Adobe and Earthen Building Materials

The main purpose of this thesis is to prove that Earthen Architecture is a feasible, affordable, durable, cost-effective, environmentally-friendly, alternative to modern time's construction materials, and to all the related methods, techniques, and practices. As the negative impact of the modern construction materials has without doubt many dimensions, by systematically criticizing Modern Architecture in all its aspects, we discover the numerous ensuing problems that can be quite diverse of nature, theoretical, technical, social, economic, environmental, cultural and scientific.

Through another viewpoint, an in-depth examination of the modern construction side effects which helps us realize the challenges that Modern material causes at a global level; this examination makes clear that the modern times construction materials are unsustainable, and so are most of the techniques involved. That is why, it would be very important to understand that environmental damages are not caused only in the building phase, and that the use of modern construction materials causes a troublesome amount of pollution in both, the pre-building and the post-building phases.

Earthen Architecture is nowadays viewed as an alternative construction method that involves diverse materials and incorporates a wide range of modern techniques and technologies; however, Earthen Architecture is not really something 'new' to the mankind. Earthen Architecture is a construction method that goes back to thousands of years and reflects a universal architectural tradition that was used in both, early cultures of the Neolithic Age and all the important historical civilizations in Asia, Africa, Europe and America. The study of historical examples (whereby wood, stone, thatch and earth were used as architectural material) does offer to today's architects and scholars an insight into how the historical architectural knowhow can be re-employed and be at the same time very well adapted to the particular characteristics of each locality and habitat, while also facilitating and ameliorating the construction process due to modern technology.

In addition, this thesis is a selected models or types of Earthen Architecture used in diverse projects carried out in different places offers to today's architectural scholarship the most persuasive argument for the need of Earthen Building as an environmentally-friendly, sustainable and cost-efficient alternative to modern construction. The use of Earthen Architecture in today's world can be quite extensive and address the needs of many economic sectors, namely Education, Culture, Health, Public Administration, Tourism, Trade, and Construction (residential districts).

Key words: Construction, Earthen Building, Environment, Sustainable, cost-effective

Earthen built materials are one of the most widely used construction materials in the world. However, due to the nature of the earthen materials, they are susceptible to deterioration. In this entry, the components, properties and preparation techniques of the earth materials are covered. The pathologies of the earthen materials, including non-structural and structural damages, as well as the factors that lead to the deterioration of earthen materials, including environmental factors, human and animal activity and external factors are discussed in detail.

En contextos arqueológicos es habitual la documentación de estructuras inmuebles en las que se emplea la tierra como material constructivo. Entre las técnicas constructivas con tierra que emplean elementos modulares se encuentran el adobe, el amasado de barro y el terrón. No obstante, a pesar de ser técnicas reconocidas y haber sido empleadas hasta la actualidad, en los estudios arqueológicos se encuentran importantes dificultades para su reconocimiento. La importancia de su correcta identificación reside, sobre todo, en las implicaciones económicas y sociales que se derivan de su aplicación y desarrollo. Con este trabajo abordamos la caracterización de las distintas técnicas señaladas, con el objetivo de contribuir a una mejor diferenciación entre ellas. A través de su descripción y análisis, atendiendo principalmente a sus características macroscópicas, y de la presentación de un caso de estudio específico de la Edad del Bronce de la península ibérica, se aporta una serie de consi...

