Universitätsbibliothek
Weimar Open Access

Traditionally, buildings in the Inner Himalayan valleys of Bhutan were constructed from rammed earth in the western regions and quarry stone in the central and eastern regions. Whilst basic architectural design elements have been retained, the construction methods have however changed over recent decades alongside expectations for indoor thermal comfort. Nevertheless, despite the need for space heating, thermal building performance remains largely unknown. Furthermore, no dedicated climate data is available for building performance assessments. This paper establishes such climatological information for the capital Thimphu and presents an investigation of building physics properties of traditional and contemporary building types. In a one month field study 10 buildings were surveyed, looking at building air tightness, indoor climate, wall U-values and water absorption of typical wall construction materials. The findings highlight comparably high wall U-values of 1.0 to 1.5 W/m²K for both current and historic constructions. Furthermore, air tightness tests show that, due to poorly sealed joints between construction elements, windows and doors, many buildings have high infiltration rates, reaching up to 5 air changes per hour. However, the results also indicate an indoor climate moderating effect of more traditional earth construction techniques. Based on these survey findings basic improvements are being suggested.

Zur Erstellung von dekorativen Plastiken sollten Mörtel entwickelt werden, die eine hohe Biegezugfestigkeit aufweisen und eine breite Palette von Konsistenzen für verschiedene Anwendungsarten, wie Gießen, Spachteln oder Stampfen abdecken. Als Basis für die Rezepturen wurde ein niedrigviskoses Epoxidharzsystem gewählt, dessen Aminhärter einen Wasseranteil von 44 % beinhaltet. Dies ermöglichte es, durch Wasserzugabe verschiedene Viskositäten einzustellen. Um dieses Wasser in massiveren Bauteilen zu binden, wurde neben Sand auch Zement als Füllstoff eingesetzt. Die erstellten Rezepturen zeigten nach 56 Tagen hohe Druckfestigkeiten von über 50 N/mm². Mit zunehmendem Epoxidharzgehalt ergaben sich zwar steigende Biegezugfestigkeiten, jedoch unter Laborlagerung auch größere Längenänderungen. Diese konnten durch den Einsatz eines PCE-Fließmittels, PVA-Kurzfasern und einer optimierten Sieblinie verringert werden. Das Fließmittel verlängerte die Erhärtungszeiten jedoch auf bis zu 1,5 Tage. Zur Ermittlung der Dauerhaftigkeit des Materials wurde es für drei Wochen Temperaturen von -20 bis +60 °C, einer künstlichen Sonnenbestrahlung sowie künstlicher Beregnung ausgesetzt. Im Vergleich zur Laborlagerung ergab sich bei steigendem Epoxidharzanteil ein geringerer Schwund, während die Biegezugfestigkeit der Probeköper nur geringfügig abnahm. Rasterelektronenmikroskopische Untersuchungen zeigten, dass auch bei geringeren Epoxidharzzusätzen Störungen der Zementhydratation auftraten. Weiterhin zeigen sich bei geringen Epoxidharzzusätzen in der Matrix kugelförmige Einschlüsse, die von dispergierten Epoxidharzpartikeln stammen.

This article is focused on the research and development of new cellulose ether derivatives as innovative superplasticizers for mortar systems. Several synthetic strategies have been pursued to obtain new compounds to study their properties on cementitious systems as new bio-based additives. The new water-soluble admixtures were synthesized using a complex carboxymethylcellulose-based backbone that was first hydrolyzed and then sulfo-ethylated in the presence of sodium vinyl sulphonate. Starting with a complex biopolymer that is widely known as a thickening agent was very challenging. Only by varying the hydrolysis times and temperatures of the reactions was achieved the aimed goal. The obtained derivatives showed different molecular weight (Mw) and anionic charges on their backbones. An improvement in shear stress and dynamic viscosity values of CEM II 42.5R cement was observed with the samples obtained with a longer time of higher temperature hydrolysis and sulfo-ethylation. Investigations into the chemical nature of the pore solution, calorimetric studies and adsorption experiments clearly showed the ability of carboxymethyl cellulose superplasticizer (CMC SP) to interact with cement grains and influence hydration processes within a 48-h time window, causing a delay in hydration reactions in the samples. The fluidity of the cementitious matrices was ascertained through slump test and preliminary studies of mechanical and flexural strength of the hardened mortar formulated with the new ecological additives yielded values in terms of mechanical properties. Finally, the computed tomography (CT) images completed the investigation of the pore network structure of hardened specimens, highlighting their promising structure porosity.

Strain measurement is important in mechanical testing. A wide variety of techniques exists for measuring strain in the tensile test; namely the strain gauge, extensometer, stress and strain determined by machine crosshead motion, Geometric Moire technique, optical strain measurement techniques and others. Each technique has its own advantages and disadvantages. The purpose of this study is to quantitatively compare the strain measurement techniques. To carry out the tensile test experiments for S 235, sixty samples were cut from the web of the I-profile in longitudinal and transverse directions in four different dimensions. The geometry of samples are analysed by 3D scanner and vernier caliper. In addition, the strain values were determined by using strain gauge, extensometer and machine crosshead motion. Three techniques of strain measurement are compared in quantitative manner based on the calculation of mechanical properties (modulus of elasticity, yield strength, tensile strength, percentage elongation at maximum force) of structural steel. A statistical information was used for evaluating the results. It is seen that the extensometer and strain gauge provided reliable data, however the extensometer offers several advantages over the strain gauge and crosshead motion for testing structural steel in tension. Furthermore, estimation of measurement uncertainty is presented for the basic material parameters extracted through strain measurement.