failure in the DPLM bending specimen
3.3.3 Compressive strength

The specimens carried loads ranging from 1500 to 2120 kgs, which
represents a compressive strength of 530kg/cm2 as given in Table 3.7. The
failure of the specimens took the form of longitudinal cracks as shown Fig.
3.18. The longitudinal cracks indicate that the DPLM failed due to diagonal
tension that splits easily the DPLM. The diagonal tension evolved because
of the shear strains of the compression specimen that shows when L/D is
greater than 2.5. The splitting occurs easily because all the fiberovascular
bundles, responsible for strength, are arranged longitudinally without any
cross-linking as in wood, and mostly the binding material is in the
transverse direction. Thus, the transversal strains, evolved from
compression, leads to the failure of the binding material. This mode of
failure resembles the bamboo failure in compression and bending since the
83
Chapter 3
fibers in bamboo are also arranged only in the longitudinal direction

(Mechanical properties of bamboo, 2002).
This compressive strength is 47% higher than the average
compressive strength of the inner zone for Balady species obtained by El-
Mously (2003), indicating that the external layer has contributed to the
strength of DPLM. Also this result is verified by the compressive strength
reported by Abdel-Azem (1992).
Table 3.7 Compressive test results.
Thickness Length 2 Strength
Specimen D (cm) Area (cm ) Force (kg) 2 L/D
L (cm) (kg/cm )
A 2.1 6 4 1900 475 2.85
B 2 6 3.5 1800 514 3
C 1.6 6 2.25 1500 667 3.75
D 1.8 6 4 2120 530 3.33
E 1.6 6 3 1620 541 3.75
F 1.8 6 4 1820 455 3.33
G 1.5 6 2.75 1210 440 4
H 1.5 6 2.75 1770 644 4
I 1.4 6 2.5 1270 508 4.28
Avg. 530
84
Chapter 3
Longitudinal fracture
Splitting of some
compression specimens
Fig. 3.18 Pattern of failure in DPLM compression specimen
85
Chapter 3
3.4 CONCLUSION
The Values of tensile, compression and bending strength for the
DPLM as whole, in its natural form, have shown an increase of 39, 47 and
51% respectively higher than the corresponding values for the inner zone
only. This indicates that the outer layer contributes considerably to the
DPLM strength. The obtained tensile strength does not represent the DPLM
actual tensile strength. This is because the vice grips of the testing machine
cuts through the outer layer fibers during the testing leading to fast failure of
the DPLM. The actual strength of the DPLM is not the sole criterion that
will govern the design of the DPLM structure. It is the connection that most
properly will govern the structural design because of its weakness and
complexity.
3.5 SELECTING THE APPROPRIATE STRUCTURAL SYSTEM

FOR THE DPLM
Although the bending strength has shown a noticeable increase, and
more important, the bending modulus of elasticity has a much higher value
than that of the axial one (El-Mously, 2003), which could have encouraged
the use of the DPLM in beams, the flexural-like structures seem infeasible.
This is mainly due to two reasons. The first one is that in the DPLM all the
fibrovascular bundles, responsible for strength, are arranged longitudinally
with no fibers in the transverse direction. Therefore, if the DPLM is bent,
transversal strains will evolve in DPLM, where no cross-linking exists
between fibers, leading to DPLM splitting. Therefore, forces should be
limited as possible in the longitudinal direction, which is the case of truss
structures. The second is the complexity of connection that had appeared
during the tension tests. This is because the irregular cross-sectional area of
86
Chapter 3
the DPLM requires a special adapted connection to fit the DPLM. For
example, a beam of 6 meters length, which is a typical beam length, will
need three groups of DPLM each of length two meters connected together to
reach the 6 meters length. Moreover, the beam cross-section will require
that the DPLM to be arranged and connected rigidly to take the form of the
cross-section. Typically, this connection will require the transmitting of
shear flow and flexure stresses, which is a complicated connection. Due to
the complexity of such connection, the use of DPLM as a beam is excluded.
On the other hand, truss structures have simple joinery where short length
members are joined together to form the whole truss with the required span
using connections transmitting axial forces only. Moreover, in truss
members, the DPLM will be only axially loaded; therefore, the effect of
transversal strains will be minimal. Therefore, truss structures will be the
most feasible structure for DPLM.
87
Chapter 4
EXPERIMENTAL
PROGRAM
FOR
TESTING DPLM JOINARY
Chapter 4
EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TESTING

DPLM JOINARY
4.1 INTRODUCTION
The DPLM joinery is the most difficult point in the subject of
DPLM trusses. As has been shown in the tension test, many attempts
were made to grip/connect the DPLM to the testing machine vices. Also
in the space truss made by Hassan (2001), joints were expensive and the
DPLM units were subject to slippage from the joints. Therefore, the aim
of this chapter is to find a suitable joinery for the DPLM that is simple
and inexpensive and in rhythm with the DPLM. This will be achieved by
conducting exploratory experiment on various types of connection, from
which, a suitable joinery will be chosen. Then comprehensive tests will
be conducted on the chosen joint to study its strength and behavior.
The experimental program presented in this chapter is designed as
following:
Performing exploratory tests on different types of joinery
to chose the adequate joinery,
Then performing a set of tests on the chosen joinery to
estimate the factors affecting the joint strength and
behavior
Experiments were performed in the Faculty of Engineering, Ain-Shams
University, Engineering Consultant Centre, Properties and Testing of
Materials-Research centre. The kind of DPLM used was air-dried Balady
species from Bany Swief governorate. The machine used in tests is VEB
Werkstoffprfmaschinen Leipzig" 20tons capacity. Specimens were
88
Chapter 4
sawn from the middle portion of the DPLM. The area used in calculation
was the actual area of the DPLM cross-section.
4.2 JOINARY EXPLORATORY TESTS

4.2.1 Testing procedure
4.2.1.1 Testing bond between epoxy and the DPLM external surface
This test was mentioned before in the DPLM tension test reported
in chapter three, and it is listed here briefly. Three DPLM specimens
were first cleaned using wire brush and sand paper to remove the waxy
layer on the surface. The DPLM was then inserted in hollow steel
box35x35mm to a length of 20cm. Epoxy (SIKADUR100) was mixed
then poured inside the steel box. Another experiment was made using a
toothed DPLM. The DPLM was grooved at interval as shown in Fig. 4.1
to let the epoxy enter the grooves and thus increasing bond.
4.2.1.2 Testing bond between epoxy and the DPLM inner part
The aim of this test is to evaluate the bond strength between the
inner part of the DPLM and epoxy. Three specimens were sawn with the
length of 50cm and thicknesses of 1, 1.2 and 1.3 cm from the middle
portion of three DPLM. A Horizontal groove of 4mm thickness along the
longitudinal axis of the DPLM was made with the required length, as
shown in Fig. 4.2. Then a steel plate of thickness 2mm and width of
60mm was soaked in epoxy and then inserted into the DPLM groove. It
was observed, during the insertion of the steel plate, that most of the
epoxy material residualed at the edge of DPLM. Steel plates were griped
into the testing machine and the specimen was tested under tension.
89
Chapter 4
Fig. 4.1 Toothed DPLM in epoxy, polyester, or Megalatex mortar

test specimens
4.2.1.3 Testing bond between polyester and the DPLM external

surface
The aim of this test is to evaluate the bond strength between the
external surface of the DPLM and polyester. Three specimens were sawn
with the length of 50cm and thicknesses of 1, 1.2 and 1.3cm from the
middle portion of three DPLM. The DPLM were first cleaned using wire
brush and sand paper to remove the waxy layer on the surface. Then the
DPLM was toothed from two sides at intervals of 15mm and length 8mm
and depth of 2mm as shown in Fig. 4.2. The DPLM was then inserted in
a hollow steel box 35x35mm. Polyester was prepared and poured inside
the steel box.
Epoxy Epoxy
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate DPLM Steel Plate
Fig. 4.2 Epoxy-DPLM inner part specimen
90
Chapter 4
4.2.1.4 Testing bond between Megalatex mortar and DPLM external

surface
Due to the high price of epoxy, which is not suitable for a low-
priced material such as DPLM, a search for another inexpensive material
was necessary. An earlier attempt was made to use cement mortar with
DPLM, but no bond was found at all. It is even when the form was
removed from around the DPLM, the mortar cracked down. The
Megalatex solution from InTrade Company was chosen to be used for its
low-price. The Megalatex solutions base component is synthetic
copolymer Styrene-butadiene rubber. The Megalatax solution is used
with cement mortar as an adhesive material. The solution is cheaper than
epoxy and polyester. The aim of this test is to evaluate the bond strength
between the external surface of the DPLM and the Megalatex mortar.
Three specimens were sawn with the length of 60cm and thicknesses of
1, 1.2 and 1.3 cm from the middle portion of three DPLM. The DPLM
was first cleaned using wire brush and sand paper to remove the waxy
layer on the surface and the specimens were toothed from two sides at
intervals of 15mm and length 8mm and depth of 2mm as shown in Fig.
4.2 The specimen is then inserted in a hollow steel box 35x35mm. A
mixture of cement-sand was made with the ratio of 4:1 cement to sand.
Then, a solution of 1:1 megalatex to water is added to the cement-sand
mixture until the required form is reached. These ratios are upon the
recommendation of the manufacturer to reach the highest bond. The
specimen was left 7 days to dry then tested.
91
Chapter 4
4.2.1.5 Testing a single DPLM bolted connection

This test was mentioned before in the DPLM tension test reported
in chapter three, and it is listed here briefly. A connection was made to
connect the DPLM to the machine grip. The connection consists of two
pieces each is connected to one end of the DPLM. Each piece consist of
steel tube 30cm in length and one inch in diameter with 9 holes 5mm
diameter, spaced 25mm. At one end of each piece a 5mm steel plate
15cm in length and 7cm in width is welded to the steel tube. The steel
plate is used, so that it can be griped by the machine. Three specimens
were made. One is bolted to the tube by nine 4mm bolts grade 8.8, one
with two bolts spaced 10cm, and the other with one bolt at 10cm from the
DPLM end.
4.2.1.6 Testing a double DPLM bolted connection

