Date Palm Byproducts in Construction, Insulation and Building Materials

Abstract

This chapter reviews several scientific breakthroughs that have tackled the potential of utilizing date palm byproducts for various uses in contemporary construction field as a sustainable and renewable alternative to conventional materials such as concrete and steel. The chapter demonstrates and classifies the fields of utilizing date palm byproducts in construction into usage in the natural form and usage in the processed form. Using date palm midribs in their natural form for light structures was investigated by several studies that showed clear loyalty to traditional techniques whose continuing thriving to the present day indicates their compatibility with the material while sustaining low-cost production. In addition, date palm midribs and trunk were investigated to be used to produce facades and structural sandwich panels. On the other hand, other researches focused on processing date palm fibers to be used in more sophisticated fields such as reinforcing concrete, high strength concrete and mortar to enhance shrinkage resistance and ductility. In addition, the superior insolating properties of date palm fibers led to their involvement in several researches specialized in producing insulation materials, polyester composites and insolating panels which are highly in demand globally to reduce the cooling loads and heating loads and improve the indoor air quality of residential and office spaces. Moreover, crushed date palm midribs ash, midribs and petioles fibers have been introduced as a recommendable stabilizer for traditional building materials such as raw earth blocks and compressed blocks.