BAMBOO REINFORCED CONCRETE

SEMINAR REPORT

submitted by
RAHUL V RAJEEV
SNM18CE015

to

the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University

in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the Degree

of

Bachelor of Technology

In

Civil Engineering

Department of Civil Engineering SREE NARAYANA

MANGALAM INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT &
TECHNOLOGY

MALIANKARA

SEPTEMBER , 2020
 DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING SREE NARAYANA
MANGALAM INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT &
TECHNOLOGY, MALIANKARA

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that the seminar report entitled ‘BAMBOO REINFORCED
CONCRETE’submitted by ‘RAHUL V RAJEEV (SNM18CE015)’ to the APJ Abdul
Kalam Technological University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of
the Degree of Bachelor of Technology in Civil Engineering is a bonafide record of the
seminar work carried out by her under our guidance and supervision.

RASHMI T.S

MARY RESHMA Coordinator

Seminar Guide

RESHMA K R

HEAD OF THE DEPT

 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
Firstly, I thank God, the Almighty, with whose blessings, this seminar has been successfully
completed.

I wish to give deep sense of acknowledgement to our Principal Dr. V R SASIKUMAR, for
his constant encouragement and valuable advice throughout the course.

I am extremely grateful to Mrs. RESHMA K R, Head of the department of Civil

Engineering, for her valuable guidance through this humble endeavor. Her highly
enterprising attitudes, patience for listening to my doubts, timely suggestions and guidance
made my seminar a so called reality in stipulated time.

I would also like to thank our seminar coordinator Mrs. RASHMI T.S, Assistant Professor,
Department of Civil Engineering and our seminar guide Ms. MARY RESHMA, Assistant
Professor, Department of Civil Engineering for their gracious of encouragement and the
valuable assistance.

I express my sincere gratitude to all the faculty members of the Department of Civil
Engineering for their co-operation and support to the seminar.

I also express my sincere gratitude to all my friends and my parents for their co-operation and
constant inspiration.

I
ABSTRACT
Now a days, all the buildings and structural components are mainly depends on usage of RCC.
The steel present in the RCC is responsible for taking the tensile stress that is developed in the
structure. Environmental pollution that occurring due to the manufacturing process of steel and an
eager effect to find out the alternative material in building construction tends to move our
attention towards bamboo, a cheap and mostly available material. Bamboo is a kind of giant grass
and an orthotropic material. Bamboo was used as a construction material in early days. Extensive
research through already available literature on bamboo replacing steel as a reinforcement
material in concrete has been conducted. The research was considered and analysed, establishing
clear conclusions that bamboo can in fact be used as reinforcement in a residential concrete house.
The main target of the study is to reimburse the conventional materials like steel by naturally
available bamboo sticks. Bamboo proves to provide good reinforcement as it holds very good
tension and compressive strength. The flexural strength of the beam having (BCC)Bamboo
reinforced concrete shows greater strength which helps to improve the usage of bamboo in
construction.

II

CONTENTS
CONTENTS PAGE NO.
AKNOWLEDGEMENT I
ABSTRACT II
LIST OF FIGURES III
LIST OF TABLES IV
Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 General background 1
1.2 Objectives 2
1.3 Definition 2
Chapter 2 LITERATURE SURVEY 3
Chapter 3 TYPES OF WHITETOPPING 5
2.1 Bonded type 5
2.2 Unbonded type 6
Chapter 4 METHODOLOGY 7
3.1 Material 7
3.2 Design parameters 8
3.3 Details of construction 9
Chapter 5 COMPARISON OF RIGID AND FLEXIBLE 10
PAVEMENT
5.1 Advantages of rigid pavement compared to 11
flexible pavement
Chapter 6 DESIGNING AND CONSTRUCTION OF 12
ULTRA-THIIN WHITETOPPING
6.1 Design procedure 22
6.2 Construction procedure 12
6.3 First UTW project in Kentucky 14
6.4 Factors affecting UTW performance 15
6.5 Repair of UTW 15
6.6 Advantages of UTW 17
6.7 Disadvantages of UTW 17
Chapter 7 DESIGNING AND EXCAVATION OF 18
THIIN WHITETOPPING
7.1 Raw material 18

