THE MATERIAL reamed earth as used for the new building of the "Chapel of Reconciliation" in Chapel of Reconciliation
Architect: reitermann & sassenroth architekten,
Berlin Structural Design: Pichler Ingenieure, Berlin Special Adviser for Loam, Testing of Material, External Supervision: Technical
University Berlin Load-bearing Structures and Building Division Prof. Dr. Ing., Dr.-Ing. E.h. Klaus Dierks Dipl. Ing. Christof Ziegert
Construction Work: Lehm Ton Erde, Martin Rauch, Schlins, Austria
Supplier of the rammed earth: GS - Baustoff - Zentrum, Herzfelde
Beginning of Planning: 11/1997 Building Period: 05/1999 -
06/2000
The Chapel of Reconciliation is Germany's first sacred building made of load-bearing earth. Planning and works management were carried out by the Berlin architects Rudolf Reitermann and Peter Sassenroth; construction work was done by Martin Rauch and his firm, Lehm - Ton – Erde, in cooperation with several local earth-building firms and with the support of Open Houses volunteers. The Technical University of Berlin’s Load-bearing Structures and Building Division was commissioned to submit specialist advice and to supervise the building process. Rammed-earth construction was chosen as building technique for the 7.2m load-bearing interior wall. Because the building technique was not well-recognised, a so-called ‘single case authorisation,’ requiring a detailed analysis of the material during both manufacture and installation as well as the careful supervision of the building process, was needed.
n January 1999 various trial mixtures were tested for their compressive, tensile and shearing strength. The mixture with material characteristics of concrete, as seen in the table below was selected for the chapel building. It is a conglomerate of clay and stony aggregates of different grain sizes to which a small amount of flax fibres was added. The relations between shearing, tensile bending and compressive strength of the clay tested are similar to those of concrete. The 160m3 and 390 tonnes of rammed earth required for building was mixed homogeneously corresponding to the sample in a concrete works in two days. The compressive strength of this mixture was tested again. After installation the strength development of the rammed earth was controlled non-destructively by means of the Building Material Test Hammer (BMTM).
The at the building achieved strength is lower than the before-tested compressive strength.
Total cost: 1.9 million DM (€971.454).
author's contact: Technische Universität Berlin Fachbereich Architektur, Sekretariat A12
Straße des 17.Juni 135; 10623 Berlin / Germany Tel.: 0049
30 31421853 Fax: 0049 30 31421853 mail:Christof.Ziegert@TU-Berlin.de
