Material characterization of Guadua bamboo and the environmental feasibility of structural bamboo products

Abstract

Bamboo has long been used in vernacular construction because of its high strength, rapid growth rate, and global abundance. Bamboo is increasingly being used in contemporary architecture as a sustainable alternative to wood and other building materials. Forming bamboo into a structural composite can improve mechanical performance, durability, and joining, which can open up new structural applications and design possibilities as well as remove the stigma that bamboo is the "poor man's timber". This study aims to characterize the radial and longitudinal variation in the microstructure and mechanical properties of Guadua bamboo (Guadua angustifolia kunth) in order to inform efficient material use in a composite. The study found a linear relationship between the MOE, MOR, and compression strength with density. Through analysis of micrographs, the density was correlated to the area fraction of sclerenchyma fiber sheaths. Results from nanoindentation confirmed that the fiber properties did not vary with position. Further the environmental impact in the form of exhaustion of energy found that processed bamboo had a mechanical advantage over raw bamboo culm and lower energy input in manufacturing but superior performance in comparison to wood composites.