The Auroville Earth Institute is looking continuously to improve techniques for building with earth. We are particularly looking for the following fields to be developed / tested:

SCIENTIFIC APPROVAL OF THE HOLLOW INTERLOCKING CSEB

The hollow interlocking blocks technology for disaster resistance,developed by the Auroville Earth Institute, has been approved by:

• The government of Gujarat (GSDMA), India, for the rehabilitation of the zones affected by the January 2001 earthquake in Kutchdistrict. The guidelines were published by the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority (GSDMA) and the hollow interlocking block technology has been incorporated in the rehabilitation guidelines.
  2 floors buildings are allowed.

• The government of Iran (Housing Foundation) for the rehabilitation of the zones affected by the December 2003 earthquake in Bam.
  2 floors buildings are allowed (8 m).

• The government of Tamil Nadu (Tsunami Relief and Rehabilitation), India, for the reconstruction of the zones affected by the December 2004 Indonesian tsunami.

This technology has been approved for the reason that these blocks are strong enough to resist an earthquake and because the reinforced masonry system developed by the Auroville Earth Institute satisfy the usual requirements for disaster resistance.

We are now looking for testing the hollow interlocking CSEB in a shaking table. For that, we need some funding. If you are ready to help us, kindly send us an email to earthinstitute@auroville.org.in

STABILIZED EARTH WATERPROOFING

The aim of this research is to find alternative plasters aside from cement plasters for waterproofing roofs. The earth is mixed with sand and stabilised with cement and a paste made of lime, tannin, alum (Ammonium sulphate) and water.

After some years the waterproofing is not effective anymore. It seems that the UV of the sun destroys alum and tannin. Hence after 5 years this waterproofing lets rainwater through and the vaults get damp inside.

Therefore we still need research on the topic and would be happy to share ideas or documentation with you. We also propose long term internship / volunteering. If you are interested, send us an email to training@earth-auroville.com

TESTING CSEB COMPOSITE BEAMS IN FLEXION AND COMPRESSION

As you can see on the page Composite Beams, we build with single, double or triple height beams. Some tests were done many years ago by loading them with cement bags and these gave good results. But we could not break the beam.

Now it seems important for us to test the three types of beam for tension, compression, shear, torsion and bending, in the environment of civil engineering laboratory in order to determine the failure load and yield stress.

If you are interested in that work and would like to help us, with contacts or with funding, send an email to earthinstitute@auroville.org.in.

DEVELOP A HYDRAULIC PRESS WITH A MOTORIZED MIXER TO PRODUCE CSEB

As you can see here, we are working on a prototype for a motorized mixer. Concerning the hydraulic machine, it is in a testing phase. If you are a mechanical engineer, or you are selling motorized mixer for earth mix and would like to share ideas, you can contact us at earthinstitute@auroville.org.in