The influence of soil content on the mechanical properties, drying shrinkage and autogenous shrinkage of earth concrete

Earth concrete is increasingly used for the construction of buildings and other civil engineering structures, yet little data are available to date describing the shrinkage of this building material. The present experimental study evaluates the behavior of four concrete mixtures containing different quantities of soil and presenting various water/cement ratios. Earth concrete samples were cast then stocked at normal room temperature and humidity levels. Tensile strength, modulus of elasticity, one directional shrinkage and X-ray diffraction were measured in all samples. The results indicate that the storage conditions and soil content of earth concrete influence the mechanical behavior and shrinkage of this building material.