Tensile Strength of Acacia mangium Willd and Samanea saman (Jacq) Merr in the Primary Growth Stage

Abstract

Vegetation has been widely used in soil bioengineering and considered as an effective natural-based solution for slope stabilisation. In this study, two woody species including Acacia Mangium Willd and Samanea saman (Jacq) Merr, are considered for soil reinforcement and stabilisation. However, the root biomechanical properties (i.e., tensile strength and Young’s modulus) which is important to root reinforcement, of these two species are rarely reported in the literature. The two woody species were grown in containers with rice husk ash for 7 months. The specimens were tested by uniaxial tensile test to measure the root tensile strength. The test results show that the tensile strength of Acacia Mangium Willd’s root (i.e., 11.78 MPa) is higher than the tensile strength of Samanea saman (Jacq) Merr’s root (i.e., 11.08 MPa). It means Acacia Mangium Willd’s root can be able to withstand more tensile force than the Samanea saman (Jacq) Merr’s root at the same planting age. Acacia Mangium Willd can be applied to use in soil bioengineering to enhance slope stability and prevent soil erosion.