Developing new energy efficient building materials to reduce the carbon footprint is now the core of sustainability in construction and an essential factor of life cycle assessment (LCA). The extensive and increasing usage of conventional concrete, mortar, plasters and various cement based materials is only one of the many factors contributing towards urban thermal discomfort caused by urban heat island phenomena and the poor thermal insulation of ordinary cement mortar. Not only this, the wide use of concrete and mortar in construction increases the consumption of their primary components mainly -Portland cement- requiring a large consumption of energy and causing a significant rise in CO2 emissions. Embedding natural and artificial cementitious/pozzolana materials in today`s cement-based building materials has become a common practice. Cementitious and Pozzolanic materials are known to provide an added value to mortar/concrete not only in terms of mechanical and durability properties but also in energy efficiency and enhancing sustainability. Sarooj is a local term describing an artificial cementitious and pozzolana material obtained by traditional calcining of the raw clayey soil. Although its usage is nowadays very limited, Sarooj has been used in Oman and other neighboring countries for centuries, in various buildings and defense into an engineered binding material and hence investigating its physico-mechanical and thermal properties. The raw soil used to produce the traditional Sarooj was employed to engineer a modern “Sarooj” under controlled energy processing (grinding and calcination) conditions. The raw clay minded from specific location was ground first to a fine powdered material and then subjected to full characterization. The physical and chemical characterization indicated that the raw soil is suitable for producing a cementitious/pozzolanic calcined clay. The thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis of the clay used reveal that only a moderate temperature of around 800 °C is required for its calcination which preserves energy and reduces CO2 emissions compared to 1600 °C to produce clinker cement. The strength development showed a slow early-age reactivity but an appreciable enhancement in long-term which demonstrates a remarkable latent hydraulic potential of the clay used. It was also found that adding an optimum amount of the calcined clay enhances the thermal properties. The annual energy performance of a typical housing in the hot climate of Muscat, Oman, was evaluated using DesignBuilder software, a whole-building simulation tool. The simulation results showed insignificant savings in annual energy consumption when the developed mixes are used as plastering materials. The clay alkali-activated with NaOH has, however, showed great potential to enhance the mortar`s long-term strength. Using locally engineered cementitious material in a partial replacement of Portland cement can further enhance durability and sustainability by reducing the manufacturing energy of the produced building material such mortars and plasters

La presente tesis doctoral tiene como objetivo la comprensión de la formación de los yacimientos arquetípicos de la Edad del Bronce en la meseta norte, los "campos de hoyos" del grupo arqueológico Cogotas I. Se trata de grandes extensiones de terreno en las que fueron excavados en la Prehistoria hoyos de diferentes profundidades, pero de similares perfiles cónicos y rellenados, insistentemente de tierras que envuelven los restos desechados y fracturados de la vida cotidiana de estas comunidades. Frente a este insistente tipo de estructuras que aparece en el registro arqueológico, los restos de viviendas son prácticamente desconocidos, apenas unos cuantos hoyos de poste con poca capacidad expresiva. Se plantean así varias preguntas que han intentado ser contestadas en la disertación ¿Todo lo que está en las subestructuras excavadas era "basura"? ¿Por qué algunos animales, piezas cerámicas o restos humanos se colocaron completos? ¿Cómo puede explicarse esta carencia de restos habitacionales? ¿Se debió al azar o medió la acción humana prehistórica? ¿Por qué algunos restos constructivos de barro -las denominadas "pellas"- aparecen quemados?
Para emprender este estudio se ha partido, por un lado, de un marco teórico esbozado desde preceptos posprocesuales de la academia anglosajona, que pretenden alejarse de las lógicas occidentales cartesianas y acercarse más a enfoques antropológicos. Por otro lado, metodológicamente, se ha recurrido a análisis arqueométricos (DRX y petrografía) para hallar las condiciones y temperaturas de cocción de los barros de construcción y a la revisión de las estratigrafías de los yacimientos y a estudios tafonómicos de miles de fragmentos cerámicos custodiados en varios museos para comprender su historia pre- y posdeposicional y poder inferir pautas de comportamiento.
De todo ello, se infiere que las comunidades de Cogotas I mediatizaron el registro arqueológico con sus acciones en la Prehistoria, de acuerdo a pautas de conducta regidas por la moral y las creencias supramateriales y a conceptos como visibilidad-invisibilidad u ocultación-monumentalidad.

NOT:
Bu çalışma Alker üzerine yapılan ilk araştırmanın raporudur. Bu çalışmada uygun nitelikli toprağa yalnızca alçı eklenerek sonuç elde edilmiştir. Daha sonra yapılan araştırmalarda alçı ile birlikte kireç eklenmesinin malzemenin deprem direncini arttırdığı görülmüştür. Alçı ve kireç eki ile geliştirilen malzeme için bu academia sayfasındaki "Improved performance of earth structures by lime and gypsum addition" başlıklı makaleye bakınız.

