Author(s)

Narcisse Malanda¹, Jean Albin Nkaya², Gilbert Ganga³, Ngambara Emamou Nondel Durvy², Paul Louzolo-Kimbémbé^1,2

¹Polytechnic National Superior School (ENSP), Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo.
²Superior Normal School (ENS), Marien Ngouabi University, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo.
³National Institute for Research in Engineering Sciences, Innovation and Technology (INRSIIT), Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo.

The current study deals Swith thermo-mechanical properties of stabilized soil small bricks with the help of organic binders of sugar cane molasses and cassava starch. Different formulations of soil concrete have been suggested after the geotechnical characterization of samples of soil was taken. From these, it arises that the studied soil is the most plastically clay (of type A₃) according to GTR classification. Samples made of small bricks and measured out at 4%, 6% and 8% of binders (molasses, starch or molasses + starch) have been warmed up to different temperatures (100°C, 150°C, 200°C and 250°C) for the rising of the thermic behavior under different conditions and submitted to crushing testings for the estimation of characteristic resistances to the compression. According to the mechanical behavior, we note an improvement of resistances for small bricks measured 4%, 6% and 8%, of molasses respectively of 32.44%, 32.06% and 23.43% against the value of reference for small bricks without molasses. In the same way, the binder (molasses + starch) also reveals an improvement of resistance to the compression of 13.27%, 26.17% and 26.17%. On the contrary, the stabilization with the starch binder did not bring a significative improvement. According to the thermic influence, the heating at 100°C of stabilized small bricks at 4%, 6% and 8% of molasses, reveals a significative improvement of resistances. Moreover, the stabilization with the starch reveals on the contrary a good behavior for heatings at 150°C and 250°C. In short, for the binder (molasses + starch), it is the heating at 200°C that shows some improvements of remarkable resistances. Different analyses of realized statistics also show the effectivity of obtained results. For all realized formulations, the measuring out at 6% of binders (molasses, or molasses + starch) seems as optimal in front of the best thermo-mechanical revealed properties.

Clay, Molasses, Cassava Starch, Heating, Compressed Soil Brick, Mechanical Resistance

Malanda, N. , Nkaya, J. , Ganga, G. , Durvy, N. and Louzolo-Kimbémbé, P. (2023) Thermo-Mechanical Properties Study of Stabilized Soil Bricks to Sugar Cane Molasses and Cassava Starch Binders. Open Journal of Applied Sciences, 13, 240-260. doi: 10.4236/ojapps.2023.132020.