Rammed earth
Rammed earth, also called pisé, is a technique for constructing foundations, floors, and walls using compacted natural raw materials such as earth, chalk, lime, or gravel.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> It is an ancient method that has been revived recently as a sustainable building method.
Pisé also refers to a material for sculptures, usually small and made in molds. It has been especially used in Central Asia and Tibetan art, and sometimes in China.
Edifices formed of rammed earth are found worldwide, in a range of environments including temperate, wet,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> semiarid desert, montane, and tropical regions. The availability of suitable soil and a building design appropriate for local climatic conditions are two factors that make its use favorable.
Building process
Making rammed earth involves compacting a damp mixture of subsoil that has suitable proportions of sand, gravel, clay, silt, and stabilizer if any, into a formwork (an externally supported frame or mold).
Historically, additives such as lime or animal blood were used to stabilize it.
Soil mix is poured into the formwork to a depth of Template:Convert and then compacted to approximately 50% of its original volume. The soil is compacted iteratively in batches or courses so as to gradually erect the wall up to the top of the formwork. Tamping was historically manual with a long ramming pole by hand, but modern construction systems can employ pneumatically-powered tampers.
After a wall is complete, it is sufficiently strong to immediately remove the formwork. This is necessary if a surface texture is to be applied, e.g., by wire brushing, carving, or mold impression because the walls become too hard to work after approximately one hour. The compressive strength of rammed earth increases as it cures. Cement-stabilized rammed earth is cured for a minimum period of 28 days.
In modern rammed earth buildings, the walls are constructed on top of conventional footings or a reinforced concrete slab base.
The construction of an entire wall begins with a temporary frame, the "formwork", which is usually made of wood or plywood, as a mold for each wall section's desired shape and dimensions. The form must be durable and well-braced, and the two opposing faces must be clamped together to prevent bulging or deformation caused by the large compressing forces. Formwork plays an important role in building rammed earth walls. Historically, wooden planks tied using rope were used to build walls. Modern builders use plywood and/or steel to build formwork.
Characteristics
The compressive strength of rammed earth is dictated by factors such as soil type, particle size distribution, amount of compaction, moisture content of the mix and type/amount of stabiliser used. Well-produced cement-stabilised rammed earth walls can be anywhere between Template:CvtTemplate:Citation needed. Higher compressive strength might require more cement. But addition of more cement can affect the permeability of the walls. Indeed, properly constructed rammed earth endures for thousands of years, as many ancient structures that are still standing around the world demonstrate. In areas of high seismic activity, rammed earth walls are reinforced with rebars.
Adding cement to soil mixtures low in clay can also increase the load-bearing capacity of rammed-earth edifices.Template:Citation needed The United States Department of Agriculture observed in 1925 that rammed-earth structures endure indefinitely and can be constructed for less than two-thirds of the cost of standard frame houses.<ref name="USDA Farmer Bulletin 1500">Template:Cite web Originally published by the United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC, USA. An alternative version is at: Template:Cite book</ref>
One significant benefit of rammed earth is its high thermal mass: like brick or concrete, it absorbs heat during the day and releases heat at night.Template:Citation needed This action moderates daily temperature variations and reduces the need for air conditioning and heating. In colder climates, rammed-earth walls can be insulated by inserting insulation such as styrofoam or rigid fibreglass panels within internal and external layers of rammed earth. Depending on the type and content of binder, it must also be protected from heavy rain and insulated with vapour barriers.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Rammed earth can effectively regulate humidity if unclad walls containing clay are exposed to an internal space. Humidity is regulated between 40% and 60%.Template:Citation needed The material mass and clay content of rammed earth allows an edifice to breathe more than concrete edifices. This avoids problems of condensation and prevents significant loss of heat.<ref name="six">Template:Cite web</ref>
Rammed-earth walls have the colour and texture of natural earth. Moisture-impermeable finishes, such as cement render, are not used by some people because they impair the ability of a wall to desorb moisture,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> which quality is necessary to preserve its strength.Template:Citation needed
Blemishes can be repaired using the soil mixture as a plaster and sanded smooth.
The thickness varies widely based on region and code. It can be as little as Template:Convert for non load-bearing walls and up to Template:Convert for load-bearing walls. The thickness and density of rammed-earth walls make them suitable for soundproofing. They are also inherently fireproof, resistant to termite damage, and non-toxic.
