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DevelopmentOfLightWeightConcrete
By
DhawalDesai
IITBombay
ABSTRACT
Thispaperdealswiththedevelopmentoftwotypesoflightweightconcretetheoneusinglightweight
aggregate(Pumicestone)andtheotherwaterfloatingtypeusingAluminiumpowderasanairentraining
agent.Thisalsoshowstheimportanceofwater/cementratioasinfirsttypeofconcreteitrelatestothe
smoothnessofthesurfaceandinsecondoneitisamajorfactorwhichcontrolstheexpansionofconcrete.
INTRODUCTION:
Lightweightconcretecanbedefinedasatypeofconcretewhichincludesanexpandingagentinitthat
increasesthevolumeofthemixturewhilereducingthedeadweight.Itislighterthantheconventional
concretewithadrydensityof300kg/m3upto1840kg/m3.Themainspecialtiesoflightweightconcreteare
itslowdensityandlowthermalconductivity.
Therearemanytypesoflightweightconcretewhichcanbeproducedeitherbyusinglightweightaggregate
orbyusinganairentrainingagent.InthisprojectIhaveworkedoneachoftheabovementionedtypes.Both
ofthemarenonstructuralconcrete.
1)ByusingPumicestoneasalightweightaggregate:
Pumicestoneisalightweightaggregateoflowspecificgravity.Itisahighlyporousmaterialwithahigh
waterabsorptionpercentage.Inthiswedonotusetheconventionalaggregateandreplaceitbythepumice
stone.
2)ByusingAluminiumpowderasanairentrainingagent:
WaterfloatingaeratedconcreteismadebyintroducingairorgasintoslurrycomposedofPortlandcement
andsand,sothatwhenthemixsetsandhardens,uniformcellularstructureisformed.Thusitisamixtureof
water,cementandfinelycrushedsand.WemixfinepowderofAluminiumtotheslurryanditreactswiththe
calciumhydroxidepresentinitthusproducinghydrogengas.Thishydrogengaswhencontainedinthe
slurrymixgivesthecellularstructureandthusmakestheconcretelighterthantheconventionalconcrete.
ADVANTAGE:
Lightweightconcreteisofutmostimportancetotheconstructionindustry.Theadvantagesoflightweight
concreteareitsreducedmassandimprovedthermalandsoundinsulationproperties,whilemaintaining
adequatestrength.Themarginallyhighercostofthelightweightconcreteisoffsetbysizereductionof
structuralelements,lessreinforcingsteelandreducedvolumeofconcrete,resultinginoverallcost
reduction.Thereducedweighthasnumerousadvantagesoneofthemisreduceddemandofenergyduring
construction.
TYPESOFLIGHTWEIGHTCONCRETE:
Usinglightweightaggregates:Thistypeisproducedusinglightweightaggregatesuchasvolcanicrockor
expandedclay.Itcanbeproducedwiththeuseofnaturallyminedlightweightaggregates(bulkdensityinthe
rangeof880kg/m3)ormanmadelightweightaggregateslikeAardeliteorLytag(bulkdensity800kg/m3).
Usingfoamingagents:Thisoneisproducedthroughtheadditionofafoamingagentincementmortar.
Thiscreatesafinecementmatrixwhichhasairvoidsthroughoutitsstructure.Aeratedcementmortaris

producedbytheintroductionofagasintocementitiousslurrysothatafterhardeningacellularstructureis
formed.
TYPESOFLIGHTWEIGHTAGGREGATE:
Lightweightaggregatesusedinstructurallightweightconcretearetypicallyexpandedshale,clayorslate
materialsthathavebeenfiredinarotarykilntodevelopaporousstructure.Otherproductssuchasair
cooledblastfurnaceslagarealsoused.Alsotherearesomenonstructurallightweightaggregateswith
lowerdensitymadewithotheraggregatematerialsandhigherairvoidsinthecementpastematrix.These
aretypicallyusedfortheirinsulationproperties.
Naturalaggregates:
InorganicNaturalAggregates:Diatomite,pumice,scoriaandvolcaniccindersarenatural,porousvolcanic
rockswithabulkdensityof500800kg/m3whichmakeagoodinsulatingconcrete
OrganicNaturalAggregates:Woodchipsandstrawcanbemixedwithabindertoprovidealightweight
naturalaggregate.Thesearecellularmaterialswhichhaveairtrappedwithintheirstructuresoncetheyhave
lowmoisturecontent.
Manufacturedaggregates:
1.Bloatedclay,sinteredflyashandfoamedblastfurnaceslag.
2.Lightweightexpandedclayaggregate:Thisisproducedbyheatingclaytoatemperatureof10001200
oC,whichcausesittoexpandduetotheinternalgenerationofgasesthataretrappedinside.Theporous

