Study of the Mechanical Behavior of Traditional Japanese Mud Wall on Bamboo Lath

Department of Architecture, Kindai University, Japan

Abstract: Mud wall on bamboo lath is a traditional Japanese method for constructing walls. Although the use of mud walls is environmentally friendly, it is necessary to evaluate the performances of the walls, especially their structural resistance, for broader and safe application. However, the performances of mud walls vary widely with various factors, including the locality, the natural materials used, the construction method adopted, and the quality of workmanship. In this study, the combinations of factors expected to improve the initial stiffness and toughness of mud walls were first determined based on previous studies. Subsequently, to reveal the influences of the bamboo lath configuration and properties of the wall mud on the structural resistance, structural experiments were conducted using full-section-sized specimens, the mechanical behavior observed, and characteristic values calculated. The results indicate that a mud wall of high initial stiffness can be practically achieved by avoiding gaps between the load-bearing elements and using wall mud with large elastic modulus and compressive strength. However, such walls tend to have reduced toughness because of marked delamination at the interface of the layers.