Earthco Megablock

This is/was a commercial (proprietary/patented) system by the Texan company Earthco for building very large blocks of compressed earth, called "Megablock". It produces very large blocks (weight ~1 metric ton) that are much larger than the typical brick-sized CEB. This technology is therefore somewhat of an intermediate between rammed earth and CEBs (see videos below). In the video linked below, the company's CEO said that he had plans for even larger blocks of up to 10 tons, but it doesn't appear that this was ever realized. They can be used for buildings but the possibilities also include other types of walls, roads, other infrastructure.

• for rapid assembly of massive load bearing earthen walls for residential, commercial, or military applications.
• collaboration with Texas Tech University
• converts local subsoil into giant modular units called Giant Compressed Earth Blocks (GCEB) by extrusion
• uniform in both the height and width dimension and variable in length: measures 18” wide by 12” tall by over 14’ long
• Larry Williamson: "We're fire proof, tornado proof, sound proof, insect proof, rodent proof, you name it. And we're the healthiest and most earth friendly system on the planet!"

Related Pages / Product Ecology

• The blocks might benefit from a layer of Lime plaster for protection
• Insulation with "hempcrete"
• These blocks might be good for Nature-Integrated Homes, and have lower embodied energy than the structures of concrete and reinforced steel designed by Malcolm Wells

Links

• US Patent #7,311,865: "Block-ramming machine"
• Earthco Building Systems - (website expired but product may still be available).
• CEO Larry Williamson is on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-williamson-155b6311
• presentation: "Design and Development of a Large-Scale Compressed Earth Block Building System for Developed Countries"