This is the initial research project report for Alker, dated 1980. At this time, Alker was produced with the addition only of gypsum to earth with the appropriate qualities. The addition of lime alongside gypsum was introduced later, and improved the material's earthquake-resistant properties. For a presentation of the latest findings, see the article "Improved performance of earth structures by lime and gypsum addition", on this academia page.

From prehistoric times to the present day, earthen buildings have been used for shelter, protecting and religious aims by the people. In addition, decorative effects (ornament, relief etc.) frequently has been used on building surfaces.
When it is viewed as a form to earthen architecture, it is observed that sculptural and monumental earthen structures are produced. This monumental earthen buildings frequently is found in West of Africa. At this point, because of the earthen structures are usually found in the countryside, respect for the earthen exponentially has increased when earth is transformed into a structure and besides the functional orientation of the architecture has given a monumental feature too. It is thought that this created a sustainable situation for both of earthen architecture and culture. At present, this interaction has been created with projects that is produced by artists and architects in the field of art.
In the literature, available information about the use of soil as building material just has been contains building techniques and material development. Besides, there is no research that includes earthen architecture as an art form.
The purpose of this study, taking as a reference the researches made on this subject in foreign sources, is to investigate unique architectural examples in terms of form in the world and is to determine the point of earthen structures in interaction between human and the environment. As a result, aim of this thesis is to constitute a comprehensive compilation about the past, present, used construction techniques and building forms (architectural, sculptural, monumental) of unfired earthen material.

The architectural features of the ceramic workshops of Antiquity are, probably due to their lack of monumentality, one of the least known both from a typological perspective and from the point of view of the analysis of the investment efforts (in material and human resources) necessary for the construction of kilns, workshops, basins and other facilities. This deficit is particularly noticeable in the case of the pre-Roman pottery workshops of southern Iberia, less numerous and poorly archaeologically explored, with exceptions such as the Bay of Cadiz. Taking Gadir and its insular territory as a case study, where a significant number of sites offer well-preserved indicators of kilns and other buildings for artisanal use, the aim of this contribution is to examine the construction techniques of the ceramic kilns of these workshops, their evolution over time and, above all, the different types, sizes and construction materials used and their correlation with different levels of investment and efforts for the implementation of these infrastructures. Thus, based on the study of various examined structures excavated in Camposoto, Torre Alta and other sites, as well as taking into consideration the results of recent experimental activities, we intend to quantify these processes of construction and repair of the kilns, and together with other information on the operational sequence of the workshops, to propose new hypotheses on the impact of each typology on the local economy and the relationship of the evolution of building techniques with changes in the production of foodstuffs packed in amphorae.

Il lavoro di tesi è nato da un progetto di Cooperazione Decentrata della Regione Toscana che vedeva come partner fiorentini la Scuola Professionale Edile, i Dipartimenti di Tecnologia e Costruzioni della Facoltà di Architettura, il CNR e la Ong marocchina ADEDRA (Association de Développement de la Vallée du DRÂA).

La Valle del Drâa si trova nel sud est del Marocco, vicino al deserto del Sahara e ospita uno dei maggiori patrimoni architettonici in terra cruda del Mondo, costituito da villaggi fortificati (ksour) e da case-fortezza (kasbah). Il progetto prevedeva un’indagine sul campo, nel maggio 2006, mirata ad investigare i cantieri e i processi di produzione, le tecniche costruttive tradizionali e la struttura economica e sociale, con lo scopo ultimo di documentare e analizzare la cultura costruttiva locale e di redigere un codice locale di costruzione. Una seconda missione è avvenuta nel settembre 2009 in collaborazione con l’Università Cady Ayaad di Marrakech.
Il patrimonio costruito della Valle del Drâa rappresenta un eccellente esempio di come la popolazione e la cultura locali siano riuscite a rispondere alla sfida ambientale, partendo dalle caratteristiche dell’ambiente e dalla disponibilità di materiali da costruzione. Gli edifici sono interamente costruiti in terra cruda con le tecniche del pisé e dell’adobe utilizzate distintamente nelle diverse parti dell’edificio. La struttura di solai e coperture è realizzata con legno di palma, ricoperto di canne e terra.
La conoscenza approfondita delle tecniche costruttive locali e delle caratteristiche dei materiali utilizzati è un passo obbligato per la conservazione e la valorizzazione del patrimonio esistente, ovvero per l’introduzione di innovazioni costruttive adeguate alle esigenze attuali.

