Engineering Bamboo

The fish-mouth joint is typically used in bamboo-based construction. This high-performance yet cost-effective joint allows bamboo structures to withstand earthquakes and typhoons, with a 60% lower carbon footprint compared to concrete and bricks. The chair of sustainable construction at ETH Zurich develops data and digital tools for environmental assessment of this kind of construction. Collaboration with NGOs has enabled a wider application of this technology, with more than 1000 homes built in the Philippines.

The chair for sustainable construction at ETH Zürich has been involved in bamboo research for over a decade. From the beginning, it was clear that sustainable solutions for the affordable housing crisis were in dire need. Moreover, the knowledge gap was wider than the pure engineering and material science aspects, and it was necessary to cover questions regarding its environmental impacts. Thus, special focus has been placed on the development of cost-effective solutions that can support the implementation of bamboo-based construction projects.

Digital tools and data were developed at the chair for sustainable construction ETH Zurich in order to assess the environmental impacts of bamboo-based materials and buildings and their sustainability through their value chain. The inclusion of Life Cycle Assessment data for bamboo-based construction materials on the ecoinvent database (ecoinvent.org) was a major milestone. This data was essential to show the regenerative potential of this type of construction, where a reduction on the carbon footprint of up to 60% can be achieved in comparison to conventional construction systems (figure 3). During the last nine years, almost one thousand homes have been built in the Philippines, withstanding recurrent hurricane winds of up to 280km/h and earthquakes.

This work is carried out in collaboration with international universities in the Americas, Europe and Aasia. Moreover, a close collaboration with NGOs like the HILTI foundation and the BASE-bahay foundation has been at the forefront of this work.

In collaboration with the University of the Philippines and the BASE-bahay foundation we are carrying out a monitoring program of thermal comfort on existing bamboo based construction projects. The goal is to generate validated data that can be used in simulations aimed to improve the thermal performance of bamboo based buildings and thus the quality of life of their occupants.

Our research showed that investing in bamboo value chains is a sustainable solution to the social housing crisis in the global south. These value chains create employment, strengthen local economies while providing affordable and resilient homes to vulnerable communities. Moreover, these value chains enable the creation of carbon sinks in form of sustainable manager bamboo forest and bamboo based buildings

Bamboo is a regenerative material, increasing its use in the built environment has a multiplying effect in the communities engaged in its production. Moreover, Bamboo is the material that can spearhead a sustainable transition towards NET-ZERO built environment

Further Reading

1. Eleftheriou, E.; Lopez Muñoz, L.F.; Habert, G.; Zea Escamilla, E. Parametric Approach to Simplified Life Cycle Assessment of Social Housing Projects. Sustainability 2022, 14, 7409.
2. Zea Escamilla, E.; H.A.; Nuramo, D.A.; Trujillo, D. Bamboo: An Engineered Alternative for Buildings in the Global South. Bioclimatic Architecture in Warm Climates. Springer 2019, 397-414.
3. Zea Escamilla, E.; Habert, G.; Correal Daza, J.; Archilla, H.; Echeverry Fernández, J.; Trujillo, D. Industrial or Traditional Bamboo Construction? Comparative Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) of Bamboo-Based Buildings.Sustainability 2018, 10, 3096.
4. Zea Escamilla, E.; Habert, G.; Wohlmuth, E. When CO₂ counts: Sustainability assessment of industrialized bamboo as an alternative for social housing programs in the Philippines. BUILD ENVIRON 2016, 103, 44-53, doi.
5. Zea Escamilla, E.; Habert, G. Global or local construction materials for post-disaster reconstruction? Sustainability assessment of twenty post-disaster shelter designs. BUILD ENVIRON 2015, 92, 692-702, doi.
6. Zea Escamilla, E.; Habert, G. Environmental Impacts of Bamboo-based Construction Materials Representing Global Production Diversity. J CLEAN PROD 2014.
7. INBAR. Vernacular Bamboo Architecture: Tradition Or Future? Bamboo and Rattan Update (BRU) 2021.
8. Van Dam, J.E.; Elbersen, H.W.; Montaño, C.M.D. Bamboo Production for Industrial Utilization. In Perennial Grasses for Bioenergy and Bioproducts; Elsevier: 2018; pp. 175-216.
9. Yulo, A. Bamboo for social housing? Base Bahay shows us how it can be done. Online Version
10. Salzer, C.; Wallbaum, H.; Alipon, M.; Lopez, L.F. Determining material suitability for low-rise housing in the Philippines: physical and mechanical properties of the bamboo species Bambusa blumeana. BioResources 2018, 13, 346-369.
11. Laurence, A.T.; Trujillo, D.; Feltham, I.; Kaminski, S.; Delgado, F.L. Structural use of bamboo.: Part 4: Element design equations. The Structural Engineer: journal of the Institution of Structural Engineer 2017, 95, 24-27.
12. Salzer, C.; Wallbaum, H.; Lopez, L.; Kouyoumji, J. Sustainability of Social Housing in Asia: A Holistic Multi-Perspective Development Process for Bamboo-Based Construction in the Philippines. Sustainability 2016, 8, 151.
13. Trujillo, D.; Archila, H.F. Engineered bamboo and bamboo engineering; TRADA: High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, UK, 2016.
14. Kaminski, S.; Lawrence, A.; Trujillo , D. Structural use of bamboo Part 1: Introduction to bamboo. The Structural Engineer 2016.
15. Kaminski, S.; Lawrence, A.; Trujillo, D.; King, C. Structural use of bamboo–Part 2: Durability and preservation. The Structural Engineer. Journal of the Institution of Structural Engineer 2016, 94, 38-43.
16. Kaminski, S.; Lawrence, A.; Trujillo, D.; Feltham, I.; Felipe López, L. Structural use of bamboo. Part 3: Design values. The Structural Engineer: journal of the Institution of Structural Engineer 2016, 94, 42-45.