Alternative building materials

VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERTISITY

JNANASANGAMA, BELAGAVI, KARNATAKA, INDIA-
590018

SEMINAR REPORT ON

Alternative building materials

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the required for eighth semester Bachelor

of Engineering Degree in civil Engineering for Academic year 2020-2021

SUBMITTED BY
MOHD MUZAMMIL (1GC17CV052 )
UNDER THE GUIDENCE OF
MR. B R NARAYANA
(ASSISTANT PROFESSOR)

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING, GCE

GHOUSIA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING
RAMANAGARA-562159

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Alternative building materials

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEEING

GHOUSIA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

RAMANAGARAM-562159
(Affiliated to visvesvaraya Technological University, Belagavi
Approved by AICTE and Accredited by NBA, New Delhi)

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the seminar report entitled “ALTERNATIVE BUILDING

MATERIALS ” is a bonofied work carried out by MOHD MUZAMMIL
(1GC17CV052) who carried out the seminar work under my supervision to the
best of my knowledge work has been submitted under the guidelines of
VISVESVARAYA TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY, belagavi during the year 2020-
2021.

Signature of Guide Signature of HOD

Mr. B R Narayan Dr. N S KUMAR

(ASSISTANT Professor) (PROFESSOR AND HOD)

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to express our since gratitude to Mr. B R Narayan for

his invaluable guidance. His continue encouragement and support
have always been an inspiration and a source of energy for us. We
thank to him for all of his valuable time, effort and help.
We would also like to thank Dr. N S Kumar HOD civil for his constant
guidance and support to helping us to complete this seminar report
Also, our since thank to all peoples who were directly (or) Indirectly-
associated with the project in any other way.

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Contents

1. Abstract

2. Introduction

3. Literature review

4. Advantages of alternative building materials

5. List of Alternate Building Materials

6. conclusion

7. Reference

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Abstract

building construction industry, it has been seen that materials,

which were being used about a century back, are still very
popular. Variety of alternative building materials are available
which provide better, efficient, durable and cost effective
construction and also ensure judicious utilization of available
limited resources with least possible degradation of environment.
Building materials and technologies, and building practices have
evolved through ages. Housing and building conditions reflect the
living standards of a society. Stones, mud, thatch/leaves and
timber represent the earliest building materials used for the
construction of dwellings. Hardly any energy is spent in
manufacturing and use of these natural materials for construction.
Durability of the materials, directly derived from natural
materials like soil, thatch/leaves, timber, etc. is questionable.
Quest for durable building materials is an ongoing phenomenon
ever since man started construction activity. Brick burning
represents one of the earliest examples of using energy (other
than animate energy) to manufacture durable building materials
from the soil/earth. Firewood was the main source of energy for
burning bricks. Use of metal products represents the next energy
consuming manufactured.

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INTRODUCTION

Discovery of natural inorganic binders like pozzolanic materials

lead to the use of lime-pozzolana (LP) cement for construction
purposes. Experience of using LP cement paved the way for the
invention of Portland cement in 1824. Portland cement and steel
brought revolutionary changes in the construction practices from
early part of 20th century. Then plastics and plastic products entered
the construction industry. Thus, the new materials, which are
available for use in construction, have many advantages over
conventional materials being used presently. The demand for
building materials has been continuously rising with the
increasing need for housing both in rural and urban areas.
Commercial exploitation of traditional building materials by
various industries has aggravated the situation. It has, therefore,
become necessary to think over this problem seriously and to
provide some sustainable solution to make the alternative
materials available to solve the housing problem. The
government of India is committed to the cause of bringing about
rapid and sustainable development in rural as well as urban
areas. Bricks, cement, steel, aluminium, plastic products, paints,
polished stone, ceramic products, etc. are the commonly used
materials of construction today. These materials are energy
intensive and are transported over large distances before being
used for construction. The following points require attention,
regarding the use of modern building materials: Energy
consumed in the manufacturing processes – energy intensity;
Problems of long distance transportation; Natural resources and
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raw materials consumed; Recycling and safe disposal; Impact on

environment, and Long-term sustainability. Thus the issues related
to energy expenditure, recycling, biodegradable, environmental
and sustainability with respect to future demand need to be
addressed during the manufacture and use of any new building
material.

