BAMBOO AS A CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL

The diminishing wood resource and restrictions imposed on felling in natural forests, particularly in the tropics, have focused world attention on the need to identify a substitute building material that should be renewable, environment friendly and widely available. In view of its rapid growth, a ready adaptability to most climatic conditions and properties, superior to most juvenile fast growing plant, bamboo emerges as a very suitable alternative. This report deals with some of the main properties and the major uses of bamboo and its culms. It also recommends on the various preservation techniques to be adopted in order to enhance the durability. The world timber demand is increasing at a rapid rate but the timber supply is depleting. It’s been found through research that bamboo can suitably replace timber and other materials in construction and other works. Industrially treated bamboo has shown great potential for production of composite materials and components which are cost-effective and can be successfully utilized for structural and non-structural applications in construction. Bamboo is one of the oldest traditional building materials used by mankind. The bamboo Column, or stem, has been made into an extended diversity of products ranging from domestic household products to industrial applications. Examples of bamboo products are food containers, handicrafts, toys, furniture, flooring, pulp and paper, boats, charcoal, musical instruments and weapons. Bamboo is quite common for bridges, scaffolding and housing, but it is usually used as a temporary exterior structural material. In many overly populated regions of the tropics, certain bamboos supply the one suitable material that is sufficiently cheap and plentiful to meet the extensive need for economical housing. It has been used in bicycles, windmills, scales etc. Its uses are broad and plentiful. With the advancement of science and technology and the tight supply of timber, new methods are needed for the processing of bamboo to make it more durable and more usable in terms of building materials. Studies have been carried out on the basic properties and on processing of bamboo into various kinds of composite products. Bamboo has several unique advantages like ability to grow fast with a high yield and also it matures quickly. Additionally bamboo can be grown abundantly and that too at a lower cost which makes it more economical.