ESTABLISHING THE STRENGTH PARAMETERS PARALLEL TO FIBER OF DENDROCALAMUS ASPER (GIANT BAMBOO)

Abstract

The supply of timber is becoming scarce in the Philippines. Dendocalamus asper (or giant bamboo) is a candidate for safe, sustainable, and low-cost alternative housing to timber. However, its mechanical properties are yet to be established. In this paper, the compressive strength, shear strength, and tensile strength parallel to fiber of Dendrocalamus asper are determined using ISO 22157 and ASTM D143 tests. For the latter, a slight modification of ASTM D143 was employed. The result yielded an improved tensile strength parallel to fiber. The tensile strength was also tested using a modified version of ASTM D143, wherein the length of the test piece was changed to ensure failure within the gauge length. Two hundred (200) samples of 2m-long Dendrocalamus asper (giant bamboo) poles were prepared and used for testing. Equipment was fabricated to the dimensions of the test sample. The obtained tensile strength parallel to fiber using the ISO 22157 method had an average strength of 312.78 MPa for specimens with attached hardwood tabs and 424.43 MPa for specimens with attached softwood tabs while with the Modified ASTM D143-94 method, the average strength was 269.86 MPa. The shear strength parallel to the fibers had an average strength of 10.64 MPa at the internode and 11.87 MPa at the node. Lastly, the compressive strength parallel to the fibers had an average strength of 63.42 MPa at the internode and 55.55 MPa at the node