Effect of Bamboo Reinforcement on the Flexural and Tensile Strengths of Concrete Beams

Abstract

This study evaluated bamboo as a potential replacement for steel in
concrete beams. The bamboo was splint into 19mm strips from the
Bamboo culm. Each 19mm strip was counted as percentage
reinforcement. The percentages of bamboo reinforcements used varied
from 1% to 14%. One hundred and forty specimens for the flexural test
were cast in 150mm x150mm x 600mm rectangular moulds and 150mm
x 300mm cylindrical moulds were used for another one hundred and
forty tensile test specimens. The surface of the bamboo splint was coated
with bitumen and sandblasted. The concrete mix ratio was 1:2:4 with a
water/cement ratio of 0.54. The bamboo-reinforced concrete beams were
tested at intervals of 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, 21, 24, 27, and 30daysfor flexural
and tensile strengths. It was observed that as the percentage of bamboo
reinforcement increased, both flexural and tensile strengths increased.
The maximum strength occurred at 9% at each interval of testing. In
general, the test results indicated that the inclusion of Bamboo splints in
concrete beams increased the load carrying capacity of the beams but
not proportionately. It can therefore be recommended that Bamboo
reinforcement can be used basically for light weight concrete structures
as minimal/nominal reinforcement in a structure.