Construction

and Building

Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577

MATERIALS
www.elsevier.com/locate/conbuildmat

Paving blocks made with recycled concrete aggregate and

crushed clay brick
Chi Sun Poon *, Dixon Chan
Department of Civil and Structural Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

Received 24 June 2004; received in revised form 9 December 2004; accepted 31 January 2005
Available online 23 March 2005

Abstract

Clay brick generated from construction sites is usually delivered to landfills for disposal. With the limited landfill space in Hong
Kong, there is an immediate need to explore the possible use of crushed clay brick as a new civil engineering material. In Hong
Kong, government specifications promote the use of paving blocks made with 70–100% recycled concrete aggregate in order to facil-
itate the recycling of construction and demolition (C&D) waste. This paper presents a recent study at the Hong Kong Polytechnic
University on the investigation of blending recycled concrete aggregate and crushed clay brick as aggregates in the production of
paving blocks.
The results indicated that the incorporation of crushed clay brick reduced the density, compressive strength and tensile strength
of the paving blocks. Due to the high water absorption of crushed clay brick particles, the water absorption of the resulting paving
blocks were higher than that of the paving blocks that did not incorporate crushed clay brick. Although it was found that crushed
clay brick impaired the quality of the resulting paving blocks to a certain extent, the paving blocks using 50% crushed clay brick met
the minimum requirements specified by AS/NZS 4455 and ETWB of Hong Kong (Grade B) for pedestrian areas. Furthermore, it
was feasible to produce paving blocks prepared with 25% crushed clay brick that satisfied the compressive strength requirement for
paving blocks (Grade B) prescribed by ETWB of Hong Kong for trafficked area.
Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Construction and demolition waste; Recycled concrete aggregates; Crushed clay brick; Paving blocks

1. Introduction the use of crushed brick in concrete affects the properties

As of today, crushed clay brick is not considered a
recyclable material in Hong Kong as opposed to recy-
cled concrete aggregate. Clay brick generated from con-
struction and demolition sites is mostly delivered to
landfills or reclamation sites for disposal. With the lim-
ited landfill space and reclamation areas in Hong Kong,
it is important to explore the possible use(s) of crushed
clay brick as a civil engineering material.
Research has been carried out using crushed clay
brick in concrete for a number of years. It is known that
*
Corresponding author. Tel.: +852 2766 6024; fax: +852 2334 6389.
E-mail address: cecspoon@polyu.edu.hk (C.S. Poon).
of the resulting concrete to a certain extent depending
on the type of brick from which the aggregates are
derived. Akhtaruzzaman and Hasnat [1] studied the
use of crushed brick as a 100% replacement of coarse
natural aggregates in concrete. The crushed brick parti-
cles had an unit weight, a bulk specific gravity (SSD)
and a water absorption value of 953 kg/m3, 1.93 and
11.2%, respectively. The resulting concrete had an unit
weight between 2000 and 2080 kg/m3 and a compressive
strength between 13.8 and 34.5 MPa. It was found that
the tensile strength of brick concrete was higher than
that of normal concrete by about 11%. However, the
modulus of elasticity was 30% less than that of normal
concrete. Khaloo [2] tried to use crushed clinker (hard

