Compressed Earth Bricks Research Articles

Interlocking compressed earth bricks as low carbon footprint building material

The building construction significantly contributes to the carbon growth due to the high carbon emissions produced by buildings and their effects on climate change. Malaysia has devoted to reduce the carbon dioxide emission by the year of 2020. Therefore, the Interlocking Compressed Earth Bricks (ICEB) has been introduced as an alternative for low carbon building material. This paper studies the carbon footprint of Interlocking Compressed Earth Bricks as a walling structure in buildings or residential houses. The Interlocking Compressed Earth Bricks system is an improvement from the conventional brick production where the brick is fabricated by compressed method (not fired), thus reducing the carbon emissions. This paper presents a cradle-to-gate carbon emission study of a multi-story residential building in a Community house in Tawau, Sabah by using the life cycle assessment (LCA) methodology. The total carbon of the buildings using conventional FCB and ICEB construction are 405.75 kgCO2/m2 and 264.50 kgCO2/m2, respectively, which are comparable with the results of similar studies found in the literature. In order to achieve low-carbon buildings for the residential houses in Sabah, the use of ICEB as alternative materials with low carbon intensities and sustainable construction practices are suitable and recommended. The result shows that the implementation of Interlocking Compressed Earth Bricks contributes to carbon footprint reduction of 35% from the conventional and suitable to be used as a low carbon footprint building material.

Mechanical and Thermal Behaviors of Cement Stabilized Compressed Earth Bricks

Cement stabilized compressed earth brick is an important industrial raw material, and its mechanical and thermal properties have not been fully studied. The mechanical properties can be characterized by compressive strength index and thermal properties can be characterized by thermal conductivity index. The experimental scheme is arranged to solve the relationship between the performance of cement stabilized compressed earth brick and the influencing factors. The experimental results show that the compressive properties of cement stabilized compressed earth bricks are negatively correlated with the water binder ratio, positively correlated with the m (cement): m (water), and not significantly correlated with the m (earth): m (cement + water) and the fiber content. The thermal conductivity of raw soil cement curing mechanism brick is negatively correlated with m (earth): m (cement + water), positively correlated with water binder ratio, and not significantly correlated with m(cement): m (water) and fiber content.

Review on interlocking compressed earth brick

Soil is known as the most cost-effective material in construction since available locally and has been used for centuries. Soil widely used throughout the world in brick production including Malaysia. The used of soil in construction can reduce environmental issues and act as a green building material. In addition, high pressure of compression is used to produce the interlocking bricks and it is at high speed of production compared to conventional method which is firing process that can contribute to the environmental issues. To achieve sustainable development, interlocking compressed earth bricks have been developed which can reduce cost, environmental-friendly, and energy-efficient. This paper aims to review the interlocking compressed earth bricks (ICEB).

Predicting the suitability of lateritic soil type for low cost sustainable housing with image recognition and machine learning techniques

From a sustainability point of view, laterites-compressed earth bricks (LCEB) are a promising substitute for building structures in place of the conventional concrete masonry units. On the other hand, techniques for identifying and classifying laterites soil for compressed earth bricks (CEB) production are still relying on direct human expertise or ‘experts’. Human experts exploit direct visual inspection and other basic senses such as smelling, touching or nibbling to generate a form of binomial classification, i.e. suitable or unsuitable. The source of predictive power is otherwise supposed to be found in color, scent, texture or combinations of these. Lack of clarity regarding the actual method and the possible explanatory mechanisms lead to 1) difficulties to train other people into the skills and 2) might also add to apathy to using CEB masonry units for housing. Here we systematize the selection method of experts. We chose imaging analysis techniques based on 1) easiness in image acquisition (Digital Camera) and 2) availability of machine learning and statistical techniques. We find that most of the predictive power of the ‘expert’ can be packed into visual inspection by demonstrating that with image analysis alone we get a 98% match. This makes it practically unnecessary the study of any other ‘expert’ skills and provides a method to alleviate the housing problems dealing with material construction in the developing world.