Since it is most likely in the DPLM truss a minimum of two
DPLM will be used for each truss member; therefore, two specimens
made of two DPLMs each, resembling a truss member and shown in Fig.
4.3, were fabricated and tested. The specimens were sawn with the length
of 80cm and thickness ranging from 1.4 to 1.8 from the middle portion of
two DPLM. Two steel plate of 40x5cm were used to connect the two
DPLM at each side. Five bolts of 6mm diameter were used to connect the
DPLM at spacing of 5cm. Specimen was fabricated by holding one
DPLM over the top of steel plate and the other at the bottom of the steel
plate. Then, the first hole is drilled into the upper DPLM, into the plate,
and then into the lower DPLM. While the assembly is held together, the
bolt is fastened. And the same is done for the last hole and then the bolts
in between were drilled and fastened. This procedure of fabrication is
92
Chapter 4
necessary because an attempt was made earlier to drill the DPLM and
steel plates separately and then fasten the bolts, but it wasnt accurate.
The holes in the DPLM and steel plates were not concurrent. This
connection depends on the shear strength of the DPLM.
P P
Steel Plate Bolts

DPLM 1
Steel Plate
DPLM DPLM
SECTION 1-1
Fig.4.3 Double DPLM bolted connection
4.2.2 Results and discussion

4.2.2.1 Bond strength between epoxy and DPLM external surface
Bond strength, discussion, and results of this test were reported in
the DPLM tension test listed in details in chapter three. The average bond
strength between epoxy and the external layer of the DPLM is 22kg/cm2.
All specimens failed due to slippage of DPLM from epoxy except one
specimen; slippage was combined with the removal of part of the
external layer. The researcher thinks that the failure happened first in the
DPLM leading to reduction of the area in bond with the epoxy. Slippage
then occurred because the area in bond was not enough to resistant the
applied force.
93
Chapter 4
4.2.2.2 Bond strength between epoxy and DPLM inner part

The specimens carried 1000 and 1200 kg, which is about
50kg/cm2. All the failures were in the DPLM fibers as shown in Fig. 4.4.
Results have shown that the bond strength between epoxy and inner part
is higher than that of the epoxy and external layer. This is because the
external layer is dense with fiberovascular bundles and has the minimum
of the binding material. This anatomical structure means a fewer cavities
between fiberovascular bundles and a smooth surface. Consequently, this
smooth surface prohibits the gluing material, epoxy, from interlocking
with the fibers and thus reducing the overall adhesion. On the other hand,
the groove made in the DPLM inner part made the cut lines coarse
because of the cutting of the fiber bundles and binding material, as shown
in Fig. 4.5. This led to an increase of adhesion by increasing the
interlocking of epoxy with the cut edges. Table 4.1 givess the results.
Bond strength was calculated as follows:
bond = P/ (B x L x N)
Where:
P: Force obtained from tests
B: DPLM breadth
L: Length of part of DPLM in bond with epoxy
N: Number of contact surfaces with epoxy (N=2)
Table 4.1 Bond strength between epoxy and the DPLM internal
surface
Length
Specimen Thickness Breadth inside Force Strength
ID (cm) (cm) DPLM (kg) (kg/cm2)
(cm)
1 1 1 10 1200 60
2 1.2 1.3 9.5 1000 40
3 1.3 1.4 9 Failed
Avg. 50
94
Chapter 4
Steel plate
DPLM
DPLM removed part
Groove
Epoxy
Fig. 4.4 Removal of part of DPLM in epoxy -DPLM inner part

specimen
Fig. 4.5 Sketch magnifying the coarse groove lines in the epoxy-
DPLM inner part specimen
95
Chapter 4
4.2.2.3 Bond strength between polyester and DPLM external layer

Specimens carried 1078, 1300 and 1440kg, which represents a bond
strength of 11kg/cm2. Failure was due slippage of DPLM from polyester
combined with fracture in the surrounding polyester as shown in Fig. 4.6.
In one specimen, the failure was combined with removal of external layer
as shown in Fig. 4.7. The researcher thinks that the failure happened first
in the DPLM leading to reduction of the area in bond with the polyester.
Slippage then occurred because the area in bond was not enough to
resistant the applied force. Table 4.2 gives the results

bond = P/ (C x L)
Where:
L: Length of DPLM in bond with epoxy
Table 4.2 Bond strength between polyester and DPLM external layer
Length
Circumfere- Contact
Thickness inside
Specime nce Area Force Strength
(T) DPLM
n ID (C) LxC (kg) (kg/cm2)
(cm) (L)
(cm) (cm2 )
(cm)
2 1 4.9 20 98 1078 11
8 1.2 6 20 120 1300 11
A 1.3 6 20 120 1440 12
Avg. 11
96
Chapter 4
DPLM Grooves made to increase bond
Fractured polyester
Fig. 4.6 DPLM slippage and polyester fracture in DPLM-Polyester

Specimen
Removed part of DPLM

Fractured polyester
Fig. 4.7 DPLM slippage from polyester and removal of part of

DPLM in DPLM-Polyester Specimen
97
Chapter 4
4.2.2.4 Bond strength between Megalatex and DPLM external layer

The specimens carried 1350, 1450 and 1850 kg, which represents a bond
strength of 11 kg/cm2. The results gave bond strength almost equal to that
of polyester. All failures were due to slippage of DPLM from the mortar.
It is also obvious from Fig. 4.8 that there is almost no or weak bond
between DPLM and Megalatax mortar. Table 4.3 gives the results.
bond = P/ (C x L)
Where:
L: Length of part of DPLM in bond
Table 4.3 Bond strength between DPLM and Megalatex mortar
Length
Circumfere- Contact
Specime Thickness inside Force Strength
nce Area
n ID (cm) DPLM 2 (kg) (kg/cm2)
(cm) (cm )
(cm)
12 1 6.8 20 136.00 1450 11
13 1.2 7 20 140.00 1850 13
14 1.3 7.8 20 156.00 1350 9
Avg. 11
Almost no traces of Megalatex mortar on the DPLM
Grooves made to increase

bond
Fig. 4.8 Slippage of DPLM in DPLM-Megalatex Specimen
98
Chapter 4
4.2.2.5 Strength of single DPLM bolted connection

The results of this type of connection are given in details in
DPLM tension test reported in chapter three. Specimen having 9bolts
failed in a sudden splitting failure with a crushing sound, while the other
two failed in a smooth bearing like failure. Connection strength
calculated based on shear behavior was 38kg/cm2, and based on bearing
behavior was 611kg/cm2.
4.2.2.6 Strength of double DPLM bolted connection

The specimens carried 2300 and 3100 kg, which represents a
shear strength of 32kg/cm2, and 267kg/cm2 if calculated as a bearing
strength. Yet, it is more appropriate to consider the behavior as a shear
failure because the sudden splitting failure is closer to shear failure rather
than bearing one. Moreover as mentioned previously, the researcher
would like to calculate the stresses as a shear stress, as Janssen (1981)
did with bamboo, because the DPLM anatomical structure resembles that
of the bamboo. All the failures were sudden splitting with crushing sound
resembling the failure of one DPLM nine bolts bolted connection
reported previously. The shear strength obtained was equal to that
obtained from the exploratory tests of single DPLM bolted connection
previously mentioned. This indicates that the double DPLM bolted
connection behaves as the single DPLM bolted connection, excluding
specimens where failure was a bearing like. This gives the belief that
there is no DPLM, in the double DPLM bolted connection, carries load
significantly more than the other. Shear strength can be calculated as
following:
99
Chapter 4
Shear = P/ (L x T)
Where:
L: Length of connection: from the farthest bolt to the DPLM
edge, as shown in Fig. 4.9.
T: Summation of the two DPLM thicknesses
Table 4.4 Double DPLM bolted connection Shear strength
bolt Spacing Length DPLM
bet (L) Force Strength
Specimen bolts (d)
Bolts (cm) (T) (kg) (kg/cm2)
(N) (cm) (cm)
(cm)
A 5 0.6 5 25 3.5 3100 35.4
B 5 0.6 5 25 3.2 2300 28.8
Avg 32.4
bearing = P/ (N x d x T)
Where:
N: No of bolts
D: Bolt diameter
T: Summation of the two DPLM thicknesses
Table 4.5 Double DPLM bolted connection Bearing strength
bolt Spacing Length DPLM
NO of diameter Thickness Force
Specime bet Bolts (L) Strength
bolts (d)
n (cm) (cm) (T) (kg) (kg/cm2)
(N) (cm) (cm)
A 5 0.6 5 25 3.5 3100 295
B 5 0.6 5 25 3.2 2300 239
Avg 267
100
Chapter 4
Connection length
Fig. 4.9 Splitting of DPLM in the double DPLM bolted connection
4.3 CHOOSING THE DPLM CONNECTION

From the exploratory tests mentioned above, the bolted
connection was seen as the most suitable connection for the DPLM truss.
This is because of its simplicity in fabrication, low-cost, and short-period
of fabrication. Table 4.6 lists the comparison between the different types
of connections. Connections depending on bond were excluded for the
following reasons:
The outer surface of the DPLM has to be absolutely clean. This is
difficult to be achieved by brushing or sand paper due to the
irregular shape of DPLM
The outer surface of the DPLM is very smooth which reduces
bond by interlocking and thus the overall bonding strength
101
Chapter 4
To achieve a high bonding strength, materials like epoxy should

be used, which is an expensive material to be used with DPLM.
Metal boxes used in tests of DPLM bond connections are
expensive compared to steel plates used in the bolted connections.
The complexity of preparing glueable connections compared to
the bolted connections.
Though the bolted connection is the least in strength in all types
of connection as shown in Table 4.6, it is obvious from the above reasons
and Table 4.6 that the bolted connection is most feasible connection.
102
Chapter 4
103
Chapter 4
104
Chapter 4
4.4 INVESTIGATION OF THE DPLM BOLTED JOINT