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2005.01.044
570 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577
burnt) brick as aggregates in concrete. The unit weight,
bulk specific gravity and water absorption of the clinker
brick particles were between 1013 and 1161 kg/m3, 1.75
and 1.98 and 1.7% and 4.1%, respectively. The resulting
concrete had an unit weight of about 2100 kg/m3. The
average compressive, tensile and flexural strengths of
brick concrete were 7%, +2% and +15% of those of
normal concrete. Padmini et al. [3], who used a frac-
tional factorial experimental design method, studied
the relative influence of different parameters on the
strength of concrete using low-strength bricks as aggre-
gates. The brick aggregates were derived from bricks
with compressive strengths between 6 and 13 MPa.
The water absorption of the brick aggregate ranged
from 17% and 19% and the 10% fines values (crushing
strength) were between 18 and 20 kN. It was found that
the strength of brick concrete was most influenced by
the cement content, the aggregate conditions (i.e., pre-
wet or dry before mixing) and the strength of brick from
which the aggregates were derived. Since the strength of
bricks varied considerably, it is therefore very difficult to
quantify the quality of the resulting brick concrete. Kib-
riya and Speare [4] used three different types of brick
aggregates to assess their impacts on the strengths and
the long-term durability of concrete. The brick aggre-
gates had specific gravities (SSD), 10% fines values and
water absorption values between 1.86 and 2.33, 40.8
and 144.3 kN, and 2.8% and 19.6%, respectively. The
resulting concrete had comparable compressive, tensile
and flexural strengths to those of normal concrete but
the modulus of elasticity was drastically reduced. Fur-
thermore, it was found that the use of brick aggregate
significantly increased the shrinkage of concrete at 90
days, and the creep tested at one year was slightly in-
creased as well. Moreover, the initial surface absorption
(ISA) and the chloride diffusion were found to be signif-
icantly higher for concrete prepared with brick aggre-
gates than those of normal concrete.
Due to the potential problems of using crushed clay
brick in concrete, many international agencies restrict
the amount of crushed brick that can be used in concrete
[5–7], which hinders the recycling of this masonry waste.
However, the shortcomings of using crushed brick can
be avoided in the production of non-structural concrete
products such as molded paving blocks for pavement
construction projects. In some climatic conditions
(freezing and thawing do not occur in tropical or sub-
tropical places like Hong Kong), strength is the only
concern for the paving blocks [8]. The concrete mixtures
for producing the paving blocks not only can tolerate a
greater amount of crushed brick but also maintain qual-
ities at acceptable standards.
Many investigations have already shown that it is fea-
sible to use crushed brick in mantle and storage block
productions [9]. Furthermore, Schuur [10] proved that
it is feasible to use crushed clay brick derived from ma-
sonry waste to entirely replace sand in the mixtures of
calcium silicate products. However, there is currently
very limited amount of data on the use of crushed clay
brick in the production of concrete paving blocks. Most
research was carried out for the paving blocks using
recycled concrete aggregate. Poon et al. [11] conducted
a thorough investigation to study the feasibility of using
recycled concrete aggregate in the production of paving
blocks. They concluded that the replacement of coarse
and fine natural aggregates by recycled concrete aggre-
gates can reach 50% without registering a reduction in
the compressive strength of the paving blocks. The dura-
bility performances of the resulting paving blocks using
recycled concrete aggregate were also satisfactory.
This paper presents a recent study at the Hong Kong
Polytechnic University on the feasibility of blending
recycled concrete aggregate and crushed clay brick as
coarse and fine aggregates in the manufacture of paving
blocks. The major objective of this investigation was to
provide a viable option for the use of crushed clay brick
derived from C&D waste in Hong Kong. The density,
compressive strength, tensile splitting strength, trans-
verse breaking load, skid and abrasion resistances and
water absorption were determined for the block speci-
mens. These values were compared to the standard
requirements prescribed by AS/NZS, BSI, ASTM and
the Environment, Transport and Works Bureau
(ETWB) of Hong Kong.
2. Materials
2.1. Cementitious materials
Ordinary Portland cement and fly ash were used as
the cementitious materials. Both cement and fly ash,
commercially available in Hong Kong, comply with
BS 12 and BS 3892 [12,13], respectively. The properties
of cement and fly ash are shown in Table 1.
2.2. Recycled concrete aggregate (RCA)
Recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) was produced in
a recycling facility located in Tuen Mun in Hong Kong.
Table 1
Chemical properties of cement and fly ash
Properties Cement Fly ash
SiO2 (%) 19.61 56.79
Fe2O3(%) 3.32 5.31
Al2O3(%) 7.33 28.21
CaO (%) 63.15 <3
MgO (%) 2.54 5.21
SO3(%) 2.13 0.68
Loss on ignition (%) 2.97 3.90
Specific gravity 3.16 2.31
Specific surface area (cm2/g) 3520 3960
 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577 571

The physical properties and the grading curves of the
recycled concrete aggregates are shown in Table 2 and
Fig. 1, respectively.
2.3. Crushed clay brick (CB)
A clay brick partition wall (Fig. 2) sourced from a
demolition site in North Point in Hong Kong was deliv-
ered to our laboratory for this study. The partition wall
was crushed manually using a hammer to produce both
10 and <5 mm aggregates and they are referred to as
crushed clay brick (CB) in this study. The crushed clay
brick mainly contained brick rubbles and also a high
amount of adhered mortar and other impurities such
as tile, wood and dust. These impurities were not re-
moved prior to the experiment. The physical properties
and the grading curves of crushed clay brick are listed in
Table 3 and Fig. 1, respectively.

