Efflorescence Test Research Articles

Experimental studies on composite bricks using black cotton soil, fly ash and granite waste

Abstract In this present revision, an attempt has been prepared to include industrial wastes into the production of bricks using black cotton soil (BS), granite waste (GW) and fly ash (FA). Reusing such trashes by including them into construction materials is an applied solution for environmental toxic waste problems. This article represents the utilization of industrial waste in manufacturing of composite bricks and it can be used in building construction, the pollution and disposal problems can be reduced significantly. A new approach to the production of brick was carried out by using black cotton soil (BS), fly ash (FA) and granite waste (GW). The major problem in construction fields is the non-availability of adequate amount of construction materials on one side and on the other side disposal of waste material and dumping of granite waste causing a major environmental problem. It was detected from the experimental results. The mixture of block cotton soil (BS) brick has altered percentage of the FA and GW adding like 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 100%. In the analysis of the block cotton soil brick there are main four kind of the analysis is done. Compressive strength test, efflorescence test, water absorption test and weight analysis after burning the bricks.

Utilization of plastic waste and polystyrene in making light weight red soil fly ash bricks

The plastic industry is the important sector in India which is more valuable and playing vital role in economy of our country. Even though it is an important industry, it produces few environmental brunt causing land and water impairment with some ill effects. The methods following for dumping, leads to ground water contamination and thereby cause other adverse effects. Many investigations have been organized in this area and found that the contamination level is greater in ground water and having problem mainly in dumping area premises. In the current study, an experiment had been made to reuse the plastic waste chips in manufacturing of building materials. The objective of this project is to identify the possibilities of using the waste plastic obtained from plastic product manufacturing industry as a brick material. The various test had been carried out such as compressive strength test, crushing strength test, water absorption test, efflorescence test, hardness test, soundness test and fire test for proving the modified bricks with conventional brick. The final outcome the test results shows that the lightest brick samples among the all tested four various samples produced the strength of 68.8% greater than the third class brick and its weight is around 33% of the conventional bricks. Light weight bricks are making by using lime, fly ash, red soil, polystyrene layer, decreased the self weight of the building which improved stability in earthquake situations.

Surface modification of brick by zinc oxide and silver nanoparticles to improve performance properties

Due to its versatility, durability, and mechanical stability, brick is an important construction material. In the current study, the brick surface was coated by ZnO nanoparticles based on chemical deposition and modified by silver nanoparticles to create a hydrophobic property on the brick surface as well as photocatalytic and antibacterial properties. The modified brick nanocomposite was characterized by FESEM, XRD, and UV–Visible and then, hydrophobicity, photocatalytic, and antibacterial properties were investigated. Suitable values of bandgap energy of 3.25 eV and 3.22 eV were obtained for the brick modified by ZnO and ZnO/Ag, respectively. By using the dye degradation test under UV irradiation, the brick modification significantly increased the photocatalytic property. The antibacterial property of the nanocomposite was investigated by the disk diffusion method based on staphylococcus aureus and bacillus cereus as gram-positive bacteria and Escherichia coli and pseudomonas aeruginosa as gram-negative bacteria and the experiments showed acceptable results. The results of flexural strength and efflorescence test showed that flexural strength of the brick modified by ZnO/Ag is almost 1.8 times more than non-coated brick and the modified brick represented less efflorescence on the surface. The results showed the improvement of the applicable properties of the brick.

Mechanical properties and durability of boardcrete blocks prepared from recycled cardboard

This study examines the feasibility of using waste cardboard as a lightweight construction material through experimentations. Waste carboards are burnt or dumped legally or illegally in a nearby dumping site, especially in economically developing nations like Pakistan, which is a threat to the environment. To utilize wasted cardboard effectively, an innovative building construction unit (block) has been prepared from carboard pulp, cement, and sand, named Boardcrete. To assess the optimum mix ratio, three different mix ratios: 1:2:4, 1:1:2, and 1:1:1.5 were adopted on trial and error method, and multiple engineering properties of boardcrete were investigated consisting of compressive strength, tensile strength, thermal conductivity, water absorption, and efflorescence test. The results revealed that increasing the quantity of cardboard has yielded low mechanical strength and thermal conduction of boardcrete and increase in water absorption has observed with the increasing amount of cardboard pulp. Based on the outcomes of experiments, it is concluded that boardcrete blocks are low strength-lightweight construction units possessing low thermal conduction and highly recommended for non-load bearing walls such as partition walls.