As mentioned previously, it was clear that the bolted connection
is the most suitable connection to be used in the DPLM trusses.
Therefore, a series of test over the single and double DPLM connection is
performed. The aim of these tests is to evaluate the connection behavior,
strength and the effect of joint length and bolt spacing over the
connection strength. The joint testing program is designed as following;
four groups of specimens are tested:
Group I: Single DPLM bolted connection having one bolt
in the connection
Group II: Single DPLM bolted connection having more
than one bolt in the connection
Group III: Double DPLM bolted connection having one
bolt in the connection
Group IV: Double DPLM bolted connection having more
than one bolt in the connection
The pattern of specimens was chosen as mentioned above for the
following two reasons. First, the groups were divided to single and
double DPLM connections to make sure that their behavior under loading
is equal. That is, in the double DPLM connection, no DPLM carries load
more than the other. It should be noted that the single DPLM bolted
connection is only investigated to study its behavior, rather to be used in
the DPLM truss. It was decided, as mentioned previously, that the
minimum DPLM units to be used in the DPLM truss member are two.
The second, it is needed to know if the connection having one bolt will
behave similarly to that having more than one bolt or not. The following
105
Chapter 4
paragraphs will present the testing program of single and double DPLM
bolted connections
4.4.1 Single DPLM bolted connection testing procedure

The aim of this test is to estimate the effect of the connection
length and spacing on the mode of failure and strength of the connection.
A number of test specimens with different bolt number and spacing are
tested. Specimens were sawn with the length of 65cm and thicknesses
ranging from 0.8 to 1.5cm from the middle portion of seven DPLM. All
specimens were fabricated as following: DPLM is grooved longitudinally
with a thickness of 3mm, and a steel plate of thickness 2mm and 60mm
width was inserted in the groove. Then a driller drilled through the
DPLM and steel plate at the same time, and then the bolts were fastened.
Bolts used were 5mm diameter grade 8.8. Fig. 4.10 shows typical detail
for the single DPLM bolted connection.
For Group I the connection pattern of bolts is one bolt at 2.5, 5, 10, 15
and 20 cm from the DPLM end. For Group II the connection pattern of
bolts is as follows:
6 bolts at 25mm,
5 bolts at 25mm,
4 bolts at 25mm,
3 bolts at 25mm,
2 bolts at 25mm,
4 bolts at 50mm,
3 bolts at 50mm,
2 bolts at 50mm,
3 bolts at 75mm, and 2 bolts at 75mm
106
Chapter 4
Table 4.7 and Fig. 4.11 shows Group I connection pattern and Table 4.8
and Fig. 4.12 shows Group II connection pattern.
Fig. 4.10 Typical connection detail for Group I and Group II bolted
connections
Table 4.7 Group I connection parameters

Specimen Bolt No of Connection Bolt No of
ID Spacing Bolts Length (L) Diameter Specimen
(S) (cm) (cm) (mm)
1@2.5 2.5 1 2.5 6 2
1@5 5 1 5 6 2
1@10 10 1 10 6 2
1@15 15 1 15 6 2
1@20 20 1 20 6 2
107
Chapter 4
P P 1@2.5
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolt
P P 1@5
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolt
P P 1@10
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolt
P P 1@15
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolt
P P 1@20
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolt
Where L = Connection Length
Fig. 4.11 Group I connection pattern

Table 4.8 Group II connection parameters
Connection Connection No. of Spacing Bolt
ID length (L) bolts Bet. bolts diameter
(cm) (S) (cm) (mm)
2A 5 2 2.5 5
2B 10 2 5 5
2C 15 2 7.5 5
3A 7.5 3 2.5 5
3B 15 3 5 5
3C 22.5 3 7.5 5
4A 10 4 2.5 5
4B 20 4 5 5
5A 12.5 5 2.5 5
6A 15 6 2.5 5
108
Chapter 4
2A
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts Steel Plate
2B
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
2C
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
3A
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
3B
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
3C
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
4A
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
4B
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
5A
Steel Plate
P P
DPLM
P
DPLM
P
6A
Steel Plate Bolts
Where L = Connection Length
Figure 4.12 Group II connection pattern
109
Chapter 4
4.4.2 Double DPLM bolted connection testing procedure

A series of tests was made on the double DPLM bolted
connection to estimate the effect of the connection length and spacing on
the mode of failure and strength of connection. A number of test
specimens with different bolt number, spacing are tested. Specimens
were sawn with the length of 65cm and thicknesses ranging from 0.8 to
1.5 cm from the middle portion of DPLM. The specimen is such that the
two DPLM ends at each side of steel plate were fastened with 6mm
diameter bolt grade 8.8, as shown in Fig. 4.13 and Fig. 4.14. The DPLM
specimen is fabricated as follows: the two DPLM are held tightly to the
steel plate between them while the driller drills through the first DPLM,
steel plate, and then the DPLM on the other side, and then the bolt is
fastened. The process is repeated until all the bolts are fastened. An
attempt was made to drill the DPLM and steel plates separately and then
fasten the bolts, but it was not accurate. The bolt holes were not
concurrent specially that the DPLM are not straight. The connection
pattern for Group III is one bolt at 2.5, 5 and 10cm and for Group IV two
bolts at 2.5, 5 and 10cm. it was decided to limit the number of bolts to
two to keep the connection length short as possible. Each pattern has 5
specimens leading to a total of 5x6 specimens. When these specimens
were tested some of them failed due to bolt rupture. Therefore, the tests
were repeated using specimens with 8mm diameter bolt grade8.8. Fig.
4.13 and Table 4.9 illustrate the connection pattern for Group III and Fig.
4.14 and Table 4.10 illustrate the connection pattern for Group IV.
110
Chapter 4
Table 4.9 Group III connection parameters

(S) (cm) (cm) (mm)
1 2.5 1 2.5 6 5
2 5 1 5 6 5
3 10 1 10 6 5
Table 4.10 Group IV connection parameters

(S) (cm) (cm) (mm)
1 2.5 2 5 6 5
2 5 2 10 6 5
3 10 2 20 6 5
111
Chapter 4
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
1
Where L= Connection Length
Steel Plate
DPLM DPLM
SECTION 1-1
Fig. 4.13 Group III connection pattern
112
Chapter 4
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
1
P P
DPLM
Steel Plate Bolts
Where L= Connection Length Steel Plate
DPLM DPLM
SECTION 1-1
Fig, 4.14 Group IV connection pattern
4.4.3 Results and discussion

The effect of connection length and spacing is studied and the
results for single DPLM bolted connection are given in Table 4.11, and
for the double DPLM bolted connection in Tables 4.12 and 4.13. All
modes of failure in all groups were sudden splitting failure. Bearing like
failure, previously reported in the tension test in chapter three, was not
observed here in any specimen. Therefore, the connection strength will
be calculated as shear strength, as given in equation (1) at the end of this
section. The shear strength calculated ranged from 19kg/cm2 to
90kg/cm2. This high variation in the shear strength is caused by two types
113
Chapter 4
of connections: connections having long connection length and close to

end connections. Close to end connection is any connection having a bolt
at 2.5cm from the DPLM end. Long connections is the connection having
1 bolt at 20, 1 bolt at 15cm and 2 bolts each at 10cm.Connections having
long connection length result in a low shear strength values and close to
DPLM end connections result in a high shear strength values. .Low shear
strength computed from long connection could be contributed to that the
effect of the total length of connection used in calculating shear strength
is not effective. Instead, it is rather a portion of the length or part of the
spacing between bolts spaced at long distance that carry the shear load.
For the high shear strength, for the close to end connections, no
explanation could be justified. Yet, the same phenomenon was observed
by Janssen (1981) while testing shear for bamboo using bolted
connection. Therefore, if the long connections and close to end
connections are excluded, we get a shear strength averaging from 28 to
45 kg/cm2 with a mean value of 43 kg/cm2, and 23 to 39kg/cm2 with
mean value of 34kg/cm2, for single and double DPLM connection
respectively. It is obvious that the single and double DPLM connection
have a close range of strength which indicates that the two connections
yield the same behavior. Janssen (1981), in his bamboo shear test using
one bolt at 4, 6, and 8cm from the culms end, the shear strength varied
from 100kg/cm2 to 30kg/cm2. The greatest variation in shear strength was
in the connection where the bolt was at 4cm from the culms end, where
the shear strength ranged from 46 to 100kg/cm2; the same phenomenon
earlier mentioned in the DPLM. While in the connection where the bolt
was at 8cm from the culms end, the shear strength ranged from 30 to
45kg/cm2.this range of variation, in the 8cm bolted bamboo specimen, is
114
Chapter 4
almost equal to the variation, reported earlier (28 to 45 kg/cm2), for the
DPLM specimens. This gives the confidence in the obtained shear
strength results.
Another phenomenon was observed from the graphs shown in

Fig. 4.15and 4.16 that the shear strength decreases with the increase of
connection length, even when the long and close to end connections are
excluded.
Also, another phenomenon appeared from the graphs shown in