7.2 Mix design 21

7.3 Methodology 21
7.4 Discussion 22
Chapter 8 STUDY ON THIN AND ULTRATHIN WHITE- 23
TOPPING USING GEO-POLYMER CONCRETE
8.1 Geo-polymer 23
8.2 Material 24
8.3 Result and discussion 26
8.4 Cost and energy analysis 27
Chapter 9 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES 29
OF WHITE TOPPING
9.1 Advantages 29
9.2 Disadvantage 30
Chapter 10 CONCLUSION 31

REFERENCES 32
 LIST OF FIGURES

Sl.no. Title Page no.

1.1 Schematic representation of white 2 topping
1.2 Whitetopping road 2
3.1 Bonded vs unbonded behaviour 6
5.1 Comparisons of rigid and flexible 10
pavement
5.2 Cross section of rigid pavement 11
5.3 Cross section of flexible pavement 11
6.1 Surface preparation 12
6.2 Spreading and leveling 13
6.3 Finishing and texturing 13
6.4 Joint sawing and sealing 14
7.1 Compressive strength of different 21 variations of fly
ash and PC
7.2 Tensile strength of different 22 variations of fly
ash
8.1 Sample of fly ash material 24
8.2 Sample of M-sand material 25
8.3 Preparation of alkaline material 25

III

LIST OF TABLES
Sl.no. Title Page no.
5.1 Comparisons of rigid and flexible 10 pavement
7.1 Physical properties of cement 19
7.2 Physical properties of coarse 19 aggregate
7.3 Physical properties of polypropylene 20 fibers
7.4 Mix ratio for different variations 21
8.1 Vee bee test for different molarity 26
8.2 Compressive strength of sample 26 cubes
8.3 Flextural strength for 28days for 27 different molarity
8.4 Fatigue test for geopolymer for 65% 27 loading
3
8.5 Amount savings in 1 m production of 28
GPC and OPC
8.6 Energy savings in 1 m3 production of 28
GPC and OPC

IV
 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

1.1 GENERAL BACKGROUND

The use of bamboo as reinforcement in Portland cement concrete has been studied
extensively and at primary stage by the Clemson Agricultural College. Bamboo has been
used as a building material globally by human civilization since a very long period of time
but after the Clemson study, its use as reinforcement has gained little attention. A study of
the feasibility of using bamboo as the reinforcing material in precast concrete elements was
conducted at the U. S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station in 1964. Ultimate
strength design procedures, modified to take into account the characteristics of the bamboo
reinforcement were used to estimate the ultimate load carrying capacity of the precast
concrete elements with bamboo reinforcing. This study has been taken as a referencein the
study conducted henceforth.
The investigation of the use of bamboo as a complimentary material with steel in RCC
construction has been shown in this study with the economy, safety, convenience and
durability of application of the particular idea. Since the use of bamboo in the ancient times
for housing purposes, it has been diminishing in our world in the form of a building
material despite its rich properties, strength and economical advantages. There are several
methods presented and deduced by universities and the U.S navy and has proven the
validity of the use of bamboo in structural members such as columns and girders. Hence in
this report, the methods are presented by the members of this group for the better strength
and more applicable methods with the least compromise in strength. Methods that have
been put forth in this report are not guaranteed to have the best outcomes or with any
assurance of the maximum strength of a structure, the designs being presented are those
which have been tested on software simulation for safe working load and failure analysis.
This could be very helpful and have a very good breakthrough in the field of concrete
designing with prominent economical benefits over steel (being used with it) and its
benefits related to the reduction of carbon emission in the atmosphere, if methods like
these are applied extensively and studies for the development of a code pertaining to
concrete design with bamboo reinforcements can be brought forward for a better future of
economical and eco-friendly RCC construction.