Literature review

Bredenoord J carried out study on sustainable Housing and

Building Materials for Low-income Households; it is observed
that sustainable goals for low cost housing and applications are
achievable. Measures concerning the physical development of
neighborhoods, such as urban density and connectivity are
equally as important as measures concerning community
development. The final comprise support for community built
organizations, small housing cooperatives (or similar forms of
cooperation) and individual households – or small groups – that
build and increase their houses incrementally. Adequate design
and social organization and support are preconditions for
achieving sustainability in incremental housing.[1]

Preetpal Singh carried out study on Low Cost Housing: Need

For Today’s World; it is observed that Constructioncost in India
is increasing at around 50 per cent over average inflation levels.
It have enumerated increase of up to 15 per cent all year, mainly
due to cost of basic building materials such as steel, cement,
bricks, timber and other inputs as well as cost of labour. As a
result, the cost of building by means of conventional
construction materials and construction is becoming beyond the

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affordable limits particularly for low-income groups of population

as well as a big cross section of middle - income groups. So,
there is essential to adopt cost-effective construction methods either
by up-gradation of traditional technologies using local resources
or applying current construction materials and methods with well-
organized inputs leading to economic solutions. By using Low
Cost Housing Technologies, we can reduce approx. 25% of the
total cost of housing.[2]

Swaptik chowdary carried out studies on prospects of low cost

housing in India, it is observed that in this paper alternative
construction materials mainly natural material such as bamboo,
straw, usage of Bagasse –cement boards and panels, bagasse –
PVC boards, Coir-CNSL board, Jute coir composites, coconut and
wooden chips roofing materials, Manmade materials like fly ash,
aerocon panels, ferro cement, rice husk were studied and the
potential of these materials to be used as alternate building
materials is brought out.[3]

Sengupta Nilanjan carried out study of appropriateness of cost

effective building construction technologies, it is observed that
this paper studied the acceptability adaptability potential of
different cost effective building andconstructions through field
survey, literature study and technical calculations and tried to
find out the most appropriate one among those.[4]

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Why Alternative Building Materials: Issues on Energy,

Environment, Sustainable Construction and Buildings
For example demand for houses has doubled in about two
decades from 1980. Compounded growth rates of 2.5%, 5% and
5% has been assumed for bricks, steel and cement respectively to
compute the projected demand. In case of brick-making activity, at
present topsoil equivalent of 300 mm from 100,000 hectares
(1000 sq km) of fertile land, 22 × 106 tonne of coal and 10 ×
106 tonnes of biomass are consumed annually. We have an
arable land area of 1.62 × 106 sq km comprising alluvial soils,
black soil, red soil, laterite soil and desert soil. Alluvial, laterite
and red soils are suitable for brick making. Area under the soils
suitable for brick making may not exceed 50% of the arable
land. Brick-making activity to meet the present and future
demand can result in consuming the 300 mm depth fertile
topsoil of arable land in about 90 years (assuming 2.5%
compounded growth rate). Similarly the pressure on raw
materials like limestone to manufacture cement and energy
requirements to produce these materials has to be addressed.
Production of building materials has slowly and steadily moved
from highly decentralized and labor-intensive methods and
processes to centralized, machine-dependent industry mode.
Centralized mode of production necessitates hauling of raw
materials and distribution of finished materials over great
distances. These activities again require expenditure of fossil
fuels for transportation. Transportation of raw and finished
building materials is another key issue that can contribute to cost
of materials, increased energy requirements and environmental
issues. Sustainability of the present mode of production,
consumption and distribution of building materials and currently
adopted construction practices is questionable.

