bamboo as a construction material

1. Bamboo Construction
Company Name
BAMBOO AS A CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL

2. Slide Master
INTRODUCTION :
• Bamboo has been in wide usage since
ancient times as a low-cost material
for houses, bridges etc.
• Recently started appearing in
designer homes as flooring, walling
and paneling material
• Bamboo is a renewable and versatile
resource, characterized by high
strength and low weight.

3. Slide Master
• It is estimated that there are 1200 species
growing in about 14.5 million hectares area.
• Bamboo is the world’s fastest growing woody
plant. It grows approximately 7.5 to 40 cm a
day.
• Bamboo also excels in biomass production,
giving 40 tons or more per hectare annually.
• It has been used successfully to rehabilitate
soil ravage by brick making in India.

4. Slide Master
PROPERTIES :
• TENSILE STRENGTH
• COMPRESIVE STRENGTH
• ELASTIC MODULUS
• ANISOTROPIC PROPERTY
• SHRINKAGE
• FIRE RESISTANCE

5. Slide Master
HOW TO PROTECT BAMBOO :
UNTREATED BAMBOO
• Untreated bamboo has the following life spans in different
conditions
– Exposure to soil and atmosphere = 1-3 years
– Under cover = 4-7 years
– Very favourable conditions = 10-15 years
• Natural durability also depends on the species of the bamboo.
PRE-HARVEST AND POST HARVEST PRECAUTIONS
• Felling during low sugar content season i.e. dry season
• Felling of mature bamboo
• Post harvesting transpiration
• Water soaking

6. Slide Master
DIFFERENT PRESERVATION TREATMENTS :
 BORAX – BORIC ACID PRESERVATION TREATMENT
Depending on the
diameter of the bamboo,
different sized drill bits,
attached to a long steel
rod, are used to drill into
the centre of the bamboo
culms throughout their
At the preservation
treatment pool, bamboo
soaks in borax-boric acid
solution for 2 days to allow
the mineral to penetrate all
the nodes and diaphragms.
Bamboo is removed
and stacked vertically
so the solution can
drain and be reused.

7. Slide Master
Next, the bamboo
poles are left to
bask in the sun
depending on the
amount of sunlight.
The bamboo poles are
left to dry slowly in a
cool, dry place until
they are used for
construction.

8. Slide Master
 NEEM SEED OIL TREATMENT :
• Oil obtained from neem
seeds can be used to improve
water resistance and
dimensional stability of
bamboo culms particularly at
high oil-treatment
temperature.
• Bamboo samples soaked in
hot neem seed oil at 60°C for
4 hours had better water
resistance and dimensional
stability than samples soaked
in oil at room temperature for
24 hours.
0
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Longitudinally Radially Tangentially
Soaked bamboo samples at room temperature for 24 hours
Soaked bamboo samples at 60°C for 4 hours

9. Slide Master
PROTECTION OF BAMBOO IN CASe OF BAMBOO REINFORCED
STRUCTURES :
 During the casting and curing of
concrete, reinforcing bamboo absorbs
water and expands
 The swelling of bamboo pushes the
concrete away
 Then at the end of the curing period, the
bamboo loses the moisture and shrinks
back almost to its original dimensions
leaving voids around itself
 The swelling and shrinkage of bamboo in concrete create a serious limitation
in the use of bamboo as a substitute for steel in concrete.
 One effective treatment is the application of a thin layer of epoxy to the
bamboo surface followed by a coating of fine sand.

10. Slide Master
BAMBOO HOUSING :
 The majority of bamboo
construction relates to the rural
community needs in developing
countries.
 common types of construction
include farm and school
buildings and bridges.
 Further applications of bamboo
relevant to construction include
its use as scaffolding, water
piping and as shuttering and
reinforcement for concrete.

11. Slide Master
FOUNDATIONS :
• The use of bamboo for foundation is
rather restricted.
• The types of bamboo foundations
identified are:
• Bamboo in direct ground contact:
• For strength and stability, large
diameter and thick walled sections of
bamboo with closely spaced nodes
should be used.
• Bamboo on rock or preformed
concrete footings : Where bamboo is
being used for bearings, it should be
placed out of ground contact on
footings of either rock or preformed
concrete.
Preformed concrete
footings

12. Slide Master Bamboo incorporated in to
concrete footings : The poles
are directly fit into concrete
footing.This can be single
post and strip footing.
 Composite bamboo/concrete
columns: a concrete
extension is given to a
bamboo post using a plastic
tube of the same diameter.
 Bamboo piles: It is used to
stabilize soft soils and reduce
building settlement.
Single Post footing
Strip Footing
Bamboo Piles

13. Slide Master
FLOORING:
• The floors may be at ground level, and therefore
consists only of compacted earth, with or
without a covering of bamboo matting.
• The various types used are:
• Small bamboo culms:
They are directly tied and nailed together.
• Split bamboo:
Culms are split along their length into strips,
several centimeters wide.
• Flattened bamboo:
Formed by splitting green bamboo culms
removing the diaphragms, then rolling and flattening
them.
Bamboo Cane Floor Decking
Split Bamboo Floor Decking
Flattened Bamboo Floor Decking