structurewhichformsisretainedoncoolingsothatthespecificgravityismuchlowerthanwhatwasbefore
heatingit.
Foamingagents:
Therearesomefoamingagentswhichwhenaddedtothecementslurryformsairvoidsthroughoutits
structure.Alsotherearesomeagentswhoreactwiththechemicalspresentinthecementslurryandevolve
gaseswhichresultsintheexpansionoftheslurryandwhenithardens,leavesairvoidsintheconcretethus
makingitlighterthanthenormalconcrete.
Thebulkdensityoffinelightweightaggregatesisaround1200kg/m3.
Thebulkdensityofcoarselightweightaggregatesisaround960kg/m3.
GENERALPROPERTIES:
LightWeight:Densityrangefrom650Kg/m3to1850Kg/m3ascomparedto1800
Kg/m3to2400Kg/m3forconventionalbrickandconcreterespectively.Despite
millionsoftinyairfilledcells,itisstronganddurable.ThereisLightweightadvantageforthestructure
design,leadingtosavingsinsupportingstructuresandfoundation.
CompressiveStrength:2.0to7.0N/mm2.
ExcellentAcousticPerformance:Itcanbeusedaseffectivesoundbarrierandforacousticsolutions.
Hence,highlysuitableforpartitionwalls,floorscreens/roofingandpanelmaterialinauditoriums.
EarthquakeResistant:Sincelighterthanconcrete&brick,thelightnessofthematerialincreases
resistanceagainstearthquake.
Insulation:Superiorthermalinsulationpropertiescomparedtothatofconventionalbrickandconcrete,so
reducestheheatingandcoolingexpenses.Inbuildings,lightweightconcretewillproduceahigherfirerated
structure.
Workability:Productsmadefromlightweightconcretearelightweight,makingthemeasytoplaceusingless

skilledlabour.Thebrickscanbesawed,drilledandshapedlikewoodusingstandardhandtools,regular
screwsandnails.Itissimplerthanbrickorconcrete.
Lifespan:Weatherproof,termiteresistantandfireproof.
SavingsinMaterial:Reducesdeadweightoffillerwallsinframedstructuresbymorethan50%as
comparedtobrickworkresultinginsubstantialsavings.Duetothebiggeranduniformshapeofblocks,there
isasavinginbedmortarandplasterthickness.Inmostcasesthehighercostofthelightweightconcreteis
offsetbyareductionofstructuralelements,lessreinforcingsteelandreducedvolumeofconcrete.
WaterAbsorption:Closedcellularstructuresandhencehavelowerwaterabsorption.
SkimCoating:Donotrequireplasterandwaterrepellentpaintsuffices.Wallpapersandplasterscanalso
beapplieddirectlytothesurface.
ModulusofElasticity:Themodulusofelasticityoftheconcretewithlightweightaggregatesislower,0.5
0.75tothatofthenormalconcrete.Thereforemoredeflectionisthereinlightweightconcrete.
MANUFACTURING:
Itisproducedbyincludinglargequantitiesofairintheaggregate,matrixorinbetweentheaggregate
particlesorbyacombinationoftheseprocesses.Lightweightaggregatesrequirewettingpriortouseto
achieveahighdegreeofsaturation.Iftheaggregatesarentfullysaturatedtheyhaveatendencytofloat
towardsthesurfaceofthemixafterithasbeenplaced.
Duetothehighermoisturecontentoflightweightconcrete,dryingtimesaretypicallylongerthanregular
concrete.Typically,a0.5watertocementratioslurryisusedasabasemixtureforlightweightconcrete.The
watercementratiovariesaccordingtospecificprojectrequirements.
Notethatlightweightconcreteobtainsitsnaturalfluidityfromtheairbubblestructure,notfromexcesswater
content.
EffectofaddingFlyash:Flyashaddedtothecementdoesnotadverselyaffectthebasichardenedstate
oflightweightconcrete.Infusingandsupportingthelightweightconcretewiththeaircellsystemisa
mechanicalactionandisnotproblematicwithflyashorotheradditives.Notethatsomeflyashmixesmay
takelongertosetthanpurePortlandcementapplications.
USES:
Theprimaryuseoflightweightconcreteistoreducethedeadloadofaconcretestructurewhichthenallows
thestructuraldesignertoreducethesizeofcolumns,footingandotherloadbearingelements.Sothe
marginallyhighercostofthelightweightconcreteisoffsetbythesizereductionofstructuralelements,less
reinforcingsteelandreducedvolumeofconcrete,thusresultinginloweroverallcost.
Theycanalsobeusedforfireprotection,wheretheycanshieldstructuralsteelfromfire.Theyarealsoused
asaninsulatingblock.
Lightweightconcretehasbeenusedtoconstructextremelylargecantilevers,asthemembercanbe
narrowerduetothedecreaseddeadload.Usingconcreteofalowerdensityresultsinalowerdeadloadand
canresultinsavingsduetosmallermembersizes.Occasionallythiscanallowconstructionongroundwitha
lowloadbearingcapacity.
Theporosityoflightweightaggregateprovidesasourceofwaterforinternalcuringoftheconcretethat
providescontinuedenhancementofconcretestrengthanddurability,butthisdoesnotpreventtheneedfor
externalcuring.
Structurallightweightconcretehasbeenusedforbridgedecks,piersandbeams,slabsandwallelements

