Bamboo Structural Material

Introduction

The use of bamboo as reinforcement in Portland cement concrete has been studied comprehensively by Clemson Agricultural College. (Ref 1) Bamboo has been used as a construction material in certain parts of the world for centuries, but its application as reinforcement in concrete didn’t receive attention until the Clemson study.

Another study regarding the viability of using bamboo as the reinforcing material in precast concrete elements was conducted by the U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station in 1964. Carrying capacity and other features of bamboo reinforced elements was determined by the assessment of its design, modification and others.

Bamboo was given recent consideration for use as reinforcement in soil-cement pavement slabs in which the slabs stood even under diverse conditions. The bamboo proved its worthiness and was certified to be used for such kind of purposes.

Design Principles

Bamboo reinforced concrete design is similar to steel reinforcing design and in some cases superior as well. Bamboo reinforcement is comprised of following mechanical properties:

The above mechanical properties show the capability of bamboo, and could be a great success if same equation and design handbooks are followed as of steel reinforced concrete.

Due to the low modulus of elasticity of bamboo, flexural members will develop some cracking under normal loads which can be avoided by steel reinforced designs or designs based on un-reinforced sections.

It is a universal fact that split bamboo performs better than whole culms when used for reinforcing. Bamboo and concrete gets cohesive when the reinforcement is-split in addition to provide more compact reinforcement layers. It is recommended to use large-diameter culms that are split into 3/4-inch- wide splints. (References to splints in the following examples will be understood as meaning 3/4-inch-wide splints of a specified thickness unless otherwise stated).

Design principles for the more common structural members are presented in the following sections. Examples of the use and detailed analysis of these principles for each member are included.