Hydric Behavior of Earth Materials and the Effects of Their Stabilization with Cement or Lime: Study on Repair Mortars for Historical Rammed Earth Structures

Gomes, Maria Idália; Gonçalves, Teresa Diaz; Faria, Paulina

doi:10.1061/(asce)mt.1943-5533.0001536

Cited by 60 publications

(49 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…A reduction of clay's active surface area generates a double effect on soils: i) an increase in the sorptivity arising from reduced clay swelling [48,49]; ii) a reduced physico-chemical affinity for water, due to the inhibition of clay's high cation-exchange capacity [50]. Considering that no expansive clay was present, a lower active surface area only resulted in a reduction of the soil's affinity for water.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reduction of rammed earth's hygroscopic performance under stabilisation: an experimental investigation

Arrigoni

Grillet

Pelosato

et al. 2017

Building and Environment

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a b s t r a c tOne of the acknowledged qualities of rammed earth (RE) is its moisture buffering capacity. Recently, stabilisation of RE has become a common practice to improve the mechanical resistance but very little is known about the effect that stabilisation has on hygroscopic properties. The present study aims to fill this gap by understanding the role that stabilisation plays in the buffering and sorption capacity of RE. The use of alternative stabilisers such as fly ash and calcium carbide residue and a comparison with traditional unstabilised RE (URE) have also been investigated. Moreover, the effect of weathering, simulated by cyclic wetting-drying, on hygroscopic performance has been analysed. Moisture Buffer Value (MBV) testing, moisture and nitrogen adsorption-desorption isotherms and mercury intrusion porosimetry were performed on stabilised samples to examine microstructural phenomena responsible for behavioural changes. URE was confirmed to be a good-to-excellent passive air conditioner according to the MBV scale but its performance seemed to be highly influenced by the soil particle size distribution and mineralogy. Based on the experimental outcomes of the mixtures investigated, stabilisation had a detrimental effect on the moisture buffer capacity of rammed earth, likely due to the inhibition of the physico-chemical interactivity between moisture and clays. Weathering had a variable effect on the buffering capacity, depending on the availability of unreacted particles in the matrix.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reduction of rammed earth's hygroscopic performance under stabilisation: an experimental investigation

Arrigoni

Grillet

Pelosato

et al. 2017

Building and Environment

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“…moist loose soil compacted inside formwork, but the soil mix is stabilised with (most commonly) cement or lime. Cement and lime not only enhance strength but they also reduce the tendency to swell and shrink, to crack and to generate dust [9,10]. In other words, even though traditional RE is characterised by the use of raw minerals with minimal embodied energy (i.e.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life cycle analysis of environmental impact vs. durability of stabilised rammed earth

Arrigoni

Beckett

Ciancio

et al. 2017

Construction and Building Materials

121

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Rammed earth (RE) has enjoyed a revival in recent decades due to the increasing awareness of environmental issues surrounding the building industry. Although RE in its traditional form is deemed a highly environmentally-friendly material, the same cannot be said for its modern stabilised counterpart. Comprehensive experimental procedures exist to estimate mechanical strength properties of stabilised RE (SRE). However, tests for material durability are far less common. Engineers and practitioners therefore assume that strength and durability are interchangeable properties, i.e. the stronger the material, the more durable. Inflated strengths are recommended to ensure adequate durability, leading to high environmental costs through excessive use of stabilisers. This paper rates the relevance of two acknowledged durability tests (accelerated erosion due to sprayed water and mass loss due to wire brushing) and relates outcomes to the strength and the environmental impact of several SRE mixes. The environmental impact of each mix was estimated using attributional and consequential life cycle assessment (LCA) approaches as well as an assessment of cumulative energy demand. Results demonstrated that it is possible to have durable SRE mixes without paying the cost of using environmentally-expensive stabilisers

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“…RE is a dense material (typically c.1834-2000 kg/m 3 but can vary widely from 1700 to 2200 kg/m 3 [1,7,9,10] with high thermal mass. Therefore, it can absorb and store heat which can subdue large temperature variations and reduce peak heating/ cooling loads becoming a solar passive design.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, the authors claim that the response to varying humidity differs significantly in different RE walls, and that it is essential to optimise their response to fluctuations in vapour pressure gradients in order to make their humidity buffering functional. Gomes et al [10] showed that adding mineral binders as stabilizers negatively affects the hydric behaviour of earth materials increasing their water absorption and slowing down drying.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal performance and fitness of glacial till for rammed earth construction

Tinsley

Pavía

2019

Journal of Building Engineering

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Hydric Behavior of Earth Materials and the Effects of Their Stabilization with Cement or Lime: Study on Repair Mortars for Historical Rammed Earth Structures

Cited by 60 publications

References 20 publications

Reduction of rammed earth's hygroscopic performance under stabilisation: an experimental investigation

Reduction of rammed earth's hygroscopic performance under stabilisation: an experimental investigation

Life cycle analysis of environmental impact vs. durability of stabilised rammed earth

Thermal performance and fitness of glacial till for rammed earth construction

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