inconcreteandsteelbuildings,parkingstructures,tiltupwalls,toppingslabsandcompositeslabsonmetal
decking.
Note:Theconcretecovertoreinforcementusinglightweightaggregatesinconcreteshouldbeadequate.
Usuallyitis25mmmorethanthatofnormalconcretebecauseofitsincreasedpermeabilityandalso
concretecarbonatesrapidlybywhichtheprotectiontothesteelbythealkalinelimeislost.
AUTOCLAVEDAERATEDCONCRETEUSINGALUMINIUMPOWDER(AAC)
AutoclavedAeratedConcrete(AAC)orAutoclavedLightweightConcrete(ALC)isaprecastconstruction
materialthatismadefromavarietyofaggregatepartsnolargerthansand.Atroughlyonefifthoftheweight
ofnormalconcrete,itisanincrediblylightweightbuildingmaterial.Itprovidesexcellentthermalandacoustic
resistanceandalsoprotectsagainsthouseholdhazardsastermitesandfire.AACiscommonlyreferredto
asautoclavedcellularconcretebecausehydrogenbubblesformduringtheproductionprocess,resultingin
smallpocketsofairwithintheconcretethatsubstantiallyincreasethevolumeofthefinalconcreteproduct.
Thoughtheprecisecompositionofautoclavedaeratedconcretemayvary,itisgenerallymadeupofquartz
sandorsomeotherfineaggregate,cementandwaterorsomeotherbindingcomponentandaluminium
powder.Thealuminiumpowderreactswiththecementandformshydrogenbubblestoformwithinthemix,
therebyincreasingthevolumetoweightratiooftheconcretemix.Afterthemixiscastintothedesiredform
andthevolumeincreasingchemicalreactionsoccur,theconcretemix,whichisstillsoft,is
autoclaved.
MANUFACTURINGPROCESS:
Therawmaterialsarebatchedbyweightanddeliveredtothemixer.Measuredamountsofwaterand
expansiveagentareaddedtothemixerandthecementitiousslurryismixed.
SteelmouldsarepreparedtoreceivethefreshAAC.IfreinforcedAACpanelsaretobeproduced,steel
reinforcingcagesaresecuredwithinthemoulds.Aftermixing,theslurryispouredintothemoulds.The
expansiveagentcreatessmall,finelydispersedvoidsinthefreshmixture,whichincreasesthevolumeby
about50percentinthemouldswithinthreehours.
Withinafewhoursaftercasting,theinitialhydrationofcementitiouscompoundsintheAACgivesitsufficient
strengthtoholditsshapeandsupportitsownweight.Aftercutting,theaeratedconcreteproductis
transportedtoalargeautoclave,wherethecuringprocessiscompleted.Autoclavingisrequiredtoachieve
thedesiredstructuralpropertiesanddimensionalstability.Theprocesstakesabouteightto12
hoursunderapressureofabout174psi(12Bars)andatemperatureofabout180oC.
TECHNICALSPECIFICATIONS:
Density:300to1600kgpercumthisislightenoughtofloatinwater
Compressivestrength:300to900psi
Allowableshearstress:8to22psi
Thermalresistance:0.8to1.25perin.ofthickness
SoundTransmissionClass(STC):40for4in.thickness45for8in.thickness
TECHNICALPERFORMANCE:
FireResistance:Autoclavedaeratedconcreteprovidesthehighestsecurityagainstfireandmeetsthemost
stringentfiresafetyrequirements.Duetoitspurelymineralcomposition,AACisclassifiedasanon
combustiblebuildingmaterial.Itisbothresistanttofireupto1200oCandheatresistant.
StructuralPerformance:Autoclavedaeratedconcreteisstronganddurabledespiteitslightweight.AACs
soliditycomesfromthecalciumsilicatethatenclosesitsmillionsofairporesandfromtheprocessofcuring
inapressurizedsteamchamber,anautoclave.Itsexcellentmechanicalpropertiesmakeittheconstruction
materialofchoiceforearthquakezones.

