Strength and Elastic Properties of Stabilized Mud Block Masonry Using Cement-Soil Mortars
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 18, Issue 3
Abstract
Stabilized mud blocks (SMBs) are manufactured by compacting a wetted mixture of soil, sand, and stabilizer in a machine into a high-density block. Such blocks are used for the construction of load-bearing masonry. Cement soil mortar is commonly used for SMB masonry. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation in characterizing the properties of SMB masonry using cement-soil mortars. The compressive strength, stress-strain relationships, and elastic properties of SMB masonry using three types of SMBs and cement-soil mortars are discussed. The influence of a cement-soil mortar’s composition and strength on masonry characteristics is examined. The results of masonry using cement-soil mortars are compared with those using conventional mortars (cement mortar and cement-lime mortar). Some of the major findings are: (1) SMB masonry strength is sensitive to block strength and increases with increase in block strength; (2) the strength of SMB masonry using cement-soil mortars is more sensitive to the cement content of the mortar than to the clay fraction of the mortar mix; (3) the masonry modulus increases as the block strength increases; and (4) SMB masonry with cement-soil mortars shows higher modulus than the masonry using cement mortar and cement-lime mortar.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 18 • Issue 3 • June 2006
Pages: 472 - 476
Copyright
© 2006 ASCE.
History
Received: May 25, 2004
Accepted: May 3, 2005
Published online: Jun 1, 2006
Published in print: Jun 2006
Notes
Note. Associate Editor: Nemkumar Banthia
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