2.4. Comparison between recycled concrete aggregate and

Table 2
crushed clay brick
Properties of recycled concrete aggregates
Properties Aggregate size Test method
The density, measured in accordance with BS 812
10 mm < 5 mm Part 2 [14], of the recycled concrete aggregate was higher
Density-SSD (kg/m3) 2580 2310 BS 812 Part 2 than that of the crushed clay brick. In contrast, the
Density-oven-dry (kg/m3) 2523 2093 crushed clay brick had a higher water absorption values
Water absorption (%) 2.29 10.3
compared to that of the recycled concrete aggregate.

Fig. 1. Grading curves for the recycled concrete aggregates and crushed clay brick.

Fig. 2. Photograph of a clay brick partition wall derived from the demolition site in North Point, Hong Kong.
572 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577

Table 3 Table 5
Properties of crushed clay brick Ten percent fines values of blended aggregates
Properties Aggregate size Test method Ten percent 75%RCA 50%RCA 25%RCA
fines 25%CB 50%CB 75%CB
10 mm <5 mm
Dry (kN) 107 86 72
Density-SSD (kg/m3) 2147 2042 BS 812 Part 2
Density-oven-dry (kg/m3) 1797 1560 Soaked (kN) 77 60 48
Water absorption (%) 19.5 30.9

2.5. Current specifications

Indeed, the high amount of adhered mortar attached to
the crushed clay brick particle led to a decrease in parti-
cle density and an increase in water absorption value.
The strengths of the aggregate particles were tested in
terms of the 10% fines values in dry and soaked condi-
tions in accordance with BS 812 Part 111 [15]. This test
provides a measure of the resistance of the aggregate to
crushing under a gradually applied compressive load. A
higher 10% fines value indicates a better resistance to
crushing. The results (Table 4) indicated that the recy-
cled concrete aggregate had a better resistance to crush-
ing compared to the crushed clay brick. Furthermore, it
is worth noting that the strengths of the recycled con-
crete aggregate and crushed clay brick after soaking
decreased from 146 to 109 kN and from 49 to 35 kN,
respectively. The corresponding reductions were
approximately 25% and 28% for recycled concrete
aggregate and crushed clay brick, respectively. Further-
more, it is shown in that the 10 and <5 mm aggregates of
both materials conformed to the grading limits for the
single-sized aggregate and the fine aggregate per BS
882 [16].
In this study, a portion of recycled concrete aggre-
gate was replaced by crushed clay brick in the produc-
tion of the paving blocks. The replacement levels (by
weight) were 25%, 50% and 75% for the paving blocks.
Since both recycled concrete aggregate and crushed
clay brick had distinctive strength characteristics, the
10% fines values were different after blending. The
10% fines values of the blended aggregates are pre-
sented in Table 5. A comparison between Tables 4
and 5 shows that the increasing use of crushed clay
brick reduced the 10% fines values in both the dry
and soaked conditions. As the crushed clay brick con-
tent increased from 0% to 75%, the 10% fines values re-
duced by 51% and 56% in the dry and soaked
conditions, respectively.
Table 4
Ten percent fines values of recycled concrete aggregate and crushed
clay brick
Ten percent Recycled concrete Crushed Test method
fines aggregate (RCA) brick (CB)
Dry (kN) 146 49 BS 812 Part 111
Soaked (kN) 109 35
Two types of concrete paving blocks are usually used.
The first type is used in pedestrian areas and the other
type is used in trafficked areas. Table 6 summaries the
specifications stipulated by AS/NZS 4455 and ETWB
of Hong Kong for paving blocks used in pedestrian
areas [17,18]. The two standards have different require-
ments. AS/NZS 4455 only requires a minimum value
of transverse breaking load while ETWB of Hong Kong
requires a minimum compressive strength for Grade B
paving blocks and some additional durability require-
ments for Grade A paving blocks. On the other hand,
the strength requirements for the paving blocks in traf-
ficked areas are more stringent as shown in Table 7.
BS 6717 requires a minimum tensile splitting strength
while ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong require a min-
imum compressive strength [18–20]. Furthermore, some
performance requirements such as skid resistance, abra-
sion resistances and cold water absorption are also pre-
scribed by BSI, ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong.
2.6. Mixing ratios
A total of two series of mixtures was initially pre-
pared. The first series was prepared using coarse and fine
aggregates, cement and water. The resulting paving
blocks aimed to meet the requirements stipulated by
AS/NZS and ETWB of Hong Kong for pedestrian
areas. On the other hand, the second series was prepared
using coarse and fine aggregates, cement, fly ash and
water. The resulting paving blocks aimed to meet the
requirements stipulated by BSI, ASTM and ETWB of
Table 6
Requirements of paving blocks used in pedestrian areas prescribed by
AS/NZS and ETWB of Hong Kong [17,18]
Requirement AS/NZS ETWB
4455 (Hong Kong)
Grade A Grade B
Compressive strength (MPa)a – P30 P30
Transverse breaking load (kN)a P2.0 – –
Skid resistance (BPN)b – P45 –
Abrasion resistance (mm)b – 623 –
Cold water absorption (%) – 66 –
a
For a batch of paving blocks, the mean strength value of the paving
blocks should be greater than the strength specified in the above Table
plus 1.65 times the unbiased standard deviation.
b
Measured in accordance with BS 6717.
 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577 573