1
1.2 OBJECTIVE

The main objectives of this project are:

a) To compare the tension behavior of steel and bamboo.

b) To determine the flexural strength of singly and doubly reinforced concrete beams.

c) To determine the water absorption capacity of bamboo.

d) To compare the efficiency of bamboo reinforced concrete against conventional concrete

and steel reinforced concrete.

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE SURVEY

2
Building with bamboo looks back on an ancient tradition in the region in which plant grows
in abundance, such as South America & Africa. Bamboo is one of the oldest construction
materials. There has been a lot of construction activity in the developing world, especially
India & China, for the last one and a half decade. Although not directly visible construction
industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. Production of both concrete
and steel causes substantial deterioration of environment.
“BAMBOO AS GREEN ALTERNATIVE TO CONCRETE AND STEEL FOR MODERN
STRUCTURES” BY- Suresh Bhalla (International Organisation of Environmental Research,
Goa, 18-20 Dec. 2008). Despite the long tradition of building with bamboo, the material is
not used frequently in modern building construction. Bamboo can be a perfect alternative for
steel in the present and the future, as it possesses all the required mechanical properties, and
can perfectly replace steel, depending on the situation and the application.
ANALYTICAL STUDIES AND RESEARCH
Tjerk Reijenga “Role of bamboo in Green Building design”. In this project we are comparing
steel reinforcement with bamboo reinforcement, its structural cost and techniques of
replacement of steel with bamboo while reinforcing. The United States Naval Civil
Engineering Laboratory (1966) reported a study providing a set of instructions on how to
properly construct a variety of structures using Bamboo. It was recommended in the report
that the amount of Bamboo reinforcement in concrete be 3 to 4% of the concrete’s cross-
sectional area as the optimum amount. Mardjono (1998) provided research with the effort to
give some sort of organisation of a system to Building with Bamboo between cultures,
species, and countries having varying designs. Janseen (2000) conducted her study on
building with Bamboo. It gives calculations to show why it’s economically competitive,
mechanical properties, its many uses, its natural durability, and the preservation of the
Bamboo. The US Naval Corps is the leading institute in research for bamboo reinforcement
techniques and it has developed some tables and graphs

CHAPTER 3 MATERIALS USED

3
 3.1 CEMENT

The binding materials used in concrete are Ordinary Portland cement. This cement is of 53
grades conforming to IS 456-2000 and is having desired properties. The properties of cement
were determined by adopting standard procedure. The properties are given in the following
table. The normal consistency, initial and final setting time, specific gravity and fineness are
main basic properties which were determined.

TABLE 1: PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF CEMENT AND THEIR

VALUE

PHYSICAL PROPERTIES VALUE

Normal consistency 32%
Initial setting time(min) 54
Final setting time(min) 340
Specific gravity 3.15
Fineness 7%

3.2 FINE AGGREGATE

Fine aggregate used is M-sand. Laboratory test was conducted on fine aggregates to
determine the different physical properties as per IS 2386 (part-3)- 1963(Reaffirmed 2002).
The test results are tabulated in table 2. The fineness is obtained using the sieve analysis and
the result is such that the fine aggregate is confirming to IS 383 – 1970.The properties of fine
aggregate regarding to specific gravity is 2.65and fineness modulus is 5.41 and water
absorption is 1.7%.

3.3 COARSE AGGREGATE

The coarse aggregate for the work is crushed stone. Angular shape aggregate of size is 20mm
and below. The aggregate which passes through 75mm sieve and retain on 4.75mm are known
as coarse aggregate. The grading of coarse aggregates should be as per specifications of IS

4
383-1970. The fineness is calculated from sieve analysis and the result is such that confirming
to IS specifications.

3.4 WATER

Water is an important ingredient of concrete. It gives strength to cement and workability to

the concrete. Potable water is used for casting and curing.

