AN INVESTIGATION ON EFFECT OF QUARRY DUST AS SAND REPLACEMENT ON COMPRESSIVE AND FLEXURAL STRENGTH OF FOAM CONCRETE

AN INVESTIGATION ON EFFECT OF QUARRY DUST AS SAND
REPLACEMENT ON COMPRESSIVE AND FLEXURAL STRENGTH OF
FOAM CONCRETE
NORAZILA BINTI KAMARULZAMAN
A thcsis submitted in fulfilment of the
Requirements for the award of the degree of
Bachelor of Civil Engineering and Earth Resources
Faculty of Civil Enginering and Earth Resources
Universiti Malaysia Pahang
NOVEMBER 2010V
ABSTRACT
Foam concrete is a type of lightweight concrete which is lighter than
conventional concrete. It is non-load bearing structural element which has lower
strength than conventional concrete. Foam concrete is widely used in construction
field and quite popular for some application because of its light weight such as
reduction of dead load, non-structural partitions and thermal insulating materials.
Because of its low strength, some material is used in order to increase the foam
concrete strength. A study on the effect of quarry dust as sand replacement
material on compressive and flexural strength of foam concrete was conducted.
This study was conducted to determine the compressive strength and flexural
strength of foam concrete by using quarry as partial sand replacement material.
This report presents the feasibility of the usage of quarry dust as 10 %, 20 % and
30 % substitutes for sand in foam concrete. Mix design was developed for four
different proportion of quarry dust in foam concrete. Tests were conducted on
cubes and beams to study the strength of concrete made of quarry dust and results
were compared with the control foam concrete. It is found that the compressive
and flexural strength of foam concrete made of quarry dust are nearly 40 % more
than the control foam concrete.A
ABSTRAK
Konkrit berliang adalah sejenis konkrit ringan yang lebih ringan
berbanding konkrit biasa. la adalah elemen stuktur bagi non-load bearing yang
mempunyai kekuatan yang rendah berbanding  konkrit biasa. Konkrit berliang
telah digunakan secara meluas dalam bidang pembinaan dan popular
penggunaannya disebabkan oleh sifat yang ringan seperti pengurangan beban
mati, dan bahan penebat haba. Disebabkan oleh kekuatan yang kurang, sejenis
bahan digunakan untuk meningkatkan kekuatan konkrit berliang. Satu kajian ke
atas kesan habuk kuari sebagai bahan separa ganti kepada pasir telah dijalankan.
Kajian mi adalah untuk menentukan kekuatan mampatan dan kekuatan flexure ke
atas konkrit berliang dengan kehadiran habuk kuari. Laporan mi menunjukkan
keberkesanan penggunaan habuk kuari sebagai bahan ganti kepada pasir sebanyak
10 %, 20 %, 30 % dalam konkrit berliang. Empat jenis campuran yang berbeza
telah dikira meggunakan peratusan habuk kuari yang berbeza dalam konkrit
berliang. Ujian kekuatan telah dilaksanakan ke atas rasuk dan kub kecil yang
mengandungi habuk kuari dan keputusan telah dibandingkan dengan konkrit yang
dibuat tanpa mengandungi habuk kuari. Hasil kajian dan ujian didapati konkrit
yang mengandungi habuk kuari telah menyumbang hampir 40 % kekuatan
berbanding konkrit yang tidak mengandungi habuk kuari.TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER TITLE PAGE
TITLE PAGE i
DECLARATION ii
DEDICATION iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT iv
ABSTRACT v
TABLE OF CONTENTS vii
LIST OF TABLES x
LIST OF FIGURES xi
1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background 1
1.2 Problem statement 3
1.3 Objectives of study 3