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Need of Alternate Building Materials

Steel, cement, glass, aluminium, plastics, bricks, etc. are energy-
intensive materials, commonly used for building construction.
Generally these materials are transported over great distances.
Extensive use of these materials can drain the energy resources and
adversely affect the environment. On the other hand, it is difficult to
meet the ever-growing demand for buildings by adopting only energy
efficient traditional materials (like mud, thatch, timber, etc.) and
construction methods. Hence, there is a need for optimum utilization
of available energy resources and raw materials to produce simple,
energy efficient, environment friendly and sustainable building
alternatives and techniques to satisfy the increasing demand for
buildings. Some of the guiding principles in developing the
sustainable alternative building technologies can be summarized as
follows: Energy conservation; Minimize the use of high energy
materials; Concern for environment, environment-friendly
technologies; Minimize transportation and maximize the use of local
materials and resources; Decentralized production and maximum use
of local skills; Utilization of industrial and mine wastes for the
production of building materials; Recycling of building wastes, and
Use of renewable energy sources.

Building technologies manufactured by meeting these principles

could become sustainable and facilitate sharing the resources
especially energy resources more efficiently, causing minimum
damage to the environment.

Advantages
Besides being eco-friendly, the other advantages of using these
materials for construction are: • Better functional efficiency
. • Cost effectiveness.

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• Better durability.
• Ease of construction.
• Better finish
. • Minimum waste
. • Less maintenance cost.
• Minimum defects.
• Less energy intensive.
One of the major component of Eco-housing practices using
‘Alternate Building Materials’ is Sustainable Construction
Practices.

Eco-Friendly Materials

“Products or services that have a lesser or reduced effect on human

health and the environment when compared with competing products
or services that serve the same purpose.”

The use of Eco-friendly Materials became a necessity because of the

following reasons;

• Phenomenal growth in the construction industry that depends

upon depletable sources.
• Production of building materials leads to irreversible
environmental impacts
Features of Eco-friendly materials

• Renewable Source.
• Reuse of Waste product.
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• Low Embodied Energy.

• Local Availability.
• Reduction in air, land and water pollution.
• Durability & Life span.
• Aids Energy Efficiency in buildings.
• Durability & Life span.
• Biodegradable.

List of Alternate Building Materials :

• Hollow Concrete Block
• Fly Ash Bricks
• Rice Husk Ash
• Ferrocement
• Tire Veneer
• Plastic Wood
• Synthetic Fiber
• Recycled Agg
. • Fly Ash • Bamboo

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Hollow Concrete Block (as brick)

Concrete block is primarily used as a building material in the

construction of wall. It is sometimes called a concrete masonry unit
(CMU). A concrete block is one of the several precast concrete
products used in the construction (shown as fig). The term precast

refer to the fact that the block are formed and hardened before they
are brought to the job site. In use, concrete blocks are stacked one at a
time and held together with fresh concrete mortar to form the desired
length and height of the wall.

Advantages
• Low Maintenance, Color and brilliance of masonry withstands
outdoor elements.
• Load Bearing, strength can be specified as per the requirement.
• Fire Resistant
• Provide thermal and sound insulation: The air in hollow of the
block, does not allow outside heat or cold in the house. So it
keeps house cool in summer and warm in winter.
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• Economical.
• Environment Friendly, fly ash used as one of the raw materials
Disadvantages
• Hollow blocks has poor bearing capacity because the total mass
of wall decoration materials is reduced, the load-bearing
capacity is also reduced.
• It is very dangerous to hang heavy objects on such walls.

Fly Ash Bricks

Fly Ash bricks are made of fly ash, lime, gypsum and sand. These can
be extensively used in all building constructional activities similar to

that of common burnt clay bricks. The fly ash bricks are
comparatively lighter in weight and stronger than common clay
bricks.

