Building Materials

Methods of Building Construction

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Types of construction methods

When you purchase a home, more thought is put into the location and layout of the property than the methods of construction that were used to build it. That is something that becomes incredibly important when you decide that you want to build your own home from scratch. You quickly learn how different structural methods and materials used in the construction can affect the bottom line. With a definite budget in place, you really need to pay attention to all of these details, which usually means that such things as amenities and house features take second place to the actual build.

In our earlier articles, we have discussed an entire guide for RCC construction. The guide includes the detailed procedures for carrying out various different calculations for designing different parts of the building. Foundation design is the most important and first step in the design of RCC structures.

Masonry construction

One of the most commonly used methods of construction is one that basically dates back centuries, and that is masonry. Brick and stone are durable materials that can withstand the elements better than most. Building a brick home on a stone slab means that you will have a solid home with a strong foundation, but it is also a little more labor intensive than most of the modern methods that are available today. That additional labour can drive build costs up, but money can also be saved by using re-purposed bricks, which can also add a very unique look to the home.

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Fly ash Bricks | Building Materials and Construction

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Fly ash Bricks | An alternative Building Material

Fly ash bricks are masonry units that are used in the construction of buildings. They are considered to be a part of good and affordable building materials. They contain Class C fly ash and water.

Fly ash bricks are made by compressing Class C fly ash and water at 4000psi and then curing is carried on for 24 hours at a temperature of 66 degrees Celsius steam bath. Air entrainment agent is used to toughen the bricks.

Fly ash Bricks
Fly ash Bricks

Since the concentration of calcium oxide is very high in class C fly ash, the brick is described as self cementing.

It is considered to be a good alternative to traditional mud bricks since the method of manufacture of fly ash is energy efficient that is it helps save energy, brings about reduction of mercury pollution and plus it is cost effective.

Raw materials used for the manufacture of Fly ash Bricks:

  • Fly ash – which is the primary ingredient
  • Sand or Stone dust – as fine aggregate
  • Lime – source of calcium carbonate which results in the bricks being called “Self-cementing bricks”.
  • Gypsum – to enhance the fineness of the shape of the bricks
  • Cement – to increase bonding and strength

Building Materials | Use of Carbon-negative Cement in Building Construction

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Carbon-negative cement | New revolutionary Building material

Carbon-negative cement…?? Sound different, doesn’t it?

Have you ever realized how much carbon is emitted because of using concrete in the construction of buildings, highways, dams, bridges etc?

Well, here’s an answer to that. It is found that out of the 100% carbon dioxide emissions, 5% of the emissions are caused by human activities. Majority of the carbon emission is caused by usage of concrete in the constructions. How? Cement is an indispensible ingredient used for making concrete. Cement is made by baking limestone and clay powders under intense temperatures (high temperature). The intense heat which is required for the production of cement is achieved by burning of fossil fuels which in turn release large amount of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Building Construction | We can just imagine to what extent the carbon dioxide would be released into the atmosphere
Building Construction | We can just imagine to what extent the carbon dioxide would be released into the atmosphere.

Carbon dioxide is also released when the conversion of limestone takes place in the kilns. This conversion is called “Calcination”. It has been observed that the amount of carbon dioxide emitted during calcination is much higher than that which is released due to burning of fossil fuels.

Recently, a British company called “Novacem” came up with this concept of manufacturing ‘carbon-negative’ cement that absorbs more carbon-dioxide than it emits over its entire life cycle.

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Defects in Construction | Building Materials used in Construction

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Building Materials used in Construction | Defects in Buildings

The building materials used for construction of the building are the major factors of a successful structure or a failed structure. The major core materials that are responsible for the standing structure are:

  1. Sand
  2. Mud
  3. Cement
  4. Water
  5. Cement Mortar

Usually, the failure of a building is due to the development of cracks. The intensity of damage describes the kind of crack and the repair measures to be taken….

There are two major types of cracks:

  1. Minor causes of Cracks resulting in minor cracks or surface cracks in Buildings
  2. Major causes of cracks resulting in major cracks or structural cracks in Buildings
Villas Construction site, India
Villas Construction site, India

The purpose of writing this article was to figure out the different building materials used for different purposes and how their quality or the quality of their mixture affects the structure as a whole.

Uses of Sand in Construction

Sand is the major building material used in any kind of construction. It is used in every phase of the construction project, i.e. from the foundation to the finishing of the floor.

There are three major varieties of sand:

a) Fine sand

b) Coarse sand

c) Medium sand

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