La planicie costera del Golfo de México tiene una tradición de construcción monumental de tierra sin protección de piedra o acabado con cal, vigente al menos del segundo milenio a.C. hasta el primer milenio d.C., después de lo cual se pierde. Sin embargo, no se sabía qué tecnología hiciera viable este tipo de arquitectura en las condiciones de trópico húmedo. De allí la importancia de los estudios físicos y químicos y los experimentos de preservación llevados a cabo desde 2009 en el sitio arqueológico de La Joya, en el Municipio de Medellín, Veracruz, que sientan las bases para el desarrollo de un conocimiento y protección de este patrimonio hasta la fecha desatendido.
Los estudios de materiales prehispánicos obtenidos en las excavaciones presentan una granulometría donde predomina la fracción fina (<2 μm) de montmorillonita (arcilla expansiva). A finales de 2012 los análisis de química orgánica revelaron hidrocarburos saturados y aromáticos, y triglicéridos principalmente, que se identificaron como bitumen (asfalto) diluido en aceite vegetal. Esto es un hallazgo hasta la fecha novedoso, demostrando que los arquitectos antiguos ya habían descubierto las propiedades estabilizantes del asfalto en la construcción de tierra.

Para entender la tecnología prehispánica y su potencial para la conservación del patrimonio, se diseñó a partir de la primavera 2013 un programa experimental para averiguar las concentraciones óptimas del asfalto en las mezclas de tierra. Partiendo de la evidencia obtenida de los materiales prehispánicos, se construyeron muros experimentales con el fin de monitorear y evaluar su resistencia a la intemperie. La primera serie compara la eficiencia como estabilizante de extractos vegetales, usados en la arquitectura de tierra vernácula de Centroamérica, y de productos bituminosos. Quince meses de monitoreo indican una alta resistencia de los muros elaborados con bitumen. La segunda serie evalúa la concentración de asfalto, el método de elaboración de los productos bituminosos (disuelto en aceite secante, en aceite semi-secante y como emulsión asfáltica comercial) y el uso de geotextil para la preservación. El monitoreo de esta segunda serie de enero a junio de 2014 permitió evaluar la resistencia a las lluvias torrenciales de junio. Hasta la fecha el muro que se preparó con el bitumen disuelto en aceite de maíz resultó ser el más resistente.

Questo lavoro intende documentare l’impiego della terra cruda nella costruzione di edifici, pratica adottata per secoli in diverse aree del mondo. Gli edifici in terra cruda risultano essere una tipologia edilizia ricorrente sul territorio lucano, documentata archeologicamente per questo territorio già dal VI sec. a.C., a testimonianza del largo impiego che si fece di un materiale quale l’argilla, di così facile reperimento e dalle ottime caratteristiche costruttive. Attualmente le nuove capacità tecniche hanno sviluppato standard edilizi differenti rispetto a quelli utilizzati fino a qualche decennio fa nei territori di Chiaromonte e Senise, e solo grazie al rinvenimento di alcuni esempi scampati all’incuria del tempo è stato possibile documentare, anche per l’epoca moderna, l’uso dell’Adobe. Costruire edifici con l’argilla è, inoltre, in linea con le recenti tendenze ecosostenibili in materia ambientale degli ultimi anni. Di seguito vengono analizzati gli esempi rinvenuti sul territorio dei due centri della Valle del Sinni, proponendo l’analisi funzionale, documentaria, tecnica ed etnoarcheologica di queste opere costruttive.

