The effects of production methods on the compressive strength of hollow sandcrete blocks

Rasheed, Abdulwahab; Akinleye, Tunde Monsuru

Journal of Materials and Engineering Structures
Volume 3, Numéro 4, Pages 197-204
2016-12-30

The Effects Of Production Methods On The Compressive Strength Of Hollow Sandcrete Blocks

Authors : Rasheed Abdulwahab . Akinleye Tunde Monsuru .

Abstract

The high demand for sandcrete block for the development of physical infrastructures in Nigeria makes it important in building and construction industry. This research assessed three local methods of producing sandcrete blocks of sizes nine (9’’) and six (6’’) inches respectively. The methods used in producing the blocks were manual compaction, hand ramming and power operated method. Mix ratio of 1:9; a head pan of cement to nine head pans of sharp sand was used in all the methods. The materials (sand & cement) were thoroughly mixed until a homogenous mix with uniform color was obtained. Curing was done by sprinkling water on the specimens three times daily for 28 days and the compressive strength of the blocks was determined on the 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th days respectively. The study revealed that compaction has greater effect on the compressive strength of sandcrete blocks in the sense that blocks produced using vibrating machine has the highest compressive strength amongst the three methods.