Table 7
Requirements for paving blocks used in trafficked areas prescribed by BSI, ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong [18–20]
Requirement BS 6717 ASTM C936 ETWB (Hong Kong)
Grade A Grade B
Compressive strength (MPa) – P55.2 P45a P45a
Tensile splitting strength (MPa) P3.9 – – –
Skid resistance (BPN) P45 – P45 –
Abrasion resistanceb 623 mm 615 cm3/50 cm2 623 mm –
Cold water absorption (%) – 65 66 –
a
For a batch of paving blocks, the mean strength value of the paving blocks should be greater than the strength specified in the above Table plus
1.65 times the unbiased standard deviation.
b
Refer to BS 6717 and ASTM C 418 for methods for measuring abrasion resistance.

Hong Kong for trafficked areas. For all the mixtures,
the aggregates were blended in a ratio of 25% coarse
aggregate to 75% fine aggregate.
Series I included four mixtures. A control mixture
was prepared with only recycled concrete aggregate.
The second, third and fourth mixtures were prepared
by replacing 25%, 50% and 75% by weight of recycled
concrete aggregate with crushed clay brick, respectively.
For Series I, the mixing ratio between coarse aggregate,
fine aggregate, cement and added water is summarized
in Table 8 which shows that an aggregate-to-cement ra-
tio (A/C) of 4.8:1 was used.
Series II slightly differed from Series I. Likewise, Ser-
ies II contained four mixtures in which a control mixture
was prepared with recycled concrete aggregate. The sec-
ond, third and fourth mixtures were prepared by replac-
ing 25%, 50% and 75% by weight of recycled concrete
aggregate with crushed clay brick, respectively. The only
difference between mixtures in Series I and II was that
the mixtures in Series II used fly ash to replace about
15% by weight of both coarse and fine aggregates in Ser-
ies I. Table 9 shows the mixing ratio between coarse
aggregate, fine aggregate, cement, fly ash and added
water in Series II. The aggregate-to-cement (A/C) and
the aggregate-to-cementitious materials ratios (A/CM)
were 4.1:1 and 2.4:1, respectively.
Finally, a single mixture (BL-25-Ff) was prepared
using only fine aggregate, fly ash, cement and water.
The mix ratio of this mixture is shown in Table 10. This
mixture had the same A/C ratio, A/CM ratio and
crushed clay brick replacement level as those of mixture
BL-25-F in Series II. Due to the limited availability of
crushed clay brick for the experiment, only one replace-
ment level was prepared. However, the difference
between the results of this mixture and BL-25-F can pro-
vide some indications of the possible effect of the aggre-
gate size on the properties of the paving blocks.
2.7. Mixing procedure
Initially, coarse and fine aggregates, cement and fly
ash were mixed in a pan mixer for approximately
3 min. After mixing for 3 min, water was added to the
materials. The procedure of mixing and adding water

