Project News

Conducted static tests of a full-scaled rammed earth specimen at the Department of Culture (Floor band method)

On April 20th and May 6th, the Department of Culture (DOC), Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs conducted static loading tests on a full-scaled specimen. The specimen is a two-story full-scaled rammed earth building. The loading tests were conducted twice, before and after reinforcing of the building. On April 20th, before reinforcement, a small amount of deformation was applied to observe the characteristics of the building. After that, floor band was provided at each floor with use of 12 mm torsion wire (twisted wire). Torsion wire was wrapped around the building at each floor level and it was tightened with a turnbuckle. The reinforcement method is aimed at increasing rigidity by giving wire restraint to the floor deck. On May 6th, DOC conducted static loading on this reinforced condition. The loading was carried out until the storey drift was 1/50, i.e. horizontal deformation of the top floor became 112mm.

This method can reduce the impact on the facade of rammed earth building because only the area around the floor slab level is the enforcement area. If this reinforcement effect can be verified, it is considered to be an effective reinforcement method for rammed earth buildings.

Loading test (left) and Reinforcement with torsion wire (right)
Photo courtesy of DOC

Holding of the 5th Joint Coordination Committee

The 5th Joint Coordinating Committee was held on May 19th. The meeting was planned to held when Japanese counterparts could travel to Bhutan after the travel restriction was lifted, but since the project period is less than a year and it is necessary to prepare for final evaluation, it was held at this opportunity. The chairman was the Secretary of the Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs, the Bhutanese side gathered in the conference room of DOC, and the Japanese side was held by remote participation. The Chief Representative of the JICA Bhutan office also participated in person. From Japan, researchers, JST, and JICA headquarters participated by remote. The proceedings were carried out by exchanging opinions on the current progress and future plans for the matters pointed out at the mid-term evaluation. The final evaluation is scheduled to take place in December 2022, and the deadline for each activity has been confirmed. It is expected that the Japanese reserachers will resume traveling in August. It is thought this meeting was a good opportunity to confirm the preparations toward the final evaluation.

Bhutan team at conference hall (left) and Japan team by remote (right)
Photo courtesy of DOC

Conducted building microtremor survey in Ura - pilot site

From May 9th to 15th, the Department of Culture (DOC) and Department of Engineering Services (DES) jointly carried out the architectural documentation and measured the micro-tremor measurements of traditional stone masonry houses at Pilot Site, Ura gewog. Ura is designated as the pilot site as the area has predominant traditional stone masonry houses construction. A risk map is created based on the hazard map, and the building data observed at this time will be used to estimate how much each house will be damaged by seismic motion. The data from these surveys are essential for the creation of the risk maps. In the pilot site, we will carry out earthquake disaster prevention awareness activities for residents using our risk maps upon completion.

Hearing from resident (left) and tremor observation of building (right)
Photo courtesy of DOC

Topographic survey by drone in Ura - pilot site

From May 26th, Department of Geology and Mines (DGM) conducted a topographical survey by drone at Ura Gewog, our project pilot site.

The survey was conducted using the drone "DJI mavic 2 pro" donated by JICA to DGM. In advance a flight plan was made using an app called "DJI GS Pro". With this app, it can be set the flight path, photo overlap, flight height from the ground, and shooting angle, and operate the equipment.

This time, the drone was flown at a height of 80 meters above the ground and at a speed of 10 meters per second, covering a total area of 1 km square in one flight.

The obtained terrain data will be useful for creating hazard maps for pilot sites.

Operating drone (left) and aerial photo by drone (right)
Photo courtesy of DGM

Flight plan by App"DJI GS Pro"

Presentation at International Conference

The "2nd International Conference on Science, Engineering and Technology" was held on 2nd May 2022, organaized by the Colleage of Science and Technology of the Royal University of Bhutan, where the counterpart of the Department of Culture (DOC) made her presentation. This year, the event was held in a format in which the presenters participated remotely. The title of the presentation was "Strengthening techniques for rammed earth buildings: Test results of full-scale static test". The conference was joined by international experts, staffs and students of College of Science and Technology and other professionals from different agencies in the country. It was an opportunity to showcase the outputs of the project and the experimental facilities in DOC and also the effects of reinforcing technology verified through experimental campaign performed on full-scaled rammed earth buildings.

Presenting experimental facility (left) Presenting reinforcement effect (right)
Photo courtesy of Mr. Koji Yamada