Influence of coconut fiber incorporation on the mechanical behavior of adobe blocks

Adobe is an ancient construction technique, simple and low cost, still used in some parts of the world, mainly in rural areas. Normally, in these regions, a considerable amount of agricultural waste is generated that can be used for different purposes. An agricultural waste that has been increasingly studied in the construction sector is natural fibers. The addition of natural fibers in the soil matrix has been gaining prominence as it is a natural and easily accessible stabilizer. This work aimed to analyze and characterize adobe blocks reinforced with coconut fibers, with the addition of 1% and 2% compared to the reference block (without the addition of coconut fiber) through capillary absorption, fiber-soil adhesion, durability in the presence of water and mechanical, properties through of compression bending tests. The adobe blocks with the addition of fibers showed mechanical results above those required by the standard NBR 16814. The addition of fibers promoted higher capillary absorption results than the samples consisting only of soil and when exposed to drip erosion, no significant damage was observed in the adobe structure.