Effect of Chemical Treatment on the Mechanical and Hygroscopic Properties of an Innovative Clay-Sand Composite Reinforced with Fibers.

The viability of using fibers as reinforcement material for developing lightweight sustainable non-structural construction materials in compliance with the valorization of local by-products has been investigated in this work. This study aims to investigate the effect of the chemical treatment of fibers on the mechanical and hygric properties of bio-sourced clay-sand- fiber composite. This lightweight specimen has been produced from a mixture of 60% natural clay and 40% sand by mass, as a matrix, and reinforced with different amounts of Juncus fibers.