SUPERADOBE

TECHNOLOGY

Presented by:

KEVIN J PETER

Guided by:

Ms. SUFINA A. M.
 INTRODUCTION

 In 1984, NASA's first symposium on lunar bases and

space activities of the 21st century received the
presentations dealing with the utilization of onsite
natural resources to construct future lunar and
martian habitations
 The Sandbag/ Superadobe/ Superblock technology
was presented here
 HISTORY OF SUPERADOBE TECHNOLOGY

 Military infantrymen have used sand filled sacks to create

bunkers and barriers for protection prior to World War I
 German architect Frei Otto is said to have experimented with
earth bags
 The technique’s current pioneer is Nader Khalili who originally
developed the Superadobe system in 1984 in response to a
NASA call for housing designs for future human settlements on
the Moon and on Mars
 Since 1995, the Super Adobe Method has been put to use in
Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Belize, Costa Rica, Chile, Iran, India,
Siberia, Mali, and Thailand, as well as in the U.S
ABOUT NADER KHALILI

o Iranian-born California architect

o Designer and innovator of the
Geltaftan Earth-and-Fire System known
as ceramic houses as well as the
Superadobe building technologies
o His impressions have been collected in
his book Racing Alone
o Founder and director of the Cal-Earth
Institute dedicated to research and
development in earth and space
architecture technologies for the moon
and Mars
 WHAT IS SUPERADOBE TECHNOLOGY?
 Form of earthbag construction
 The technique uses layered long fabric tubes or bags filled
with adobe to form a compression structure
 Long or short sandbags are filled with on-site earth and
arranged in layers or long coils (compression) with strands of
barbed wire placed between them to act as both mortar and
reinforcement (tension)
Going into detail……..

Structural aspects
Materials used
Uses
Safety standards and comforts
PRINCIPLES OF SUPERADOBE CONSTRUCTION

1. Base planning units on natural boundaries or flows, such as

aquifers, transition zones, or flows of air, heat, or water,
materials, nutrients, and people
2. Design with nature
3. Consider global or regional effects of the building process
4. Encourage inter jurisdictional planning
5. Incorporate broad, cooperative, community-based local
decision making……
….
6. Maintain longterm monitoring and feedback on effects of
buildings
7. Apply an interdisciplinary approach to information
8. Integrate (don’t just balance) economic, social, and
environmental concerns
9. Link ecosystem planning to democratic change, social
learning, community building, and environmental
education
10. Use, wherever possible, locally sourced materials with
low embedded energy
ENVIRONMENTAL FEATURES OF A
SUPERADOBE BUILDING
• Minimal use of wood
• Minimal use of such as steel that require a great deal of
energy to produce
• Thick adobe walls provide passive cooling and heating
• Triple glazed windows absorb heat-emitting UV rays,
cooling the structure
• Electricity both for the construction and the building’s
operation will be supplied by photovoltaics
• Sustainable materials will be chosen for flooring,
cabinets, doors, etc.
 CONSTRUCTION PROCESS

 Digging a circular pit of desired size

 One layer of the sandbag role is then laid into place,
and consequently filled with either moistened earth or a
mixture of 90% earth and 10% concrete.
 The bag is then tamped down with a tamping tool, to
eliminate settling and provide structural stability.
 A line of four-pointed barbed wire is then hooked down
the middle of the top of the bag.
 Upon this layer, successive layers are built up in the
Lancet form, leaving appropriate space for doorways
and windows where desired.
FINISHING OF A SUPERADOBE BUILDING

- Khalili developed a system that used 85% earth and 15%

cement plaster and which is then covered by “Reptile”, a
veneer of grapefruit sized balls of cement and earth.
Reptile is easy to install and because the balls create
easy paths for stress, it doesn't crack with time
- Some Superadobe buildings have even been covered by
living grass, a kind of Green roof
- The floor of a Superadobe building is usually finished last
so that plumbing and electrical lines can be run
underneath
 ADVANTAGES OF SUPERADOBE

 Most of the building material is free, local, and used

without harm to the environment.
 Homeowners can build a Superadobe house
themselves, filling and placing the bags by hand.
 The earth-filled bags provide insulation and thermal
mass.
 Sandbags are resistant to fires, wind, and of course,
floods.
 Superadobe structures have passed California's tests
for earthquake safety.
 CONCLUSION
 Superadobe technology, created in the 1990’s by Nader
Khalili is gaining attention for its simplicity and
sustainability
 Superadobe transforms modern architecture, which depletes
natural resources, into a method of building which is
affordable, sustainable, functional and beautiful
 The Superadobe technique meets all Los Angeles County
building code, the strictest codes in the United States
 It has been tested and proved to withstand earthquakes of up
to 8.0 on the Richter Scale
 It is comfortable in extremes of temperature and is fire
resistant
 Thus superadobe technology is a perfect green building
technique and will get wide spread soon
 REFERENCES
1. Rob Wainwright, “Building an earthbag dome”, The
Owner Building (TOB), pp. 6-11, February/March 2008.
2. Joseph F Kennedy, “ Building with earth bags”, Natural
Building Colloquium, Networks Productions, 14 February
2007.
3. Brooke Barnes, Mihyun Kang, and Huantian Cao,
“Sustainable Characteristics of Earthbag Housing”, Housing
and Society Journal ”, 2006.
4. “When Shelter is made from the Earth's Own Dust”, New
York Times, 15 April 1999.
5. “What is superadobe?”, http://calearth.org/building-
designs/what-is superadobe.html, Accessed on 29-08-
2011.
6. “Build a small earthbag dome”,
http://www.greenhomebuilding.com/weblog/2007/08/shor
t-history-of-earthbag-building.htm, Accessed on 29-08-
2011.