Environmental effects and sustainability
Edifices of rammed earth are potentially more sustainable and environmentally friendly than other building techniques, depending on cement content and level of local material sourcing. Rammed-earth edifices that use locally available materials have low embodied energy and generate very little waste.Template:Citation needed The soils used are typically subsoil which conserve the topsoil for agriculture. When the soil excavated in preparation for a foundation can be used, the cost and energy consumption of transportation are minimal, but this requires testing of materials for suitability.<ref name="one">Template:Cite web</ref> Rammed earth has potentially low manufacturing impact, contingent on the amount of cement and the amount that is locally sourced; it is often quarried aggregates rather than "earth".
Rammed earth can contribute to the overall energy efficiency of edifices: the density, thickness, and thermal conductivity of rammed earth render it an especially suitable material for passive solar heating. Warmth requires almost 12 hours to be conducted through a wall Template:Convert thick.<ref name=six/>
Mixing cement with the soil can counteract sustainable benefits such as low embodied energy because manufacture of the cement itself creates 1.25 tonnes of carbon dioxide per tonne of cement produced.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Although it has low greenhouse gas emissions in theory, transportation and the production of cement can add significantly to the overall emissions of modern rammed earth construction. For example, a 300 mm rammed earth wall with 5% cement content produces slightly more emissions than a 100mm concrete wall.<ref name="Rammed Earth">Template:Cite web</ref>
History
Evidence of ancient use of rammed earth has been found in Neolithic archaeological sites such as those of the Fertile Crescent, dating to the 9th–7th millennium BC,<ref>Gwendolyn Leick: A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Architecture, Routledge, London 1988, p. 165</ref> and of the Yangshao and Longshan cultures in China, dating to 5000 BCE. By 2000 BCE, rammed-earth architectural techniques (夯土 Hāng tǔ) were commonly used for walls and foundations in China.<ref name="Xujie Liu">Template:Cite book</ref>
United States and Canada
In the 1800s, rammed earth was popularized in the United States by the book Rural Economy by S. W. Johnson. The technique was used to construct the Borough House Plantation<ref name="Borough House">Template:Cite web</ref> and the Church of the Holy Cross<ref name="Church of the Holy Cross">Template:Cite web</ref> in Stateburg, South Carolina, both being National Historic Landmarks.
Template:Blockquote An outstanding example of a rammed-earth edifice in Canada is St. Thomas Anglican Church in Shanty Bay, Ontario, erected between 1838 and 1841.
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From the 1920s through the 1940s rammed-earth construction in the US was studied. South Dakota State College extensively researched and constructed almost one hundred weathering walls of rammed earth.Template:Citation needed For over 30 years the college investigated the use of paints and plasters in relation to colloids in soil. In 1943, Clemson Agricultural College of South Carolina published the results of their research of rammed earth in a pamphlet titled "Rammed Earth Building Construction".Template:Citation needed<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> In 1936, on a homestead near Gardendale, Alabama, the United States Department of Agriculture constructed experimental rammed-earth edifices with architect Thomas Hibben.Template:Citation needed The houses were inexpensively constructed and were sold to the public along with sufficient land for gardens and small plots for livestock. The project successfully provided homes to low-income families.<ref name="six"/>
The US Agency for International Development is working with developing countries to improve the engineering of rammed-earth houses.Template:Citation needed It also financed the authorship of the Handbook of Rammed Earth by Texas A&M University and the Texas Transportation Institute.<ref name="six"/><ref name="Handbook For Building Homes of Earth">Template:Cite news</ref>
Interest in rammed earth declined after World War II when the cost of modern construction materials decreased.Template:Citation needed Rammed earth is considered substandard, and is opposed by many contractors, engineers, and tradesmen.<ref name="six"/>
A notable example of 21st-century use of rammed earth is the façade of the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre in southern British Columbia, Canada. As of 2014 it is the longest rammed earth wall in North America.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Australia
Australia has developed a significant contemporary technical culture of rammed earth construction, particularly in Western Australia. The history of rammed earth in Australia dates back to early colonial times, with each state and territory using rammed earth in some capacity, though it was most prominent in New South Wales, where the architectural legacy of the MacKnight family had a lasting influence in the Riverina region.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Contemporary Australian rammed earth construction first developed in the 1970s in Western Australia, where numerous examples of residential, educational, commercial, and community buildings have been constructed over the last 40 years.<ref>Template:Cite thesis</ref> The rammed earth construction method is well established in Western Australia and is an economical option in that state.<ref name="Rammed Earth"/>