Advantages

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Saves Construction Cost -: Due to the uniform shape and size of the
fly ash brick, it saves labor in laying bricks by about 15%. This
translates into reduction in labor cost in laying each brick, which is
quite substantial.
 Less Water Seepage and Dampness in wall -: Due to high strength
and less water absorption of fly ash bricks there are less water
seepage and dampness in walls of building
.  Less Energy Consumption -: Huge Energy is consumed in heating
clay bricks in kilns. By using fly ash bricks much energy is saved in
brick manufacturing
 Reduction in Air Pollution -: Much fossil fuel is used in heating
clay bricks in kilns. Burning such fuel generates air pollution and
greenhouse gas (CO2), contributing to global warming.

Disadvantages

• All fly ash bricks are not suitable for construction. It’s
necessary to use high-quality fly ash bricks to resist
harmful effects.
• If the fly ash bricks are not appropriately prepared, then
it has no strength and not suitable for construction.
• These bricks are only available in modular size. Larger
size bricks are not produced due to cracks.
• Bonding is less due to a smooth finish; that’s why we
need to care about when masonry work is running.

Rice Husk Ash / Pozzolanas

Pozzolanas are materials containing reactive silica and/or alumina,
which in their own right have little binding ability. Yet, when
mixed with lime and water it will set and harden like cement. They

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are important ingredients in alternative cement compounds. Rice

husks are a large by-product – one ton is produces per five ton of
rice paddies, and it is estimated that 120 million tons of husk could
be available annually on a global basis.

Advantages

 Increased compressive and flexural strengths.

 Reduced permeability.
 Increased resistance to chemical attack.
 Increased durability.
 Reduced effects of alkali-silica reactivity.
 Reduced shrinkage due to particle packing, making concrete
denser.  Enhanced workability of concrete.
 Reduced heat gain through the walls of buildings.
 Reduced amount of super plasticizer - Reduced potential for
efflorescence due to reduced calcium hydracids.

Disadvantages
 Suitable incinerator/furnace as well as grinding method is required
for burning and grinding rice husk in order to obtain good quality ash.
 Strength of concrete is reduced for larger (beyond 30%)
replacement.
 There is a little transportation problem.
 Unburnt RHA is not suitable for concrete production

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Ferrocement

The term ferrocement is most commonly applied to a mixture of

Portland Cement and sand reinforced with layers of woven or
expanded steel mesh and closely- spaced small-diameter steel rods
rebar. It can be used to form relatively thin, compound curved sheets
to make hulls for boats, shell roofs, water tanks, etc. When used in
house construction in developing countries, it can provide better
resistance to fire, earthquake, and corrosion than traditional materials,
such as wood, adobe and stone masonry.

Advantages
• The thickness and weight of the Ferrocement structure is
less so that the weight of the structure is reduced and due to

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reduced weight of the structure, foundation cost is also

reduced.
• Ferrocement is more suitable for pre-cast units.
• No formwork required.
• The construction method is simple and does not require
skilled labor.
• The repair can be done easily.
Disadvantages

• Ferrocement construction is expensive mainly because it is labor-

intensive.
• It can puncture by forceful collision, Impact or push with pointed
objects.
• It can damage in corrosive environments. In environments such as
in seawater, the reinforcing materials may get corroded, if the
thickness of the cover is inadequate.
• The special core is, therefore, necessary to ensure that the cover of
steel reinforcement is adequate.

Tire Veneer (as flooring material)

Rubber tires play an essential role in modern life. Tires are essential
globally, at all levels of development. Millions are discarded annually
as they wear out relatively fast – this product makes use of recycling
the material into a usable material for various types of applications.

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Advantages
• It is as an environmentally responsive flooring material resilient
both indoors and outdoors.
• It can be used in areas such as sports and recreation, animal
housing and high traffic areas outdoors.
• A variety of consumer products can be made such as vibration
dampeners and furniture surfaces internally.

Plastic Wood

It is made primarily from high-density polyethylene (HDPE),

recovered from the waste stream mainly in the form of used milk
containers or recovered plastic bags, and from wood wastes (often
planer shavings) that have been ground to a fine powder. A 50:50
mixture of plastic and wood is common. Plastic wood is 100%
recyclable made of recycled plastic.