3.5 BAMBOO

Through research, it has been found that some species of bamboo have ultimate tensile
strength same as that of mild steel at yield point. Experimentally, it has been found that the
ultimate tensile strength of bamboo is comparable to that of mild steel & it varies from 140
N/mm2 to 280 N/mm2. Bamboo is a versatile material because of its high strength to weight
ratio, easy workability & availability. Bamboo needs to be chemically treated due to their
low natural durability. It can be used as bamboo trusses, bamboo roofs, skeleton, bamboo
walling/ceiling, bamboo doors & windows, bamboo flooring, scaffoldings, etc. It has been
found that bamboo acts very well in buckling but due to low stresses then compare to steel
and due to it not being straight, it may not be very good further it has been established that in
seismic zone the failure of bamboo is very less as the maximum absorption of the energy
is at the joints. Cellulose is the main component present in bamboo which is the main source
of mechanical properties of bamboo. Bamboo reinforced concrete construction follow the
same design, mix proportion and construction techniques as used for steel reinforced.
Properties of bamboo reinforcement are similar to that of STEEL REINFORCEMENT.
Bamboo has been used for scaffolding works, formwork supporting stands and many
building construction work. These are limited to medium- large projects. Even though the
existence of bamboo has been found from centuries, bamboo as reinforcement material is an
innovation in the civil engineering construction field. Bamboo is biodegradable and
renewable. It is energy efficient as it is of natural origin & environmentally sustainable in
nature,

TABLE 2 : SOME SPECIFIC PROPERTIES OF BAMBOO

5
Specific gravity 0.575 to 0.655

Modulus of elasticity 1.5 to 2.0 x 105

kg/cm2
Ultimate compressive stress 794 to 894 kg/cm2

Safe working stress in tension 160 to 350 kg/ cm2

Safe working stress in shear 115 to 180 kg/cm2

Safe working stress in 105 kg/ cm2

compression
Bond stress 5.6 kg/cm2

CHAPTER 4 METHODOLOGY

6
4.1 SELECTION AND PREPARATION OF BAMBOO

4.1.1 SELECTION

For the sample selection of bamboo, the brown colour of bamboo with longer and great
diameter culms has been selected. Bamboo culms are cylindrical shells as shown in Figure 1,
and are divided by nodes as solid transversal diaphragms. The strength distribution is more
uniform at the bottom of bamboo than at the top or at the middle of it since it is subjected to
maximum bending stress due to wind at the top portion of the culms [1]. Based on the
previous studies [2], the following criteria have been measured in this research for the
selection of bamboo culm for use as a reinforcement in the concrete structures:

i. The bamboo showing a brown colour with at least three years old is selected.
ii. The accessible biggest diameter of the culm is being selected.
iii. The whole culm of green bamboo is not being used.
iv. Avoid cutting the bamboo in spring or early summer because the bamboo is weaker
due to increase in fibre and moisture content.
In this research, three years old bamboos plants of pronounced colour were selected.
Samples (1 m each) were collected from the bottom of the plant having four or five nodes.

Figure 1. Whole bamboo culm [2].

Bamboo sticks are generally more popular than whole culms in construction works. After
cutting the bamboo plant, it should be allowed to dry and season for three to four weeks
before using. For the sample preparation, bamboo has been allowed to dry for 30 days and
split according to the suitable dimension. The bamboos culms can be split or cut by using
7
hand knife and machines equipment’s. In this research, the dimension of 10 mm x 20 mm x
700 mm has been used for the sample preparation of the beam reinforcement. The thickness
of the sample varies throughout its length since it is a natural material whose properties
cannot be controlled strictly. For the tensile test, the diameter and length that have been used
for the testing was 10 mm x 300 mm. The specimens for concrete reinforcement sample is
shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Samples of bamboo used in concrete reinforcement.

4.1.2 PREPARATION

Sizing. Splints (split culms) are generally more desirable than whole culms as reinforcement.
Larger culms should be split into splints approximately 3/4 inch wide. Whole culms less than
3/4 inch in diameter can be used without splitting. (See Fig 4)

Splitting the bamboo can he done by separating the base with a sharp knife and then pulling a
dulled blade through the culm. The dull blade will force the stem to split open; this is more
desirable than cutting the bamboo since splitting will result in continuous fibers and a nearly
straight section. Table II shows the approximate net area provided by whole culms and by 3/4-
inch-wide splints, as well as the cross-sectional properties of standard deformed steel bars and
wire mesh.