1.4 Scope of work 4
2 LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction 5
2.2 History of Foam Concrete 6
2.3 Properties of Lightweight Foam Concrete 8
2.3.1 Air Void 8
2.3.2 Density 9
2.3.3 Stability 10
vii 2.3.4 Compressive Strength II
2.3.5 Water Absorption 12
2.3.6 Resistance to Aggressive Environment 12
2.4 Advantages of Lightweight Foam Concrete 13
2.4.1 Thermal Insulation 13
2.4.2 Sound Insulation or Acoustical Properties 14
2.4.3 Fire Resistance 14
2.4.4 Construction Field (Tunnel Infihl) 15
2.4.5 Construction Field (Road Sub Base) 16
2.4.6 Savings in Construction Material 17
2.4.7 Ease of Application 17
2.4.8 High Durability 18
2.5 Properties of Quarry Dust 19
2.6 Effect of Quarry Dust to Concrete 21
3 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
3.1 Introduction 25
3.2 Cement 27
3.3 Sand 28
3.4 Quarry Dust 29
3.5 Foam 31
3.6 Batching and Mixing 33
3.7 Casting 35
3.8 Curing 36
3.9 Testing 36
3.9.1 Compression Test 37
3.9.2 Flexural Test 37
viii ix
4 RESULTS and ANALYSIS
4.1 Introduction 38
4.2 Data Analysis 38
4.3 Compressive Strength 39
4.4 Flexural Strength 43
5 CONCLUSIONS and RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Introduction 46
5.2 Conclusion 46
5.3 Recommendation 47
REFERENCES 50LIST OF TABLES
TABLE TITLE PAGE
NO.
1.1 Mix Proportion of Foam Concrete 4
2.1 Physical Properties of Quarry Dust and Natural Sand 20
2.2 Typical Chemical Composition of Quarry Dust and
Natural Sand 20
3.1 Chemical Characteristic of Portland Cement, River Sand
and Quarry Dust 28
3.2 ASTM Particle Size Distribution 29
3.3 Physical Characteristic of Quarry Dust and River Sand 31
3.4 Mix Design of Foam Concrete 35
4.1 Average Compressive Strength (MPa) of Foam Concrete 42
4.2 Average Flexural Strength of Foam Concrete 46
x xi
LIST OF FIGURES
FIGURE TITLE PAGE
NO.
3.1 Overall Flow of Work 26
3.2 Ordinary Portland Cement 28
3.3 BS Sieve 30
3.4 Sieved Medium Sand 30
3.5 Quarry Dust Directly Taken from Kuantan Quarry Site 32
3.6 Sieved Quarry Dust Passing 75 p.m BS Sieve 32
3.7 Protein Foaming Agent at FKASA Laboratory 33
3.8 Equipment Used for Producing Pressured Foam 33
3.9 Pressured Foam 34
3.10 Tools and Equipments Used during Concrete Batching 35
3.11 Concrete Mixer Capacity of 200 kg 35
3.12 Cube Formworks 36
3.13 Beam Formworks 36
3.14 Foam Concrete was immersed in Water during
Water Curing 37
4.1 Compressive Strength of 0% Quarry Dust
(Concrete Control) 42
4.2 Compressive Strength of 10% Quarry Dust 43
4.3 Compressive Strength of 20% Quarry Dust 43
4.4 Compressive Strength of 30% Quarry Dust 44
4.5 Compressive Strength of Foam Concrete 44
4.6 Average Flexural Strength (MPa) of Foam Concrete 47CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
Concrete is a manmade material used in the building construction consists
of aggregates which is bonded together by cement and water. The other major part
of concrete besides the cement is the aggregate. Aggregates include sand, crushed
stone, gravel, slag, ashes, burned shale, and burned clay. Fine aggregate refers to
the size of aggregate used in making concrete slabs and smooth surfaces. Coarse
aggregate is used for massive structures or sections of cement. Concrete can be
categorized into two which are conventional concrete, and lightweight concrete.
Both concrete shows different properties and usage. Generally, conventional
concrete has a density of about 2300
kg/M3,
while lightweight concrete has a
density between 300 and 1800 kg/m3.