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Advantages

• 100% resistant to rot.

• Impervious to cracking and splitting (with correct installation)
• environmentally friendly and requires less maintenance.
• Waste plastic and wood is used for manufacturing.
• All woods may check, split, cup, crook, twist, and warp, and
weather over time to a grayish color. Treated wood exhibits
long-term durability in a deck surface application, lasting as
long, or longer, than naturally durable, untreated woods.

Reinforced Fiber Concrete Fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC)

It is concrete containing fibrous material which increases its structural

integrity. It contains short discrete fibers that are uniformly

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distributed and randomly oriented. Fibers include steel fibers, glass

fiber, synthetic fibers and natural fibers.

Advantages

• Improve mix cohesion, improving pump ability over long

distances.
• Improve freeze-thaw resistance.
• Improve resistance to explosive palling in case of a severe fire.
• Improve impact resistance.
• Increase resistance to plastic shrinkage during curing.
• Improve structural strength and reduce crack widths and control the
crack widths tightly thus improve durability.
• Reduce steel reinforcement requirements.
• Improve ductility.

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Disadvantages

• The process of incorporating fibers into the cement matrix is

labor-intensive and costlier than the production of plain
concrete.
• The main disadvantage associated with fiber reinforced
concrete is fabrication.

Causes of Poor Acceptability of Alternative Building Materials

• Lack of knowledge about new materials.

• Non-inclusion in various National codes and specifications.

• In-appropriate environment for research and development.

• Higher price structure of new materials.

• Lower emphasis on research on eco-friendly materials.

• Negative attitude of engineers/ architects towards non-scheduled

items.

• Lower confidence on quality. • Negligible technological thrust for

wider acceptance and adoption.

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CONCLUSION

The demand for building materials has been continuously rising with
the increasing need for housing both in rural and urban areas.

 Selecting environmentally attractive materials with reduced

environmental impacts is primarily achieved through the practice of
resource conservation and selection of non-toxic materials.

 The resources used to manufacture construction materials affect the

environment by depleting natural resources, using energy, and
releasing pollutants to the land, water.

 Commercial exploitation of traditional building materials by various

industries has aggravated the situation. It has, therefore, become
necessary to think over this problem seriously and to provide some
sustainable solution to make the alternative materials available to
solve the housing problem.

 A review of the recent trends indicates that the growth in the area
of building materials covers emerging trends and latest developments
in the use of wastes, mineral admixtures in cement and concrete,
substitutes to conventional timber, composite materials and recycling
of wastes, at the same time ensuring desired response of materials to
fire, long term performance and durability.

 The most important feature governing the choice of material &

form of construction for any component is its structural integrity.
Whereas high specific strength and lightweight were often the
dominant criteria to be achieved, particularly for aerospace
applications, there is today an increasing emphasis on other criteria
such as environmental durability, embedded energy, fire resistance.

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REFERENCES

1. OTI, J.E., KINUTHIA, J.M and BAI, J., 2009c. Unfired clay
bricks: from laboratory to industrial production, Proceedings of
ICE, Journal of Engineering sustainability (in press) of ICE,

2. OTI J.E, KINUTHIA, J.M and BAI J., 2008b. Developing

unfired stabilized building materials in the UK, Proceedings
Journal 10.1680/ensu.2008.161.4.211. of Engineering Sustainability,
161(ES4), pp.211-218, DOI:

3. JAYASINGHE C and KAMALADASA N., 2007.

Compressive strength characteristics of cement stabilized rammed
earth walls. Construction and Building Materials, 21(1), pp.1971-
1976. OTI J.E, KINUTHIA J.M and BAI J., 2008a. Using Slag
for Unfired-clay Masonry Bricks, Proceedings of ICE, Journal of
Construction materials, 161(CM4), pp.147-155, DOI:
10.1680/coma.2008.161.4.147.

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