STUDY ON FIBRE REINFORCED AUTOCLAVED AERATED CONCRETE USING FABRICS OF WOVEN GLASS FIBRES

Abstract

Fibre Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (FRAAC) is one of the eco – friendly and certified green building materials. AAC is porous, non-toxic, reusable, renewable and recyclable. Autoclaved Aerated Concrete, also known as aircrete, is a lightweight, load-bearing, high insulating, durable building product, which is produced in a wide range of sizes and strengths. FRAAC offers incredible opportunities to increase building quality and at the same time reduce costs at the construction site. The Autoclaved Aerated Concrete material was invented by a Sweden Architect, Johan Axel Eriksson in 1924. It has become one of the most used building materials in Europe and is rapidly growing in many other countries around the world.  FRAAC is produced out of a mix of quartz sand or pulverized fly ash, lime, cement, gypsum/anhydrite, water and aluminium and is hardened by steam-curing in autoclaves. Due its excellent properties, AAC is used in many building constructions, such as in residential homes, commercial and industrial buildings, schools, hospitals, hotels and many other applications. FRAAC replaces clay bricks which are environmentally unsustainable. Being aerated, it contains 50 - 60 % of air, leading to light weight and low thermal conductivity. The characteristic of AAC is helpful in green housings and saves fertile lands and a solution for fly ash disposal.

Keywords: AAC blocks, FRAAC blocks, fabrics of woven glass fibres