Anyway, historically concrete has been used in construction for over 2,000
years, perhaps first by the Romans in their aqueducts and roadways. There has
been no looking back for concrete since its modern development. Known as the
strongest building material, concrete has found major uses in dams, highways,
buildings and many different kinds of building and construction. The Romans
made many developments in concrete technology including the use of lightweight
aggregates as in the roof of the Pantheon, and embedded reinforcement in the
form of bronze bars. There are so many types of concrete with different
applications in the constructions; for example pre-stressed concrete, reinforced2
concrete for carrying enormous load. Different types of concrete are produced
depending upon the end application. The modem types of concrete include
cellular or aerated concrete which is light weight and durable, making it easy to
be handled.
Lightweight concrete is widely used for modem construction as it is
mortar less and can be produced with different densities. Lightweight concrete
also known as aerated, cellular lightweight concrete, or foam concrete. The first
lightweight autoclaved aerated concrete factory was built in 1943 in Emmering,
near Munich, Germany. The product is now made in a number of countries in
Europe, Asia, South America and the Middle East. Production began at the
Malaysian plant in August 1995. This study focuses on the foam concrete and
quarry dust. Foam concrete is classified as lightweight concrete because it
contains no large aggregates, only fine aggregate like fine sand, cement, water
and foam.
Foam concrete is widely used in construction field and quite popular for
some application because of its light weight such as reduction of dead load, faster
building rates in construction and lower haulage and handling costs (Kamsiah et
al). It also has several advantages because of its porous nature; it provides thermal
insulation and considerable saving in materials (Puttappa et al. 2008). The
important application of foam concrete includes structural elements, nonstructural partitions and thermal insulating materials. Manufacturers developed
foam concretes of different densities to suit the requirements. The density of foam
concrete ranges from 300-1800 kg/M3 and these products were used in trench
reinstatement, bridge abutment, void filling, roof insulation, road sub base, wall
construction, tunneling etc. (Puttappa et al. 2008).
Another material used in the formation of foam concrete is quarry dust as
partial material replacement. Quarry dust is classified as fine material obtained
from the crushing process during quarrying activity at the quarry site. In this3
study, quarry dust will be studied as replacement material to sand as fine
aggregate. Quarry dust has been use for different activities in the construction
industry such as for road construction and manufacture of building materials such
as lightweight aggregates, bricks, tiles and autoclave blocks. (M Safiuddin et al.)
1.2 Problem Statement
Generally, lightweight foam concrete can be used to construct a non load
bearing precast structural element in construction industry. Furthermore, the
strength of lightweight foam concrete is lower than the strength of conventional
concrete. Thus, strength of the foam concrete need to be improved in order to
wide its application. According to Hamidah et at. (2003), the finer aggregates
used in the foam concrete, the more increment of strength of the foam concrete.
For size specification, quarry dust has been selected since it is finer waste material
and by utilizing the quarry dust as sand replacement perhaps could increase the
strength of foam concrete to enhance the properties of foam concrete.
1.3 Objective
The main objectives of this study were -
i) Determine the compressive strength of foam concrete under different
percentage of quarry dust.
ii) Determine the flexural strength of foam concrete under different
percentage of quarry dust.4
1.4 Scope of Work
In this experimental study, the effect of quarry dust in lightweight foam
concrete in terms of compressive strength and flexural strength had been focused.
There were 36 numbers of cubes with dimension of 150  x 150 x 150 mm and 12
numbers of beams with dimension of 100  x 100 x 500 mm being considered.
Sample with 0% (no quarry dust), 10%, 20%, 30% of quarry dust in terms
of sand mass were designated as B 1 , B2, B3 , B4 for beam and C1, C2, C3 , C4 for
cube respectively. Foam concrete with density of 1200
kg/M3
were prepared with
the water cement ratio of 0.50 and sand cement ratio of 1.0
All samples were cured in water curing. The cubical samples were used as
compression test specimens to determine the compressive strength at the age of 7,
14, and 28 days. The beam samples were undergoing the flexural test at the age of
28 days to determine the flexural strength. Table 1.1 represents the mix proportion
of the foam concrete.