SoundInsulation:AAChasexcellentsoundinsulationpropertiescomparedtootherbuildingmaterialswith
thesameweight.
Durability:Itretainsitspropertiesfortheentirelifeofabuildingandcanresistwind,earthquake,rain(also
acidrain),stormandawiderangeofexternaltemperatures.
ADVANTAGES:
Ithasbeenrefinedintoahighlythermallyinsulatingconcretebasedmaterialusedforbothinternaland
externalconstruction.BesidesAACsinsulatingcapability,oneofitsadvantagesinconstructionisitsquick
andeasyinstallation,forthematerialcanberouted,sandedandcuttosizeonsiteusingstandardcarbon
steelbandsaws,handsawsanddrills.
SustainableConstruction
Thechoiceoftherightbuildingmaterialisoneofthekeyfactorsforsustainablebuildings.AACisabuilding
materialwhichoffersconsiderableadvantagesoverotherconstructionmaterials.Itshighresourceefficiency
giveslowenvironmentalimpactinallphasesofitslifecycle,fromtheprocessingofrawmaterialstothe
disposalofAACwaste.
EnvironmentalPerformance:
Resources:AACismadefromnaturallyoccurringmaterialsthatarefoundinabundancelime,finesand,
othersiliceousmaterials,waterandasmallamountofaluminiumpowder(manufacturedfromabyproduct
ofaluminium).FurthermoretheproductionofAACdemandsrelativelysmallamountsofrawmaterialsperm3
ofproduct,anduptoafifthasmuchasotherconstructionproducts.
Environmentalimpactduringproduction:Norawmaterialsarewastedintheproductionprocessandall
productionoffcutsisfedbackintotheproductioncircuit.ThemanufactureofAACrequireslessenergythan
forallothermasonryproducts,therebyreducinguseoffossilfuelsandassociatedemissionsofcarbon
dioxide(CO2).Industrialqualitywaterisusedandneitherwaternorsteamisreleasedintotheenvironment.
Notoxicgasesarecreatedintheproductionprocess.
Environmentalimpactduringuse:AACsexcellentthermalefficiencymakesamajorcontributionto
environmentalprotectionbysharplyreducingtheneedforspaceheatingandcoolinginbuildings.
Inaddition,AACseasyworkabilityallowsaccuratecuttingthatminimizesthegenerationofsolidwaste
duringuse.ThefactthatAACisuptofivetimeslighterthanconcreteleadstosignificantreductionsinCO2
emissionsduringtransportation.
Reuse,recoveryanddisposal:ThroughoutthelifecycleofAAC,potentialwasteisreusedorrecycled
whereverpossibletominimizefinaldisposalinlandfill.WhereAACwasteissenttolandfill,itsenvironmental
impactisminorsinceitcontainsnotoxicsubstances.
DISADVANTAGES:
Autoclavedaeratedconcreteisnotwithoutitsdisadvantages.Forexample,itisnotasstrongaslessporous
varietiesofconcrete,soitmustoftenbereinforcedifitistobeusedforintenseloadbearingwork.Thoughit
canbeshippedjustaboutanywherewithrelativeeasebecauseofitslightweight,autoclavedaerated
concreteisnotwidelyproduced,soitmaybedifficultformanytoobtainitlocally.Itmustalsobecoatedwith
someformofprotectivematerial,asittendstodegradeovertimebecauseofitsporousnature.
USES:
Itisalightweight,precastbuildingmaterialthatsimultaneouslyprovidesstructure,insulation,andfireand
mouldresistance.AACproductsincludeblocks,wallpanels,floorandroofpanelsandlintels.
USEOFALUMINIUMPOWDER:
Thereactantsinaeratedconcretearelime(whichispresentincement)andaluminiumpowder.Whenthe