8
Seasoning. When possible, the bamboo should be cut and allowed to dry and season for three
to four weeks before using. The culms must be supported at regular spacings to reduce
warping.

Bending. Bamboo can be permanently bent if heat, either dry or wet, is applied while applying
pressure. This procedure can be used for forming splints into C-shaped stirrups and for putting
hooks on reinforcement for additional anchorage.

Waterproof Coatings. When seasoned bamboo, either split or whole, is used as reinforcement,
it should receive a waterproof coating to reduce swelling when in contact with concrete.
Without some type of coating, bamboo will swell before the concrete has developed sufficient
strength to prevent cracking and the member may be damaged, especially if more than 4
percent bamboo is used. The type of coating will depend on the materials available. A brush
coat or dip coat of asphalt emulsion is preferable. Native latex, coal tar, paint, dilute varnish,
and water-glass (sodium silicate) are other suitable coatings. In any case, only a thin coating
should be applied; a thick coating will lubricate the surface and weaken the bond with the
concrete.

CHAPTER 5 CONSTRUCTION PRINCIPLES

In general, techniques used in conventional reinforced concrete construction need not he

changed when bamboo is to be used for reinforcement.

5.1 CONCRETE MIX PROPORTIONS

The same mix designs can be used as would normally be used with steel reinforced concrete.
Concrete slump should be as low as workability will allow. Excess watercauses swelling of
the bamboo. High early-strength cement is preferred to minimize cracks caused by swelling of
bamboo when seasoned bamboo cannot be waterproofed..

5.2 PLACEMENT OF BAMBOO

9
Bamboo reinforcement should not be placed less than 1-1/2 inches from the face of the
concrete surface. When using whole culms, the top and bottom of the stems should be
alternated in every row and the nodes or collars, should be staggered. This will insure a fairly
uniform cross section of the bamboo throughout the length of the member, and the wedging
effect obtained at the nodes will materially increase the bond between concrete and bamboo.

The clear spacing between bamboo rods or splints should not be less than the maximum size
aggregate plus 1/4 inch. Reinforcement should be evenly spaced and lashed together on short
sticks placed at right angles to the main reinforcement. When more than one layer is required,
the layers should also be tied together. Ties should preferably be made with wire in important
members. For secondary members, ties can be made with vegetation strips.

Bamboo must be securely tied down before placing the concrete. It should be fixed at regular
intervals of 3 to 4 feet to prevent it from floating up in the concrete during placement and
vibration. In flexural members continuous, one-half to two-thirds of the bottom longitudinal
reinforcement should be bent up near the supports. This is especially recommended in
members continuous over several supports. Additional diagonal tension reinforcement in the
form of stirrups must be used near the supports. The vertical stirrups can be made from wire
or packing case straps when available; they can also be improvised from split sections of
bamboo bent into U-shape, and tied securely to both bottom longitudinal reinforcement and
bent-up reinforcement. Spacing of the stirrups should not exceed 6 inches.

10
5.3 ANCHORAGE AND SPLICING OF REINFORCEMENTS

Dowels in the footings for column and wall reinforcement should be imbedded in the
concrete to such a depth that the bond between bamboo and concrete will resist the allowable
tensile force in the dowel. This imbedded depth is approximately 10 times the diameter of
whole culms or 25 times the thickness of 3/4 inch wide splints. In many cases the footings
will not be this deep; therefore, the dowels will have to be bent into an L-shape. These
dowels should be either hooked around the footing reinforcement or tied securely to the
reinforcement to insure complete anchorage. The dowels should extend above the footings
and be cut so that not more than 30 percent of the splices will occur at the same height. All
such splices should be overlapped at least 25 inches and be well tied.

Splicing reinforcement in any member should be overlapped at least 25 inches. Splices

should never occur in highly stressed areas and in no case should more than 30 percent of the
reinforcement be spliced in any one location

11
 CHAPTER 6 DESIGN PRINCIPLES

Bamboo reinforced concrete design is similar to steel reinforcing design. Bamboo

reinforcement can be assumed to have the following mechanical properties:

Table I. MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF BAMBOO

REINFORCEMENT

12
When design handbooks are available for steel reinforced concrete, the equations and design
procedures can be used to design bamboo reinforced concrete if the above mechanical
properties are substituted for the reinforcement.