Table 1.1: Mix proportion of foam concrete
% Quarry
Sample No of Cement Sand Water Foam
Quarry Dust
Designated Sample (kg) (kg) (kg) (liter)
Dust (kg)
Cube, Co.,. 9
0 33.08 33.08 - 16.54 29.27
Beam, B 3
Cube, C10% 9
10 33.08 29.77 3.31 16.54 29.27
Beam, B1 3
Cube, C20% 9
20 33.08 26.46 6.62 16.54 29.27
Beam, B2 3
Cube, C30% 9
30 33.08 23.16 9.92 16.54 29.27
Beam, B30% 35
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Introduction
Lightweight foam concrete can be defined as a type of concrete which
included an expanding agent in that it increased the volume of the mixture while
giving additional qualities such as fallibility and lessened the dead weight (Mad
Lazim Zakaria et al., 1978). It was lighter than the conventional concrete with the
dry density of 300
kg/M3
up to 1800 kg/rn3 . Although the material was called
foam concrete, it was not really concrete at all. Foam concrete is actually foamed
mortar, where the mortar was made from cement and water or sand, cement and
water. Foam concrete containing no coarse aggregates, only fine and extremely
lightweight materials containing cement, water and foam. A few investigators had
reported that foam concrete was one having an air content of more than 25 %,
which disintegrated it from highly air entrained materials (C.G Puttappa et al.
2008).
Foam concrete can be placed easily, by pumping if necessary, and does
not require compaction, vibrating or leveling. It has excellent resistance to water
and frost, and provides a high level of both sound and thermal insulation. It is
very versatile; since it can be tailored for optimum performance and minimum
cost by choice of a suitable mix design especially the density of foam concrete.This is because different density might give different use and performance of
foam concrete.
The fact that foam concrete can be made using different mix designs
meant that it was not a single product. Foam concrete was nearly made on-site
and it was made using a mix design specifically selected for each application or
job.
2.2 History of Foam Concrete
The history of foam or aerated concrete began much later than lightweight
aggregate concrete. According to Dubral (1992), the development of the aerated
concrete or foam concrete had begun approximately 100 years ago. In 1914, the
Swedes first discovered a mixture of cement, lime, water and sand that expanded
by adding aluminium powder. It entailed the use of aluminium powder to generate
hydrogen gas in the cement slurry. Prior to that, inventive minds had tried beaten
egg whites, yeast and other unusual methods of adding air to concrete. It was also
reported that foamed concrete was developed in Europe over 60 years ago and has
since then been on the international market for more than 20 years.
The foamed or aerated concrete was similar to wood in its characteristics
but without the disadvantages of combustibility, decay, and termite damage, and
this material was then further developed and later known as Autoclaved Aerated
Concrete. AAC was developed by combining the processes of porosing concrete
by means of metal powder and hardening the mixture through autoclave. This
created a material that exhibited a wealth of desirable characteristics such as low
weight, high material strength, very good heat insulation, excellent fire resistant
and good impact and airborne sound insulation. In the same year, the first patent
right on this particular method of producing foamed concrete was granted.7
From then on, it took another 10 to 20 years for reinforced AAC elements
to be developed. These elements were first used mainly in Scandinavia as roof
and floor units and wall panels. The foaming process which is now most widely
used was patented in 1931. It involved producing cellular concrete prepared by
foaming methods followed by curing in high-pressure steam. Patents were issued
in 1929 on foaming agent formulations, mixing procedures and mixing machines.
The Second World War halted temporarily the quick spread of AAC and
foam concrete as the lightweight concrete, since it had quite same functions and
characteristics. However, it regained its successful expansion in Europe and many
parts of the world after the war ended, in  1950. The rapid development of the
worldwide production of AAC products occurred in 1929 to 1975. In 1955, there
were only thirteen (13) plants or licensed plants manufacturing AAC but later this
number grew to more than 40 plants worldwide. By the year 1975, there were
about two hundreds (200) AAC plants working on almost all continents in
Western and Eastern Europeincluding the Asian part of the former Soviet Union
fifty (50) plants in other Asia countries and six-teen (16) plants in other parts of
the world. The global success of AAC was first achieved by two companies in
Germany, YTONG Siporex and Durox, which are still well known today. Other
companies such as Hebel in Germany and Hendriksen in Denmark followed with
their own differing technologies (Dubral, 1991).