Actualmente, el principal material de construcción es el cemento. Sin embargo, está demostrada su insostenibilidad ambiental: es una de las principales causas de emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero a nivel global. Por otro lado, el uso de la tierra como material de construcción es cada vez más aceptado y usado, debido a sus numerosos beneficios. La metodología del Análisis del Ciclo de Vida de los edificios ofrece datos veraces sobre los impactos de las construcciones con tierra y con cemento, ofreciendo la posibilidad de una comparación, además de ser un instrumento para apoyar las decisiones sociopolíticas. En este artículo se quiere perseguir dos objetivos. El primero es revisar la literatura existente en el tema de las construcciones con tierra según los estudios cuantitativos sobre emisiones y consumo de energía que han utilizado el análisis del ciclo de vida de los edificios como metodología. El segundo es exponer y observar la producción de nuevas líneas y áreas de investigación, ofreciendo puntos de reflexión, nuevos conocimientos y generando avances internacionales en el campo. Este artículo se subdivide en: metodología y objetivos; revisión de la literatura; los diferentes resultados de los impactos y beneficios de la tierra como material de construcción; un análisis de las implicaciones de los edificios en tierra a macro escala; una nueva línea de investigación del material con un enfoque socioeconómico; y finalmente las conclusiones, evidenciando los vacíos y posibilidades de acción futuras. La metodología del Análisis del Ciclo de Vida de los edificios es un instrumento eficaz para la evaluación de los gastos energéticos y de CO2. La revisión de estudios que han utilizado esta metodología confirma los beneficios de la tierra como material de construcción y su menor emisión de CO2 en comparación con el cemento.

La Casa Copaja es un inmueble patrimonial construido a fines del siglo XIX en Arica, Chile. Hoy se ha transformado en uno de los pocos edificios en la ciudad que conserva la cultura constructiva local de tierra. Destacan las carpinterías con tierra, como quinchas con cañas en sentido vertical, muros de adobe con confinamientos de madera, techos planos y de mojinete que se componen de un entablado de cielo, totora y torta de barro. Los objetivos del trabajo consisten en comprender y poner en valor los elementos que conforman la cultura constructiva de tierra ariqueña. Debido a los sismos, pero principalmente al accionar del hombre, es poco el patrimonio construido que se conserva en la ciudad. Muchas casas antiguas se han demolido para transformarse en estacionamientos, siendo este inmueble uno de los pocos casos de viviendas tradicionales que se recuperan y donde existe la posibilidad de estudiar su construcción. A partir del proceso de restauración, que consiste en la consolidación estructural de los muros de adobe, las quinchas y de los techos de mojinete del inmueble, se ha realizado el levantamiento y estudio de las técnicas constructivas tradicionales, observando el gran nivel de carpinterías con tierra presentes, y diversos detalles constructivos tradicionales. A su vez, este estudio nos ha permitido definir las intervenciones respetando la autenticidad de esta cultura constructiva. El material al que se recurrirá en este trabajo, ha surgido de la realización del proyecto de intervención y la restauración misma del inmueble, donde se han realizado levantamientos planimétricos, detalles constructivos, esquemas, fotografías y dibujos de las distintas técnicas de construcción con tierra (adobe, quincha, sistema de techumbre con mojinetes). Todo esto, para realizar la sistematización de esta información, y así proteger, difundir y fomentar los conocimientos sobre la cultura constructiva en tierra de Arica. 1 INTRODUCCIÓN Descifrar los componentes exactos de las técnicas de construcciones tradicionales es una tarea de alta complejidad, donde se confía en fuentes directas o indirectas sobre la constitución de los sistemas constructivos, sus materiales y detalles. Muchas veces las fuentes históricas son genéricas y no profundizan en la ejecución exacta de soluciones primordiales para la subsistencia de estas construcciones en el futuro. Es por esto, que la posibilidad de desentrañar una construcción para su intervención, como es el caso de la restauración del Inmueble de Conservación Histórica Casa Copaja, se transforma en una oportunidad única para comprender su lógica estructural, sus sistemas constructivos en profundidad, incluyendo sus detalles. En este sentido, el presente trabajo tiene como objetivo analizar los sistemas constructivos presentes en la ciudad de Arica, los que han podido ser estudiados en profundidad en ocasión de la restauración del inmueble patrimonial antes mencionado, que se encuentra en pleno centro histórico de la ciudad.

