Characteristics of Masonry Prepared with KM Soil as Fine Aggregate in Cement Mortar and Concrete Block

Abstract

Manufactured Sand (M Sand) has become a viable alternative for the river sand in the construction industry as a potential fine aggregate. The M Sand poses environmental implications as it is produced by crushing natural resources like stones. The extensive use of M Sand may also lead to a reduction in availability due to the depletion of natural rocks in the days to come. Hence, this study attempts to assess the feasibility of utilizing the clayey soil containing Kaolinite – Montmorillonite (KM) as a predominant clay mineral, as a replacement to the Manufactured sand in the preparation of cement mortar and cement block that are used in masonry construction. In the case of concrete block masonry units, the M Sand is replaced by 25%, 50%, and 100% with KM Soil, and an attempt is also made to produce the mortars by completely replacing the M Sand with KM soil. Further, the properties of the concrete blocks and mortars prepared with KM soil are assessed and compared with the ones prepared with M Sand. Also, the performance of the stack bonded masonry prisms like compressive strength and bond strength in shear is assessed for the various masonry prism prepared with combinations of the Concrete block masonry units and mortars. The results indicate that the stack bonded masonry prism assemblies with KM soil both in cement mortar and concrete block have performed moderately well in compressive strength and shear bond strength in comparison with the one prepared with M Sand.