Preformed foam was developed in the early 1950's following the
development of simple, reliable and easily controlled, foam-generating equipment
and highly refined foam stabilizers. The method was cost effective and provided
an accurate means of controlling density. This method had been widely used for
the production of low-density cast-in-place roof decks, filling voids, tunnel gap
filling and insulating underground heat distribution lines until today (Portland
Cement Association, 1980).8
2.3 Properties of Lightweight Foam Concrete
Foam concrete is not the same as conventional concrete and does not have
the same characteristics. Foamed concrete is much lighter and does not have the
same strength as conventional concrete. For this reason foamed concrete and
conventional concrete are generally used for different applications, although there
are applications where either may be specified. Properties of lightweight foam
concrete can be classified into two properties which are mechanical properties and
physical properties.
23.1 Air Void
The pore structure of cementitious material, predetermined by its porosity,
permeability and pore size distribution, is a very important characteristic as it
influences the properties such as strength and durability. The pore structure of
foam concrete consists of gel pores, capillary pores as well as air-voids (Visagie
et al., 2002). As foam concrete being a self-flowing and self-compacting concrete
and without coarse aggregate, the possibilities of the entrapped air is negligible.
The air-voids in the foam concrete can be characterized by a few parameters like
volume, size, size distribution, shape and spacing between air-voids. The air-void
distribution is one of the most important micro properties influencing strength of
foam concrete. Foam concrete with narrower air-void distributions shows higher
strength. The use of fly ash as filler helps in achieving more uniform distribution
of air-voids by providing uniform coating on each bubble and thereby prevents
merging of bubbles. At higher foam volume, merging of bubbles results in wide
distribution of void sizes leading to lower strength. (Nambiar et al., 2007; Visagie
et al., 2002). In addition to the air-void size and its distribution, the compressive
strength of foam concrete is also be influenced by the void/paste ratio, spacing ofOj
air-voids, number (frequency) of air-voids. Because of the uniform shape
(characterized by shape factor) of air-voids, its influence on strength is negligible.
(Wee et al., 2006; Kearsley et al., 1996; Nambiar et al., 2007)
2.3.2 Density
Another property which is very important in determining the foam
concrete is its density. Foam concrete can be formed with the desired density and
requirement. The density of foam concrete is 300 kg/M3
 up to 1800 kg/m3 to suit
different application. Usually, the lower densities of 400-600 kg/M3
 are ideal for
thermal insulation applications. The density range 800-1000 kg/m3 is utilized for
making pre-cast blocks for non load bearing walling masonry in framed structures
while the foam concrete range from 1200kg/rn 3 to 1800 kg/M3
 is structural grade
material utilized for in-situ casting of structural load bearing walls and roofs of
low rise individual or group housing schemes or manufacture of reinforced
structural cladding or partitioning panels or for making pre-cast blocks for loadbearing walling masonry for low-rise buildings. Density can be either in fresh or
hardened state. Fresh density is required for mix design and casting control
purposes. A theoretical equation for finding fresh density may not be applicable
as there can be scatter in the results caused by a number of factors including
continued expansion of the foam after its discharge, loss of foam during mixing
(Regan et al., 1990). Many physical properties of foam concrete related to/depend
upon its density in hardened state. While specifying the density, the moisture
condition needs to be indicated as the comparison of properties of foam concrete
from different sources can have little meaning without a close definition of the
degree of dryness (Valore et al., 1954). McCormick (1967) studied the effect of
types of fine aggregate, aggregate gradation, type of foam and sand—cement ratio
on the wet density of foam concrete and reported that wet densities within about
5% of the design densities can be achieved by using solid volume calculations.10
The cement—sand based non-autoclaved preformed foam concrete has relatively
higher density and higher requirement of cement content. Greater the proportion
of aggregate, higher will be the density. Compared to a product based on sand and
cement, it is observed that replacement of sand with fly ash help in reducing the
density with an increased strength (Durack et at., 1998). Alternately, to achieve a
particular density of foam concrete, use of fly ash results in a reduction in foam
volume requirement due to its lower specific gravity (Nambiar et al., 2006),
thereby resulting in higher strength.