aluminiumpowderisaddedtoslurryoflime,hydrogenisproducedintheformofbubbles.Thickslurryis
madewithlime/cementalongwithaggregates.Aluminiumpowderisaddedinthefinalstageofmixing.The
mixispouredintomoulds.Themouldsareautoclavedwhichimpartsstrength.AACisproducedusingno
aggregatelargerthansand.
Quartzsand,limeand/orcementandwaterareusedasabindingagent.Aluminiumpowderisusedatarate
of0.05%0.08%byvolumeofcement.
Thehydrogengasfoamsanddoublesthevolumeoftherawmix(creatinggasbubblesupto1/8inchin
diameter).Attheendofthefoamingprocess,thehydrogenescapesintotheatmosphereandisreplacedby
air.Dependingonitsdensity,upto80%ofthevolumeofanAACblockisair.AACslowdensityalso
accountsforitslowstructuralcompressionstrength.Itcancarryloadsupto1,200Psi,approximatelyonly
about10%ofthecompressivestrengthofregularconcrete.
AACmaterialcanbecoatedwithastuccocompoundorplasteragainsttheelements.Sidingmaterialssuch
asbrickorvinylsidingcanalsobeusedtocovertheoutsideofAACmaterials.
EXPERIMENTSOFAAC:
SincetheautoclavefacilitywasunavailableattheplacewhereIwasworking,Ididnotautoclavemy
samplesandthuswasunabletofinditsactualstrength.

Themixdesignforthefirstsamplewasdecidedbasedonstudies.Thenfurthersamplesweremadeby
changingsomeproportionsinthepreviousones.
Sampleno.1:Inthisthecement/sandratiotakenis1:1.Alsothew/cmratiotakenis0.4.Aluminiumpowder
is0.40.5%byweightofcement.
Cement(OPC):1.08kg
Sand:1.08kg
Water:440gm
Aluminiumpowder:45gm

Themixturewashotjustaftermixing
whichconfirmedthechemicalreaction
inthat.Alsohissingsoundwascoming
whichconfirmedtheevolutionofgas.
Sincethisisaeratedconcrete,itshould
expand.Butitdidnot.Thereasonwas
lessamountofwatersinceitdidnot
formslurryandthereweregaps
betweentheparticlesthroughwhichall
theevolvedgasesescapedoutfrom
theconcrete.Thesegasesshould
remainthereonlysothattheconcrete
expandsbutitdidnothappen.
Soforthenextsample,Iincreasedthe
w/cmratiotomaketheslurry.
Sampleno.2:Withw/cmratio=0.45
Cement(OPC):540gm
Sand:540gm
Water:243gm
Aluminiumpowder:3gm
Thismixturemadeslurrywhichwaseasilyflowing.Inthisjustafterfillingthecubetheinitialdepthofthetop
surfaceoftheslurrywas11.5cm.Afterjust5minutes,thedepthwas10cmwhichshowedthatitexpanded
aswepredicted.
Weightofthesample:1.14kg
Volume:15x15x5cm3
Density:1013.33kg/m3
Sampleno.3:Toreducedensityfurther,Idecreasedthequantityofsand.
Cement(PPC):1080gm
Sand:940gm
Water:490gm
Aluminiumpowder:6gm
Inthissampletheinitialdepthofthetopsurfaceoftheslurrywas6.8cmandjustafter5minutesthedepth
was3cm.
Weightofthesample:2.02kg
Volume:15x15x12cm3
Density:748.15kg/m3
Thiswasfloatinginwater.
Sampleno.4:InthisnewsampleItriedtousePumiceStonepowderandreducedthequantityofsandin
themixture.InthissampleIhadtousemorequantityofwatersincepumicestoneabsorbswater.
Cement(PPC):1080gm
Sand:840gm
PumiceStonePowder:120gm
Water:660gm
Aluminiumpowder:6gm
Inthissampletheinitialdepthofthetopsurfaceoftheslurrywas8.6cmandthefinaldepthwas4.5cm.