In the past 30 years, cement-stabilised rammed earth (CSRE) has gained popularity in Australia. It consists of a mix of low-clay soil, water, and cement, and is an order of magnitude stronger than traditional rammed earth, withstanding compression forces up to 40 megapascals, giving it similar strength and durability to concrete.<ref name="Daniela Ciancio 2015">Template:Cite web</ref>
Despite growing interest, one obstacle to wider adoption of rammed earth in Australia is the lack of a national building code specifically for rammed earth buildings, which discourages many engineers and architects from using it.<ref name="Daniela Ciancio 2015"/>
20th century China
Rammed earth construction was both practically and ideologically important during the rapid construction of the Daqing oil field and the related development of Daqing.<ref name=":1">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp The "Daqing Spirit" represented deep personal commitment in pursuing national goals, self-sufficient and frugal living, and urban-rural integrated land use.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp Daqing's urban-rural landscape was said to embody the ideal communist society described by Karl Marx because it eliminated (1) the gap between town and country, (2) the gap between workers and peasants, and (3) the gap between manual and mental labor.<ref name=":0" />Template:Rp
Drawing on the Daqing experience, China encouraged rammed earth construction in the mid-1960s.<ref name=":1" />Template:Rp Starting in 1964, Mao Zedong advocated for a "mass design revolution movement".<ref name=":1" />Template:Rp In the context of the Sino-Soviet split, Mao urged that planners should avoid the use of Soviet-style prefabricated materials and instead embrace the proletarian spirit of on-site construction using rammed earth.<ref name=":1" />Template:Rp The Communist Party promoted the use of rammed earth construction as a low-cost method which was indigenous to China and required little technical skill.<ref name=":1" />Template:Rp
During the Third Front campaign to develop strategic industries in China's rugged interior to prepare for potential invasion by the United States or Soviet Union, Planning Commission Director Li Fuchun instructed project leaders to make do with what was available, including building rammed earth housing so that more resources could be directed to production.<ref name=":112">Template:Cite book</ref>Template:Rp This policy came to be expressed through the slogan, "First build the factory and afterward housing."<ref name=":112" />Template:Rp
United Kingdom
Julian Keable and his son Professor Rowland Keable have contributed significant scholarship and research to the field of rammed earth in the UK.<ref>Rammed Earth Structures: A Code of Practice, Julian and Rowland Keable, Intermediate Technology Publications, 1996 (paperback, Template:ISBN)</ref>
Africa
Earth structures have been an important autochthonous building technology across the continent for millenia, but no building codes existed to encourage its use in post-industrial era. In the late 1970s, British Architect Julian Keable was asked for his opinion on building without cement for the new Tanzanian capital Dodoma. He referred back to Clough Williams-Ellis seminal work and discarded all but the Pisé,<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> generally called rammed earth. This led to pilot projects in Tanzania, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda and Malawi through the late 1970s until the early 1990s. Towards the end of that time he became the project manager of the Overseas Development Agency's project to codify rammed earth in an African context, which became 'Rammed Earth Structures: a Code of practice'. The Code of practice became a national Standard in Zimbabwe, then a Southern African Development Community Standard (SADCSTAN-standards harmonisation) and finally Keable's book was adopted as an African Regional Standard.
Europe
In Europe, especially in France, Britain and Germany, traditional rammed earth is experiencing a resurgence in contemporary architecture.<ref name="Daniela Ciancio 2015"/> Several modern buildings have been constructed using traditional rammed earth techniques, including notable examples such as a three-storey home built in Austria in 2008.<ref name="Daniela Ciancio 2015"/> Historically, rammed earth (known as "pisé de terre" in French) was a common building technique in parts of Europe, particularly in rural areas where access to other building materials was limited. Many historical rammed earth structures still remain throughout Europe, particularly in France, Spain, and Germany, demonstrating the durability of the technique when properly maintained.<ref name="Daniela Ciancio 2015"/> The modern European revival of rammed earth is closely tied to the growth of sustainable architecture movements and interest in traditional building techniques. Contemporary European rammed earth buildings are often designed as showcase projects that demonstrate the aesthetic and environmental qualities of the material, though they remain relatively rare compared to conventional construction methods.
See also
- Adobe
- Alker
- Cob (material) – a very similar material that adds organic fiber to increase strength
- Earth sheltering – the architectural practice of using earth against building walls
- Green building
- Mudbrick
- Compressed earth block – individual bricks of highly compressed subsoil (and other natural additives) that can be utilized in normal masonry
- Polymer soil stabilization
- Sustainable architecture
- Vernacular architecture
- Craterre – research laboratory on earthen architecture
References
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