Table 8
Mixing ratio of Series I
Name Mixing ratio (by weight)
10 mm <5 mm Total aggregate Cement Added water
RCA CB RCA CB
BL-control 1.20 0 3.60 0 4.80 1.0 0.59
BL-25 0.90 0.30 2.70 0.90 4.80 1.0 0.65
BL-50 0.60 0.60 1.80 1.80 4.80 1.0 0.75
BL-75 0.30 0.90 0.90 2.70 4.80 1.0 0.96

Table 9
Mixing ratio of Series II
Name Mixing ratio (by weight)
10 mm <5 mm Total aggregate Cement Fly ash Added water
RCA CB RCA CB
BL-control-F 1.03 0 3.07 0 4.10 1.0 0.70 0.62
BL-25-F 0.77 0.26 2.30 0.77 4.10 1.0 0.70 0.80
BL-50-F 0.52 0.52 1.53 1.53 4.10 1.0 0.70 0.85
BL-75-F 0.26 0.77 0.77 2.30 4.10 1.0 0.70 1.00
574 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577
Table 10
Mixing ratio of BL-25-Ff
Mixing ratio (by weight)
<5 mm Total aggregate
RCA CB
BL-25-Ff 3.07 1.03 4.10
was iterated until the desired moisture content for these
dry mixtures was obtained. Normally, workability is not
important for molded blocks and only a small amount
of water is required. However, in the case of the inclu-
sion of crushed clay brick (with a high water absorption
value) in the mixture, the amount of added water used in
this study was relatively higher. For producing paving
blocks, the added water varied from 12% to 25% by
weight of the total aggregate.
2.8. Fabrication of paving blocks
The paving blocks were fabricated in steel moulds
with internal dimensions of 200 mm long, 100 mm in
wide, and 60 mm high. The mixed materials were laid
into each mould in three layers of about equal thickness.
After each of the first two layers was laid, compaction
was applied manually using a hammer and a wood stem.
After the third layer was laid, a compressive force
increased at a rate of 600 kN/min was applied for about
50 s to mechanically compact the materials within the
mould. Excessive materials were then removed with a
trowel in order to provide a good surface texture of
the resulting blocks. After that, a final compaction force
was applied at the same rate for 60 s. The paving blocks
were then demoulded one day after casting and were
cured in water until the day of testing.
The amount of mixed materials used for a paving
block specimen was between 3.0 and 3.2 kg. The weight
of the materials used in each specimen decreased as the
amount of crushed clay brick in the mixture increased.
This was attributed to the lower particle density of the
crushed clay brick.
2.9. Test methods
Various tests were carried out to determine the den-
sity, cold and hot water absorption, 7-day and 28-day
compressive strengths, tensile transverse/splitting
strengths, abrasion resistance and skid resistance of
the block specimens.
The density of paving blocks was determined using a
water displacement method as per BS 1881 Part 114 for
hardened concrete [21]. The cold and hot water absorp-
tion values of the prepared blocks were determined and
were expressed as a ratio of the mass of the absorbed
water of an immersed specimen to the oven dried mass
Cement Fly ash Added water
1.0 0.70 0.74
of the same specimen. Cold water absorption was mea-
sured by immersing the block specimen in cold water at
room temperature for 24 h while hot water absorption
was calculated by immersing the same specimen in hot
water at a temperature of 100 °C for 5 h.
The compressive strength was determined using a
compressive testing machine with a maximum capacity
of 3000 kN. The load was applied to the nominal area
of paving blocks. Prior to the loading test, the paving
blocks were soft capped with two pieces of plywood.
The compressive strength was calculated by dividing
the failure load by the loading area of the paving blocks.
The transverse breaking load of the paving blocks
was determined by a three-point bending test with a
span length of 175 mm. Furthermore, the tensile split-
ting strength was determined in accordance with BS
6717. The test was carried out along the longest splitting
section (i.e., the length) of the block specimen. Prior to
the test, the block specimen was concentrically packed
with two steel packing pieces on the top and bottom
faces in contact with the platens of the loading machine.
A load was then gradually applied and the test was ter-
minated when the specimen split into two halves. The
failure load was recorded and the tensile splitting
strength was calculated based on the failure load.
The skid resistance of paving blocks was determined
using a British Pendulum Skid Resistance Tester and it
was expressed as the measured British Pendulum Num-
ber (BPN) as per BS 6717. The abrasion resistance was
determined by abrading the surface of the block speci-
men with an abrasive material under controlled condi-
tions as specified by BS 6717. The dimension of the
groove as a result of the abrasive action was used to mea-
sure the abrasion resistance of paving blocks where a
smaller groove indicated a better resistance to abrasion.
2.10. Test results and discussions
The test results of Series I and II are summarized in
Tables 11 and 12. Each presented value is an average
of two measurements. The results indicated that the
incorporation of crushed clay brick decreased the den-
sity of the paving blocks (Fig. 3). As the crushed clay
brick replacement level increased from 0% to 75%, the
densities of the paving blocks in Series I and II reduced
by about 10%. The decrease in density was expected be-
cause crushed clay brick had a lower particle density
 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577 575

