Adobe

Adobe (US ⁱ/əˈdoʊbi/, UK /əˈdoʊb/;Spanish: [aˈðoβe]) is a building material made from earth and often organic material. Adobe means mudbrick in Spanish, but in some English speaking regions of Spanish heritage it refers to any kind of earth construction, as most adobe buildings are similar in appearance to cob and rammed earth buildings. Adobe is among the earliest building materials, and is used throughout the world.

Adobe bricks are most often made into units weighing less than 100 pounds and small enough that they can quickly air dry individually without cracking and be subsequently assembled, with the application of adobe mud, to bond the individual bricks into a structure. Modern methods of construction allow the pouring of whole adobe walls that are reinforced with steel.

In dry climates, adobe structures are extremely durable, and account for some of the oldest existing buildings in the world. Adobe buildings offer significant advantages due to their greater thermal mass, but they are known to be particularly susceptible to earthquake damage if they are not somehow reinforced. Cases where adobe structures were widely damaged during earthquakes include the 1976 Guatemala earthquake, the 2003 Bam earthquake and the 2010 Chile earthquake.

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