Properties of geopolymer bricks made with flyash and GGBS

Geopolymer bricks is the new innovation in the field of brick industry. Geopolymer bricks contain flayash as the source material and an alkaline activator for the activation of polymerization reaction. In this study, experimental work has been performed on geopolymer bricks with flyash and GGBS as source material and sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate as an activator. The molarity of sodium hydroxide was maintained at 12M for all the mixtures and the ratio of sodium hydroxide to sodium silicate was kept as 1:2.5. The brick properties such as compressive strength, water absorption, acid resistance and efflorescence test were conducted on the test specimens. Test results indicated that geopolymer concrete with higher GGBS content resulted in higher compressive strength and better properties compared to flyash based geopolymer brick.

Study on PVA-siloxane mixed emulsion coatings for hydrophobic cement mortar

Efflorescence is widely regarded as a serious problem in cement-based exterior wall. This phenomenon can affect the appearance and long-term stability of the building. Based on the efflorescence mechanism, one of the causes of efflorescence is the existence of free water to dissolve soluble salts. Therefore, we propose a method for synthesizing hydrophobic cement mortar. The main challenge of the super-hydrophobic coating is its robust durability. To synthesize durable hydrophobic cement mortar, we use PVA as an adhesive to enhance the durability of the coating, and use siloxane material as a hydrophobic agent, through high-speed mixing, to obtain a PVA-coated siloxane material hydrophobic coating. Optical microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM) and FT-IR spectroscopy were utilized to characterize the emulsions and coatings. Appearance analysis of the coatings was performed using a colorimeter and UV Spectrophotometer, and the durability of the coating was evaluated by abrasion resistance and water resistance. The measured water contact angles (CA) are between 120° to 140°, and the water absorption after 24 h and 48 h can be reduced by about 10 % and 15 % compared with the reference sample, including the water absorption coefficient is approximately lower than the untreated group 1.7–4 times. Finally, accelerated efflorescence test, image acquisition and analysis with Matlab software, determination of calcium ion leaching rate and TG-DSC analysis were performed. The results show that the cement mortar treated with hydrophobic emulsion has excellent water resistance and improved efflorescence resistance, and can be widely used in cement-based buildings.

Fabrication and Testing of Plastic Sand Bricks

In this study, the use of plastic bottles and plastic waste in the making of plastic sand bricks is examined. Plastic apart from being one of the highly generated waste is also one of the most easily recyclable materials. Using this property of recyclability, plastic waste in the form of PET bottles will be used to create masonry units that may be able to replace conventional bricks which are made up of clay and sand only. Sand will be mixed with plastic in different ratios and tests such as compressive strength test, water absorption test, efflorescence test and fire resistance test will be done. Results from this study are expected to help determine the appropriate mixing ratios of sand and plastic in order to obtain optimum strength and other properties.

Effects of Si/Al ratio on the efflorescence and properties of fly ash based geopolymer

Abstract Efflorescence seriously affects the practical application of geopolymer. In this study, fly ash based geopolymer was prepared by raw materials containing different Si/Al ratios. A test method of the efflorescence degree of geopolymer was proposed and applied. The effects of the Si/Al ratio on products, microstructure, pore structures, compressive strength, water loss rate and efflorescence of geopolymer were systematically investigated. The reaction products and structures of geopolymer were tested by XRD, FTIR, TG-DTA, SEM-EDS and BET. The results showed that the efflorescence degree of different samples can be compared by the test method simply, effectively and quantitatively. The products of geopolymer were mainly amorphous gels N(C)-A-S-H containing large amounts of Si and Al components. The structures, properties and efflorescence degree of the geopolymer were different due to the different Si/Al ratio. When the Si/Al ratio of geopolymer was 1.5, the content of [AlO4]- structures was highest, while the volume and size of pore were relatively small. The dense matrix and [AlO4]- structures of geopolymer can reduce the efflorescence degree significantly. This study can provide a reference for future investigation about efflorescence inhibition and efflorescence test methods of geopolymer.

Valorization of Crushed Glass as a Potential Replacement for Sand in Cement Stabilized Fly Ash Bricks

Abstract The present study involved the utilization of crushed glass as an auxiliary additive in the manufacture of cement stabilized fly ash (CSF) bricks. The bricks were made with 1:1 proportion of fly ash and sand stabilized with 20 % cement. Crushed glass was used as replacement for the fine aggregate in increments of 10 % up to 40 % wherein the sand was completely replaced with crushed glass. The various mix proportions were then moulded into bricks with the addition of water by hand moulding method of forming the bricks and sun dried followed by sprinkle curing over a period of 21 days. The bricks were then subjected to compressive strength, water absorption and efflorescence tests to gauge its performance. The investigation revealed that the addition of crushed glass to the brick mix resulted in an increase in strength of the bricks, however, the maximum strength achieved could not achieve the strength of the control specimen. But the strength was higher than the minimum strength recommended by Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for stabilized blocks as well as burnt bricks. It also reduced the water absorption marginally while no efflorescence was seen in any of the combinations. A cost comparison revealed that the optimal combination with crushed glass was able reduce the cost of the brick by 20 %.