Hoje em dia ouvimos continuamente falar de sustentabilidade, mas somos realmente capazes de ser sustentáveis?
A maioria do sector da construção atual está relacionado ao sector industrial que se inseriu fortemente na sociedade corroendo os estilos de vida e as línguas arquitetônicas tradicionais.
Pensando na construção sustentável, há que pensar na poupança energética  e na salvaguarda do planeta; neste âmbito a terra, frequentemente subestimada porque é considerada um material pobre e ligado somente ao ambiente rural, apresenta ao contrário muitas vantagens que deveriam favorecer a sua reentrada nos materiais de construção atuais.

El renovado interés por el patrimonio construido con tierra ha arrojado nuevos retos a la investigación arqueológica, entre ellos la correcta identificación de las técnicas de construcción, en ausencia de información histórica o etnográfica. Por las deficiencias en la formación profesional de los arqueólogos con respecto a la arquitectura de tierra, son recurrentes las instancias de reportes de excavaciones donde la técnica constructiva no se identifica o se identifica erróneamente. Aparte de la necesidad de sensibilizar a los arqueólogos sobre las distintas técnicas constructivas que existen, también es útil desarrollar un método que pueda apoyar a su identificación. El presente documento propone desarrollar un método que permita comparar, a nivel micromorfológico, muestras constructivas arqueológicas con muestras experimentales hechas con tierra de la misma zona del sitio arqueológico, donde se conoce la cantidad de agua y el modo de densificación. Para ello, se propuso trabajar con muestras obtenidas por la aplicación del test Carazas. Esto permitirá caracterizar los rasgos micromorfológicos, observados a nivel microscópico, que son resultado del diferente tratamiento que se le da a la mezcla constructiva, que se pueden asociar a diferentes técnicas de construcción (tapia, cob, adobe, tierra vertida) que coincidan con alguna posición del Test Carazas por compartir el porcentaje de humedad y/o proceso de densificación necesarios para el desarrollo de dicha técnica. En este trabajo también se compararán las características observadas con interpretaciones propuestas para muestras constructivas arqueológicas, por un equipo francés pionero en el tema. Los resultados obtenidos indican que es posible observar diferencias específicas (1) en la proporción de poros, (2) en los tipos de poros que se encuentran y (3) en la posición y distribución de estos en la muestra. Estas diferencias se pueden relacionar tanto con la humedad como la acción mecánica ejercida y permiten evaluar las interpretaciones propuestas para las muestras arqueológicas que distinguen las técnicas constructivas.

This paper offers a brief enumeration and discussion of the strikingly different environments that are generated as consequences of the diverse architectural practices, techniques and methods carried out by Established (or Cement or Modern) Construction and Earthen Construction. Because of the nature of the topic the largest part of the chapter is covered by thematic comparisons; the last part comprises rather general considerations of important issues related to lifestyle.

La arquitectura monumental del sitio arqueológico de La Joya, Medellín de Bravo, Veracruz, ha perdurado mil años por algún tipo de estabilizante, el cual se interpretó en los trabajos anteriores como bitumen diluido en aceite vegetal. Recientemente, en el proceso de análisis químico detallado aplicando el método para caracterizar crudos e identificar origen de bitumen arqueológico, se descubrió que las muestras de construcción prehispánica carecen de las fracciones más pesadas, las de resinas (NSO) y asfaltenos. Por lo tanto, el estabilizante original no es bitumen (que contiene fracciones pesadas), sino son fracciones más ligeras (aceite) de crudo. El muro experimental de adobes que se estabilizó en enero de 2013 sólo con la pequeña proporción de aceite que soltó el bitumen sólido al calentarse en agua, ha resistido más que el muro de control y los muros estabilizados con extractos vegetales. Esto indica la eficacia de proporciones muy bajas de las fracciones ligeras de crudo. Análisis geoquímicos combinados de cromatografía de gases acoplado a espectrometría de masas (CG-EM) y espectrometría de masas de isótopos estables (IRMS) están en curso para confirmar el uso intencional de estas fracciones ligeras como estabilizante de tierra para la construcción prehispánica. Por otro lado, se continúan experimentos en el sitio que permiten fortalecer la investigación sobre la tecnología de arquitectura prehispánica, evaluando la efectividad de los estabilizantes, y al mismo tiempo examinar este material petrolífero como estrategia para la preservación.