Fig. 4.17 to 4.19. This is for the same connection length, the shear
strength decreases with the increase of bolt spacing. This was observed in
connections having connection length of 15 and 20cm. For the 10cm
connection, excluding bolts at spacing 25mm from the end, the shear
strength ranged from 40 to 42 kg/cm2 for 5 and 10cm spacing. Almost no
variation in strength is noticed with different spacing for the 10cm
connection. It is necessary to mention that the decrease of strength with
the connection length, in our cases, is logic because the same
phenomenon exists in steel connections and addressed in the Egyptian
Code for Steel Structures. That is, for a connection having a length more
than fifteen times the bolt diameter, in our case 15x0.8=12cm, a
reduction factor in the connection shear strength should be incorporated
(ECP, 2001) . The reduction factor for a connection length of 20cm with
8mm bolt diameter is equal to 0.95. Yet, this factor, even if multiplied by
a representative shear strength value, obtained from test results and
excluding long and close to end connection, the actual strength of the
long length connection will be much bellow the calculated one.
115
Chapter 4
Therefore, because of the DPLM having, mostly, their widths ranging

from 0.8 to 2cm, 6 and 8mm diameter bolts will be the only adequate
diameters to be used with the DPLM, leading to that the maximum
connection length should be 10cm with two bolts spaced 5cm.
For a representative shear strength value for the DPLM, bolted

connection specimens having 1 bolt at 20cm, 1 bolt at 15cm and 2 bolts
at 10cm are excluded. Also, close to the end connection, that is any
connection having a bolt at 2.5cm from the DPLM end, are excluded.
This will give shear strength of 27.5 kg/cm2 with a confidence of 95%.
As a comparison, shear strength of bamboo derived from bolted
connection was 30 kg/cm2 (janssen, 1981), which is very close to that of
the DPLM. As for the design, long connections where spacing between
bolts or DPLM end exceeds 10cms should be avoided. Connections were
bolts are close to DPLM end are acceptable since the shear strength of
such connections are higher than the mean shear strength value. A design
example for a DPLM joint is shown in appendix 1
Shear strength parallel to the DPLM fibrovascular bundle driven
from the DPLM bolted connection test results:
Shear = P/ (L x T)(1)
Where:
P: Load obtained from tests
L: Connection length: from the farthest bolt to the DPLM edge,
as shown in Fig. 4.9.
T: DPLM thickness for single DPLM bolted connection, or the
summation of the two DPLM thicknesses for the double
DPLM bolted connection
116
Chapter 4
117
Chapter 4
Table 4.12 Shear strength results of Group III & IV connections

using 6mm bolt
Spac-
Conn- DPLM No of
Bolt ing Stress
No of ection Thickn plans Remar
Dia Bet Force (kg/cm
Bolts Lengt ess of ks
(mm) Bolts 2)
h (cm) (cm) Failure
(cm)
6 1 2.5 2.5 3.2 705 1 88 x
6 1 2.5 2.5 3.5 520 1 59 x
6 1 2.5 2.5 3.4 620 1 73 x
bolt
6 1 2.5 2.5 3.2 670 1 84 rupture
bolt
6 1 2.5 2.5 3.2 625 1 78 rupture
AVG 73
6 1 5 5 3.4 720 1 42
6 1 5 5 3.1 510 1 33
6 1 5 5 3.6 610 1 34
bolt
6 1 5 5 3.1 690 1 45 rupture
bolt
6 1 5 5 2.9 630 1 43 rupture
AVG 36
6 1 10 10 2 635 1 32
bolt
6 1 10 10 2 735 1 37 rupture
bolt
6 1 10 10 3.6 610 1 17 rupture
bolt
6 1 10 10 3.1 690 1 22 rupture
bolt
6 1 10 10 2.9 630 1 22 rupture
AVG 32
6 2 2.5 2.5 2.9 860 1 119 x

6 2 2.5 2.5 3.3 625 1 76 x
6 2 2.5 2.5 3.3 945 1 115 x
6 2 2.5 2.5 3.2 670 1 84 x
6 2 2.5 2.5 3.1 880 1 114 x
AVG 101
118
Chapter 4
Cont. Table 4.12 Shear strength results of Group III & IV

connections using 6mm bolts
6 2 5 10 4 1100 1 28
6 2 5 10 3.1 900 1 29
6 2 5 10 3.6 1280 1 36
6 2 5 10 3.6 580 1 16
6 2 5 10 2.2 1300 1 59
AVG 33
6 2 10 20 3.1 1600 1 26 x
6 2 10 20 3.7 1300 1 18 x
6 2 10 20 4.2 1250 1 15 x
6 2 10 20 3.9 1500 1 19 x
6 2 10 20 3.6 1250 1 17 x
AVG 19
mean 34
X indicates value is not included in the mean value
Table 4.13 Shear strength results of Group III & IV connections

using 8mm bolts
Spacin Conn-
DPLM
Bolt Dia No of g Bet ection Stress Remar
Thickne Force ks
(mm) Bolts Bolts Length (kg/cm2)
ss (cm)
(cm) (cm)
8 1 2.5 2.5 3.7 430 46 x
8 1 2.5 2.5 3.9 170 17 x
8 1 2.5 2.5 4.2 320 30 x
8 1 2.5 2.5 4 500 50 x
8 1 2.5 2.5 4.5 520 46 x
AVG 38
8 1 5 5 3 130 9
8 1 5 5 2.7 600 44
8 1 5 5 3.7 710 38
8 1 5 5 3.6 910 51
8 1 5 5 3.4 810 48
AVG 38
119
Chapter 4
Cont. Table 4.13 Shear strength results of Group III & IV

connections using 8mm bolts
8 1 10 10 4.4 880 20
8 1 10 10 3.6 890 25
8 1 10 10 5 1070 21
8 1 10 10 3.6 1230 34
8 1 10 10 4 530 13
AVG 23
8 2 2.5 2.5 3.5 1010 115 x

8 2 2.5 2.5 3.5 740 85 x
8 2 2.5 2.5 3.5 430 49 x
8 2 2.5 2.5 3.5 340 39 x
8 2 2.5 2.5 4 530 53 x
AVG 68
8 2 5 10 3.5 1850 53
8 2 5 10 3.3 1280 39
8 2 5 10 3.7 1220 33
8 2 5 10 3.6 1240 34
8 2 5 10 4.3 1450 34
AVG 39
6 2 10 20 3.1 1600 26 x
6 2 10 20 3.7 1300 18 x
6 2 10 20 4.2 1250 15 x
6 2 10 20 3.9 1500 19 x
6 2 10 20 3.6 1250 17 x
AVG 19
mean* 33
X indicates value is not included in the mean value
120
Chapter 4
Fig. 4.15 Relation between the connection length and shear strength
Fig. 4.16 Relation between the connection length and shear strength
(excluding long and close to end connections)
121
Chapter 4
Fig. 4.17 Relation between spacing and shear strength for a

connection length of 10cm
Figure 4.18 Relation between spacing and shear strength for a

122
Chapter 4
Figure 4.19 Relation between spacing and shear strength for a

123
Chapter 5
EXPERIMENTAL
PROGRAM
FOR
TESTING DPLM TRUSSES
Chapter 5
EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TESTING

DPLM TRUSSES
5.1 INTRODUCTION
The experimental work described in this chapter is designed to
study the behavior of the DPLM trusses as structural elements. The types
of joints were studied also in this research in chapter four. Five types of
trusses were tested. All trusses have the same span and height. Trusses
were chosen to have a span of three meters and a depth of half meter - to
resemble a typical room width and also to be fit in the testing machine-.
Fig. 5.1 shows the elevations of the five trusses.
Truss1 is an N-truss with its span divided into four equal panels.
All its members consist of two DPLM connected together by 2mm steel
plate and 6mm diameter steel bolts grade 8.8. Truss2 is exactly the same
as Truss1 but the steel plates are 6mm. Truss3 is also an N-truss with its
span divided into four equal panels and all its members consist of two
DPLMs connected together by 8mm diameter steel rods only. Truss4 is a
traditional handcraft Vierendeel truss using the traditional methods of the
crate artisans. It is simply a joinery of the DPLM crates used in carrying
bread. Truss5 is the same as Truss4 but with additional diagonals.
Experiments were performed in the Faculty of Engineering, Ain-

Shams University, Engineering Consultant Centre, Properties and Testing
of Materials-Research centre. The kind of DPLM used was air-dried
Balady species from Bany Swief governorate. Specimens were sawn
124
Chapter 5
from the middle portion of the DPLM. Trusses were tested in a testing
machine equipped with1000kg-load cell.
Fig. 5.1: Elevation of Truss1, 2, 3, 4 &5
125
Chapter 5
5.2 STRUCTURAL MODELING OF TRUSSES

A structural analysis was performed for the trusses to calculate
the straining actions and deflections corresponding to the maximum loads
obtained from tests. From the previous studies conducted by El-Mously
(2003), it was found that the flexure modulus of elasticity differs greatly
from that of the axial, indicating that the DPLM is an orthotropic
material. Therefore, the DPLM was entered in the analysis program as
an orthotropic material. Truss1, 2 and 3 were modeled using the
following givens: the DPLM was entered as a material of flexural
modulus of elasticity equals 200000kg/cm2 (Abdel-Azim, 1992), and
axial modulus of elasticity equals 8250kg/cm2, previously deducted in
chapter one from Hassans work (2003), and an own weight of
780kg/m3. The cross-sectional area of the DPLM members was entered
as a 3cmx1.5cm rectangle, which resembles two DPLM of diameter
1.5cm each.
For Trusses4&5the values of modulus of elasticity are different

from those mentioned above. The DPLM used in theses trusses were
partially pealed partially of its outer layer. This pealing is essential to
allow the crate artisan to use his tools in piercing and cutting of the
DPLM without damaging the tools by the hard external layer. The axial
modulus of elasticity was estimated as following:
Eall (modulus of elasticity of the whole DPLM) =8250kg/cm2
Ein (modulus of elasticity of the inner part DPLM) =650kg/cm2
(El-Mously, 2003)
126
Chapter 5
Eall * area of DPLM = Ein * area of inner part + Eext * area of

external layer, where Eext is the modulus of elasticity of the
external layer
For a DPLM of radius 1.5cm with the external layer of thickness 0.15cm
8250 * 1.76 = 650*(1.76-3.14*1.5*0.15) + Eext(3.14*1.5*0.15)
Eext = 19580kg/cm2
In the DPLM used in Truss4&5 a 5mm width of the external layer is
removed at each side of the DPLM
Eallnew * area of DPLM=Eall * area of DPLM- Eext* area external
layer removed, where Eallnew: the new axial modulus of the
partially-pealed DPLM
Eallnew * 1.76 = 8250 * 1.76 - 19580 (0.5*0.15*2)=6580kg/cm2
Therefore, the axial modulus of elasticity used in Trusses4&5, where part
of the external layer of the DPLM is removed, equals 6580kg/cm2.
Since trusses4&5 act as a Vierendeel truss, the flexural modulus of
elasticity of the whole DPLM is Essential, and it is taken equal to
200000kg/cm2 (Abdel-Azim, 1992). The cross sectional-area of the
DPLM chords was entered as a 3.6cmx1.2cm rectangle, which resembles
three DPLM with diameter of 1.2cm each. Verticals were entered as
3x3cm rectangle which resembles three DPLM with diameter of 1cm
each. Truss restraints were modeled as hinged at one end and roller at the
other.
5.3 CONSTRUCTION OF DPLM TRUSSES