Improving the Properties of Clay Brick Using Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)

In this study, an experimental research was dedicated to investigate the properties of clay brick treated by polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). Two methods of treatment were conducted. The first contained treating clay brick by submerging the specimens in 1%, 2% and 3% of PVA solution, whereas the second involved coating the brick specimens with 6% PVA (i.e. a high viscous solution). The treated specimens were allowed to dry under ambient temperature in the laboratory before being tested. Standard tests employed for brick specimens were applied. Regarding the specimens treated using the submerging method, results showed that there was a significant contribution of PVA to the compressive strength, total water absorption and efflorescence tests, in which the specimens reached the best performance when PVA was increased to 3%. However, the brick specimens coated by PVA showed a slight increase in the compressive strength, but a noticeable decrease in the water absorption and efflorescence. Â

Valorisation of Sugarcane Bagasse Ash in the Manufacture of Lime-Stabilized Blocks

Abstract The study investigated the potential of lime in the manufacture of stabilized soil blocks and the valorisation of a solid waste, Bagasse Ash (BA), in its manufacture. A locally available soil was collected from a field and characterized in the soil laboratory as a clay of intermediate plasticity. This soil was stabilized using lime, the quantity of which was determined from the Eades and Grim pH test. The soil was stabilized using this lime content, amended with various BA contents during mixing, and moulded into blocks of 19 cm x 9 cm x 9 cm. The blocks were then moist cured for a period of 28 days, following which they were subjected to compressive strength, water absorption and efflorescence tests. The results of the tests revealed that the addition of BA resulted in enhanced compressive strength of the blocks, increased the water absorption marginally, and resulted in no efflorescence in any of the combinations, although the limited combinations in the study could not produce enough strength to meet the specifications of the Bureau of Indian Standards. The study revealed that BA can be effectively valorised in the manufacture of stabilized soil blocks.

Cement Stabilized Soil Blocks Admixed with Sugarcane Bagasse Ash

The study involved investigating the performance of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) stabilized soil blocks amended with sugarcane bagasse ash (SBA). Locally available soil was tested for its properties and characterized as clay of medium plasticity. This soil was stabilized using 4% and 10% OPC for manufacture of blocks of size 19 cm × 9 cm × 9 cm. The blocks were admixed with 4%, 6%, and 8% SBA by weight of dry soil during casting, with plain OPC stabilized blocks acting as control. All blocks were cast to one target density and water content followed by moist curing for a period of 28 days. They were then subjected to compressive strength, water absorption, and efflorescence tests in accordance with Bureau of Indian standards (BIS) specifications. The results of the tests indicated that OPC stabilization resulted in blocks that met the specifications of BIS. Addition of SBA increased the compressive strength of the blocks and slightly increased the water absorption but still met the standard requirement of BIS code. It is concluded that addition of SBA to OPC in stabilized block manufacture was capable of producing stabilized blocks at reduced OPC content that met the minimum required standards.