Weightofthesample:2.04kg
Volumeofthesample:15x15x10.5cm3
Density:863.49kg/m3
Sampleno.5:Sampleof2cubes.
Cement:16202=3240gm
Sand:12602=2520gm
Pumicestonepowder:1802=360gm
Water:9252=1850gm
Aluminiumpowder:92=18gm

Sampleno.6:Sampleof2cubes
Cement:12962=2592gm
Sand:10082=2016gm
Pumicestonepowder:1442=288gm
Water:7402=1480gm
Aluminiumpowder:72=14gm
Heretheinitialdepthoftopsurfaceofboththecubeswas6cmandthefinaldepthwas0cm.
Weightofeachcube:2.45kg
Volumeofeachcube:15x15x15cm3
Density:725.92kg/m3

Soinall,samplenumbers3,4,5and6werethesuccessfulones.Theyallwerefloatinginwater.
LIGHTWEIGHTCONCRETEUSINGPUMICESTONE:
ThewordPumiceisageneraltermusedforarangeofporousmaterialsproducedduringvolcanic
eruptions.Pumicestonecanbeweakandporousorstrongandlessporous.Itswaterabsorptionisashigh
as55%sinceitisahighlyporousmaterial.Themajorreasonbehindusingpumiceasanaggregateisits
muchlightweightandcomparativelyhighstrength.
Pumicestone:light,spongy,highlyporouskindoflavawithavitreoustexture.Pumicehashighsilica&alkali
andlowcalcium&magnesiacontent.Itsspongycellulartextureisaresultofthegasesescapingfromhot

lava.Itishavinglowstrengthanditisagoodthermalinsulator,soundinsulatorandfireinsulator.
TESTSONLIGHTWEIGHTCONCRETEUSINGPUMICESTONEASALIGHTWEIGHTAGGREGATE:
Forthisproject,wegotpumicestoneasbigas50mmsize.Sowecrushedittothesizelessthan20mm.
Themixdesignforthefirstsamplewasdecidedbasedonstudies.Thenfurthersamplesweremadeby
changingsomeproportionsinthepreviousones.
Sampleno.1:1cube
Cement:1.18kg
Sand:2.63kg
Pumice:
(>10mm):590gm
(4.7510mm):910gm
(<4.75mm):155gm
Water:1230gm
Nextdaywhenthecubewasopened,itsweightwas3.94kg.Soitsdensitywas1167.40kg/m3.Itwaslight
asdesiredbutitsfinishwasnotgood.Thesurfaceswerenotsmooth.IthappenedbecauseIdidnot
considerthewaterabsorptionbypumicestoneandalsodidnotusetheadmixture.
3dayscubetesting:
S.no,Weightofcube(Kg),Load(kN),
Strength(MPa).
1,3.94,23.1,1.03.
Forcalculatingwaterabsorptionbypumice
stone:
Takeasampleofpumicestoneinabucket
andnotedownitsdryweight.Thenfillthe
bucketwithenoughwaterandletitremain
asitisfor56hours.Thenremovethe
excesswaterandnotedownthewetweight
ofthestones.Thetwoweightswillgiveus
the%waterabsorptionbythepumice
stone.
Dryweight:388gm
Wetweight:604gm
%waterabsorption:(wetweightdry
weight)*100/(dryweight)=55.67%
Sampleno.2:1cubeconsideringwaterabsorptionandusingadmixture.InthisIreducedthequantityof
sandtofurtherreducethedensityoftheconcreteandtocompensatetheeffectofreducedfines,usedmore
amountofpumicelessthan4.75mm.
Cement:1kg
Sand:600gm
Pumice:
(>10mm):600gm
(4.7510mm):430gm
(<4.75mm):300gm
Water:1300gm
Admixture:6gm