5.3.1 Truss1 & Truss2
Truss1&2 resembles a typical steel truss, shown in Fig. 5.2, but
with the main members are made of DPLM members. As mentioned
127
Chapter 5
before, each member of the truss consists of two DPLM making the truss
width almost 4cm. The connection is made of steel plates of thickness
2mm and 2 bolts 6mm diameter grade 8.8 spaced 2cm. This choice was
made to reduce the size of steel plate and thus reaching the most
economic truss. The truss is an N-truss of depth half meter and of 3
meters span divided into four equal panels with all its diagonals in
tension under gravity loads. The truss has its vertical DPLM of
length33cm, diagonal DPLM of 66cm and chord DPLM of 71cm joined
together to lengthen the truss span. Fig. 5.2, 5.3 and 5.4 show the
detailed drawing of Truss1. For each member of the top chord, the two
DPLM were tightened together by a plastic wire to make them act
together and to reduce the buckling effect as shown in Fig. 5.5. For the
vertical members, the DPLM were connected together by a bolt at middle
of the member. Truss2 is exactly constructed as Truss1 but the steel
plates used were 6mm. Fig. 5.6 shows a photograph of sample
connections for the trusses. Since the trusses were constructed in a
workshop away from the test center, trusses were built into two parts so
that it can be easily transported inside a car and reassembled in the test
center. During the mobility of Truss1 it was very subtle to lateral
vibration indicating a very low out of plan stiffness. Also, Truss2 has
shown during mobility lateral vibration and low out of plan stiffness, yet
it was stiffer than Truss1.
128
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.2: Detailed elevation of Truss1&2
129
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.3: Truss1&2, two parts separated

130
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.4: Truss1&2 steel plate details
131
Chapter 5
Two DPLM constitutes

a top chord member
Plastic wire
Fig. 5.5: View of Truss1&2 top chord DPLM members tightened by

a plastic wire
132
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.6: View of sample connections of Truss1&2
133
Chapter 5
5.3.2 Truss3
Truss3 resembles Truss1 in the structural system. Truss3 is 3.0
meters span divided into four equal panels with all its diagonals in
tension under gravity loads and of 0.5 meter depth as shown in Fig. 5.7,
5.8 and 5.9. Two DPLM are used in each truss member and joined
together by steel rods 8mm in diameter. The distance from the rod to the
end of any connected DPLM is 7cm, as shown in Fig. 5.9. Each chord
consists of two lines of DPLM spaced apart from each other by a distance
of about 6cm at the truss ends to a distance of about 9cm at midspan. The
DPLM in each line are arranged in staggered manner and overlapping
each other in a distance of 15cm to lengthen the truss span. The spacing
between each line constituting the chord is enough to let the verticals and
diagonals to be installed within. A spacer, which is a piece of DPLM, is
used to adjust spacing between members as shown in Fig. 5.11 and 5.13.
The truss has its vertical DPLMs of length65cm, diagonal DPLM of
106cm, and chord DPLMs of 90cm joined together to lengthen the truss
span. Truss width ranges from 10cm at the truss ends to 16cm at
midspan. The truss was constructed into two halves so that it can be
transported. Simply, Truss3 can be folded and unfolded, as shown in Fig
5.10, so it can be easily transported. Truss3 has shown an obvious out of
plan stiffness, where no vibration is sensed during its mobility.
134
Chapter 5
Beams to Truss3 at midspan

transfer load
Steel frames Load cell
Fig. 5.7: Truss3 in the testing machine
135
Chapter 5
Figure 5.8: 3d-schematic drawing for Truss3
136
Chapter 5
137
Chapter 5
138
Chapter 5
139
Chapter 5
Vertical DPLM
Spacer to adjust the
distance between
members
Diagonal DPLM
Steel rod
Bottom chord DPLM
Fig. 5.11: Connection between vertical, diagonal and bottom chord in

Truss3
140
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.12: Connection between vertical, diagonal and bottom chord at

midspan in Truss3
Six spacer to adjust the

distance between members
Fig. 5.13: Connection between vertical and bottom chord at support

in Truss3
141
Chapter 5
5.3.3 Truss4 and Truss5

The purpose of Truss4&5 is to use a truss system that can be
easily made by crate artisans, who are spread all over the Egyptian
villages. It is obvious that Truss1, Truss2 & Truss3 need a qualified labor
and more complicated tools than knives. Truss4&5 are a development
from the traditional bread crates used in carrying bread. Truss4 was
constructed as following: first two sides are made separately with length
of 150cm and height 50cm, side A and side B, as shown in Fig. 5.14a.
The sides are like those crates, made for carrying bread, but with length
150cm and width 50cm. A space (lap) of about 25cm is left clear of
verticals from one end of side A&B in order to let one side overlaps the
other. Then the two sides are connected one over the other in the lap, and
two verticals are inserted in them. Six sides of side C of length one meter
and depth 50cm are made. Three units of side C are joined to the left and
the other three to the right of the previously joined side A & B, as shown
in Fig 5.14b and 5.15. Sides C are connected to sides A&B using short
pieces of DPLM of about 6x6mm passing through sides C, A and then C
at every 20cm at the top and bottom chords. The truss width is about
6cm. The DPLM used in chords are about 1.2cm diameter with 5mm
width of the DPLM external layer removed from both sides of the
DPLM. The verticals are DPLM cut to a shape of 1cmx1cm rectangle.
Truss5 is exactly the same as truss4 in dimensions, structure and the
procedure of construction. The only difference is two diagonals DPLM
added at each side of the truss as shown in Fig. 5.16. The purpose of the
additional diagonal is to increase the stiffness of the truss since the joints
between the verticals and chords are not actually rigid making the
Vierendeel action doubtful. During the mobility of Truss4&5 it was
142
Chapter 5
obvious that they were very fragile. Yet, they were tested to estimate the
maximum load they can carry.
(Lap) no
verticals
Verticals
(Lap) no
verticals
25cm lap
Two sides connected. Two vertical inserted in the 2 sides
Fig. 5.14a: Steps of construction of Truss4&5
143
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.14b: Steps of construction of Truss4&5
144
Chapter 5
Sides C
Side A
Fig. 5.15: View of Truss4&5 end of showing sides A and C
Diagonals
Fig. 5.16: The extra diagonal members in Truss5
145
Chapter 5
5.4 TESTING PROCEDURES FOR DPLM TRUSSES

The following paragraphs present the testing procedure for
testing the DPLM trusses. Before testing the DPLM trusses, a steel
frame, shown in Fig. 5.17, was built to prevent the DPLM truss twisting
and the out of plan buckling of the top chord. The action of steel frames
corresponds in reality the effect of horizontal upper and lower bracing,
vertical bracing, and purlins in preventing out of plan deflections and
buckling of the DPLM truss. Fig. 5.18 shows the DPLM truss between
steel frames.
Figure 5.17: Steel frames used to prevent the DPLM trusses from
twisting and buckling
146
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.18: Elevation of the DPLM truss between the steel frames
147
Chapter 5
5.4.1 Truss1
The DPLM truss is erected on the testing machine beams and the
steel frames are inserted at the right and left side of the DPLM truss. The
steel frames are brought close to the DPLM, and then fastened by bolts
until each frame just touches the DPLM truss.
Truss1 was testing under a load cell of 1000kg with an increment
of 10kg. The truss was loaded by two concentrated load P/2 on the top
chord at joints2&4 (each at 75cm from support at the top chord), where P
is the load from the load cell. Two deflectometers were fixed under
joint7, (75cm from support at the bottom chord), and joint8 at midspan.
Fig. 5.19 shows the test setup for Truss1. Fig. 5.20, 5.21 and 5.21 show
the installation of deflectometers and the truss in the testing machine.
During the mobility of Truss1 the truss was very subtle to lateral
vibration indicating very low out of plan stiffness.
X indicates joint number

Fig 5.19: test setup for Truss1
148
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.20: Installation of deflectometers at the bottom chord in the

midspan connection in Truss1
149
Chapter 5
Stee frames
Machine steel beams
Fig. 5.21: View of Truss1 between the steel frames at support
150
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.22: View of Truss1 between the steel frames at midspan
5.4.2 Truss2 & Truss3

First The DPLM truss is erected on the testing machine beams
and the steel frames are inserted at the right and left side of the DPLM
truss. The steel frames are brought close to the DPLM and fastened by
bolts until each frame just touches the DPLM truss. Fig. 5.23 shows
Truss2 & Truss3 test setup. Fig. 5.24 shows Truss2&3 between steel
frames.
Truss2 and Truss3 were testing under a load cell of 1000kg with
an increment of 20kg. Trusses were loaded by three equal concentrated
loads P/3 on the top chord at the three midjoints2, 3&4 of the truss,
151
Chapter 5
where P is the load from the load cell. Two deflectometers were installed,
one under Joint7 (at 75cm from support at bottom chord), and the other at
joint8 at midspan. Two strain gauges where glued to the two DPLM of
the bottom chord at midspan, as shown in Fig.5.25. During the testing of
Truss3, all the members of the top chord suffered obvious inplan, shown
in Fig. 5.34, at load P of 340kg. Therefore, the test stopped and the load
released and all the top chord and vertical members were reinforced. The
reinforcement was two DPLM added to the aforementioned truss
members and fastened by plastic wires as shown in Fig. 5.26. During the
mobility of Truss2 the truss was subtle to lateral vibration indicating low
out of plan stiffness, yet it was stiffer than Truss1. On the other hand,
Truss3 showed an obvious out of plan stiffness and integrity.
Fig. 5.23: test setup for Truss2&3
152
Chapter 5
Steel beams (UPN80) to distribute the load equally
Deflectometer Truss2 Steel frames
Truss3
Fig. 5.24: View of Truss2&3 between the steel frames at midspan
153
Chapter 5
Strain gauges glue
Strain gauges
Fig. 5.25: Strain gauge glued to the DPLM
154
155
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.26: Reinforcement of the compression members in Truss3 to resist buckling