2.33 Stability.
Furthermore, foam concrete cannot be subjected to compaction or
vibration the foam concrete should have flowability and self-compactability.
These two properties are evaluated in terms of consistency and stability of foam
concrete, which are affected by the water content in the base mix, amount of foam
added along with the other solid ingredients in the mix (Nambira et al., 2008).
The stability of foam concrete is the consistency at which the density ratio is
nearly one (the measured fresh density/design density), without any segregation
and bleeding (Nambira et at., 2008). This ratio is higher than unity at both lower
and higher consistencies due to either stiffer mix or segregation. The stability of
test mixes can also be assessed by comparing the calculated and actual quantities
of foam required to achieve a plastic density within 50 kg/m3 of the design value;
and calculated and actual w/c ratios. The additional free water contents resulting
from the foam collapse. Corresponded to an increase in actual w/c ratio (Jones et
al., 2006). Thus the consistency of the base mix to which foam is added is an
important factor, which affects the stability of mix. This consistency reduces
considerably when foam is added and depends on the filler type also. Hence there
is a need for determining the water—solids ratio, which would satisfy both stability
and consistence of the mix. Regression equations based on the experimental11
results, for predicting the spread flow value of foam concrete, knowing the
proportion of the other ingredients, will help in arriving at this water content for
the production of a stable and workable foam concrete mix. For typical materials
used, an appropriate workability value has been arrived at as 45% of spread at
which a foam concrete mix of good stability and consistency can be produced
(Nambiar et al., 2008).
23.4 Compressive Strength
Besides, the mechanical property of foam concrete is the compressive
strength. Study done by Kearsley et al., (1996) has reported that the compressive
strength of the foam concrete decreases exponentially with a reduction in density
of the foam concrete. the specimen size and shape, the method of pore formation,
direction of loading, age, water content, characteristics of ingredients used, and
the method of curing are reported to influence the strength of foam concrete in
total (Valore et al., 1954). Other parameters affecting the strength of foam
concrete are cement sand and water cement ratio, curing regime, type and particle
size distribution of sand and types of foaming agent used (Aldridge et al., 2005;
Hamidah et al., 2005). For dry density of foam concrete between 500 kg/M
3
 and
1000 kg/m3 , the compressive strength decreases with an increase in void diameter.
For densities higher than 1000 kg/m3, as the air-voids are far apart to have an
influence on the compressive strength, the composition of the paste determines
the compressive strength. It has been reported that small changes in the water—
cement ratio does not affect the strength of foam concrete as in the case of normal
weight concrete.12
2.3.5 Water Absorption
The durability properties include the water absorption of foam concrete.
The water absorption of foam concrete decreases with a reduction in density,
which is attributed to lower paste volume phase and thus to the lower capillary
pore volume. The water absorption of foam concrete is mainly influenced by the
paste phase and not all artificial pores are taking part in water absorption, as they
are not interconnected (Nambiar et al., 2006; Kearsley et al., 2001). Expressing
water absorption as percentage by mass can lead to misleading results when foam
concrete is concerned because of larger differences in density. The oxygen and
water vapor permeability of foam concrete have been observed to increase with
increasing porosity and fly ash content (Kearsley et al., 1998). Permeability
coefficient of lightweight foamed concrete is proportional to unit weight and
inversely proportional to pore ratio (Byun et al., 1998).
