Mechanical behaviour of earthen structural elements reinforced with jute fabric

Raw earth is one of the earliest and most widespread building materials in the world. Excluded from the list of building materials after the diffusion of steel and concrete in industrial countries, raw earth is back in use starting from the energy crisis of the 1970s, that induced to look for sustainable materials more compatible with environment and able to reduce the energy consumption. Such ecological and social-economic issues led to reconsider the possibility of using traditional building materials in modern constructions. The results of the investigations reported here meant to be a contribution to promote the use of raw earth as a building material and to diffuse the application of environmentally friendly reinforcement systems that can make earthen buildings suitable also for seismic areas.