Abstract
Sandcrete block is the most popular building material in construction industry. However, with the high and increasing cost of building materials experienced nowadays, it has been difficult to achieve affordable housing especially in developing countries. Also, significant dredging of sand for block production and the large amount of coconut husk thrown away as waste have increased the level of concern due to their adverse effect on environment. This work, therefore, sought to produce solid core sandcrete blocks in which sand component is partially replaced with coconut husk and investigate the suitability of using such blocks for building designs. The block samples produced using untreated and also treated coconut husks at various levels of sand replacement were subjected to bulk density, water absorption and compressive strength tests at 7 days and 28 days of curing. It was found that sand replacement with 20% of untreated coconut husk or 30% of treated coconut husk could yield a solid core sandcrete block suitable for non-load bearing walls of satisfactory performance. Since coconut husk is cheaply available, sustainable, and recyclable, utilising such promising material in this case can enhance production of cost-effective and optimally performing sandcrete blocks for building purposes. This will in turn help to boost the development of housing, minimise loss of agricultural lands, and reduce environmental pollution level, and so on.
Highlights
IntroductionThe drive for economic diversification has resulted in greater emphasis on coconut (cocos nucifera) production, especially, in developing countries
In recent decades, the drive for economic diversification has resulted in greater emphasis on coconut production, especially, in developing countries
The results of the tests performed on the block samples at different curing periods for various levels of sand partially replaced with coconut husk are presented in table 2
Summary
The drive for economic diversification has resulted in greater emphasis on coconut (cocos nucifera) production, especially, in developing countries. Report by Burton (2018), shows that Indonesia is the largest global producer of coconut with 18,300,000 tons, followed by Philippines (15,353,200 tons) and India (11,900,000 tons). Vanguard newspaper report published on October 17, 2019 had it that Nigeria produced 364,000 metric tons of coconut yearly across 22 states out of which Lagos State contributed the highest amount being 257,000 metric tons. Coconut tree is a member of palm family called Arecaceae and is known to produce between 30 and 75 fruits annually if planted on a fertile soil. The husks are thrown away as waste. This practice is dangerous as a large
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