Table 11 of crushed clay brick significantly reduced the compres-

Test results of mixtures in Series I sive strength as shown in Fig. 4. The incorporation of
Name BL-control BL-25 BL-50 BL-75 crushed clay brick as a 25% replacement level of recycled
Density (kg/m ) 2294 3
2195 2165 2070 concrete aggregate reduced the compressive strengths by
Compressive strength (MPa) 37 and 25% in Series I and II, respectively. However, the
7-day 56.1 34.3 28.8 23.0 reduction of the 28-day compressive strength began to
28-day 62.6 39.6 32.0 24.6
Transverse 9.9 8.2 6.9 4.3
diminish when the crushed clay brick replacement level
breaking load was above 50%. It was found that the 28-day compres-
(kN) sive strength had a good correlation with the 10% fines
Skid resistance 110 112 104 104 values of the blended aggregates as shown in Fig. 5. This
(BPN) indicated that the lower intrinsic strength of the aggre-
Abrasion 16.5 19.5 18.5 19.0
resistance (mm)
gate was the main factor for the decrease in the compres-
Water absorption (%) sive strength of the paving blocks as the crushed clay
Cold 6.9 11.0 11.4 17.4 brick content increased. Furthermore, at the same
Hot 8.6 13.7 15.5 21.3 replacement level, the compressive strength of the pav-
ing blocks in Series II was higher than that in Series I.
This was attributed to the addition of fly ash in Series
Table 12 II which acted as a cementitious material and contrib-
Test results of mixtures in Series II
uted to the strength development.
Name BL-control-F BL-25-F BL-50-F BL-75-F In both series, the incorporation of crushed clay brick
Density (kg/m3) 2278 2206 2116 2071 reduced the transverse breaking load or the tensile
Compressive strength (MPa) strength. However, it was found that there was a relation-
7-day 50.0 37.1 34.8 26.6
ship between the compressive strengths and the trans-
28-day 74.3 55.4 44.7 39.2
Tensile splitting 3.9 2.8 2.6 2.4 verse breaking loads or the tensile splitting strengths of
(MPa) the paving blocks as shown in Fig. 6. The transverse
Skid resistance 106 102 97 92
(BPN)
80
28-day compressive strength (MPa)

