CHANGE OF ADOBE PROPERTIES DEPENDING ON HUMIDITY

Abstract

The purpose of the research is determining characteristics of strength properties and shrinkage
of adobe on the Yemen and Ural clays and its dependence on adobe’s humidity at different times of
drying.
There is always water vapor in the air that is formed as a result of water evaporation from the
surfaces of oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, etc.
The amount of water vapor contained in the air, dependent on the weather, determines a
person's well-being, the functioning of many of his organs, as well as the preservation of properties
of technical objects and architectural structures; this is a characteristic feature of hygroscopic
materials with high microporosity.
Such material as adobe changes its properties in several times depending on humidity due to
both water consumption and as a result of hygroscopic property and condensation of water vapor.
Therefore, adobe is frequently used in countries with hot dry climate. For Yemen, a long period of
high temperatures while absence of rainfall is a characteristic phenomenon. Nevertheless, at the
coastland, an increase of air humidity and decrease of qualitative characteristics of adobe’s
properties becomes possible during the winter season. Therefore determining dependencies of
adobe’s properties on humidity is a relevant objective.