Study on Bamboo and Steel-Reinforced Hybrid Panels for Fast Construction in Natural Disaster-Hit Zones
摘要
Natural disasters are devastating events that lead to a significant environmental destruction as well as loss of life and property. These disasters include earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, tornadoes and volcanic eruptions. Due to its geographical location and topography, Northeast India is extremely vulnerable to natural calamities, particularly flood and earthquake. The region experiences high seismic activity as it lies in a seismically active zone. To address emergency housing needs in disaster-prone areas, bamboo and steel hybrid panels were explored as a cost-effective and durable solution. In this region, hybrid bamboo panels reinforced with steel have been proposed for temporary relief accommodation. Design methodologies have been developed for these low-cost structures, which can be easily assembled and disassembled. Bamboo has already been successfully utilized in temporary shelters. In this study, a demo toilet unit of size 1.2 × 1.6 × 2.4 m of thickness 60 mm was tested up to the service load of 12.8 kN/m2 and no cracks were observed in the demo unit. Overall, bamboo and steel hybrid panels present a promising solution for providing relief accommodation in areas affected by natural disasters.