Abrasion resistance 17.0 19.0 17.5 19.0

Series II
(mm) 70
y = 0.0054x2 - 0.8672x + 74.128
Water absorption (%) 60
R2 = 0.9994
Cold 4.5 6.1 10.5 11.4
50
Hot 6.2 7.4 12.9 13.0
40 Increasein strength
30 Due to addition of
fly ash
compared to that of recycled concrete aggregate. At the 20 Series I Series I
same crushed clay brick replacement level, the density of 10 Series II
2
y = 0.0062x - 0.9535x + 61.831
the paving block in Series II was lower than that of the R2 = 0.9856
0
paving block in Series I. This indicated that the use of fly 0 25 50 75 100
ash as a partial replacement of coarse and fine aggre- Crushed clay brick replacement level
gates slightly reduced the density of the paving blocks.
Fig. 4. Relationship between 28-day compressive strengths and
In both series, the 28-day compressive strengths of crushed clay brick contents.
the paving blocks were measured. The incorporation

80
28-day compressive strength (MPa)

2350
Series I 70 Series II
2300
y = -2.691x + 2265.6 y = 0.4799x + 4.0892
60
Density (kg/m^3)

2
2250 R = 0.9647 Series I R2 = 0.9989
Series II 50
2200 Series I
40
y = 0.5083x - 12.53
2150 R2 = 0.9915
Series II 30
2100 y = -2.8133x + 2286.6
2 20
R = 0.9643 Series I
2050 10
Series II
2000 0
0 25 50 75 100 50 70 90 110 130 150 170
Crushed clay brick replacement level (%) Ten Percent Fines Value (kN)

Fig. 3. Relationship between densities of paving blocks and crushed Fig. 5. Relationship between 28-day compressive strengths (MPa) and
clay brick contents. ten percent fines values of blended aggregates (kN).
576 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577

breaking load and tensile splitting strength tended to in- 4455. All paving blocks achieved a transverse breaking
crease with an increase in the compressive strength. load value greater than 2.0 kN. Also, paving blocks
It was found that the skid resistance of the paving BL-control, BL-25, and BL-50 satisfied the minimum
blocks in Series I was higher than that of the paving compressive strength prescribed by ETWB of Hong
blocks in Series II. This was reasonable since the use Kong. Although the skid and abrasion resistances of
of fly ash as a partial replacement of aggregate produced the paving blocks in Series I met the requirements pre-
a more homogenous mix with a smoother surface tex- scribed by ETWB of Hong Kong for Grade A paving
ture, thus reduced the skid resistance. However, the blocks, the cold water absorption of the paving blocks
abrasion resistance of the paving blocks in Series I and exceeded the limit of 6%.
II were found to be similar. Unlike the results for the On the other hand, most paving blocks in Series II
skid resistance, the use of fly ash did not impair the did not meet the strength requirements prescribed by
abrasion resistance of the paving blocks. BSI, ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong. Only BL-con-
Because of the high water absorption of the crushed trol-F (control mix) satisfied all the requirements stipu-
clay brick particles, the cold and hot water absorption lated by these three standards. All mixtures containing
values increased with an increase in the crushed clay crushed clay brick failed to meet the tensile splitting
brick content as shown in Fig. 7. Although the water strength requirement of 3.9 MPa imposed by BSI and
absorption values of the paving blocks in Series II in- only the mixture with 25% of recycled concrete aggre-
creased with an increase in the crushed clay brick con- gate replaced by crushed clay brick satisfied the com-
tents (Fig. 7), the magnitude was reduced when pressive strength requirements of 55 and 45 MPa
compared to the results of Series I. This was attributed prescribed by ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong, respec-
to the effect of the replacement of the coarse and fine tively. Furthermore, all paving blocks containing
aggregates by the fine fly ash particles which filled the crushed clay brick failed to achieve a cold water absorp-
voids within the mixture. tion value of less than 5% and 6% as recommended by
The paving blocks in Series I met the transverse ASTM and ETWB of Hong Kong for Grade A paving
breaking load requirement prescribed by AS/NZS blocks, respectively.
The effect of using only fine crushed brick is shown in
Table 13. By comparing the mixtures BL-25-F and BL-
4.0 12
Tensile splitting strength (MPa)

25-Ff, noticeable differences in the results were found.