Due to the low modulus of elasticity of bamboo, flexural members will nearly always develop
some cracking under normal service loads. If cracking cannot be tolerated, steel reinforced
designs or designs based on unreinforced sections are required.

Experience has shown that split bamboo performs better than whole culms when used as
reinforcing. Better bond develops between bamboo and concrete when the reinforcement is-
split in addition to providing more compact reinforcement layers. Large-diameter culms split
into 3/4-inch- wide splints are recommended. (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 of these principles for each member discussed are included.

6.1 BEAMS AND GIRDERS

Flexural members reinforced with bamboo can be designed with the use of Figure 1. Bamboo
longitudinal reinforcement should be between 3 and 4 percent of the concrete cross section.

Figure 2 can be used to convert existing designs for steel reinforced beams to equivalent
bamboo reinforced designs. The curve provides the cross-sectional dimensions of a bamboo
reinforced beam that will have the same bending moment resistance coefficient as a balanced
steel reinforced beam, singly reinforced. Economy of concrete increases going to the left on
the curve; therefore, deeper, narrower replacement beams are recommended.

The number and size of bamboo reinforcing rods (culms or splints) can be selected from
Figure 2b. These curves are drawn for 3 percent of the concrete cross section as bamboo
reinforcement which is in the optimum range for flexural members. Other reinforcement
percentages can be used as noted on the figure. A minimum number of rods should be used to
provide adequate spacing. The bamboo stirrup area should always be about 4 times the steel
stirrup area.

13
 6.1.1 EXAMPLE 1 - DESIGN OF BAMBOO REINFORCED BEAM:

Design a bamboo reinforced concrete beam to span 8 feet and to carry a uniform dead load
plus live load of 500 pounds per linear foot and two concentrated loads of 12,000 pounds each
symmetrically located 2 feet each side of the center line of span. Assume the ultimate strength
of the concrete is 2500 psi; the allowable compression stress is 0.45 f'c or 1125 psi. Allowable
unit diagonal tension stress,  , in the concrete is 0.03 f'c or 75 psi. Allowable tension stress, s,
in the bamboo is 4000 psi; the allowable unit bond stress between bamboo and concrete is 50
psi.

1. At the intersection of the allowable stress curves (Figure 1) for concrete and bamboo, find
R = 115 and p = 3.1 percent.

2. Maximum bending moment, M, is given by:

3. From 
bd2 = 336,000/115 = 2920 in.3
4. If b = 8 in. is chosen, then d = (2920/8)1/2 = 19.1 in.

5. Bamboo reinforcement = pbd = 0.031(8)(19.1) = 4.75 sq in.

6. Use 3/4-inch-thick splints, area = 0.563 sq in. (from Table II). Number required =
4.75/0.563 = 8.4; round up to 9. Space evenly in three rows. Bend up top row randomly in the
outer one-third ends of the beam.

7. Check the bond stress. Maximum shear at the support, V, is determined as:

 
14
 The perimeter of one splint is 4(3/4) or 3 in.; the total perimeter of the longitudinal

reinforcement,  , is 9(3) = 27 in. The value of j = 0.925 is taken from Figure 1 for
3.1 percent reinforcement. The bond stress, u, is calculated from:
 

This is less than the allowable bond stress of 50 psi.

8. Calculate the shear, V', taken by the concrete from

 
Where  is the allowable diagonal tension stress of the concrete.
9. Try 1/4-inch-thick splints for stirrups. The area provided by one stirrup bent into a U-shape,
A, is 2(0.1875) = 0.375 sq. in. Maximum spacing, s, is given by:

Common practice is to include two additional stirrups past the point where diagonal
tension reinforcement is not needed.
4.1.2   Example 2 - Replacement of a Steel Reinforced Beam with a Bamboo Reinforced
Beam:

Construction drawings call for the beam given in the sketch below. Replace it with a bamboo
reinforced beam. There are no objections to deepening the member.

