[Cob] Hemp Lime

[Joseph Kennedy]

Hi all,
 
Some years ago I made some "hemp cob" for the Solar Sanctuary in Portland, Oregon (city repair) with hemp hurds, inspired by some of the work with hemp lime in the UK I saw about ten years ago.  I liked it a lot.  To clarify, in the hemp lime I saw they also use the hurds - *not* the fiber - as a panel infill, similar in procedure to straw-clay.  Not sure if they are referring to the fiber or hurds in the article below.  I personally think the strength of the fibers could be overkill, unless they were chopped up somehow. It is hard enough to work with rice straw!
 
All the best,
 
Joe Kennedy
 
While in england I also made some lime straw (like clay straw) which I liked and worked quite well. 
 
> From: fhanlan at hotmail.com
> To: coblist at deatech.com
> Date: Wed, 1 Sep 2010 15:27:14 -0700
> Subject: Re: [Cob] Hemp Lime
> 
> 
> Hi All,
> 
> I apologize if this has been posted before and with the knowledge that growing hemp in the U.S. is illegal although it grows wild and is considered a weed in several states. I like the idea of using hemp especially due to its strength.
> 
> Hemp Could Be Key To Zero-Carbon Houses
> 
> 
> ScienceDaily (Apr. 13, 2009)
> — Hemp, a plant from the cannabis family, could be used to build 
> carbon-neutral homes of the future to help combat climate change and 
> boost the rural economy, say researchers at the University of Bath.
> 
> 
> A consortium, led by the BRE Centre for Innovative Construction 
> Materials based at the University, has embarked on a unique housing 
> project to develop the use of hemp-lime construction materials in the 
> UK.
> Hemp-lime is a lightweight composite building material made of fibres
> from the fast growing plant, bound together using a lime-based 
> adhesive. The hemp plant stores carbon during its growth and this, 
> combined with the low carbon footprint of lime and its very efficient 
> insulating properties, gives the material a ‘better than zero carbon’ 
> footprint.
> 
> Professor Pete Walker, Director of the BRE Centre for Innovative 
> Construction Materials, explained: “We will be looking at the 
> feasibility of using hemp-lime in place of traditional materials, so 
> that they can be used widely in the building industry.
> 
> “We will be measuring the properties of lime-hemp materials, such as 
> their strength and durability, as well as the energy efficiency of 
> buildings made of these materials.
> 
> “Using renewable crops to make building materials makes real sense - 
> it only takes an area the size of a rugby pitch four months to grow 
> enough hemp to build a typical three bedroom house.
> 
> “Growing crops such as hemp can also provide economic and social 
> benefits to rural economies through new agricultural markets for farmers
> and associated industries.”
> 
> The three year project, worth almost £750,000, will collect vital 
> scientific and engineering data about this new material so that it can 
> be more widely used in the UK for building homes.
> 
> The project brings together a team of nine partners, comprising BRE 
> Ltd, Feilden Clegg Bradley Studio architects, Hanson Cement, Hemcore, 
> Lhoist UK, Lime Technology, National Non-Food Crops Centre, University 
> of Bath and Wates Living Space. As part of the project the University of
> Bath received a research grant of £391,000 from the Renewable Materials
> LINK programme run by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural 
> Affairs (DEFRA).
> 
> Sincerely yours,
> Frank Hanlan
> 
> Edmonton, AB
> 
> If you have not demonstrated that you can hear the truth and still act then don't expect to be told the truth. 
> 
> If we have not ensured that global green house gas emissions have peaked and started down by the end of
> 2015 then it will be next to impossible to keep global average temperature rise under 2.4C which will mean
> widespread flooding and the displacement of 400 to 500 million people.
> 
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