Achieving sustainable built-environment using bamboo composite frame system with cow-dung masonry infills

Abstract

In today's rapidly urbanizing world, there is dire need for adopting the principles of green/ sustainable built-environment so as to mitigate the ill effects of environmental degradation and climate change. However, demand for housing is on rise in developing countries like India, where sizeable population, especially the low-income strata, still lacks decent quality structurally safe housing. Extensive use of concrete and steel in construction over more than a century has led to detrimental environmental effects such uncontrolled release of greenhouse gases/ pollutants, deforestation and erosion, leading to now visible outcomes of climate change. Bamboo, on other hand provides a sustainable alternative to concrete and steel as a building material since it absorbs the atmospheric carbon dioxide, produces more oxygen than timber producing trees and is a lightweight and renewable building material. Unlike timber, it matures in four to five years and being grass family, is replenishable in nature. However, from structural point of view, the main drawback of bamboo culm is its large slenderness ratio, which renders it weak in resisting bending and compressive loads. This paper presents an alternate structural system utilizing fibre reinforced bamboo composite (FRBC) to overcome the structural deficiency of a single shoot bamboo and build a prototype structure after detailed laboratory evaluation and structural analysis. Structural elements made from FRBC are utilized for fabricating a prototype 3D frame structure, measuring about 24 m2 in plan, representing a modular unit amenable to horizontal and vertical expansion. Eco-friendly materials like cow-dung based bricks and mortar, which offer net zero additional carbon dioxide emissions and circumvent reliance on cement and river sand, have been utilized as masonry infills after structural evaluation. The built structure provides a proof-of-concept demonstration of the feasibility of using bamboo and cow-dung, sustainable building materials, for achieving a structurally safe built-environment. The technology is especially suitable for countries like India which are endowed with tropical climatic conditions. By adopting such environmentally friendly alternatives, the construction industry can create a healthier environment while addressing housing and infrastructure needs in sustainable manner.