The International Rammed Earth Housing Project Valmiki Sooklal, Southern Polytechnic State University, Jake Frew, Josh Jones, Marshall McGinnis, Matt Pedersen, Peter Gorder, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs Objective Rammed Earth Construction Process Design Requirements Providing shelter for communities that exist in resource limited settings but are willing to work together to • Modular: design components should allow for scalable improve their current conditions if they are provided with structures to be produced , as needed, on site a viable solution. The project involves the development • Compactness: optimize packaging volume to reduce shipping of a housing kit that can be used to construct low cost costs dwellings (excluding the roof) based on the Rammed • Reproducibility: the design should be easily Earth Construction technique replicated/fabricated to handle increases in demand volume • Mobility: easily transported to various places globally • Documentation: all necessary instructional and support What is Rammed Earth Construction? material for rapid implementation Manmade sedimentary rock that is compressed mechanically in minutes instead of thousands of years. Phase I: Soil Collection and Analysis Finished structures are almost as strong as concrete The ideal composition for soil used in rammed earth The rammed earth technique has existed for thousands construction is approximately 30% clay and silt and 70% sand Phase II: Kit Development of years. Present in almost every “old” culture from with around 12% (by volume) of water . The compacted soil must African cities to The Great Wall of China. The technique have a compressive strength of at least 300 psi for use in rammed Concrete forms were selected to provide a stable boundary has been tested and proven to work earth construction containing the soil to be compacted into the rammed earth walls. A soil sample will be collected from the location under Symons concrete forms which consist of plywood supported by a consideration and returned to the lab for testing. The accepted standard for determining the strength of the soil is to run a series steel frame were selected for this purpose. of three tests. The three tests are a sedimentary test, a moisture test, and a compressive strength test. earth/rammedearth/ - http://3cru.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/nkmip-rammed- http://inhabitat.com/rammed earth-wall.jpg Advantages Panel connection using wedge bolts Fully assembled concrete forms • Fireproof • Rot resistant Sedimentary test Compression Test Samples • Impervious to termites Phase III: Implementation • The 18-24” walls are nearly soundproof The design documentation will be sent out to bid and a full-scale • Excellent thermal properties prototype will be constructed. This prototype will be used to validate the design and identify necessary improvements. The Raw materials actual implementation of the testing and validation will require 5 basic types – gravel, sand, silt, clay and organic funding beyond the proposed effort and will extend beyond the Longest lasting structures made from 70% sand 30% clay period of performance Cement may also be added to improve strength and resistance to moisture Compression testing on samples .