15
1. Select the cross-sectional dimensions from Figure 2a. Avoid using sections with depth to
width ratios greater than 4 for reasons of stability. Try width of 1.0b or 10 in. and a depth of
1.32d or 29.0 in. The area is 290 sq in.

2. The amount of reinforcement can be selected from Figure 2b. Assume that 3/4-inch-thick
splints will be used. The number of splints required for 200 sq in. is determined at 11. This
number is multiplied by the ratio 290/200 to get 16 splints. These should be-distributed evenly
in four rows.

3. Determine the vertical stirrups required. The No. 4 steel stirrups have a cross-sectional area
of 0.2 sq in. (Table II). These stirrups are spaced at 10 in. which provides (12/10)(0.2)= 0.24
sq in. of reinforcement in a 12-inch length. Four times this area should be used for bamboo
stirrups or 0.96 sq in. per foot of length. From Figure 4, select 3/8-inch-thick splints spaced at
4-inch centers.

4. The top two rows should be bent up randomly in the outer one-third sections of the beams
to assist the vertical stirrups in resisting diagonal tension.

The final design is shown in the following sketch.

6.2 COLUMNS

Bamboo reinforcement in columns serves to resist a compression load equal to that taken by
the concrete it displaces; it also will resist shear and tensile stresses. Of the full cross section
of concrete, only 80 percent is considered effective in rectangular tied, columns. Allowable

16
concrete stress should not exceed 0.225 f'c where f'c is the ultimate compressive strength of the
concrete.

Vertical reinforcement should be approximately 4 percent of the column cross section for
rectangular columns. When bamboo is used as lateral tie reinforcement, the ties should be
spaced not over 16 times the least dimension of the vertical reinforcement nor farther apart
than the least dimension of the column. Enough ties should be provided so that every vertical
bar is held firmly in its designed position and has lateral support equivalent to that provided
by a 90-degree corner of a tie. A common rule for determining the size of a tie is that its cross-
sectional area is 2 percent of the area of all the vertical reinforcement confined by it.

The concrete cross-sectional area of bamboo reinforced rectangular columns conservatively

should be 2.25 times the concrete area of steel reinforced rectangular columns, indicating a
50-percent increase in face dimensions.

6.2.1   EXAMPLE 3 - SQUARE BAMBOO REINFORCED COLUMN

DESIGN:

Determine the cross section and bamboo reinforcement of a column required to carry an axial
load of 70,000 lb. Ultimate compression strength of the concrete, f'c, is 2500 psi.
1.  For an unreinforced rectangular column the safe axial load, P, is given by:

P = 0.8Ag (0.225 f'c)
where Ag is the cross-sectional area of the concrete column.
2. The column should have a cross-sectional area of:

3. If a square column is chosen, it will have face dimensions of

b = (155.5)1/2 = 12.47 in., say 12.5 in.
4. The amount of vertical reinforcement should be 4 percent of the concrete area and can be
obtained from Figure 2. Try 3/4-inch-thick splints. The number required is 8.8 for an area of
(12.5)(12.5) = 156 sq in. However, Figure 2 provides only 3-percent reinforcement; thus 8.8
17
should be multiplied by (4/3) to get 11.7. Thus, 12 splints should be used; these should be
spaced evenly around the perimeter with 1-1/2 in. of cover. Lateral ties should be arranged as
shown in the following figure to provide each vertical splint with a 90-degree corner (or
smaller).

5. Tie reinforcement size should be 2 percent of the total area of the vertical bars confined by
it. Each tie confines four vertical bars or an area of 4(3/4)(3/4) = 2.252 sq in. The cross-
sectional area of the ties should be at least 2 percent of this or 0.02(2.252) = 0.045 sq in. Try
1/4-inch by 1/4-inch splints. The cross-sectional area is (1/4)(1/4) = 0.063 sq in. and therefore
is adequate. The least dimension of the column is 12.5 in., and 16 times the thickness of the
vertical reinforcement is 16(3/4) = 12.0 in.; therefore, spacing of the lateral ties is restricted to
a maximum of 12 in.

