Interest in the engineering performance of bamboo is on the rise primarily due to its rapid regenerative qualities and high strength-to-weight ratio.It has been a standard,sustainable building material for thousands o...Interest in the engineering performance of bamboo is on the rise primarily due to its rapid regenerative qualities and high strength-to-weight ratio.It has been a standard,sustainable building material for thousands of years in Asia and South America,where it grows naturally.Although there are many examples of magnificent bamboo structures,standards and documentation on safe and reliable bamboo design are scarce,particularly for connection design.Traditional connections involve friction-tight lashings(eg.ropes and cords of dried grasses)and pin-and-socket connections such as dowels and pegs,but more recent advances have involved integration with steel hardware and concrete.This paper presents bamboo as a feasible alternative building material and presents a review of past,current and emerging technologies to join hollow bamboo culms in structural applications.The paper’s intent is to give an overview of the current state of bamboo connection technology and to promote developments in the emerging field of bamboo engineering.Recent technological advances and visionary architects have proven that it is possible to create safe structures that are not only sustainable but have tremendous potential for use in disaster relief and quick-build scenarios.展开更多
Straw bale construction offers a renewable,sustainable and proven alternative to mainstream building methods;still,little is known about its airflow characteristics.To this end,the intent of this paper is to evaluate ...Straw bale construction offers a renewable,sustainable and proven alternative to mainstream building methods;still,little is known about its airflow characteristics.To this end,the intent of this paper is to evaluate airtightness of fully constructed and plastered straw bale walls as well as individual plain straw bales.The first experiment entailed measuring the influence of straw bale orientation on airflow characteristics with the finding that straw bale considered alone has poor air flow-retarding characteristics and that plaster is the primary air barrier.A second experiment involved thirty plastered straw bale specimens using three different plaster types.From this experiment,a crack grading system was developed and is herein proposed as a tool to evaluate plaster performance as an air barrier.A third experiment validated the crack grade system through application on four fully constructed straw bale walls.Practical use of the crack grading system was demonstrated on a case study straw bale house in Radomlje,Slovenia,where the predicted air tightness results were validated through comparison to results of blower door tests.展开更多
This study examines the differences between two environmental assessment methods for the K-12 education sector:the United States Green Building Council’s(USGBC)LEED Schools Version 3.0 and the British Research Estab-...This study examines the differences between two environmental assessment methods for the K-12 education sector:the United States Green Building Council’s(USGBC)LEED Schools Version 3.0 and the British Research Estab-lishment’s(BRE)BREEAM Education issue 2.0.Credit requirements are compared side-by-side and against recom-mendations from researchers in areas such as acoustics,lighting and indoor environment quality.Strengths in the two schemes and areas for improvement are highlighted,with acknowledgement that each scheme offers components and techniques from which the other could benefit.展开更多
文摘Interest in the engineering performance of bamboo is on the rise primarily due to its rapid regenerative qualities and high strength-to-weight ratio.It has been a standard,sustainable building material for thousands of years in Asia and South America,where it grows naturally.Although there are many examples of magnificent bamboo structures,standards and documentation on safe and reliable bamboo design are scarce,particularly for connection design.Traditional connections involve friction-tight lashings(eg.ropes and cords of dried grasses)and pin-and-socket connections such as dowels and pegs,but more recent advances have involved integration with steel hardware and concrete.This paper presents bamboo as a feasible alternative building material and presents a review of past,current and emerging technologies to join hollow bamboo culms in structural applications.The paper’s intent is to give an overview of the current state of bamboo connection technology and to promote developments in the emerging field of bamboo engineering.Recent technological advances and visionary architects have proven that it is possible to create safe structures that are not only sustainable but have tremendous potential for use in disaster relief and quick-build scenarios.
基金supported in part by the Slovene Research Agency,No.252256-1/07the Slovene Human Resources Development and Scholarship Fund,No.11012-47/2012.
文摘Straw bale construction offers a renewable,sustainable and proven alternative to mainstream building methods;still,little is known about its airflow characteristics.To this end,the intent of this paper is to evaluate airtightness of fully constructed and plastered straw bale walls as well as individual plain straw bales.The first experiment entailed measuring the influence of straw bale orientation on airflow characteristics with the finding that straw bale considered alone has poor air flow-retarding characteristics and that plaster is the primary air barrier.A second experiment involved thirty plastered straw bale specimens using three different plaster types.From this experiment,a crack grading system was developed and is herein proposed as a tool to evaluate plaster performance as an air barrier.A third experiment validated the crack grade system through application on four fully constructed straw bale walls.Practical use of the crack grading system was demonstrated on a case study straw bale house in Radomlje,Slovenia,where the predicted air tightness results were validated through comparison to results of blower door tests.
文摘This study examines the differences between two environmental assessment methods for the K-12 education sector:the United States Green Building Council’s(USGBC)LEED Schools Version 3.0 and the British Research Estab-lishment’s(BRE)BREEAM Education issue 2.0.Credit requirements are compared side-by-side and against recom-mendations from researchers in areas such as acoustics,lighting and indoor environment quality.Strengths in the two schemes and areas for improvement are highlighted,with acknowledgement that each scheme offers components and techniques from which the other could benefit.