Transverse breaking load (kN)

Series I
y = 0.1326x + 2.0492
3.5 2
10 Using only <5 mm aggregate reduced the density of
R = 0.846
8 the paving block since the density (SSD) of the 10 mm
3.0 aggregate was more than 10% higher than that of
6
2.5 Series II
<5 mm aggregate. Although the compressive strengths
y = 0.0233x + 1.5422 4 were similar between the two mixtures, a significant
2.0 Series II Series I R2 = 0.9573 improvement of the tensile splitting strength was
2
observed for BL-25-Ff in which no 10 mm aggregate
1.5 0
0 10 20 30 40 50 0 0 0
was used. A possible reason can be attributed to the
increase in the bonding area between the aggregate
28-day compressive strength (MPa)
and the cement paste. The corresponding increases in
Fig. 6. Relationship between 28-day compressive strengths (MPa) and cold and hot water absorption values were 20% and
tensile splitting strengths (MPa)/transverse breaking loads (kN). 30%, respectively. This was mainly attributed to the rel-
atively high water absorption of the <5 mm aggregate
24
Series I (Cold) Series I (Hot)
Series I (Cold)
21 y = 0.1603x + 8.7709
y = 0.1277x + 6.8716
Series I (Hot) R2 = 0.9671
Water absorption (%)

R2 = 0.9094
18 Series II (Cold)
Table 13
15 Series II (Hot) Test results of mixture BL-25-Ff
12 Series II (Hot) Name BL-25-Ff
y = 0.111x + 5.556
R2 = 0.7628
3
9 Density (kg/m ) 2160
Compressive strength (MPa)
6 SeriesII (Cold)
y = 0.1061x + 4.0128 7-day 37.9
3 R2 = 0.881 28-day 52.9
0 Tensile splitting (MPa) 3.7
0 25 50 75 100 Skid resistance (BPN) 97
Abrasion resistance (mm) 20.0
Crushed clay brick replacement level(%) Water absorption (%)
Fig. 7. Relationship between water absorption values and crushed clay Cold 7.3
brick contents. Hot 9.6
 C.S. Poon, D. Chan / Construction and Building Materials 20 (2006) 569–577
compared to that of the 10 mm aggregate. Furthermore,
the skid resistance of BL-25-Ff was slightly reduced
compared to that of BL-25-F. This was attributed to
the complete use of the <5 mm aggregate which pro-
vided a dense mixture with a smooth surface layer, thus
slightly reduced the skid resistance. Moreover, the abra-
sion resistance was reduced as well for BL-25-Ff com-
pared to that of BL-25-F. It was due to the longer
time it takes to abrade the coarse aggregate than the fine
aggregate [22]. Nevertheless, this mixture satisfied the
compressive strength requirement specified by ETWB
of Hong Kong for Grade B paving blocks used in traf-
ficked areas.
3. Conclusions
This paper presents the results of an investigation on
the use of crushed recycled concrete aggregates and
crushed clay brick as aggregates in the production of
paving blocks. Based on the results of this study, the fol-
lowing conclusions can be drawn:
1. The use of crushed clay brick reduced the density of
the paving blocks.
2. The compressive and tensile strengths of the paving
blocks decreased as the crushed clay brick content
increased.
3. At the same crushed clay brick replacement level, the
use of fly ash as a partial replacement of aggregates
increased the compressive strength of the resulting
paving blocks.
4. The use of fly ash as a partial replacement of aggre-
gates reduced the skid resistance of the paving blocks.
5. Water absorption of the paving blocks significantly
increased as the crushed clay brick content increased.
6. The use of fly ash as a partial replacement of aggre-
gates reduced the magnitude of the water absorption
of the resulting paving blocks.
7. Paving blocks prepared with 50% crushed clay brick
and 50% recycled concrete aggregate were able to
meet the minimum requirements of AS/NZS 4455
and ETWB of Hong Kong (Grade B paving blocks)
specified for pedestrian areas.
8. It was feasible to produce paving blocks prepared
with 25% crushed clay brick that satisfied the com-
pressive strength requirement for Grade B paving
blocks prescribed by ETWB of Hong Kong in traf-
ficked areas.
9. Using only <5 mm aggregate in the mix proportion
increased the tensile splitting strength and the water
absorption but reduced the density of the paving
blocks.
577
Acknowledgements
The authors thank the Environmental and Conserva-
tion Fund, the Woo Wheelock Green Fund, and the
Hong Kong Polytechnic University for funding support.
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