Chapter 13 - Thermal and mechanical characterization of composite building material based on clay and date palm fibers

Abstract

The estimation of the thermophysical and mechanical properties of building materials plays a significant role in the building industry, which is one of the most energy-intensive and least environmentally friendly sectors. This study aims to present the results of an experimental study on the thermophysical and mechanical properties of the soil stabilized by date palm fibers from the Tafilalet region located in the south of Morocco. These fibers constitute a natural, abundant, and renewable waste and the raw earth is a natural building material. The studied samples were prepared with additive different mass fractions of date palm fibers in the mixture ranging from 1% to 5%. The thermal characterization of the composite materials is conducted by applying the steady-state and transient hot plate methods and the Flash method for the measurement of thermal conductivity, thermal effusivity, and thermal diffusivity, respectively. The estimation of these thermal properties is based on a one-dimensional model and the experimental errors remain less than 3%. The results show that thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity decrease from 0.65 Wm-1.K-1 to 0.25 Wm-1.K-1 and 4.21× 10-7 m2.s-1 to 2.01×10-7m2s-1, respectively, depending on the variation of the date palm fibers mass fraction varying from 0 (pure clay) to 5%. thus, the incorporation of date palm fibers in the clay has a positive effect on the flexural strength and thermal insulation in buildings constituting an alternative to traditionally used building materials.