TheadmixtureusedwasSikaViscocrete5001.Thismadewaterreleasefromcementparticles.
Afteropeningitwefoundthatitsfinishwasnotgood.Someareasweresmoothandsomewerenot.Its
reasoncameouttobethelargerparticlesofpumicestone.SonexttimeIdidnotuseparticlesbiggerthan
10mm.
Sampleno.3:for3cubesusingaggregateslessthan10mm.
Cement:3540gm
Sand:1800gm
Pumice(smallerthan10mm):4100gm
Water:3400gm
Admixture:21gm
Thesecubeshadlowdensityandalsosmoothsurface.
7dayscubetesting:
S.no,Weightofcube(Kg),Density(Kg/m3),Load
(kN)Strength(MPa)
1,4.2,1244.44,163.0,7.24
2,4.4,1303.70,148.4,6.60
Sampleno.4:Samplefor2cubes.
Cement:3540gm
Sand:2100gm
Pumice:
(4.7510mm):2180gm
(<4.75mm):1930gm
Water:3400gm
Admixture:14gm
Weightofeachcube:4882gm
Volumeofeachcube:15x15x15cm3
Density:1446.51kg/m3
Soinall,samplenumbers3and4werethe
successfulones.Theirfinishwasgoodandthey
werelightalso.
CONCLUSION
Basedontheaboveexperimentsandsamples
made,followinghasbeenconcluded:
1)TheAeratedconcreteisamuchlighterconcrete
andcanfloatonwater.Itdoesnotcontaincoarse
aggregates.Itiscomposedofcement,sand,highwatercementratioandaluminiumpowder.Justaswemix
thealuminiumpowderinthecementsandslurry,theexpansioninthevolumecanbeobserved.Within5
minutesitexpandsby30%.Itconsistsofmanyporesandthusisnotstructurallystrong.Itisagoodinsulator
ofheatandsoundandthuscanbeusedinplaceofconventionalbricksorattheplaceswhichdoesnotbear
anyload.
2)ThelightweightconcretemanufacturedusingPumicestoneasalightweightaggregateishalfthedenser
thanthenormalconcrete.Inthisthenormalcoarseaggregatesarereplacedbypumicestoneaggregate
havingsizelessthan10mm.Itssurfaceisflatandsmoothandshowingagoodfinish.Althoughitcannotbe
usedasastructuralconcretebutitscubetestresultsshowconsiderablestrengthandcanbeusedasan

architecturalconcrete.Itisagoodinsulatorofheat
andsoundandthushasthesameusesasofthe
aboveaeratedconcrete.
REFERENCES
1)AmbujaKnowledgeCentreLibrary.Ambuja
CementsLtd.
2)SamuelGreen,NicholasBrookeandLen
McSaveney.Pumiceaggregateforstructural
lightweightandinternallycuredconcretes
3)Keertana.B,SiniSaraManiandM.Thenmozhi.
Utilizationofecosandandflyashinaerated
concreteforarichestmixdesign
4)HjhKamsiahMohd.Ismail,MohamadShazli
FathiandNorpadzlihatunbteManaf.Studyof
lightweightconcretebehavior
5)Handbookonaeratedconcreteproductsby
PTYLtd
6)GiuseppeCampioneandLidiaLaMendola.
Behaviorincompressionoflightweightfibre
reinforcedconcreteconfinedwithtransversesteel
reinforcement(2002)
ACKOWLEDGEMENT
I,DhawalDesai,2ndyearundergraduatestudent
ofCivilEngineeringdepartment,IndianInstituteof
TechnologyBombay,gratefullyacknowledgethe
supportandlabfacilityprovidedbyM/sAmbuja
CementsLtd.Mumbai,tocarryoutthisprojectworkonLightweightConcreteduringmyinternshipinDec,
2011wintervacation.
Weatengineeringcivil.comarethankfultoErDhawalDesaiforsubmittinghispaperonDevelopmentOf
LightWeightConcretetous.Wearehopefulthiswillbeofgreatusetoallthosewhowishtoknowmore
aboutthistopic.