Hygrothermal Behavior of Earth-Based Materials: Experimental and Numerical Analysis

Bio-based building materials such as earth bricks are attracting renewed interest throughout the world due to their thermal and environmental properties. In this work, a numerical study of the hygrothermal behavior of building walls consist of compressed earth bricks (CEB) and stabilized earth bricks (SEB) was performed. A two-dimensional Luikov model for evaluating the temperature and the moisture migration in porous building materials was proposed. The coupled heat and moisture transfer problem was modeled. The governing equations of a mathematical model were solved numerically with the finite difference method. Input parameters in the model and their dependency on stabilizers content were determined by laboratory experiments. In order to specify the effect of chemical stabilization on the heat and mass transfer within studied materials, average moisture content and temperature were presented as a function of time. Results show that the addition of chemical stabilizers enhances the heat transfer through the earthen materials and reduces their water vapor permeability.

Applicability of Palm Oil Fuel Ash in Interlocking Compressed Earth Brick – A Preliminary Assessment

This paper presents the preliminary assessment on the applicability of palm oil fuel ash (POFA) as one of the materials used to produce interlocking compressed earth brick (ICEB). Ultrafine size POFA was used to replace the main ingredient for ICEB production which is the clay soil. The percentages of replacement were limited to 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, and 60% by weight of the total clay soil material. The main purpose of conducting the experiment is to identify the most desirable mix through compressive strength test. Result showed that, at the curing age of 28 days, the compressive strength of mixture that substituted with 30%–60% of ultrafine POFA achieved higher strength than the control mixture. Meanwhile, the highest compressive strength was obtained by batch series CP50 (50% clay soil + 50% ultrafine POFA). The experimental studies specified that ultrafine POFA has significant possibilities for application in manufacturing ICEB.

Influence of envelope thickness and solar absorptivity of a test cell on time lag and decrement factor

This work deals with the influence of envelope thickness and solar absorption on the time lag and the decrement factor. For this, a test cell of 1 m3 of volume is built with a material commonly used in construction in Senegal, the compressed earth brick stabilized with cement. The ambient-air temperature inside and outside of test cell and solar direct normal irradiance is measured. The test cell is modeled using EnergyPlus software. The comparison of experimental and theoretical ambient-air temperature puts out a great linear showing the reliability of the model. The time lag and the decrement factor are calculated using the air-sol equivalent temperature of the test cell and the inside ambient-air temperature. The time lag and decrement factor of the compressed stabilized earth brick envelope are respectively 0.22 and 6.6 h showing the good thermal inertia of those bricks. A parametric study is performed to determine the effect of envelope thickness and solar absorptivity on the time lag and decrement factor. The results show that the decrement factor decreases with envelope thickness while the time lag increases linearly and that an envelope thickness of 32 cm has a decrement factor of around zero with a maximum time lag of about 12 h for this type of material. The envelope’s solar absorption has a moderate effect on the decrement factor and time lag.

Marine plastic pollution and affordable housing challenge: Shredded waste plastic stabilized soil for producing compressed earth bricks

This research work was aimed at investigating the suitability of making compressed earth bricks (CEB) with a mixture of soil and varying percentages (0, 1, 3, and 7%) of shredded waste plastic. Specific gravity, particle size distribution, Atterberg limits and compaction tests were carried out on the soil to determine the engineering properties of the soil. The compressive strengths and erosion rates of the CEB made with the soil and the mixture of soil and varying proportions of shredded waste plastic of two size-categories (<6.3 mm and >9.6 mm) were determined. The soil was classified as clayey sand (SC). The highest compressive strength was obtained for the CEB containing 1% waste plastic of sizes <6.3 mm and its compressive strength amounted to a 244.4% increase. Of the CEB samples stabilized with shredded waste plastic, the sample containing 1% waste plastic of sizes <6.3 mm also had the least erosion rate. Provided the exterior surfaces of walls produced using the CEB are protected from erosion, the use of 1% shredded waste plastic with particle sizes <6.3 mm was recommended. The use of waste plastic that would have constituted an environmental nuisance has the potential to produce stronger and affordable bricks for providing affordable housing.

