PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite.

- A renewable building material. -

Archila, Hector F. 1

1. Architect, National University of Colombia, Bogotá D.C., Colombia,

ABSTRACT

Guadua Angustifolia Kunt is the most important Latin-American bamboo that has been widely used
as alternative building material. Due to its long, strong and elastic nature of fibres, bamboo-Guadua
is known as high resistance to the earthquake.

PLASTIGUADUA is an attempt to develop a sustainable building material that reduce

environmental impacts, assure low cost and energy consumption, and overcome the difficulties of
raw bamboo in jointing, durability and the lack of structural design data and exclusion from buildings
code.

PLASTIGUADUA is a composite material based on Bamboo-Guadua fibres of different types: short

and long fibre, mats, slats, strips and woven, which are used as reinforcement for thermo set
plastics and that mixed with rubber, polyurethane and expanded polystyrene, provide a variety of
new applications as building material.

Preliminary test on panels and structural elements are also reported.

Use of green composites for prefabricated houses as engineered building material with controlled
strength and structural properties from this renewable source is a future opportunity to face up the
challenges of climate change, and a responsibility of industry and designers in the modern built
environment.

INTRODUCTION

Bamboo is known for a wide range of species. Considered the most important
applications that are commonly made in American bamboo from a utilitarian
China, from chopsticks to building products, perspective, is greatly desirable as a building
although most of them are not structural but material.
more decorative.
Research on Guadua Angustifolia Kunt has
Guadua Angustifolia Kunt endemic to Latin increased due to its superior mechanical
America is the largest of Neotropics bamboo properties, as well many others advantages

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

such its fast production of woody biomass EXPERIMENTATION

than most fast-growing trees (harvesting can
Before than a concluded work,
begin about five or six years after planting),
PLASTIGUADUA is the attempt to find new
its consistent diameter in the first 9 meters, its
bamboo associations with other materials
natural design like a segmented tube and its
such synthetic resins (polyester resin and
effectiveness removing carbon dioxide, have
epoxy resin), polystyrene, polyurethane,
attracted the attention of professionals,
latex, and others, with the aim to find new
academics, researchers, designers,
products, uses and applications, from
craftspeople and artists.
different transformation processes.
Colombia has been the epicentre of empirical
practices, technical studies and research; a
state university, the National University of
Colombia (Universidad Nacional de
Colombia), has been the leader on this
subject together with other local and
Fig.1. PLASTIGUADUA with polyurethane.
international academic institutions and NGOs.

Among all bamboo species in the world The main purpose was to find a suitable

Guadua is the favourite for architecture and material to supply wood uses and able to

construction purposes. Reported experiences beat the typical disadvantages of the raw

in earlier earthquakes in Colombia shown its Bamboo-Guadua material: such natural

earthquake resistance - modern houses environment action by sun radiation, humidity

collapsed while many houses built in the first and insect plagues.

decades of last century survived -. Polymer, as matrix component provides

Its great content of fibre made Guadua protection against fire, abrasion, and

Angustifolia Kunt a potential fibrous material environment actions, and moreover it

(60% to 70% of its weight and 40% to 50% of contributes to increase the properties of the

total tissue) [5], and that is one of the most fibre reinforcement.

relevant advantages to propose The absorption of moisture by the fibres is

PLASTIGUADUA, as a Bamboo-Guadua fibre minimized in the composite due to polymer’s
reinforced composite. encapsulation. However, chemical

Low energy consumption, low cost, high modification with NaOH (sodium hydroxide)

specific properties, easily recycle methods was made to reduce moisture absorption.

and biodegradable features, are some other Good fibre-matrix bonding can also decrease
reasons to use these lignocelluloses fibres as the rate and amount of water absorbed by the
fillers/reinforcements in plastics. composite [6].

PLASTIGUADUA is the combination of these

qualities to improve the properties of the final

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

composite material over those of the two Boards were made from different types of
separate components. fibres and determined by commercial uses.
Culms were converted into slivers, strips,
Despite the objective was to combine two or
laths, veneers, particles and short and long
more resources in such a way that a
fibres by mechanical and chemical methods.
synergism between the components results in
a new material that is much better than the
individual components [5], more research
have to be carried out.

Fig.4. Different types of Bamboo-Guadua fibre.

TESTING

Laboratory test were made at CITEC

Laboratories, (INNOVATION AND
TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT
CENTER) – Andes University, Bogotá -

Fig.2. Different types of PLASTIGUADUA. Colombia.

