Physical and thermal properties of modern stabilized Adobe

• In Event: Physics and Engineering Oral Session & Section Meeting

Abstract

Adobe brick has been used for millennium as a building material for single and multistory structures across six continents. The main disadvantage of adobe brick is it susceptibility to rain degradation and water infiltration damage. The use of modified adobe as a sustainable building material is expanding. The energy conserving onsite brick manufacturing and the physical properties recommend this technique for serious consideration as the building material of the future. This paper explores the physical attributes of adobe brick, being used as a building material in San Antonio, Texas for the construction of commercial apartment complexes. The density, thermal coefficient of expansion and water absorption tests, and morphology analysis using Scanning Electron Microscopy on adobe brick will be conducted in this present study to evaluate its use in modern construction.

Authors

• Gerald Mulvey, University of the Incarnate Word

• Sreedevi J. Ande, University of the Incarnate Word