COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE MECHANICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF STABILIZED COMPRESSED EARTH BLOCKS: CASE OF STABILIZATION WITH LIME AND CEMENT

This article presents the preliminary results of the comparative study of mechanical characteristics of compressed earth blocks stabilized with cement and lime. This study is relevant to the study of the possibility of replacing cement with lime in the techniques for stabilizing compressed earth blocks. This study, prompted by the concern to reduce the cost of construction, fits well with the policy of promotion and valorization of local construction materials in Benin. This work focuses on the comparative study of the mechanical characteristics of compressed earth blocks stabilized with cement and lime. In this study, we were interested in ferralitic soils called terre de barre wich we will name bar soil stabilized with cement and lime. Identification tests in the laboratory made it possible to classify the material according to the classification of the NF P 11 300 standard and the GTR. Calavi bar soil contains a high proportion of fine particles. It is a sand-clay mixture. Its plasticity index shows that it is a material that can be used in the making of stabilized earth blocks. The Compressed Earth Block (CEB) stabilized with cement and lime at the same percentage, namely 6-8 and 10%, underwent simple compression tests, three-point bending, abrasion and water absorption by capillary action. The comparative study of the results revealed that CEB stabilized with cement are more resistant and less porous than those stabilized with lime.