Potters Kiln Bricks: Using Manual Brick Making Machine

Bricks production is of vital importance for the sustenance and development of Nigerian ceramic potteries, ceramic tiles, red bricks and glass industries. Ceramic brick is the unit of kiln construction which without, ceramic production is impossible. Despite the availability of raw materials for potters kiln brickmaking locally everywhere in this country, little has been done in terms of investigating and designing standard brickmaking processes in Nigeria. Right from the inception of soft mud brickmaking method which is the main method for local production of potters kiln bricks has been associated with some problems. The production of brick (handmade brick) is found to be very slow, time consuming and labour intensive. This method of production is associated with irregular shapes due to its poor compaction capacity which affect lifespan of the kiln and insolation performance as well. Hence, there is need to attempt to produce potters kiln bricks with manual brickmaking machine which will minimize these problems. These manual bricks making machine was made primarily to produce concrete cement brick. The successful completion of this research will therefore lead to replacement of the soft mud brickmaking process, and also substitute the high-tech motorized Compressed Earth Brick (CEB) machine, with locally constructed brickmaking machine it will also improve the quality of the thermal and mechanical properties of the brick in terms of shape and form using the standard compaction pressure which is equivalent to American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) stabilization standard. This will also help in reducing the cost of buying imported ceramic brick at a higher rate, as well as create self-employment opportunities and support the growth of contemporary pottery and ceramic entrepreneurship programme in Nigeria. Keywords : Kiln, brick, pottery, refractory DOI : 10.7176/JEP/10-11-04 Publication date : April 30 th 2019

The effect of Shea butter wastes on Physical Properties of Compressed Earth Bricks (CEB) and Cement Stabilized

The effect of Shea butter wastes on Physical Properties of Compressed Earth Bricks (CEB) and Cement Stabilized

Mineralogical characterisation of tropical residual soils from south-western Nigeria and its impact on earth building bricks

The mineralogy and chemistry of various lateritic soil samples were evaluated in this study. This was done with the aim of establishing the role of chemistry and mineralogy in the strength behaviour and durability of compressed earth bricks made from lateritic soils derived from different parent rocks. After establishing the geotechnical properties of the soils, which were found favourable, the soils were further subjected to X-ray diffraction and X-ray fluorescence analyses in order to identify the minerals and oxides present. The present study reveals the important role of silica and sesquioxides in the hardening of lateritic soil and the positive impact this hardening has on the strength and durability of compressed earth bricks. The study concludes that the mineralogy and chemistry of laterite, especially the presence of silica and sesquioxide, played a significant role in the cohesion and strength of bricks, giving rise to bricks with strength range of about 5.33–15.57 Mpa. Therefore, the produced bricks proved to be durable, withstanding unfavourable weather and climatic conditions over a period more than 18 months.

Stabilization effects on the thermal conductivity and sorption behavior of earth bricks

The renaissance of earth building is mainly motivated by the thermal and hygric properties of the material. These earthen materials qualities lead to improve the hygrothermal conditions in indoor environment. Today, stabilization of earth bricks by addition of chemical stabilizers is a common approach used to maintain and improve its use for construction. Although the addition of cementitious stabilizing agents enhances the engineering properties of soil, it is not the case for their hygrothermal properties. In this work, an experimental investigation is performed on stabilizers effects on thermal conductivity and moisture sorption isotherms of compressed earth bricks. Four water vapor sorption models are evaluated by fitting the sorption isotherms data of un-stabilized and stabilized compressed earth bricks. Soil blocks have been manufacturing with locally material. They are stabilized with cement or lime contents of 5%, 8%, 10% and 12%.The results show that the thermal conductivity increases as a function of stabilizers contents. The measuredsorption data of earth bricks showed that stabilization induces a reduction of material water vapor permeability. It’s found that Henderson model is the best for fitting sorption isotherms data over the studied range of relative humidity.

Stabilization of compressed earth blocks (CEBs) by geopolymer binder based on local materials from Burkina Faso

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of stabilizing compressed earth blocks with a geopolymer binder that is less polluting than Portland cement. Thus, a performance evaluation of these materials compared to non-stabilized or Portland cement-stabilized earth blocks was the main aim this study.The geopolymer was synthesized from a mixture of metakaolin and sodium hydroxide solution. Laterite formed the principal matrix of the bricks. Compressed Earth Bricks (CEBs) stabilized with 5, 10, 15 and 20% of geopolymer were produced and compared to both CEBs containing 8% of Portland cement and CEBs without stabilizer. After a cure of 14 days for the specimens without stabilizer and geopolymerized CEBs and 21 days for Portland cement-stabilized CEBs, the blocks were subjected to several characterization tests in order to evaluate their properties (physical mechanical and thermal properties).The results showed that geopolymerization of CEBs significantly improved their mechanical performance and gave them thermal properties that were very similar to those of non-stabilized blocks. For a 15% geopolymer content, these materials displayed properties comparable to those of Portland cement-stabilized CEBs, in particular with regard to their stability in water.

