Compressive Performance of Concrete Columns Reinforced with Bamboo Splits and Culms

The effects of global warming have been widely and more intensely experienced, and the developing communities are the most affected, as they could hardly cope. A measure taken by the researchers is to explore sustainable alternatives to the commonly used structural materials, such as steel and cement, which are non-renewable and energy-intensive to produce. Bamboo is known for its rapid growth rate and wide availability, especially in Asia. It has emerged as a promising renewable material as several species of bamboo have been utilized pre-historically in earlier structures until studies have confirmed the adequacy of specific species to be used as structural members. Modern studies have demonstrated the potential of bamboo in bamboo-reinforced concrete (BRC) configuration and in composite configurations – concrete-encased bamboo and concrete-filled bamboo (CFB). This study introduces a hybrid configuration: the bamboo-reinforced concrete-encased concrete-filled bamboo (BRCE-CFB) composite column. Despite some limitations in the experimental setup, particularly unavoidable over-reinforcement due to constraints on available equipment, the study offers key insights into the compressive performance of this column section. The crack propagation patterns indicate that the BRCE-CFB configuration enhances the compressive performance of concrete columns. Additionally, the type of coating applied to bamboo significantly affects structural performance. The results of the separate compression test performed on the CFB samples have confirmed the effective confinement of the concrete infill by the bamboo culm. Lastly, the performed cost-benefit analysis of materials between the BRCE-CFB composite column and steel-reinforced column suggests that using Sikadur 732 as bamboo coating in the BRCE-CFB is not cost-effective, and cheaper epoxy products are recommended to be evaluated in further studies.