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• Bamboo mats:
The slivers are woven into mats of
different sizes according to the available
hot-press plates and user’s demands.
In construction using
bamboo mats, phenolic resins are
employed.
• Bamboo plastic composites:
It is an innovative technology in which
bamboo fiber is the raw material and
compounded with plastic as the core
material of the flooring.
The ratio of plastic should be
over 30% for higher water resistance and
dimensional stability.
BAMBOO MAT

15. Slide Master
BAMBOO WALLS :
WHOLE BAMBOO
CULMS
VERTICAL
HALVED CULMS BAJAREQUE
WATTLE
WOVEN
BAMBOO WALL

16. Slide Master
ROOFING :
• The roof offers protection against
extremes of weather including rain, sun
and wind, and to provide shelter, clear
and usable space beneath the canopy.
• The simplest form consists of a bamboo
purlin and beams, supported on
perimeter posts.
• Corrugated sheets made out of bamboo
are also used commonly as roof covering.
• A layer of bitumen is sandwiched
between two mats of bamboo forming a
semi rigid panel.
• Plastered bamboo: A cement plaster, with
or without the addition of organic fibres,
is traditionally applied to bamboo roofs,
Simplest Form
Corrugated Sheets Bituminised Bamboo Mats

17. Slide Master
SCAFFOLDING :
• Because of the favourable relationship between
load-bearing capacity and weight, bamboo can
be used for the construction of save
scaffoldings even for very tall buildings.
• The cane extension is carried out by lashing the
cane ends together with several ties.
• The vertical and horizontal canes used for
scaffolding are almost exclusively joined using
soft lashing.
• This technique has the great advantage that the
joints can be re-tensioned to the right degree
without difficulty and also quickly released
again.

18. Slide Master
BAMBOO REINFORCED CONCRETE :
 COMPARISON OF BAMBOO AND STEEL
The strength of bamboo is greater than steel.
Bamboo is easily accessible
Bamboo lowers the cost of construction
Bamboo can crack and deflect more than steel
reinforcement.
Bamboo Reinforced Column

19. Slide Master
0
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ULTIMATE
COMPRESSIVE
STRENGTH
ALLOWABLE
COMPRESSIVE
STRENGTH
ULTIMATE
TENSILE
STRENGTH
ALLOWABLE
TENSILE
STRESS
ALLOWABLE
BOND STRESS
MODULUS OF
ELASTICITY
Conventional Concrete Bamboo Reinforced Concrete

20. Slide Master
RESISTANCE TO EARTHQUAKES
• High residual strength to absorb shocks
and impacts.
• Flexure coupled with its very low mass.
• Prototype house built with bamboo
sheet roofing and bamboo-reinforced
concrete walls withstood a simulated
earthquake measuring 7.8 on the
Richter scale
• A bamboo house that withstood
an earthquake that occurred at
Sikkim measuring 6.9 in
September 2011
• 30 houses at the epicenter of a
7.6 magnitude earthquake
survived without any damage in
Costa Rica in 1991

21. Slide Master
ADVANTAGES:
 Strength - Bamboo is an extremely strong natural fibre,
on par with standard hardwoods, when cultivated,
harvested, prepared and stored properly.
 Flexibility - Bamboo is highly flexible. During its
growth, it may be trained to grow in unconventional
shapes. After harvest, it may be bent and utilized in
archways and other curved areas.
 Earthquake-resistance - It has a great capacity for shock
absorption, which makes it particularly useful in
earthquake-prone areas.

22. Slide Master
 Lightweight - Bamboo is extremely lightweight. Consequently,
building with bamboo can be accomplished faster with simple
tools than building with other materials. Cranes and other heavy
machinery are rarely required.
 Cost-effective – Economical, especially in areas where it is
cultivated and is readily available. Transporting cost is also much
lesser.
 Durability - As long-lasting as its wooden correlates, when
properly harvested and maintained.

23. Slide MasterLimitations and drawbacks :
 Few considerations currently limit the use of bamboo as a universally
applicable construction material
 Jointing techniques - Although many traditional joint types exist, their
structural efficiency is low. Considerable research has been directed at
the development of more effective methods.
 Flammability - Bamboo structures are not fire-resistant, and the cost of
treatment, where available, is relatively high.
 Lack of design guidance and codification - The engineering design of
bamboo structures has not yet been fully addressed. There is little or no
data containing specifications of bamboo.

24. Slide Master
IMPLEMENTATION
IN INDIA
Bamboo House in Kerela

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Bamboo Hut in Assam

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Bamboo Bridge in Arunachal Pradesh Spanning 30m

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Bamboo Church In Colombia

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Bamboo Housing In Haiti

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Bamboo Cladding on a Contemporary House

30. Slide Master
Science Tower In Brazil Made up of Bamboo

31. Slide MasterCONCLUSION :
• Since time immemorial, bamboo has played an important role in
the development of mankind.
• It has been the backbone of much of the world’s rural life and
will remain so as the population increases.
• The realization that bamboo is the most potentially important
non-timber resource and fast-growing woody biomass, has
evoked keen interest in the processing, preservation, utilization
and the promotion of bamboo as an alternative to wood.
• Its high valued utilization not only promotes the economic
development, but also saves forest resources to protect our
ecological environment as a wood substitute.

32. Slide Master

33. THANK YOU