Egyptian Smectite-Rich Clays for Lightweight and Heavy Clay Products

Suitability of three technological samples representing smectite-rich clay deposits of El-Minya, Egypt for lightweight and heavy clay products was studied. According to particle-size, mineral, and chemical composition of the clay samples, one sample was rejected due to its high content of sulphate gypsum and anhydrite minerals. Ceramic properties before firing of a sample representing the other two clays with and without addition of 40% sand grains were studied. These include rate of slaking in water and water of plasticity as well as linear drying shrinkage and drying sensitivity coefficient (DSC). The representative clay sample without addition of sand grains was assessed for lightweight bloated clay aggregate by processing its plastic pellets up to firing at 1000-1300 o C. Also, suitability of shaped plastic clay-sand bodies for heavy clay products was studied after firing up to 800-1200 o C by following their densification parameters in terms of total linear shrinkage (TLS), bulk density (BD), water absorption (WA), and crushing strength (CS). Efflorescence test was also conducted to follow up deposition of any white water-soluble sulphate salts on surfaces of the wet fired bodies after drying. The three samples of El-Minya clays contain major clay particles and lesser silt and sand particles due mainly to its high content of smectite with lesser kaolinite and illite clay minerals. In addition, variable quartz, feldspar, and hematite as well as gypsum and anhydrite non-clay minerals are detected and one of these samples was rejected due to its high content of the latter minerals. The representative sample of the other two clays is of a low-grade due mainly to its low-alumina as well as high silica and fluxing oxide contents. When 40% of sand grains was added to the clay sample, water of plasticity is decreased from ~51 to 25% and LDS as well as DSC were reduced from 13.3 to 8.1% and from 1.4 to 0.92, respectively. Furthermore, the shaped 60/40 clay/sand bodies were partially and fully vitrified after firing for 2 hours up to 1000 and 1200 o C, respectively. The partial and fully vitrified bodies show accepted WA, TLS, BD and CS levels, according to the Egyptian and International standards for building bricks and ceramic tiles, respectively. The fired bodies were also classified as not-effloresced types after testing for efflorescence. In addition, the clay sample was also processed as lightweight bloated clay aggregate with grain density of 0.7-0.8 g/cm 3 after firing up to 1300 o C. This is mainly attributed to developing of sufficient amount of a silicate liquid phase viscous enough to entrap the oxygen gas, simultaneously evolved due to partial reduction of Fe 2 O 3 of the clay into FeO with the formation of magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) spinel.

ENGINEERING PROPERTIES OF CLAY BRICKS WITH USE OF FLY ASH

Mixing various properties of fly ash in clay material (5-50% by weight, in ratio of dry fly ash to wet clay, at a step of 5% each) this will from 16 bricks of each proportion have been manufactured. The manufacturing process uses techniques and equipment similar to those used in clay brick factories. The bricks produced were up to 10.60% lighter than clay bricks. The bricks manufactured from fly ash possessed compressive strength more than 5 N/mm2 which is more than normal clay bricks. This exceeds some of the best of load carrying clay bricks and is several times better than acceptable commercially available common clay bricks. Other important characteristics of the fly ash bricks have been evaluated. These included water absorption capacity, compressive strength and Efflorescence test. Fly ash bricks absorb less quantity of water which is under I.S. requirement. Fly ashclay bricks give nil efflorescence. The values of these characteristics for fly ash bricks are excellent and have exceeded those pertaining to clay bricks. Moreover, fly ash bricks have been produced with a naturally occurring reddish colour similar to that of normal clay bricks. The new bricks and process have been given the name Fly ash Bricks. This work presents the results of testing and the advantages gained by this type of bricks over conventional clay bricks.

UTILIZATION OF WATER TREATMENT PLANTS SLUDGE ASH IN BRICK MAKING

The present study investigates the possibility of using water treatmentplant (WTP) sludge of New Assiut city (Assiut- Egypt) as partialsubstitute for shale in brick making. Due to the high content of organicmatter in water sludge, incineration of the WTP sludge is necessary toremove of all organic compounds contained therein. For brick making,mixture of various proportions from 10 % to 50% by weight of sludgeash added to shale are used as raw materials in hand molding brickmaking. The produced brick samples after drying process and firing at1000 0C for 6 hr,,s , received a series of tests including firing shrinkage ,weight loss on ignition water, absorption ,bulk density ,compressivestrength , slake durability and efflorescence test. Satisfactory resultswere achieved when the percentage of sludge ash was up to 30% (by wt.)or less in the mixture. The specifications of the produced bricks matchthe Egyptian standard ES: 1756/1989 of fired clay building units for nonload bearing walls. The test results indicate that, the sludge ashproportions are one of the most important key factors determining thebrick quality. Reuse of sludge ash as a construction and buildingmaterial converts the waste into useful products that can alleviate thedisposal and environmental problems.

ANÁLISE DE VIABILIDADE E IMPLEMENTAÇÃO DE ESPECIFICAÇÃO PADRÃO PARA BLOCOS CERÂMICOS E MATERIAIS ESTRUTURAIS - UNIDADES SÓLIDAS DE ALVENARIA CONFECCIONADAS EM ARGILA OU XISTO

The aim of this paper is to achieve a feasibility study to implement the efflorescence test, for glazed and unglazed ceramic tiles, according to technical standards ASTM C 1167 - 92b and ASTM C 67 - 92a, used for testing ceramic blocks for structural applications, popularly known as the common ceramic bricks, glazed and unglazed tiles. Some results are presented, divided into groups of samples separated according to their characteristics and corresponding lots. For this purpose, a study of laboratory installation and necessary devices was performed at LDCM Laboratory (Development and Characterization Materials Laboratory), integrated with the CTCMAT (Materials Technology Center).

