Evaluation of Predictive Models for Mechanical Properties of Earth-Based Composites for Sustainable Building Applications

Increase in human population have placed a high demand on civil engineering projects leading to high cost of conventional building composites. Adequate utilization of earth-based composites such as bricks and stabilized soils for building and road construction have the potential of bridging the infrastructure deficit gap across the globe. To save resources and promote the effective use of earth-based composites as alternative affordable and sustainable building composites, this study aims to evaluate models for predicting the mechanical properties of earth-based composites for sustainable building applications. Desk study was employed to evaluate existing models for predicting the mechanical properties of earth-based composites. Several predictive models used for the prediction of the mechanical properties of earth-based composites were identified and analyzed. The performances of the identified models were classified using the respective values of their R-squared, the root mean square errors, coefficient of correlation, root absolute error, mean absolute error and root relative squared error. The model that outperformed other identified models was selected and recommended as the best-fit model for the prediction of the mechanical properties of earth-based composites. This study provides valuable insights to civil engineers and other professionals in the construction industry on efficient utilization of earth-based composites for sustainable building applications.