The Influence of Rice Straw on the Physical and Mechanical Properties of Banco, an Adobe Reinforced with Rice Straw

Abstract

Making adobes with the best mechanical properties for the construction of earthen housings is the overall goal of this work. Specifically, we study the influence of rice straw on the physical and mechanical properties of these adobes. The physical and mechanical properties (compressive and flexural strength) of adobes (mixture of sandy clay and rice straw) have been studied with different proportions of straw in the mixture. It is a question of determining the quantity of stalks of rice straw making it possible to optimize the mechanical performances of the composite. Various compositions have been considered with mass concentrations of rice straw ranging from 0 to 40% relative to the volume of clay sand to make 4×4×16cm prismatic specimens. The results obtained during physical and mechanical tests were presented in the form of a graph. The analysis of these data shows that the optimal addition of rice straw in the clay matrix is 25% for a better compromise between the compressive and tensile strengths. The improvement of the physical and mechanical properties of adobes is related to the good adhesion between the rice straw and the clay matrix, to the high tensile strength of the rice straw and finally to a good distribution of cracks in the composites.