Efflorescence: Evaluation of Published Test Methods for Brick and Efforts to Develop a Masonry Assembly Test Method

Abstract The test method determining the efflorescence potential of brick is found in ASTM C67-08, Standard Test Methods for Sampling and Testing Brick and Structural Clay Tile. This test method is based upon the “wick tests” performed at the National Bureau of Standards in 1930 to determine the tendency for 684 brick to effloresce. Both Britain and Russia have also published efflorescence test methods for brick. From 1995 through 2006, Task Group C15.02.26 on Efflorescence, a subcommittee of ASTM C15.02 on Brick and Structural Clay Tile, evaluated the effectiveness of the ASTM C67-08 efflorescence test method. C15.02 is a subcommittee of committee C15 on Manufactured Masonry Units. The performance results for the ASTM, British, Russian and a modified ASTM C67-08 test on a standard brick were compared. This evaluation revealed that the ASTM C67-08 and the Russian efflorescence test methods were equally effective in predicting efflorescence potential of brick. The British test method was shown not to be effective in predicting efflorescence potential of brick. The efflorescence that developed on the types of brick rated as “effloresced” was more extensive and intense on the brick tested by the ASTM C67-08 method than the brick tested by the Russian method. In 1998, Task Group C15.05.15 on Efflorescence of Masonry Assemblies of ASTM subcommittee C15.05 on Masonry Assemblies prepared ASTM C1400-07, Standard Guide for Reduction of Efflorescence Potential in New Masonry Walls. C15.05 is a subcommittee of committee C15 on Manufactured Masonry Units. Subsequently, Task Group C15.05.15 began testing to obtain information to develop a test method to predict efflorescence potential in new masonry assemblies. The testing is ongoing. The various test methods evaluated to date include the following: (1) Open top plastic box with brick test specimen inserted in each face and filling of the box with a slurry of the test mortar ingredients; (2) open top brick masonry box constructed with the brick and mortar test specimens and filling of the box with water; (3) brick masonry wallettes constructed with the brick and mortar test specimens and placed in 1-in.-deep water and exposed to moving air from a fan; and (4) masonry cubes made from ground-up brick test specimens and mortar test specimens and placed in 1-in.-deep water and exposed to moving air from a fan. This paper presents the results of the evaluation of the ASTM C67-08 efflorescence test method by Task Group C15.02.26 and of the efforts made to date by Task Group C15.05.15 to develop an efflorescence test method for masonry assemblages.

Test Method for Determining the Efflorescence Potential of Masonry Materials Based on Soluble Salt Content

Abstract A single test method that is capable of determining the efflorescence potential for all materials in a masonry system is needed. The need for preconstruction testing is referenced in ASTM C1400-1—“Standard Guide for Reduction of Efflorescence Potential in New Masonry Walls”—but the standard acknowledges that there is not a suitable test method for all masonry materials. In the past, soluble salt measurements have been used to quantitatively access the efflorescence potential of masonry materials. To determine the water-soluble salt content of masonry materials, a simple leaching procedure was developed to remove the salts followed by quantification of the water-soluble salt content by ion chromatography. A series of modified efflorescence tests using salt solutions and real masonry materials has been used to determine the significance of water-soluble salt measurements. A clear threshold for soluble sulfate content that indicates a high potential for the development of visible efflorescence has been identified. Sulfate salts are the most common water-soluble compounds associated with efflorescence complaints.

Vanadium staining in fired clay bricks

Abstract This paper reports on a series of efflorescence tests and instrumental techniques that have been used to determine the nature and mechanism of vanadium staining, and the effects of additions of magnesite, calcite, and fluorspar to the brick mix to eliminate the problem. Scanning electron microscopy, electron probe microanalysis, inductively coupled mass spectrometry (with laser ablation attachment), and X-ray photon spectrometry have been used to more fully understand the elemental composition, oxidation states, and formation of vanadium stains in fired clay bricks. It was found that the stains consist of V, K, Na, Mo, S, and O. Vanadium +4 compounds form initially within the brick and are slowly oxidised to vanadium +5 compounds as the water transports the potassium and sodium salts to the brick surface. X-ray diffraction led to a reasonably successful search match for a KVO(SO4)2 phase for the stains. Evolved gas analysis showed loss of vanadium compounds between 700 and 900° C which are most l...

The Relative Effects of Frost and the Sulphate of Soda Efflorescence Tests on Building Stones

The Relative Effects of Frost and the Sulphate of Soda Efflorescence Tests on Building Stones