Chapter 5
5.4.3 Truss4 and Truss5

The same procedure used for the previous trusses was used here
except for the load location. The DPLM truss was inserted between the
two steel frames and the two steel frames are brought together until they
touch the DPLM truss. One deflectometer is fastened at mid span and the
other at 50cm from mid span. Two strain gauges were glued to the
bottom chords at mid span. Loads P/2 were applied at a distance of 80cm
from each support as shown in Fig. 5.27. During the mobility of the
trusses, it was very obvious that they were very fragile and have very low
out of plan stiffness.
Fig 5.27: Truss4&5 test setup
156
Chapter 5
5.5 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

5.5.1 Truss1
The truss withstood a load of 250kg until failure due to the
bending of thin steel plate in joint 4 (second panel point in the top chord).
The bending of the steel plate led to twisting of the DPLM truss at the
support as shown in Fig. 5.28. No failure occurred in the DPLM units
and no buckling was observed in the compression members. It was
obvious during the mobility the truss was subject to twisting and
vibration because of the very thin steel plates. The maximum deflection
measured at mid span was 7.2cm. The deflection computed from analysis
was 3.6cm and the maximum axial force was 190kg in the top and
bottom chords. The actual deflection is twice that of the theoretical
indicating that yielding and failure of the joint due to bending of the steel
plate changed the mode of failure. Table 5.1 lists the deflections
corresponding to the applied load.
Fig. 5.28: Twisting of Truss1 at the support due to the bending of the
steel plate
157
Chapter 5
Table 5.1 Deflection values obtained from Truss1 testing

Load Deflection(mm) Deflection(mm) Remarks
(Kg) at Joint7 at Joint8
(at midspan)
10 0.7 29.84
20 1.01 30.22
30 1.49 30.8
40 2.1 31.47
50 2.56 32.3
60 2.94 32.87
70 3.44 33.54
80 4.55 34.69
90 4.85 35.82
100 5.65 37.24
110 6.62 38.88
120 7.58 39.85
130 8 40.99
140 9.55 42.22
150 9.75 43.42
160 10.74 45.45
170 11 47.15
180 13.6 49.02
190 15.63 51.98
200 15.4 53.98
210 17.12 55.42
220 18.9 57.7
230 21 60.04
240 26.45 59.2
250 29.05 72.04 Failure due to
bending of plate
at joint4 ( second
panel point at top
chord)
158
Chapter 5
5.5.2 Truss2
To exclude the effect of bending of the thin steel plates in Truss1,
another truss was made using steel plate 6mm thickness, which withstood
a load of 440kg until failure. Though Truss2 showed a higher out of plan
stiffness than the first one, but it was still vibrating laterally indicating
low out of plane stiffness. The truss failed at the vertical and bottom
chord connections at support, Joint10, as shown in fig. 5.29, 5.30 and
5.31, due to out of plan strains though it was restraints by the steel frames
at 30cm from the ends. The lateral strains evolved, causing the failure of
the joint, which could perhaps be contributed to the small natural
curvatures of the DPLM members which led to lateral bending. A
structural analysis is performed to get deflections and the axial forces in
the middle DPLM corresponding to the applied load. The maximum axial
force was found to be 450kg in the top chord corresponding to P of
440kg. The theoretical deflection was 7.6cm which is close to 6.5cm
obtained from test, which also verifies the axial modulus of elasticity
previously calculated in chapter one from Hassans work (2001). Table
5.2 gives loads, deflections, and strains value obtained from testing of
Truss2. Strains were ploted versus the stress in the bottom chord
members. The stress was calculated using the area of the DPLM as 1.76
cm2 which corresponds to 1.5cm diameter DPLM. From strain2 values it
was clear that it was corrupted. Therefore, its plotting was not reported.
Fig. 5.32 and 5.33 plots the analytical and actual deflections against total
load (P) and the best fit stress-strain curve respectively.
159
Chapter 5
Table 5.2 Deflection and strain values obtained from Truss2 testing
Load Deflect- Deflect- Strain in Strain in Remarks
(kg) ion ion bottom bottom
(mm) @ (mm) chord @ chord @
joint7 @ DPLM other
Joint8 (x10-3) DPLM
(midspan) (x10-3)
20 0.03 0.04 -2 -2
40 0.09 0.19 -5 -2
60 0.65 0.74 12 -5
80 1.32 1.63 26 -8
100 2.35 2.84 40 -11
120 3.53 3.15 54 -17
140 4.42 5.52 74 -2
160 5.52 7.11 98 0
180 6.42 9.28 128 0
200 8.12 11.21 158 8
220 9.95 13.56 200 10
240 13.52 16.71 229 18
260 15.75 19.02 260 18
280 17.9 21.62 307 22
300 20.76 23.86 354 20
320 24.5 32.06 361 24
340 32.28 37.36 380 27
360 37.97 42.52 386 30
380 41.74 46.71 424 15
400 48.74 53.79 543 239
420 52.74 57.89 640 274
Failure in
joint10 @
support
due to out
of plan
440 58.99 65.58 790 300 strains
160
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.29: Twisting of Truss2 at support
Fig. 5.30: Failure of the vertical member connection at support due

to the twisting of Truss2
161
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.31: Failure of the bottom chord connection at support due to

the twisting of Truss2
162
Chapter 5
Analytical deflection
Actual deflection
Fig. 5.32: Plot of the analytical and the actual deflection against load
(P) for Truss2
Strian1
Fig. 5.33: Best fit Stress-Strain curve (Truss2)
163
Chapter 5
5.5.3 Truss3
Truss3 withstood 340kg until inplan buckling of all the top chord
members as shown in Fig. 5.34. The test was stopped and the load was
released to reinforce the compression members. When the load was
released the truss returned back to its initial shape, indicating that the
deflections and buckling were elastic. Buckling appeared in Truss3 and
not in Truss1&2, because each DPLM of the top chord member were
separate while in Truss1&2 they were tightened by the plastic wires.
After reinforcing the compression members and restarting the test of the
truss, it withstood 400kg until failure. Failure occurred at joint2 (second
panel point in the top chord) as shown in Fig. 5.35. The joint twisted
laterally and failed at location of bolts. The maximum deflection
measured at midspan was 4.3cm while the theoretical was 6.7cm. Truss3
showed an obvious out of plan stiffness, where no vibration were sensed
while it mobility. This is due to the larger spacing between DPLM that
comprise the truss members. Table 5.3 gives loads, deflections, and
strains value obtained from testing of Truss3. Fig. 5.36 and 5.37 plots the
analytical and actual deflections against total load (P) and the best fit
stress-strain curve respectively. The only disadvantage, from the
researcher point of view, is that the truss requires wittiness from the labor
to decide which member in the truss should be installed first. This is
because the truss has to be installed in a specific order so that members
can fit. As a matter of fact, a detailed drawing for the truss, as shown
previously in Fig. 5.9, showing the position of the members should be
provided for the fabrication of the truss.
164
Chapter 5
In-plan bucking
Fig. 5.34: Truss3 Top chord in-plane buckling

165
Chapter 5
Joint 2 where failure occurred. Joint

moved laterally
Fig. 5.35: Failure of Truss3
166
Chapter 5
Load Deflection Deflection Strain in Strain in Remarks
(kg) (mm) (mm) bottom bottom
@point 7 @point 8 chord @ chord @
(75cm (Midspan) DPLM other
-3
from the (x10 ) DPLM
end of the (x10-3)
truss)
20 0.62 0.72 11 14
40 1.36 1.51 15 18
60 2.34 1.69 23 25
80 3.41 4.03 31 31
100 4.16 4.33 38 29
120 6.5 8.26 38 32
140 7.86 9.95 49 36
160 9.61 12.32 43 39
180 10.89 13.92 53 47
200 12.11 17.57 45 43
220 14.79 18.84 42 51
240 15.93 20.27 49 56
260 18.24 23.05 43 51
280 19.08 25.34 55 58
300 21.49 27 34 41
320 23.55 31.05 40 49
340 25.29 34.27 34 55 In-plan
buckling of
all
members of
top chord
360 27.61 36.05 29 44
380 29.08 38.2 31 44
Failure of
joint2 due
to joint
400 32.35 43.51 32 44 movement
out of plan
167
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.36: Plot of the analytical and actual deflections against load (P)
for Truss3
Strain1
Strain2
Fig. 5.37: The best fit Stress-Strain (Truss3)
168
Chapter 5
5.5.4 Truss4
Truss4 withstood 170kg until failure. The actual location of
failure could not be located, but the failure was noticed by the sound of
fracture of the DPLM. Maximum deflection measured was 15cm at
midspan. The theoretical deflection was 125cm, which has no relation
with the actual deflection. Yet, the deflections were very severe and
obvious as seen in Fig. 5.38. Table 5.4 gives loads, deflections, and strain
values obtained from Truss4 testing. Due to the large deflections and
more important the fragility of this truss, it was disqualified to be used as
a structural element.
Fig. 5.38: Severe deflection of Truss4
169
Chapter 5
Load Deflection Deflection Strain in Strain in
@point 1 @point 2 chord @ chord @
(Midspan) DPLM other
(x10-3) DPLM
(x10-3)
10 2 2.93 0 0
20 3.07 5.21 1 -9
30 7.01 8.78 9 -12
40 11.51 14.78 2 -25
50 17.62 21.09 19 -24
60 26.42 31.37 12 -47
70 27.02 38.09 4 -61
80 33.58 42.98 20 -61
90 42.58 51.98 57 -60
100 48.97 57.95 70 -63
110 52.31 60.24 92 -6
120 53.47 61.4 100 3
130 52 62 129 35
140 59.12 71.95 137 48
150 73.3 89.75 175 84
160 94.64 113.85 188 111
170 116.27 148.65 196 121
170
Chapter 5
5.5.5 Truss5
Truss5 withstood 240kg until failure. Failure was in the
connection between the first diagonal and the bottom chord as shown in
Fig. 5.40. Also, twisting was observed as shown in Fig. 5.39. The
maximum deflection measured was 4.5cm at midspan. The theoretical
deflection was 60cm, which has no relation with the actual deflections.
Moreover, the fragility of the truss disqualifies it to be used as a
structural element. Table 5.5 gives loads, deflections, and strain values
obtained from Truss5 testing.
Fig. 5.39: Twisting of Truss5
171
Chapter 5
Fig. 5.40: Diagonal failure in Truss5
172
Chapter 5
Load Deflection Deflection Strain in Strain in
@point 1 @point 2 at chord @ chord @
(Midspan) DPLM other
(x10-3) DPLM
(x10-3)
10 0.5 1.51 89 18
20 0.99 2.44 120 32
30 2.75 3.54 152 51
40 3.3 5.59 204 80
50 4.28 6.39 231 85
60 5.87 8.89 277 106
70 8 11.89 329 123
80 11 15.89 341 119
90 13.5 17.89 390 132
100 14.5 18.79 406 140
110 14.85 21.34 437 155
120 15.85 21.59 450 160
130 16.85 21.89 460 188
140 21.35 23.04 485 202
150 22.1 24.04 502 204
160 23.35 25.27 525 220
170 24.75 26.69 550 252
180 26.05 29.34 602 272
190 27.95 33.64 653 288
200 29.35 34.64 696 299
210 31 36 755 345
220 33 38 814 391
230 36 39 873 437
240 37.35 42.64 932 483
173
Chapter 5
5.6 ECONOMICAL AND FEASIBILITY STUDY OF TRUSS2 AND