2.3.6 Resistance to Aggressive Environment
Foam concrete mixture designed at low density taking into consideration
of depth of initial penetration, absorption and absorption rate, provided good
freeze-thaw resistance (Jones et al., 2008; Tikalsky et al., 2004). Sulphate
resistance of foam concrete, studied by Jones and McCarthy (Jones et al., 2005)
for 12 months, reveals that foam concrete has good resistance to aggressive
chemical attack. A study on accelerated carbonation of foam concrete by Jones
and McCarthy (2005) indicate that lower density concrete appears to carbonate at
a relatively higher rate. Comparing the performance of mixes with sand and fly
ash, mixes with fly ash exhibited higher carbonation than that with sand. An
accelerated chloride ingress tests suggested that foam concrete performance is
equivalent to that of normal concrete, with enhanced corrosion resistance at lower
density (Giannakou et al., 2002). The cell-like structure of foam concrete and13
possible porosity of cell wall do not necessarily make the foam concrete less
resistant to penetration of moisture than dense concrete; the air-voids appears to
act as a buffer preventing rapid penetration.
2.4 Advantages of Lightweight Foam Concrete
Foam concrete is classified as lightweight concrete because it contains no
large aggregates, only fine aggregate like fine sand, cement, water and foam.
There also air voids entrapped in it shows one of the properties of the foam
concrete. Foam concrete is widely used in construction field and quite popular for
application because of its light weight which ensures economic aspects such as
the trench instatement. It also has several advantages because of its porous nature;
it provides thermal insulation and considerable saving in materials (C.G Puttappa
et al, 2008). The important application of foam concrete includes structural
elements, non-structural partitions and thermal insulating materials.
Manufacturers developed foam concretes of different densities to suit the
requirements. The density of foam concrete ranges from 300-1800 kg/m3 and
these products were used in trench reinstatement, bridge abutment, void filling,
roof insulation, road sub base, wall construction, tunneling etc. (C.G Puttappa et
al, 2008).
2.4.1 Thermal Insulation
Foam concrete has excellent thermal insulating properties due to its
cellular microstructure. The thermal conductivity of foam concrete of density
1000 kg/m3 is reported to be one-sixth the value of typical cement—sand mortar
(Aidrige et al.,2001). A study by Giannakau and Jones (2002) exploring the
potential of foam concrete to enhance the thermal performance of low rise14
building has shown that the foam concrete ground supported slab foundation is
possessing better thermal insulation and lower sorptivity properties while
producing satisfactory strength. The thermal conductivity values are 5-30% of
those measured on normal weight concrete and range from between 0.1 and 0.7
W/mK for dry densities values of 600-1600 kg/m3, reducing with decreasing
densities. Thermal insulation of brick wall can be increased by 23% when inner
leaf is replaced with foamed concrete of unit weight 800 kg/m3.
2.4.2 Sound Insulation or Acoustical Properties
Valore (1954) has stated that cellular concrete does not possess unique or
significant sound insulation characteristics. Foamed concrete is stated to be less
effective than dense concrete in resisting the transmission of air-borne sound
(Taylor et al., 1969) because the Transmission Loss (TL) of air-borne sound is
dependant on mass law, which is a product of frequency and surface density of
the component. Tada (1986) attributed the TL to the rigidity and internal
resistance of the wall, in addition to the mass law and gives an acoustical
performance design of cellular concrete based on bulk density and thickness.
Sound transmission of a cellular concrete wall, over most of the audible frequency
range may be higher by 2-3% as compared to normal weight concrete. While
dense concrete tends to deflect sound, foam concrete absorbs it, and hence the
foam concrete has higher sound absorption capacity (Taylor et al., 1969).
2.4.3 Fire Resistance
At high temperature the heat transfer through porous materials is
influenced by radiation, which is an inverse function of the number of air—solid15
interfaces traversed. Hence along with its lower thermal conductivity and
diffusivity, the foam concrete may result in better fire resistance properties
(Valore et al., 1954). Fire resistance tests on different densities of foam concrete
indicated that the fire endurance enhanced with reductions in density. While
reviewing earlier studies on fire resistance, Jones and McCarthy (2005)
summarize that, for lower densities of foam concrete, the proportional strength
loss was less when compared to normal concrete. As compared to vermiculite
concrete, lower densities of foam concrete is reported to have exhibited better fire
resistance, while with higher densities, this trend is stated to be reversed (Aidrige
et at., 2005). Kearsley and Mostert (2005) studied the effect of cement
composition on the behaviour of foam concrete at high temperature and
concluded that foam concrete containing hydraulic cement with an Al203/CaO
ratio higher than two can withstand temperatures as high as 1450 °C without
showing sign of damage.
