Abstract
Construction materials made of renewable resources have promising potential given their low cost, availability, and environmental friendliness. Although hemp fibers are the most extensively used fiber in the eco-friendly building sector, their unavailability hinders their application in Iraq. This study aimed to overcome the absence of hemp fiber in Iraq and develop a new sustainable construction material, strawcrete, by using wheat straw and traditional lime as the base binder. A comparable method of developing hempcrete was established. The experimental program adopted novel Mixing Sequence Techniques (MSTs), which depended on changing the sequence of mixed material with fixed proportions. The orientation of the applied load and the specimen’s aspect ratio were also studied. The mixing proportion was 4:1:1 (fiber/binder/water) by volume. Results showed that the developed strawcrete had a dry unit weight ranging from 645 kg/m3 to 734 kg/m3 and a compressive strength ranging from 1.8 MPa to 3.8 MPa. The enhanced physical and strength properties varied with the MST and loading orientation. The properties of the developed hempcrete were compared with those of strawcrete.
Highlights
In recent years, the tendency for designing low-environmental-impact buildings to meet the requirement of ecosystems has emphasized on the global use of bio-aggregate-based concretes
The corresponding compressive strength rating (2.83 MPa) and flexural strength rating (4.4) maintained high ratings among others as the unit weight was slightly affected by the mixing technique
For the same sequence technique, the compression strength dropped from 3.8 MPa to 0.9 MPa as the loading mode changed from normal to parallel
Summary
The tendency for designing low-environmental-impact buildings to meet the requirement of ecosystems has emphasized on the global use of bio-aggregate-based concretes. The term bio-aggregate concretes refers to the mixture of binders (lime, clay, plaster, and cement) and natural fibers (hemp, straw, flax, bamboo, and animal hairs) [1]. In this context, the use of eco-friendly concrete such as hempcrete [2], wood-concrete [3], papercrete [4], and mud-concrete [5] has been growing considerably. From the construction point of view, hempcrete, similar to several biomass concretes, is predominantly non-load bearing material; its strength is important to provide the solidity to hold its own weight [10, 11]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
