Author: Ibrahim
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Introduction to lime
Lime is one of the most important and widely used construction materials. In fact, it used to be the primary cement material before the advent of Portland cement. The Egyptians and Romans made considerable use of this material for various construction purposes. Even in India various engineering structures like big palaces, bridges, temples, forts and…
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Sand substitution
Sand has now become a scarce and expensive material and the extraction of river sand is now said to affect the ecological balance. The use of sand substitutes has gained much importance. Surkhi, or fine-grained burnt clay, is one of the materials used for this purpose. It can be used in all mortars, except plaster.…
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Sand in Mortar
Sand is used in mortar and concrete for the following functions: Bulk: It acts as an additive. Hence, larger quantity or volume of mortar is increased resulting in cost reduction. Setting: In the case of fat lime, carbon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed through the voids of the sand and setting of the fat lime takes…
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Sand Bulking
The increase in volume of sand due to the presence of moisture is called sand bulking. This is due to the fact that moisture forms a film of water around the sand particles and this results in an increase in the volume of the sand. The extent of bulking depends on the grading of the…
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Sand Clasiffication
Based on grain size distribution, sand is classified as fine, coarse and gravel. Fine sand: Sand passing through a sieve with clean openings of 1.5875 mm is called fine sand. Fine sand is mainly used for plastering. Gravel sand: Sand passing through a sieve with clear openings of 7.62 mm is called gravel sand. It…
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Sand of River
This sand is widely used for all purposes. It is obtained from the banks or beds of rivers and consists of fine rounded grains. The presence of fine spherical grains is due to mutual friction under the action of water flow. River sand is available in clean conditions. The river sand is almost white in…
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Sand on Sea
Sea sand is obtained from sea beaches. It consists of fine round grains like river sand. The color of sea sand is light brown. Because sea sand contains salts, it attracts moisture from the atmosphere. Such absorption causes dampness, swelling and breakage of the work. Sea sand increases the setting time of cement. Therefore, it…
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General Stone Buildings
Limestone: These are sedimentary rocks composed mainly of calcium carbonate. They show great variation in their properties and, therefore, not all types are useful as building stones. They can be used as road metal for the construction of floors, stairs, walls, etc. Limestone is also used for the manufacture of cement and lime. The use…
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Good Stone Properties
1.Specific Gravity: A good building stone should have a specific gravity of 2.7 or more. Heavy stones are suitable for construction of abutments, dams, docks, harbors, etc. while lighter types are used in building construction.2.Hardness: For use in highly loaded structures, such as in the construction of bridges, piers and abutments and marine structures, and…
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Stones Dressing
A place where exposed surfaces of good quality natural stone are available in abundance is called ‘quarry’ and the process of extracting stone from the natural bed is called ‘excavation’. This is done with the help of hand tools like pickaxes, chisels etc. or with the help of machines. Blasting using explosives is another method…