Evaluating rammed earth walls: a case study

Taylor, Peter A.; Luther, Mark

doi:10.1016/j.solener.2003.08.026

Cited by 74 publications

(35 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Recent studies have focused on RE because it is a sustainable material having very low embodied energy [4,5]; the earth material can act as a natural moisture buffering for indoor environments [6][7][8]. Furthermore, the number of historic RE buildings in Europe, and in the world, remains high [9,10]; maintaining this heritage requires scientific approaches to have appropriate renovations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Rebound Hammer Test for Rammed Earth Material

Bui

2017

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Rammed-earth (RE) is a construction material manufactured from the soil. The soil is compacted at its optimum water content, inside a formwork to build a monolithic wall. RE material is attracting renewed interest throughout the world thanks to its sustainable characteristics: low embodied energy, substantial thermal inertia, and natural regulator of moisture; on the other hand, the existing historic RE buildings is still numerous. This is why several research studies have been carried out recently to study different aspects of this material. However, few investigations have been carried out to explore the possibility of applying the nondestructive techniques on RE walls. This paper presents an assessment of the well-known rebound hammer test on RE walls. The calibration curves of the rebound hammer test have been established for conventional concrete where the rebound number is more than 20. For RE material with lower compressive strengths, a new calibration curve must be established. In the present study, two soils were used and different homogenized specimens with different dry densities were manufactured and tested, to plot a general calibration curve. Then, this calibration curve was applied to RE specimens; different results at different positions in an earthen layer were observed, due to the inhomogeneity of the material. The final results showed an acceptable accuracy of the calibration curve in the prediction of the compressive strength of RE material.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Rebound Hammer Test for Rammed Earth Material

Bui

2017

Sustainability

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…From the data presented above, the maximum total energy load of 99.2MJ/m 2 per annum occurred when the WWR for the south window was 50%. The area-adjusted load for this calculated value was 80.8MJ/m 2 per annum, which was lower than the maximum demand of 6-star rating (96MJ/m 2 per annum) for this M a n u s c r i p t 16 climate. This means that for the base case house, each option of these four parameters investigated in this study can be applied in this climate.…”

Section: Meeting the 6-star Requirementmentioning

confidence: 56%

“…Because of this behaviour, it is currently difficult for house designs using only RE walls to satisfy the Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions of the Building Code of Australia within the Australian National Construction Code (NCC) [12], which require a minimum R-value for external walls of 2.8m²K/W for Class 1 buildings (detached residential) for all climatic zones in Australia except the Alpine zone, where the minimum requirement is 3.8m²K/W. According to previous studies [13][14][15][16], a typical 300mm thick RE wall has an R-Value of only 0.27-0.70m 2 K/W. The NCC has an alternative requirement for external walls with a surface density greater than 220kg/m 2 , which states that an equivalent wall insulation with an R-Value of 0.5 to 1.0m²K/W (depending on other design parameters) shall be added.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The NCC has an alternative requirement for external walls with a surface density greater than 220kg/m 2 , which states that an equivalent wall insulation with an R-Value of 0.5 to 1.0m²K/W (depending on other design parameters) shall be added. A typical 300mm thick RE wall has a surface density much greater than 220kg/m 2 (usually between 540 and 660kg/m 2 [16]). Thus insulation with an R-Value of 0.5 to 1.0m²K/W is required for solid RE walls in all climate zones except for the Alpine zone.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Design optimization of insulated cavity rammed earth walls for houses in Australia

Dong

Soebarto

Griffith

2015

Energy and Buildings

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…The Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions require that for Class 1 buildings (detached residential) the minimum required R-value for external walls is 2.8m²K/W for all climate zones in Australia except the Alpine zone, where the minimum requirement is even higher at 3.8m²K/W. In previous studies (Hall and Allinson, 2009;Taylor and Luther, 2004;Walker and Standards Australia, 2002;Yan, et al, 2005), it has been shown that a typical 300mm thick RE wall has an effective R-value of only 0.24 -0.70m 2 K/W, which is much lower than the minimum Deemed-to-Satisfy requirement of 2.8m²K/W. Fortunately, the NCC allows for an alternative way to meet the Deemed-to-Satisfy provisions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Feasibility of rammed earth constructions for seismic loads in Australia

Dong

Griffith

Soebarto

2015

Australian Journal of Structural Engineering

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:Out-of-plane bending tests were conducted to determine whether rammed earth walls, designed to satisfy the thermal performance requirements specified by the Building Code of Australia (BCA), will satisfy the seismic loading requirements. A 2.4m tall by 1.2m wide full-scale insulated rammed earth wall comprised of two 175mm thick leaves separated by a 50mm thick layer of insulation, was tested and the results were compared to that of a solid 300mm thick rammed earth wall. Both walls remained stable after cracking up to displacement of 50mm (over 20% of wall thickness). The acceleration necessary to generate the initial forces to cause cracking was over 0.77g, well in excess of the maximum design accelerations for face-loaded masonry walls in Australia. Furthermore, it was found that the flexural strength of the insulated cavity rammed earth wall was simply the sum of the flexural strengths of the two leaves, and that both walls after reaching their peak strength and cracking at mid-height responded as two rigid rocking blocks with displacement capacities equal to their wall thicknesses. Abstract Out-of-plane bending tests were conducted to determine whether rammed earth walls, designed to satisfy the thermal performance requirements specified by the Building Powered by Editorial Manager® and ProduXion Manager® from Aries Systems CorporationCode of Australia (BCA), will satisfy the seismic loading requirements. A 2.4m tall by 1.2mwide full-scale insulated rammed earth wall comprised of two 175mm thick leaves separated by a 50mm thick layer of insulation, was tested and the results were compared to that of a solid 300mm thick rammed earth wall. Both walls remained stable after cracking up to displacement of 50mm (over 20% of wall thickness). The acceleration necessary to generate the initial forces to cause cracking was over 0.77g, well in excess of the maximum design accelerations for face-loaded masonry walls in Australia. Furthermore, it was found that the flexural strength of the insulated cavity rammed earth wall was simply the sum of the flexural strengths of the two leaves, and that both walls after reaching their peak strength and cracking at mid-height responded as two rigid rocking blocks.

show abstract

Evaluating rammed earth walls: a case study

Cited by 74 publications

References 0 publications

Assessing the Rebound Hammer Test for Rammed Earth Material

Assessing the Rebound Hammer Test for Rammed Earth Material

Design optimization of insulated cavity rammed earth walls for houses in Australia

Feasibility of rammed earth constructions for seismic loads in Australia

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About