Prediction of Performance of Compressed Earthen Construction Using Compressed Stabilized Earthen Cylinders (CSECs)

Earthen construction is one of the earliest and most ubiquitous forms of building. Compressed stabilized earth blocks (CSEBs) combine compressed components including inorganic soil, water, and a stabilizer such as Portland cement, and can achieve greater strength than other earthen construction methods. Typically, site-specific soil comprises the bulk material in CSEB construction, which minimizes the quantity of construction materials that need to be provided from off-site and motivates this type of building material for remote locations. However, onsite manufacturing and innate soil variability increase the variability of CSEB mechanical properties compared to more standardized building materials. This study characterizes the effects of varying mix compositions and initial compressions on the density, compressive strength, and variability of compressed stabilized earth cylinders (CSECs) created from sandy soil. CSEC samples comprising nine mix compositions and four levels of initial compression provide data for the (i) statistical evaluation of strength, density, and variability and (ii) development of predictive equations for density and compressive strength, with R2 values of 0.90 and 0.89, respectively.