6.2.2   EXAMPLE 4 - REPLACEMENT OF STEEL REINFORCED

SQUARE COLUMN DESIGN WITH BAMBOO REINFORCED
SQUARE COLUMN:

Construction drawings call for a 12-inch-square concrete column reinforced with 12 No. 6
steel reinforcing bars. Three No. 2 ties on 12-inch centers are required. Replace this column
with a square column reinforced and tied with bamboo.

18
1. The face dimensions should be increased by 50 percent. The bamboo reinforced column
will have sides of 1.5(12) = 18.0 in.

2. The cross-sectional area is 18.0(18.0) = 324 sq in. Use 4 percent of the concrete area as
vertical reinforcement. Figure 2 is used to determine the size and number of bamboo
reinforcement. Assume 3/4-inch-thick splints will be used. For a concrete area of 200 sq in.,
the number of these splints required is 11.0. Since this figure provides 3-percent
reinforcement, the number of splints should be multiplied by the ratio (4/3); it should also be
multiplied by the ratio (324/200) as a correction factor for concrete area. These
multiplications indicate that 24 splints should be used.

3. Lateral ties should be arranged as shown in the following figure. Tie reinforcement should
be 2 percent of the area of the vertical bars confined by it. Each tie confines four 3/4-inch-
thick splints; therefore, the calculations for tie size and spacing are identical to those in
Example 3.

6.3 GROUND-SUPPORTED SLABS

Figure 3 is used to determine slab thickness and required amount of bamboo reinforcement.
Figure 4 can be used to determine the size and spacing of the reinforcement. In general, the
reinforcement spacing should not be greater than the slab thickness.

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When designs are available for steel reinforced slabs, no change in thickness is required when
reinforced with bamboo instead of steel. However, the volume of the bamboo matting
reinforcement should be about 4 times the amount used for steel matting.

6.3.1   EXAMPLE 5 - GROUND-SUPPORTED SLAB DESIGN:

Design a bamboo reinforced concrete slab to support a maximum wheel load of 7000 pounds.
The wheel contact area on the slab is estimated at 60 sq in. Slab length between joints will be
8 ft.

1. The slab thickness is determined from Figure 3a to be about 5-1/2 in.

2. The required reinforcement is determined from Figure 3b to be 0.11 sq in. per foot of slab
width.

3. The amount of the reinforcement is determined from Figure 4. The required amount of
reinforcement can be provided by 1/8-inch-thick splints on 12-inch centers. However, in
general, the reinforcing spacing should not be greater than the slab thickness; a 6-inch spacing
is adequate.

4.3.2   EXAMPLE 6 - REPLACEMENT OF STEEL REINFORCED SLAB

WITH A BAMBOO REINFORCED SLAB:

Construction drawings call for a 6-inch-thick slab reinforced with No. 10 gage steel
reinforcing wire on 6-inch centers. Replace it with a bamboo reinforced slab.

1. The thickness of the slab does not change.

2. From Table II, the cross-sectional area of a No. 10 gauge wire is 0.0143 sq in. Since these
wires are spaced at 6 in., the area per foot is 0.0286 sq in. Bamboo reinforcement should be 4
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times that of the steel reinforcement or 0.114 sq in. per foot of slab width. From Figure 4, 1/8-
inch-thick splints on 8-inch centers is adequate; however, the spacing should not exceed the
slab thickness so a 6- inch spacing should be used.

6.4 WALLS

Non-bearing concrete walls should have a thickness of not less than 5 inches and not less
than 1/30 the distance between the supporting or enclosing members; they should be
reinforced with at least 3/4-inch-diameter culms on 6-inch centers in both vertical and
horizontal directions. This reinforcement should be provided as a one-layer mat in the middle
of the wall. Two bamboo culms 1/2 inch or more in diameter should be placed above and at
the sides of openings, and two 3/4-inch-diameter culms 4 feet long should be placed
diagonally across the corners of openings.

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