This document discusses improving the earthquake resistance of adobe buildings. It first describes adobe as a low-cost building material made of locally available soil, straw, and water. Typical failures of adobe buildings during earthquakes include severe cracking, wall separation, and roof detachment. To strengthen adobe structures, the document recommends using stabilized soil, controlling microcracking, improving construction techniques, adding structural elements like cross-walls, and limiting building height to one story. The overall goal is to study adobe building failures during quakes and develop seismic strengthening methods for existing structures.

1. EARTH QUAKE RESISTANT
CONSTRUCTION OF ADOBE
BUILDINGS

2. INTRODUCTION
DESCRIPTION OFADOBE
 One of the Type of
Masonry Units.
 Low cost material.
 Oldest and Widely used
building material.
 Made of Locally Available
Soil.
 Also Named as “NON-
ENGINEERED
CONSTRUCTION”.

3. ADOBE BUILDINGS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

4. The Main Objective of this study:
I. To Study the failure patterns earthquake
performance and seismic improvement .
II. Seismic Strengthening of Existing Adobe
Buildings.

5. CONSTITUENTS / SOIL SELECTION
 Adobe is a Composite
Material.
 Made of clay mixed with
Water and Organic Matter
(straw/dung).
 Straw helps in Binding the
Bricks.
 Dung helps to reel the
Insects

6. 6
Adobe Blocks are Classified in 2 ways:
a) Classification based on Type of Material:
1. Plain adobe
2. Stabilized adobe
b) Classification based on Process of Adobe Making:
1. Sliced adobe
2. Moulded adobe

7. ADVANTAGES OF ADOBE
BUILDINGS Adobe bricks are :
• Fire proof
• Durable
• Non toxic
• Provides Sufficient Thermal Mass to buildings.
 Sound Transmission levels through walls is low.
 No Costly Equipments are involved.
 Adobe system reduces the risk of cracking and
shrinkage.
 They have good water resistances .

8. EARTH QUAKE PERFORMANCE OF
ADOBE BUILDINGS
 Vulnerable to defects of natural phenomena such
as earthquake, rain floods.
 Built by traditional practices without any detailed
structural analysis.
 The use of poor quality construction materials
increases the loss of life and property.

9. Causes for Seismic Deficiencies
• a) Heavy weight of structure.
• b) Low Strength.
• c) Brittle behavior.

10. Typical Failures
Some of the Failure Types are:
– Severe cracking and disintegration of walls.
– Separation of Walls at the Corners.
– Separation of roofs from walls.

11. Seismic Deficiencies of Adobe
Masonry
• Vertical cracks at corners
• Over turning of upper part of wall panel.
• Diagonal / inclined cracking in walls .
• Dislocation of corner.
• Separation of roof from wall.

12. TYPICAL FAILURES
Seismic Deficiency of Adobe Masonry

13. Typical Patterns of Earth Quake Damage

14. Improved Earth Quake Resistance
of Adobe Buildings
Different techniques of improving Earth quake
resistance of adobe buildings :
(i) Laying a good foundation
Adobe buildings SHOULD NOT Adobe buildings SHOULD NOT Adobe buildings SHOULD NOT
be built against a slope where be built near cliff s where they be built near steep slopes where.
soil pressure may cause building might slide off due to land slide falling rocks and debris may damage the house
collapse.

15. (a) Dry strength test on
clay
(b) Roll test
(c)Micro cracking Control Test
(d) Additives
(e) construction
(ii) Adobe Block Composition & Quality of
construction

16. (iii) Robust Layout
a) Build only one Storey.
b) Use insulated light weight
roof instead of heavy compacted
earth roof.
c) Arrange wall layout to provide
mutual support by means of
cross walls and intersecting
walls at regular intervals.
d) Opening in the wall should be
small.
e) Built on Firm foundation.

17. Conclusion
(i) Typical failure patterns of adobe masonry .
(ii) Seismic deficiencies of adobe masonry .
(iii) Improved earth quake resistance of adobe
building .
(iv) Seismic strengthening of existing adobe building

18. REFERENCES
 Reinforcement Methods for Self construction of Rural Housing,
México City.
 Technical Principles of Building for Safety.Intermediate
Technology Publications, London, UK.
 IAEE (1986). Guidelines for Earthquake-Resistant Non-Engineered
Construction.International Association for Earthquake
Engineering, Tokyo, Japan.
 Seismic Strength of Adobe Masonry. Summary of a research
project sponsored by the US Agency for International Development
(AID), Lima, Peru.