TRUSS3
In this economical study Truss4&5 were excluded because of
their fragility and severe deflection, making them non feasible to be used
as a structural element. Also Truss1 was excluded to be used as a
structural element because of its weak out of plan stiffness aggravated by
the thin steel plate joinery. The following paragraphs present the
economical feasibility study of Truss2&3. It also presents a comparison
between Truss2, Truss3 and the space Truss made by Hassan (2001)
5.6.1 Truss2
Truss2 as shown previously is made of DPLM members joined by
steel plates and bolts. The construction of this truss took 4 days in
manufacturing and required labor experienced in working with steel, who
are expensive. And moreover, using steel elements even in such small
quantities in DPLM trusses is considered expensive and odd. One big
disadvantage of Truss2 is its low out of plan stiffness. To overcome this
problem, more than two DPLM units should be used for each member or
the spacing between DPLMs members should be increased. The truss
cost items are given in Table 5.6. The truss cost/m2 can be calculated as
following:
Finding the maximum allowable distributed load per meter:

Truss2 withstood a total load P=440kg divided on 3 joints
Weight/m'(approx) = 147kg (Load on joint) / 0.75m (spacing
between joints) =196kg/m'
174
Chapter 5
Finding the maximum allowable distributed load per meter

corresponding to the allowable deflection:
Maximum deflection from test = 65mm under Load P =
440kg or196kg/m
Considering the maximum allowable deflection equals
Span/150 = 3000/150, then the allowable deflection is 20mm.
Therefore the allowable distributed load corresponding to
allowable deflection for Truss2
=196kg/m * 20mm/65mm = 60 kg/m
Finding the maximum spacing between trusses corresponding to
allowable deflection:
Loads for light structures are usually as follows:
Live load of 60kg/m2
Corrugated steel sheet of 10kg/m2
Then the total load = 70kg/m2
Maximum spacing between DPLM trusses=
2
60kg/m / 70kg/m = 85cm
The truss cost was as follows:
Table 5.6 Material and labor cost of truss2
Material Quantities (kg) Cost (L.E.)
DPLM 17 DPLM 9
Steel Plates 6mm 15 65
Bolts M8 GR8.8 100 bolts 50
Labor Fees 100
Total cost 224
175
Chapter 5
Since the cost given is for the truss only and does not include the
cost of bracings and purlins, an increase of 30% should be added to
estimate a representative cost per meter squared.
Cost/meter squared = 224*1.3 L.E. / (span 3.00m X spacing 0.85)=
114L.E./m2. This cost is estimated according to the serviceability limit
state which will govern the design of truss. The estimated cost/meter
squared, excluding labors cost (e.g., self-reliant building), equals
63L.E./m2
As a comparison, for an area of 1mx1m to be covered by Steel (not
including columns) 10kg steel is required. One kg of steel equals 75L.E.
this means steel structure will cost 75L.E/meter squared.
5.6.2 Truss3
Truss3 as shown previously has all its members joined by 8mm
steel rods only. The construction of this truss did not require labors
skilled with steel handling and fabricating. Truss3 was superior over all
the other trusses by its high stiffness in out of plane, low cost, and low
deflection. Truss3 took 3 days in manufacturing. The truss cost/m2 can be
calculated as following:
Finding the maximum allowable distributed load per meter:
Truss3 withstood a total load P=400kg divided on 3 joints
Weight/m' (approx.) = 133kg (load on joint) / 0.75(spacing
between joints) =177kg/m'
Finding the maximum allowable distributed load per meter
corresponding to allowable deflection:
Maximum deflection from test = 45mm under Load P =
400kg or 177kg/m
176
Chapter 5
Considering the maximum allowable deflection equals

Span/150 = 3000/150, the allowable deflection is 20mm.
Therefore the allowable distributed load corresponding to
allowable deflection for Truss3
=177kg/m * 20mm/45mm = 78kg/m
Finding the maximum spacing between trusses corresponding to
allowable deflection:
Loads for light structures are usually as follows:
Live load of 60kg/m2
Corrugated steel sheet of 10kg/m2
Then the Total Load of 70kg/m2
Maximum spacing between DPLM trusses=
2
78kg/m / 70kg/m = 110cm
The truss cost was as follows:

Table 5.7 Material and labor cost of Truss3
Material Quantities (Unit) Cost (L.E.)
DPLM 17 DPLM 9 L.E
Steel rods 8mm 2 meters 4 L.E
Labor Fees 75 L.E
Total cost 88 L.E
Since the cost given is for the truss only and does not include the
cost of bracings and purlins, an increase of 30% should be added to
estimate a representative cost per meter squared.
Cost/meter squared = 88*1.3 L.E. / (span 3.00m X spacing 1.1m)=
34L.E./m2. This cost is estimated according to the serviceability limit
state which will govern the design of the truss. . The estimated
177
Chapter 5
cost/meter squared, excluding labors cost (e.g., self-reliant building),

equals 5.1L.E./m2
It is obvious from the truss testing results and the feasibility study
that Truss3 is much superior over Truss2. Also, the economical study
shows that the DPLM structure, Truss3, will cost half to one eighth
(excluding the labor cost) that of the steel structure. It should be noted, as
given in Tables 5.6 & 5.7, that the labor cost is very exaggerated, in
Truss3 about six times the material cost. The price was exaggerated
because it was given for the construction of one unit, and more important
the dealing with a new material required time for achieving sense to deal
with it, as cited by the labor. A more reasonable price would have led to a
significant reduction in cost.
Table 5.8 gives a comparison between Truss2, Truss3 and the

DPLM space-truss made by Hassan (2001). The truss made by Hassan
was a space truss of an area of 3x3meters and depth of 72cm. Two main
disadvantages, in the researcher point of view, are in Hassans space
truss. First the construction of space truss is considered a very
complicated process especially the joinery has to be accurately branched
in three directions. The second is the steel connection itself was
expensive and unsafe due to slippage in tension elements.
It should be noted that in Truss2&3 the maximum tensile stress in

the DPLM and shear stress in the connections are 110kg/cm2 and 18.5
kg/cm2 respectively. These values are much lesser than 994 and
28.5kg/cm2 the tensile and shear strength respectively for the DPLM.
178
Chapter 5
This means that the truss still has much reserved strength, but due to the
out of plan strains the truss failed.
Table 5.8 Comparison between Truss2, Truss3 and Hassan space

truss
Criteria Truss2 Truss3 (Hassan)
Space-truss
Maximum Load(P kg) 440kg 400kg 700kg
Maximum deflection 65mm 45mm 13.2mm
Cost of truss 315L.E. 220L.E. 666.5L.E
2 2
Cost per meter squared 114L.E./m 34L.E./m 74L.E./m2
Cost per meter squared 63L.E./m2 5.1L.E./m2 46L.E./m2
(excluding labor cost)
Failure pattern Due to lateral Due to lateral Due to
Strains strains slippage Bet.
causing causing Tension
failure in joint failure at DPLM
at support joint member and
connection
Disadvantages Low out of Needs Expensive and
plan stiffness wittiness in complex steel
and expensive installing the joinery
steel truss
connection members
179
Chapter 6
SUMMARY,
CONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Chapter 6
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND

RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1 SUMMARY
The aim of this thesis is to study the feasibility of using the Date
Palm Leaves Midribs (DPLM) as a structural element and to find a
suitable structural system for the DPLM to be used in. The researcher in
this study has performed experimental tests on the DPLM in its natural
shape to determine its mechanical properties. This is because all the
mechanical properties and testes preformed on the DPLM were on the
outer layer and inner part separately. The mechanical properties of the
DPLM as a whole were not yet determined. After the determination of
the mechanical properties, various exploratory tests were performed on
different types of joints, glued and bolted joints, to determine the most
suitable and feasible joinery. Consequently, a comprehensive set of tests
were performed on the chosen joint to determine its behavior and
strength. Later, five types of trusses have been constructed and tested.
Three trusses simulate the commonly used steel trusses and two are a
modification of the traditional work of crates artisans. All Trusses have a
span of 3meters and a depth of half meter, to resemble a typical room
width and also to fit in the testing machine.
6.2 CONCLUSIONS
1. The DPLM should be used in its natural shape as a structural
element without the removal of the external layer to maintain its
high strength and stiffness and save the cost of cutting.
180
Chapter 6
2. The best structural system suitable for the DPLM is the truss
system, where the DPLM members are axially loaded only. This
is because of two reasons. First, the DPLM structure is composed
of all its fibrovascular bundles, responsible for strength, arranged
in the longitudinal direction without any cross-linking. Thus, any
transverse strains that evolve from bending will be transferred
through the binding material, leading to quick failure of the
DPLM. The second is the complexity of joining the DPLM
irregular shape. This dictates the use of simple connections,
which exist in truss system rather than beams.
3. The mechanical properties: tension, bending and compression of

the DPLM have been determined. An increase of about 40% in
the aforementioned properties was observed over the
corresponding values of the DPLM inner part, reported in
previous studies. This increase proves that the external layer
contributes to the DPLM strength. The tensile strength, reported
in this thesis, is less than the actual strength, because the method
of testing the DPLM accelerates the failure of the DPLM. Also,
the shear strength parallel to the fibrovascular bundles was
determined. The shear strength, obtained in this study, was from
the bolted connection tests not from a direct shear test.
4. Various exploratory experiments for DPLM joinery with glued

and bolted connections were investigated. The types of glues used
were epoxy, polyester, cement mortar and cement mortar with
181
Chapter 6
additives. Although the results show that the glued connections

had a higher strength than the bolted connection, they were
excluded because of their complexity and high cost. Also the
experiments have shown that no bond developed at all between
DPLM and cement mortar. The bolted connection is seen to be
the most suitable connection for DPLM, because of its simplicity
and low cost.
5. Various bolted connections were tested using different number of

bolts at different spacing. The test results have shown the
following:
a. For connections having one bolt, the closer the bolt to the
DPLM end is, the higher the is shear strength
b. For the same connection length, that is the distance from
DPLM end to the farthest bolt, the smaller the spacing
between the bolts is, the higher is the shear strength
c. The suggested bolted connection configuration is a
connection having two bolts 8mm diameter spaced 5cm,
or one bolt 8mm diameter at 5cm from the DPLM end
6. Five types of DPLM trusses were constructed and tested. Truss1

is an N-truss, where the DPLM are joined using 2mm steel plates
and bolts; Truss2 is exactly the same as Truss1 but 6mm steel
plates were used; Truss3 is built using DPLM and steel rods only;
and truss4&5 were a development of the traditional work of
crates artisans. The last two trusses and Truss1 were excluded
because of their fragility. Truss2 was also excluded because of its
182
Chapter 6
cost and weak out of plan stiffness. Truss3 is seen to be the most
appropriate to be used in construction because of its low cost and
high out of plane stiffness. Truss3 cost was about 35L.E/m2
considering labor cost, and 5L.E/m2 considering material cost
only. This represents about half to one eighth that of steel
respectively.
7. In the DPLM truss testing, the trusses failed due to out of plan
strains. The load at which they failed is much below the estimated
load of failure. That is about 70% of the joint capacity. It was
estimated that the truss will fail due to shear in the joinery, since
the joinery is the weakest part in the truss. This dictates that a
better bracing should be provided if the failure load to be
increased.
8. The deflection measured was above the allowable in most

specifications. The deflection measured was span/60, while the
allowable is considered to be span/150. Therefore, in the DPLM
trusses the serviceability limit state will most probably be the
governing criterion.
9. The most applicable area of utilization of the DPLM trusses is the

light constructions, such as sheds and canopies, where live load is
minimal. In addition in Upper Egypt, the DPLM is used in
roofing in traditional methods, which sometimes might be unsafe.
Therefore, an engineered type of roofing(that is: roofs built and
183
Chapter 6
designed using the engineering concepts and principle) built using

DPLM may guarantee higher safety and larger spans.
10. In the field of light constructions like shed and canopy, where
steel is the most common material, DPLM will be more cost-
effective and more environment-friendly. As a comparison, steel
covering cost is 75L.E./m2, while that of DPLM is 35L.E./m2,
which is about half that of steel. If material cost is considered
only (e.g., in self-reliant building of houses), then the steel
covering cost is 45L.E./m2, while that of DPLM is 5.1L.E./m2,
which is much cheaper: one eighth that of the steel.
6.3 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER STUDIES

1. In the testing of DPLM trusses, steel frames were constructed to
act as bracing and purlins system that prevents trusses from
twisting and out of plan buckling. Yet, the trusses failed due to
out of plan strain. Therefore, it is recommended to construct and
test a full scale DPLM structure, where the DPLM trusses are set
in one direction and DPLM purlins and bracing are set in the
other direction. This process is essential to know if the DPLM
bracing and purlins will actually prevent the DPLM truss from
twisting and buckling or not.
2. A study of the buckling phenomena in the DPLM members

should be conducted to safely and economically design a
compression DPLM member.
184
Chapter 6
3. A study of the feasibility of using a lashing connection between

the DPLMs members, as in bamboo, is needed. A lashing
connection will be the most cost-effective and also simple for the
crate artisans to make.
185
REFERENCES
References
REFERENCES
1. Abdel-Azim, M. S, (1992), Palm tree Fronds for Concrete Roof

Reinforcement, the ACI Magazine, VOL. 14, NO. 12, Dec., 1992
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Bamboo Structures, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Technology of
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4. El-Mously, H. I, (2003), The Date Palm as a Basis for

Environment-Friendly Industries Beginning from the Rural
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Zamzam, M. A., Ali, Z. A., Abdel-Hayi, Y., Hassen, N. I., and
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___________________________________________________________
187
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<http://www.americanpoleandtimber.com/prod-structural-timber-
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05/10/2009, Saving One Barrell of Oil per Ton, (SOBOT), A
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<http://www.bamboofurniture.com/dodonfarm.htm>
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>
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And Along The Midrib, A paper, presented at IUFRO XX
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192
APPENDIX
Appendix 1
Appendix 1
A worked example of designing a DPLM bolted connection
6.1 SUMMARY
Design a DPLM bolted connection where the DPLM member
consists of two DPLM with an average total thickness of 2cm and the
axial force in the member equals to 1000kg
Solution:
Upon the recommendation in chapter 6 use:
Bolt diameter = 8mm
Bolt spacing = 5cm
Maximum bolt spacing = 10cm
Minimum spacing = 3 x bolt diameter (ECP, 2008)
1-Determinig bolt Number

Using bolt grade of 8.8
Bolt shear (Rsh) = 0.25.qs.As Equation (6.3) as per (ECP, 2008)
Where: qs = 0.25.Fu Equation (6.1) as per (ECP, 2008)
As = Area stressed of bolt ~ Bolt Area . 0.78
Rsh = 0.25 x 8 x (0.8)2/4 x 0.78 = 0.78tons = 780kg
No. of bolts = 1000/780 = 1.28bolt use 2 bolts
1-Determinig Connection length

DPLM shear strength = 28.5kg/cm2
Using equation 1 in chapter 4
Shear = P/ (L x T)
193
Appendix 1
L = P/ (Shear x T) = 1000/(28.5 x 2) = 17.5cm

L: length from the DPLM end to the farthest bolt
We can use:
1) 2 bolts with spacing 8.75cm or
2) 4 bolts spacing 4.5cm
194

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USE OF PALM MIDRIBS AS STRUCTURAL

Tamer Mohamed Ragaa Mohamed El-Sherbeny

A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment

USE OF PALM MIDRIBS AS STRUCTURAL

This Thesis Towards A Master Degree In Environmental

Prof. Dr. ADEL YASSIN MOHARRAM

Prof. Dr. ABDEL REHIM KHALIL DESOUKI

Prof. Dr. HAMED IBRAHIM EL-MOUSLY

Prof. Dr. ABDEL WAHAB ABOU EL-ENIEN

Tamer Mohamed Ragaa Mohamed El-Sherbeny

Under the Supervision of:

I wish to thank and express most sincere gratitude and appreciation to

I would like to thank and express my deepest gratitude to Professor Dr.

I wish to thank and express most sincere gratitude and appreciation to

Last but not least, my special thanks, gratitude and appreciation to my

This thesis examines the mechanical properties: tension,

After determining the most suitable connection which was the

In this way five different types of DPLM trusses with span of

Key Words: Date Palm Leaves Midribs, DPLM, Environment-

C-S-H - Calcium Silicate Hydrate

DPLM - Date Palm Leaves Midrib(s)

Lashing - The process of tying two elements or more

NA2SO4 Sodium sulfate

NACL Sodium Chloride

OPC - Ordinary Portland Cement

RHA - Rice Husk Ash

W/B - Water/Binder ratio

4 EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM FOR TESTING DPLM 88

TABLE DESCRIPTION PAGE

3.3 Bond strength between epoxy and the external 77

FIG. DESCRIPTION PAGE

2.7 Preserving bamboo using water 21

2.11 Clamping the bamboo culms between two plates 31

3.3 View of VEB Werkstoffprfmaschinen 65

3.5 Specimens A, B and C of bolted connection in 67

3.6 DPLM U-shaped bolt connection in the testing 69

4.19 Relation between spacing and shear strength for 123

5.12 Connection between vertical, diagonal and 141

5.13 Connection between vertical and bottom chord at 141

5.20 Installation of deflectometers at the bottom 149

5.31 Failure of the bottom chord connection at 162

5.32 Plot of the analytical and actual deflection 163

5.33 best fit Stress-Strain curve (Truss2) 163

5.36 Plot of the analytical and actual deflections 168

5.37 The best fit Stress-Strain curve (Truss3) 168

1.2 SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES

Identifying the mechanical properties of the DPLM as

1.3 OUTLINE OF THESIS

Chapter three DPLM Mechanical Properties introduces the

Chapter four Experimental Program for Testing DPLM Joinery

connection for the DPLM joinery. The chapter also includes

Chapter five Experimental Program for testing DPLM Trusses

Chapter six Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations presents a

Wood now is becoming high in price due to the regulations and

Steel points of weakness come mainly from its high price,

in manufacturing. For the production of one ton of steel, energy of

Concrete is perhaps the most dominant construction material in

In many countries a trend is growing to use agriculture residues in

In East Asia one of the most important agriculture material used

Egypt and the Arab countries do not grow bamboo in large

2.2 STRAW BALE

effectiveness. Fig. 2.1 shows examples of some straw bale buildings.