The fracture behaviour of fresh bamboo under uniaxial compressive loading condition

This study investigates the development of the crushing strength of fresh Bamboo samples (Bambusa vulgaris). Crushing strength experiment was performed using Uniaxial Compression Machine. The data is plotted as crushing stress versus height, load versus time of failure and crushing stress versus thickness. Microstructures were also analyzed. Moisture content of bamboo was carried out to know the effect of moisture on the crushing strength. Results show that, increase in height reduces the strength of the bamboo and vice versa. Increase in moisture content increases the strength of the Bamboo. The height of the fresh bamboo decreases as the crushing load increases and the time of failure also increase. The effect of thickness does not depend on only the crushing stress but also the amount of moisture in the bamboo. The crushing stresses for a height of 250, 210, 170, 130, and 90 mm were 51.3093, 71.1447, 74.5867, 79.5905 and 85.2036 MPa, respectively. The cup zone, the cone zone and the cylindrical zone experienced several crack initiations. The microstructure shows a contour-like pattern due to the extent of deformation caused by the subjected load on the bamboo. The deformations in these cases were severe with few brownish-dark areas representing the stress concentration areas. © Maxwell Scientific Organization, 2010.