Properties of foamed concrete integrating various additives and its application as infill material
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Date
2014
Authors
Roslan, Ahmad Farhan
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Abstract
Lightweight foamed concrete (LFC) is produced by cement paste or mortar in which air-voids are entrapped in the mortar by the suitable foaming agent. LFC has virtually limitless application in the construction industry. This research focuses on the investigation and experimental analysis on LFC properties, which will explore the potential of LFC application as infill materials. 600, 1000 and 1400 kg/m3 densities with different percentage of additives (fly ash, lime and polypropylene fibre respectively) were cast and tested. Compressive strength, flexural strength, water absorption test, shrinkage and thermal are the properties that were measured. The results show that fly ash as cement replacement offer the best results for overall properties of LFC. The use of fly ash gives low water absorption and lead to a slight reduction in the drying shrinkage. In terms of thermal properties of LFC, it was mainly influenced by the density where only small changes were with the addition of additives. Low density LFC gives better thermal performance due to the effectiveness in thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat through the microstructure formation. Application of LFC as infill material for PSSDB floor panels with 1 mm thickness profiled steel sheeting and 9 mm fibre cement board connected with self drilling screw were executed. LFC as infill increased the stiffness of PSSDB where the deflection was reduced 2 to 4 times than normal PSSDB. 28 to 30% increase in strength was achieved by every 400 kg/m3 density of LFC. LFC as infill material delayed and reduced the overall buckling, enhance the stiffness and provide a good thermal performance of PSSDB panel. The result of the feasibility study indicates that the proposed system is capable to resist certain load and to be used in simple buildings, renovation works, temporary settlements and roofing systems.