Aid rebuilding projects in recent disaster areas often introduces new technology aimed at less expensive or more natural building. Earthbag building's rocketing popularity in Nepal is one example. Because architects and engineers new to earthen building will not be able to evaluate local materials or train builders in needed quality control, they need a quick introduction to soils and methods of testing appropriate in remote locations.

This document presents an overview of the activities undertaken by IIT Roorkee (in collaboration with RWTH Aachen University, Germany), during the year 2021, as part of the DAAD sponsored Indo-German Project "Towards an Indo-German Centre for Experimental Architecture and Material Culture (EAMC)", initiated by Prof. Axel Sowa and Prof. IIT Roorkee (June 2019 - Dec. 2022). EAMC is a common ambition to create the new Indo-German centre as a platform where architects, designers, artists, craftspersons and industrial makers can engage with each other to create an understanding for the existing heritage and lead to synergies for innovation. The new Indo-German Centre will allow us to coordinate both teaching and research projects with a common focus on sustainable design-build-procedures, through which experimental architecture is thought, conceived and manufactured.

https://static.daad.de/media/daad_de/pdfs_nicht_barrierefrei/infos-services-fuer-hochschulen/projektliste_anpti.pdf

The City of Phoenix grew from its beginnings in 1870 as an agricultural adobe village through the twenty-first century to one of the largest and fastest growing metropolitan areas in the United States. Phoenix, Arizona is the 5th largest city in the United States of America and is located in Maricopa County, Figure 1, with a population of 4.3 Million residents making the county the 4th highest populated in the United States. Phoenix was incorporated in 1881 after the first settlement in modern time in 1867.  Using data collected from the Maricopa County Assessor’s Office of almost 1.4 million buildings in Maricopa County, about 1900 are built with adobe.

Arica, is the further north city of Chile, built in the times of the colony and later republic, first Peruvian and now Chilean. The constructive techniques of the city, which shape its vernacular constructive culture, are the manifestation of the interweaving of traditional techniques with foreign materials, constituting a “mestizo” culture with the available local resources. The adobe, the “quincha” and the mud roofs are its main constructive techniques; those that interweave the cane, “totora” and local earth with the North American pine woods brought as ballast in the ships that look for the extraction of diverse raw materials. The Copaja House is a heritage construction built at the end of the 19th century in Arica, Chile. Today it has become one of the few buildings in the city that preserves the local earthen building culture. The carpentry with earth stand out, as “quinchas” with reeds in vertical sense, walls of adobe with wooden confinements and the flat roofs and “mojinete” roofs with local fibers and mud. The restoration of Casa Copaja seeks to conserve and value the vernacular building systems incorporating new technologies and materials to ensure its continuity to the future. It also seeks to be an example in the city of the conservation and care of local heritage, which is in an evident state of vulnerability. The restoration consists of the structural consolidation of the adobe walls reinforced with electro welded mesh; the “quinchas” are repair with wooden reinforcements; the “mojinete” and flat roofs of the building reincorporates the earthen finishing.

In Chile, there exists a constructive culture in adobe that is the reflex of the incorporation of the seismic local reality to a technique also native and brought by the Hispanic conquerors. It has evolved through time, developing an effective response to seismic events, the element that has determinate the constructive development in the Chilean territory and over all the intelligence of vernacular architecture. Recognize the constructive intelligence of the vernacular architecture that can be read as rules through the Chilean territory is the base of the knowledge to face the adobe construction properly, as in heritage construction as in contemporary interventions. The base of the deterioration of the seismic constructive systems presents in the Chilean territory has been the ignorance and the lack of valorization on the technologies shown in the vernacular heritage. The built of an open, easy ant universal tool is the start of the production of an educative video that could show the ways of building with adobe in Chile and the possibilities in the reparation process and giving value this local technique.