Preventing overheating in offices through thermal inertial properties of compressed earth bricks: A study on a real scale prototype

Buildings are increasingly required to be efficient not just in their operation, but from construction to demolition. Thus, interest in natural construction materials with low embodied environmental impacts has increased, (re)inventing materials and components from vernacular architecture. Compressed Earth Bricks (CEBs) are an example of this kind of component. They are flexible in a wide range of applications and their natural features favour their usage as thermally massive elements to increase a building’s thermal inertia (TI). The ability to store heat during the day and release it later helps buildings in dampening thermal swings, making TI a good strategy for preventing overheating in offices usually characterized by critical internal loads.Previous studies highlighted the difference between the thermal behaviour results obtained with tests on the materials, like experiments in controlled climatic chambers and real-world applications. In this study, an application of CEBs is taken as a case-study to analyse the thermal behaviour of an earthen wall and the potential of coupling night ventilation to stabilize temperatures and increase indoor comfort. Comparing the results obtained in two different rooms, representative of lightweight and heavyweight earthen construction, it was possible to quantify the contribution of CEBs walls to the passive cooling strategy in office buildings, according to different ventilation profiles/scenarios.

A comparative study of compressed earth bricks (ceb’s) and sandcrete blocks for building construction

This study examined the production and testing of sandcrete bricks and compressed earth bricks (CEB’s) with a view to comparing their strength and moisture content of materials used. Some units of sandcrete bricks and laterite bricks were made using machine vibrated sandcrete brick mould and hydraulic brick making machine respectively. The bricks were tested to determine their moisture content and compressive strength. The results obtained from the tests were compared with the specifications of Nigerian Building and Road Research Institute (2006), Nigerian Building Code (2006), and Nigerian Industrial Standards (2000). The results indicated that the compressive strength of 300×150×170 sandcrete bricks varies from 1.3 N/mm2 to 2.6 N/mm2, as the curing age increases from 7 to 28 days. For laterite bricks, the strength varies from 1.0N/mm2 at 7 days to 2.2N/mm2 at 28 days. All the bricks produced satisfied the minimum requirements in terms of compressive strength, by all available codes, but the compressive strength of sandcrete bricks is higher than the CEB’s. It was concluded that sandcrete bricks have better strength compare to compressed earth brick, more so compressed earth bricks (CEB’s) absorb more water than sandcrete bricks, and sandcrete bricks can be use as substructure (foundation unit). It was recommended among others that sandcrete bricks should be used for foundation of a building.Keywords: Concrete, Sandcrete bricks, Laterite, Compressed Earth Bricks (CEBs), Building, Compressive strength

Thermal Conductivity of Compressed Earth Bricks Strengthening by Shea Butter Wastes with Cement

Currently, in a context of sustainable development, the economic and environmental challenges incite, to valorize local materials such as clays and agro-industrial waste. It is in this approach that a new category of compressed earth bricks (BTC) stabilized with shea meal (TK) and cement was proposed. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of shea meal rate on the thermal conductivity properties of cement stabilized earth bricks. A lateritic clay (Lat) mainly composed of kaolinite (38.44%), quartz (24.94%), goethite (12.28%), hematite (4.44%) and illite (19.9%) was used to make bricks. Different mix designs made up of lateritic clay and 5% cement were studied. The shea meal is added as a partial lateritic clay replacement in different proportions. The thermal conductivity was determined by hot disk method and correlated to both porosity and density of elaborated materials. The results obtained show that the thermal conductivity and density of bricks decrease respectively from 0.72 W·m-1·K-1 to 0.52 W·m-1·K-1 and from 2.77 g·cm-3 to 2.52 g·cm-3. The presence of shea meal within the material generates pore formation, which may partly explain the improvement of the thermal insulation properties. A positive correlation was noted between density and thermal conductivity of these materials.