2.4.4 Construction Field (Tunnel Infihl)
Foam concrete has been used for the tunnel infill in United Kingdom has
showed many advantages. The infill of the tunnel was successfully completed in
nine working days and required 1300 kg/m3 of foam concrete made. The superior
flowing and self-compacting properties of foam concrete ensure that all voids are
completely eliminated. As foam concrete is compressed during collapse or
subsidence of material above, due to its cellular structure, the resistance of the
foam concrete increases, absorbing the kinetic energy. Unlike some synthetic,
lightweight foams (polystyrene for example), hardened foam concrete is not
susceptible to breakdown due to the presence of hydrocarbons, bacteria or fungi.
Foam concrete is insect, rodent and fireproof. The exclusive design and
technology employed in on site batching plants allow recycled materials such as
fuel ash and limestone dust to be used in many of the mixes. These industrial by-16
products are often disposed of in landfill sites but, by blending them with cement,
they are encapsulated within the foam concrete, thereby mitigating any adverse
effects on the environment.
2.4.5 Construction Field (Road Sub Base)
The foam concrete has been used as the road sub-bases. A recent
development has been the use of foam concrete as a road sub-base. It is a highly
effective way to improve unstable soil conditions or to replace unsuitable soils. A
typical application would be to raise the elevation of the roadway by using foam
concrete as a sub base, especially where the soil is unstable. Foam concrete does
not require compacting, imposes no lateral forces on adjacent structures, may be
applied directly to existing marginal ground such as peat concentrations or poor
soils, and weighs 20-25% of the weight of the standard soils. Foam concrete can
be applied on the uneven ground as it does not need a completely flat surface,
eliminating the requirement for surcharging with soil. Less consolidation is
required for subsoil and it also achieves equilibrium with surrounding pressures.
Advantages of using foam concrete for road construction are ease and speed of
placement, total void-fill, and good energy absorbing qualities. When judged
against other more labor/time intensive methods, the ability to produce quantities
of up to 400m3 a day means that construction times can be significantly reduced,
with consequent cost savings. The flowing, self-compacting properties of foam
concrete mean that you can be assured that all voids are completely eliminated.
As the foam concrete is compressed during the collapse or subsidence of material
above, due to its cellular structure, the resistance of the foam concrete increases,
absorbing the kinetic energy. Unlike some synthetic lightweight foams
(polystyrene for example), hardened foam concrete is not susceptible to
breakdown due to the presence of hydrocarbons, bacteria or fungi. It is insect,
rodent and fireproof. Using foam on-site batching plant means less traffic17
disruption both on-site and in the surrounding area. Around 109 m3 of 400 kg/M3
density lightweight foam concrete can be produced from one bulk powder tanker
delivery, making it safer for site-workers and local residents as well as being
friendlier to the environment.
2.4.6 Savings in Construction Material
Reduction in dead weights contributes substantially to savings in
reinforcing steels in foundations. The dimensions and therefore, the overall
quantity of steel reinforcement in foamed concrete can be reduced by as much as
50%. Savings are also substantial in transportation, crane- and man-handling
related activities as well as in raw materials, as no gravel is required to produce
foamed concrete but sand, cement, water and air, with the resulting mortar/paste
subsequently embedded in the foam. Casting very slender walls can optimize the
amount of concrete used, and wall as thin as 50 mm have been produced with
foamed concrete. The high ability flow of foamed concrete makes vibration
unnecessary, and thus requires no prescription of vibrating equipment/accessories
(Liew, 2003).
2.4.7 Ease of Application
No special skill is required in using the system. It is fully adoptable or at
least adaptable into existing concrete or prefabrication plants, adding only a
foaming agent into the mixer at a precise dose, which is discharged from a foam
generator. Foamed concrete may later be pumped using conventional concrete
pumps. Due to the absence of gravel and the ball-bearing effect of the foam,
foamed concrete possesses a high degree of flowability. No vibration is thus