Ancestral Puebloan people in the North American Southwest suffered high rates of disease, poor health, and early age-at-death. Four individuals with skeletal expressions of cancer were found in a pre-Columbian population in the Taos Valley-Reports of malignant neoplasms in the archaeological record are uncommon and their presence in four of 82 individuals is a high occurrence. This study continues Whitley and Boyer's (2012) research testing whether concentrations of ionizing radiation were sufficiently high to induce cancer and related health issues. Access to a preserved and partly reconstructed subterranean pit structure inhabited between AD 1120 and 1170, allows us to test radon concentrations in a residential dwelling. This study found radon occurring in high levels, 19.4-20.3 pCi/L (717.8-751.1 Bq/m 3) within the structure. Epidemiological reports are inconsistent when linking specific cancers and radon exposure. However, this study can control for many of the confounding factors plaguing other studies, provide unique data that have the potential to initiate dialogue on the etiology of neoplastic disease in the American Southwest, and add new dimensions to the study of the living conditions and health of the Ancestral Puebloans and their descendants.

Speaking about the "City of the orient" SUAKIN in the state of Sudan which can be presented as a sample of a Historical city built by Earthen construction which most of the existing buildings needs preservation, Suakin is the primary significance of this paper, where we should take into consideration of Earthen Architecture is a feasible, affordable, durable, cost-effective, environmentally friendly construction method which can be promoted as new architecture Life style for an Orient city which this study will re-purposing the function of each restorted building in a way to make it more modernized as today life style. After restoring this building, we can use the them as the following: Suakin is a port city on the Red sea coast of the Sudan state built between the 16 th and 20 th centuries under both the Ottoman and the Egyptian influence, Suakin is located nearly opposite Jeddah-Saudi Arabia and many of its architects were Hedjaz's, who emulated the Jeddah style. Suakin had two districts, Geif (alongside the coat) and the Gezira (the island) which is a flat oval-shaped island, about 750m long and less than 500m. Suakin as a city which can be presented as a new life style method, where its Earthen Architecture reflects a 500 years of architectural tradition identified Egyptian-Ottoman and Hijazi's Architecture and used in either primitive cultures since 1500 AD, the among all the important historical civilizations across African eastern coast. Examining historical paradigms (use of wood, stone, thatch and earth as architectural material) offers us therefore an insight into how we can re-employ the architectural know how in a way that is fully adapted to the particularities of each locality and habitat, while facilitating and improving the construction process thanks to modern technologies. Furthermore, Studying Old city of SUAKIN-Africa as an example of Earthen Architecture-New life style in project of restoration the entire city that have been carried out in different aspects and provides us with the most convincing argument as regards the need for an extensive use of Earthen Architecture-new life style as an environmentally friendly, sustainable and cost-efficient alternative.

The Yuzhen Palace is one of the nine palaces in the Ancient Building Complex built by order of the Yongle Emperor during the Ming dynasty. The buildings were built with dressed black bricks. As a result of the planned national South–North Water Diversion project, the water level in the Danjiangkou Reservoir that surrounds the Yuzhen Palace was expected to rise by approximately 15 m. To avoid submersion of the site, three gates were elevated by 15 m in 2013 and other buildings dismantled, for later reconstruction. The characterization of the construction materials has therefore become of primary importance. Here, we present results on the plasters of the Longhu Hall. The analysis of materials involved a multi-analytical approach combining optical and electron microscopy with X-ray and vibrational spectromicroscopies and thermogravimetry. The results indicated the use of two earthen plaster layers and a whitewash finish coating applied over a thin preparatory intermediate layer to improve the adherence of the finish coating to the earthen plaster. Ramie and straw fibres identified in the earthen plasters were added to reduce shrinkage and cracking during drying. The raw materials used and the application technique pointed to a well-established construction industry using traditional earthen building materials together with lime technology.