Geotechnical characterisation of lateritic soils from south-western Nigeria as materials for cost-effective and energy-efficient building bricks

Lateritic soils which have been described as highly weathered tropical or subtropical residual soils were studied with an attempt to establish its suitability or otherwise as sustainable material in building bricks and housing development that will meet the present challenge of sustaining the environment without costing too much and maintaining a high standard of strength, durability and aesthetics. Index properties of the tested lateritic soils revealed them as mostly well graded, comprising both cohesive (silt and clay) and cohesionless (sand and gravel) soil fraction. The geotechnical analyses on the studied lateritic soil revealed a strong compressive strength with a relatively sound dry density which could guarantee a good durability in resulting bricks made from these soil materials. Further test on the strength and durability of the compressed earth bricks (CEBs) made from these lateritic soils revealed a brick with compressive strength ranging between 6.33 and 15.57 MPa which is considered to be of good strength coupled with its sound durability strength established over a period of more than one year under a complete cycle of weather and seasonal conditions. In conclusion, lateritic soils from the study area were found to be suitable as materials for bricks (CEB) with good compressive and durability strength which qualifies them as sustainable and cost-effective materials for low-cost housing development.

Influence of the addition of "synthetic termite saliva" in the compressive strength and water absorption of compacted soil-cement

Abstract The aim of this paper is to determine the effect of adding 0.1 wt% of "synthetic termite saliva" on a fine and clayey sand latosol (76.5% sand) from the region of Bauru, SP (Brazil), stabilized with 1% to 3% of cement. Compacted cylindrical specimens (with standard Proctor energy) were tested to determine their compressive strength and water absorption. The results indicate that the use of the chemical stabilizer increased by at least 35% the compressive strength and reduced by up to 13% the water absorption of the samples. This work contributes to efforts aimed at reducing the consumption of cement through the production of stabilized compressed earth blocks and bricks (CEB) and rammed earth.

Physical and Mechanical Properties of Compressed Earth Brick (CEB) Containing Sugarcane Bagasse Ash

The use of brick in construction is commonly used, especially in the construction of buildings and infrastructure. Various studies have been conducted to produce methods that can increase the strength of brick at the same time can reduce the cost of manufacturing bricks. In order to reduce cost of manufacturing, one of the solution applied was by using waste as part of bricks production materials. In this study, sugarcane bagasse (SuCaB) ash was used as a part of compressed earth brick (CEB) by replacing the quantity of cement for SuCaB ash. The study focused on the physical and mechanical properties of CEB containing SuCaB and the optimum percentage of SuCaB ash as partial cement replacement in CEB. There are 4 types of percentages used; 0%, 20%, 25% and 30% from cement content. All mixed use the same water content of 30% of cement content by weight and the ratio for cement: laterite soil used was 1: 6. A total of 72 specimen with size of 100mm x 50mm x 40mm was produced. The test conducted were Initial Rate Absorption Test (IRA), Density Test, Dimensions Test, Compression Test and Water Absorption Test. From the experimental results, the optimum SuCaB ash percentage as cement replacement in CEB was 20%. It recorded the highest compressive strength of 16.23 MPa at 28 days while for the Initial Rate Absorption test, it lies within the range specified. The density of CEB containing 20% of SuCaB shows slightly lower value where it decreased for about 0.4% from the control specimen. From this study, it can be concluded that waste materials such as sugarcane bagasse can be used as part of construction materials. However, further study needs to be conducted such as on the energy consumption, chemical properties and others to enhance the knowledge on this area before it can be applied into the brick production.

EXPERIMENTAL INVESTIGATION ON THE COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH OF PRESSED COMPOSITE EARTH BRICK

Earth block is a construction material made primarily from soil. Compressed earth blocks have been widely used to construct many older structures which was found more economical. The present study involves the use of different admixtures which can improve the compressive strength of the pressed composite earth brick. As soil is abundant in nature, the compressed earth bricks can be manufactured in large quantity. By using this method, buildings of uniform component sizes can be made which leads to faster construction with lesser cost. The surface of building can be finished with clay mortar or cement mortar.