1. Hemp and Lime as a Building
Material
Dinesh.

2. Contents:-
 Introduction
 Historical back ground
 Hemp
 Lime
 Composite materials
 Combination of hemp and lime
 The three mixes
 Method of sample preparation
 Laboratary tests
 conclusions

3. Introduction:-
The combination of hemp and lime is
considered as an alternate structural building
to other conventional materials. These
materials are ‘environmentally friendly’ and
have, overall, a low level of embodied energy.
Hemp is a plant and thus utilizes carbon
dioxide during its growth. Natural hydraulic
lime produces less co2 in its production than
cement and also absorbs co2 as it sets.

4. Historical background
The first documented use of organic materials
in construction dates back as the
Mesopotamian civilization(2000 Bc), where
buildings were discovered made from mud
bricks reinforced with reeds. This tradition
has continued through the ages and is now
being revitalized in the in the 21st century
through the increased building with cob
(monolithic mud and straw), straw-bale
houses and adobe(mud and straw bricks).

5. .
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6. Hemp
 There is much interest among both engineers
and architects in using hemp hurds as an
aggregate with hydraulic lime binders, as they
are both strong and light.
 Throughout the world, hemp is cultivated
commercially for its strong, valuable fibers and
oil
 These hurds are natural by-product after the
plant has been used for other purposes.
 Hemp plant does not require pesticides
and requires less fertilizing.
 One hectare of hemp produces 3.5 tons
of hurds.

8. Lime
 Lime comes from lime
stone rock and has been
used in building for
thousands of years.
 It was used in ancient times
and in the roman empire.
 The earliest traces of lime
use in construction have
been found in early
Egyptian buildings
 The blocks of
pyramids, were bond using
a lime motor.

9. The dome of the pantheon is made of
lime concrete

10. Composite materials
 A composite building material consists of
at least two different materials, neither of
which is suitable for constricting buildings
on its own but when combined, result in a
strong and suitable material.
 These materials have been used in
buildings for thousands of years. Adobe
mud huts made from a mixture of straw
and clay have existed since the stone
age.
 In the last 40 years polymer composite
materials have been developed.

11. Glass fiber mats and natural fiber like
hemp fibers are the good composite mix
inner car door made of
hemp
fibers

12. Combination of hemp and
Lime
 Hemp hurds can be used as an aggregate in the lime mix to
form a durable and lightweight material
 Currently, this is being used as an infill in timber frame
houses
Infill of timber frame structure with hemp hurds and lime

13. The three mixes
1) Hemp and lime
2) Hemp fibers (and hurds) and lime
3) Hemp, lime and sand
volume proportions of materials in mix
Hemp hurds: lime hemp fibers (and hurds):lime hemp hurds:
lime: sand
0:1 0:1 3:1:0
1:1 1:1 3:1:1
2;1 2:1 3:1:2
3:1 3:1 3:1:3
4:1 no samples 3:1:4
5:1 5:1 no samples

14. • Three cubes and three cylinders were
prepared so that an average strength
could be calculated for each mix
 The bulk density of each material was
calculated
bulk density of material
Hemp hurds hemp fibers(and hurds):lime Lime
sand
92 kg/m3 106 kg/m3 636kg/m3
1027kg/m3

15. Method of sample preparation
 The dimensions of cubes used
were 100mmx100mmx100mm.
The cylinders had a diameter of
100mm and were 200mm high.
The moulds are lined with a cling
film.
 A known volume of lime was
mixed with water until a workable
state was reached. This
water/lime ratio was kept
constant during the experiments.
To prevent hemp from absorbing
water during mixing, hemp hurds
was soaked in water for
10minutes in advance.
Mould lined with cling-
film

16. • The materials were added
gradually to a mixture.
Slump test was carried
out, for mixes with a slump
less than 40mm a 2.5kg
proctor hammer used for
compacting.
 The samples were de-moulded after 24
hours and allowed to dry at room
temperature. They are then placed in a
carbonation tank with a
concentration=10%. They are allowed to
cure for 30 days.
 Lime sets firstly with water and secondly
with co2. The use of carbonation tank
accelerated this process, as the normal
combination of co2 in air is 0.03%

17. A test was conducted for the samples to know how
much lime reacted with co2. The samples were
sprayed with phenolphthalein after testing. The purple
colour in photos shows phenolphthalein reacted with
the un-carbonated region.

18. Laboratory tests
 The compressive and
tensile material strength of
the different mixes was
measured using cube
compression tests.
 The cubes did not fracture
but deformed slowly due to
the fibrous nature of the
material. This displacement
was limited to 10mm, and
the maximum force was
recorded

21. Determination of young's moduli for
various mixes
Mix hurds[mpa] mix fibers[mpa] mix sand[mpa]
1:1 167 1:1 219 3:1:0 38
2:1 78 2:1 67 3:1:1 89
3:1 38 3:1 68 3:1:2 162
4:1 36 - - 3:1:3 77
5:1 24 5:1 22 3:1:4 38

22. Results of tensile tests for mixes
Hurd lime mix
Hurd mix density[kg/m3] force[kn] tensile
strength[n/m3]
1:1 1269.27 10.44 0.22
2:1 1094.23 10.70 0.23
3:1 865.57 7.10 0.15
4:1 714.17 5.75 0.12
5:1 652.33 5.68 0.12
Fiber lime mix
Mix density[kg/m3] force[kn] tensile
strength[n/m3]
1:1 1331.90 11.98 0.25
2:1 1118.00 8.66 0.18
3:1 914.47 6.43 0.14

23. Hurd/lime/sand mix
mix density[kg/m3] force[kn] tensile strength[n/mm2]
3:1:1 1274.60 5.64 0.12
3:1:2 1708.83 7.82 0.17
3:1:3 1878.40 8.21 0.17
3:1:4 1877.37 4.71 0.10
Advantages of hemp and lime as building material:-
 Low embodied energy –an ‘environmentally
friendly’ material.
 A structural and insulating building material.
 Durable and light weight.
 Provides a ‘breathable’ and porous building
membrane. This prevents moisture build-up and
ensures a dry building.

24. conclusions
 Building with this material uses less energy than
conventional methods and is a sustainable building
solution for the future.
 It is a material which both insulates and provides
structural strength.
 A 5:1hurd/lime mix was considered to be as
optimum mix ratio with a compressive strength of
0.7N/mm2 and an estimated thermal conductivity of
0.11w/mk.
 A 3:1 hurd/lime mix has the same strength as
5:1hurd/lime mix. This is a significant result as
previously hurd/lime mixes used as infill in timber
frames have been based on 3:1 mix by volume
which uses the lime binder less efficiently and has
a higher thermal conductivity.

25. EXAMPLES OF HEMP BUILDINGS

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27. YOU
thank