Test conditions were performed according to

The different types of PLASTIGUADUA
ASTM standards, and approved norms for
materials developed are shaped in panel
NTC (Colombian Technical Norms) in
form, that are well suited to substitute wood
calibrated equipments and with reliability
and therefore, development/refinement of
margins accredited for ISO 17025.
cost-effective technologies to produce
Bamboo-based panels is easier. TTTE
ES
E STTT
S M
MA
M ATTTE
A ER
E RIIA
R ALLL
IA R
RE
R EP
EPPO
OR
O RTTT
R

PLASTIGUADUA L 3013-062
Flexure
PLASTIGUADUA P 3013-063

PLASTIGUADUA L 3013-064
Tensile
PLASTIGUADUA P 3013-065

PLASTIGUADUA L 3013-066
Izod Impact
PLASTIGUADUA P 3013-067

PLASTIGUADUA L 3013-068
Rockwell Hardness
PLASTIGUADUA P 3013-069

FIBROGUADUA-
UV Test / Condensation 3013-070
PLASTIGUADUA
Fig.3. PLASTIGUADUA with different types of fibre.
Water Absorption PLASTIGUADUA P 3013-071

Table.1. PLASTIGUADUA Testing.

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

Table.3. Flexural test results of PLASTIGUADUA P.

Fig.5. PLASTIGUADUA L (left) PLASTIGUADUA P (right).

PLASTIGUADUA L is a composite Bamboo-

Guadua board made of 50% Guadua fibres
(veneers) and 50% of thermoset polymer
(polyester resin).

PLASTIGUADUA P is a composite Bamboo- Fig.7. Flexure test on PLASTIGUADUA P.

Guadua board made of 33,3% Guadua fibres Tensile Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-L

(short fibre) and 66,6% of thermoset polymer
(polyester resin).

Flexural Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-L

Table.4. Tensile test results of PLASTIGUADUA L.

Tensile Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-P

Table.2. Flexural test results of PLASTIGUADUA L.

Table.5. Tensile test results of PLASTIGUADUA P.

Impact-Izod Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-L

Fig.6. Flexure test on PLASTIGUADUA L.

Flexural Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-P

Table.6. Impact-Izod test results of PLASTIGUADUA L.

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

UV and Condensation Testing of

FIBROGUADUA (Bamboo-Guadua fibre)
and PLASTIGUADUA

Table.7. Impact-Izod test results of PLASTIGUADUA P.

Impact-Izod Testing of PLASTIGUADUA-P

Table.9. UV and condensation test results.

Fig.8. Impact-Izod test on PLASTIGUADUA L and P. Fig.9. UV and condensation test.

Rockwell Hardness Testing of

PLASTIGUADUA-L and PLASTIGUADUA-P Water Absortion of PLASTIGUADUA-P

Table.10. Water absorption test results.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Experimentation with PLASTIGUADUA was

part of the work: Plastiguadua + Arquinauta
[1], that was a Merit awarded dissertation
Table.8. Rockwell test results of PLASTIGUADUA L and P.

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

submitted in support of a degree in In the past years architects have been using
Architecture (Universidad Nacional de bamboo in different ways in their designs.
Colombia- Bogotá/Colombia).
From interior finishes to bamboo
It is a basic research that explores a wide constructions. The application of bamboo in
range of uses of Bamboo-Guadua and design is still developing and there are more
intends to make sense with its wide variety of new applications to be expected.
possibilities as a natural material for fibre
Materials that are used in green design are
reinforced composites (PLASTIGUADUA),
always assessed for their environmental
and make the proposal for a new and
impact. Bamboo can replace concrete, steel
unconventional application (ARQUINAUTA).
or wood, depending on the situation and the
ARQUINAUTA is the way to make practical application, although more built examples,
experimentation of the materials proposed by research and dissemination is needed.
making a model of a boat.
Though there is a large interest in Bamboo
building products, most of the applications
are not structural but more decorative. To
make a step forward, from decoration to
structures, certified products are needed.

The building industry is rather traditional and

requires certificates and standards for
building products.

CONCLUSIONS
Fig.10. Digital model of ARQUINAUTA.
Longitudinal fibres of Bamboo Guadua
ARQUINAUTA uses some of the different
Composites (PLASTIGUADUA) have high
types of PLASTIGUADUA, in panel boards,
strength, but the poor interfacial strength
and in regular and irregular shapes and
between the fibres and thermoset matrix
surfaces. This model boat shows the wide
limits the composite's usefulness.
range of possible applications of the material
for architectural and construction uses. Natural-fibre combinations offer properties
that can be widely approached. All-natural
Fibre reinforced composite structures can
composite properties can be enhanced with
improve workability, and/or impart desired
additional ingredients in the mix.
properties of Bamboo-Guadua; they offer an
attractive alternative to the more conventional The research focused on development of
forms of construction due to its high strength partially bio-based composites but the key
to weight ratio and resistance to corrosion. objective is to reach a completely bio-based

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PLASTIGUADUA, Bamboo Composite HECTOR F ARCHILA

composite with a plant-based resin matrix REFERENCES

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material with controlled strength and 2003

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