Hygrothermal performance of compressed earth blocks incorporating quackgrass straw

[en] Biosourced earth materials represent a sustainable alternative to conventional building materials in the effort to fight and adapt to the effects of global warming in the construction sector. These materials have hygrothermal properties that enhance the thermal insulation of buildings and facilitate passive control of the relative humidity in indoor environments. The aim of this work is to study the hygrothermal properties of compressed clay – quackgrass straw blocks stabilised with 8wt% cement. Thermal characterisation of this material shows that the addition of 0 to 1.5wt% quackgrass straw in 0.5 increments improves the thermal conductivity of the clay material by 19%, from 0.74W.m-1.K-1 to 0.6W.m-1.K-1 at 40%RH. The simultaneous search for good thermal and mechanical performance of the material showed that the presence of 1wt% quackgrass straw in the Compressed Earth Block (CEB) was a good compromise. However, despite the incorporation of a biosourced material (quackgrass straw), CEB8–1 exhibited a moisture adsorption capacity that was not significantly affected in comparison to the earthen control material (CEB8–0). At 85%RH, the Equilibrium Moisture Content (EMC) of CEB8–1 was determined to be 2.57%kg.kg-1, while that of CEB8–0 was found to be 2.92%kg.kg-1. Furthermore, implementation of these properties into numerical simulations of hygrothermal transfer through CEB8–0 and CEB8–1 materials gives results consistent with experimentation. This is reflected in statistical accuracy indicators (MBE and CV(RMSE)).

Research Center/Unit :

Building Energy Monitoring and Simulation (BEMS)

Disciplines :

Materials science & engineering
Energy

Author, co-author :

Kiki, Gratien Jesugo Dieudonné ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des sciences et gestion de l'environnement (Arlon Campus Environnement) > Building Energy Monitoring and Simulation (BEMS)

Romain Rémond; UL - Université de Lorraine

Sahbi Ouertani

Aristide HOUNGAN; Université Nationale des Sciences, Technologies, Ingénierie et Mathématiques

Andre, Philippe ; Université de Liège - ULiège > Département des sciences et gestion de l'environnement (Arlon Campus Environnement) > Building Energy Monitoring and Simulation (BEMS)

Language :

English

Title :

Hygrothermal performance of compressed earth blocks incorporating quackgrass straw

Alternative titles :

[fr] Performance hygrothermique des blocs de terre comprimée incorporant de la paille de chiendent

Original title :

[en] Hygrothermal performance of compressed earth blocks incorporating quackgrass straw

Publication date :

08 May 2025

Journal title :

Construction and Building Materials

ISSN :

0950-0618

eISSN :

1879-0526

Publisher :

Elsevier, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Volume :

482

Peer reviewed :

Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi

Development Goals :

11. Sustainable cities and communities
12. Responsible consumption and production

Funders :

ARES - Académie de Recherche et d'Enseignement Supérieur
FWB - Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles

Available on ORBi :

since 15 May 2025

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