FLYASH BRICK

Material science is a complex composite, arising

out of in-built judgment in orienting the
characteristics and constituents of various
products to serve the human race; and depending
on the natures gift, tapping the same for the
application of human need.
Bricks made out of clay is one such product which
proved its credence since the dawn of civilization.
Brickwork is established as an age-old construction
media right from the thatched house to multistoried
buildings. Natures kind-heartedness in gifting the
humankind with its bountiful resources, of course,
has a threshold limit and the utilization of clay has
reached such a point in construction.

This potential resource has been over tapped,
unmindful of the consequences, as a result of which
(except in limited pockets of some river delta regions)
barren lagoons have replaced vast stretches of
erstwhile fertile land. Added to that, soil degradation
and disturbances in ecology are threatening the very
rudimentary pillars of welfare.

In countries like India, where about 65% of the
population is still living in economically weaker and
rural segments, clay is unanimously the cost effective
building material to make the walls and floors of their
huts. But irreparable exhaustion has taken place for
such versatile product, leaving no chances of
replenishment for millennia to come.

In West Bengal, the industry estimate of registered clay brick
manufacturers stands at around 8,000 in numbers. There is
almost an equal number of unregistered brickfields taking the
State level aggregate to approx. 15,000 brickfields.
Considering that the minimum annual production of a
brickfield is around 30,00,000 pieces, the total clay brick
production of the State works out to approx. 4,500 Crore
pieces.

Taking into account that 10% of this production is carried out
using silt available along the river banks, approx. quantity of
clay bricks manufactured through excavation of top soil may
be assumed at approx. 4,000 Crore pieces, which destroys
9.77 Crore cum top soil annually as under :-

4000 Cr pieces x 0.08632 cft/brick = 345.28 Cr cft or
9.77 Cr cum of top soil weighing 12.80 Cr MT.




For converting this estimated volume to fly ash bricks, the minimum
quantity of fly ash required annually would work out to :-

4000 Crore pcs x 0.0033 MT/brick x 50% (by weight) = 6.60 Crore MT

Therefore, daily requirement of fly ash is envisaged at = 1,80,000 MT

So, even theoretically, most of the fly ash can be recycled by brick
manufacturers, which in turn would save precious top soil as well as abate
carbon di-oxide emission, the process being devoid of sintering.
DISTRICT WISE
ESTIMATED
NO.
OF FLYASH
BRICK UNITS
IN
WEST BENGAL
40 Units
12 Units
5 Units
2 Units
15 Units
7 Units
5 Units
8 Units
10 Units
15 Units
10 Units
5 Units
4 Units
2 Units
ESTIMATED TOTAL NO. OF UNITS = 140

Properties of Fly Ash brick / block

Compressive strength : 50 - 160 kg/sq.cm.
Water absorption : 10 15 percent
Density : As pure mix : 1.4 gm/cc.
As mortar brick: 1.6 1.8 gm/cc.

Coefficient of softening (depending
on water consistency factor) : 2 -15 percent


Durability
Once the hydrated compounds and related mineralogies
form out of flyash constituents upon activation with
cement or lime and gypsum, no further reactivity is
evident either internally or with extraneous media like
ground and air laden chemicals. This results in
dimensional stability and enhanced weather resistance of
pozzolanic products.

Pozzolanic applications have been well established as
durable materials of construction for the last 2 3
millennium and Fly Ash Concrete is nothing but an
improved version of this established pozzolanic
chemistry.

Environment Friendly
Notwithstanding the techno-economic virtues, fly ash
bricks comply with the criteria for environmentally
friendly products and eligible for Carbon Emission
Reduction earnings in terms of Kyoto Protocol on
account of the main raw material being an industrial
by-product and the manufacturing process being
devoid of sintering or auto-claving is totally energy
conservative.

What made Fly Ash brick/block attractive?
1. Fly Ash bricks do not lose strength unduly even on soaking in
water continuously. Hence plastering is optional rather than
necessary.

2. On account of size accuracy, plastering can be rationalized adding
additional savings on cement.

3. Well cured fly ash bricks absorb 4 12% of water only.

4. On account of less absorption, rationalization of plastering &
mortar, a finished fly ash brick wall is lighter and cheaper in
comparison to finished clay brick wall.

5. Fly ash bricks can be made to order with engineering properties
comparable to cement concrete, befitting for specialized
applications such as canal lining, dam construction, water tanks,
etc.

Why the Ministry of Environment & Forests, Government of India
published the notification no : S. O. 763 (E) dated : 14
th
. September,
1999 ?

Whereas it is necessary to protect the environment, conserve top soil
and prevent the dumping and disposal of flyash discharged from coal or
lignite based thermal power plants on land ;

And whereas, there is a need for restricting the excavation of top soil for
manufacture of bricks and promoting the utilization of flyash in the
manufacture of building materials and in construction activity.

How flyash bricks and blocks are suitable alternative to ordinary burnt
clay bricks ?

The manufacture of flyash bricks and blocks does not require excavation
of top soil and utilizes flyash generated by thermal power stations
instead.
Flyash as all knows has its own problems of disposal and is otherwise a
social menace with recycling through production of building materials
being the preferred utilization.
Flyash bricks and blocks being chemically bonded does not require
sintering and dispenses with the need for coal a non-renewable fossil
fuel. Further, as need for burning the bricks and blocks is absent, the
manufacturing process is totally environment friendly and contributes
substantially to reduction of carbon di-oxide emission - a harmful
greenhouse gas which is responsible for global warming.




Flyash bricks and blocks have the
following advantages over ordinary
burnt clay bricks :-
Better finish
High Strength
Less water absorption
No efflorescence
Lower unit weight and less load on foundation
Reduced energy consumption
No excavation of top soil which is otherwise suitable for cultivation
Lower cost of bricks and blocks
Less mortar consumption


Advantages:

Uniform Shape & Size

The volume of bricks is @ 30-35% more than ordinary clay bricks.
As a result the number of joints reduces considerably. This saves in
cost of mortar.

These bricks are machine made. There is no variation in size of the
bricks. The brick wall made is plumb on both the sides. The
thickness of plaster can be reduced substantially.




Advantage:
Compound Walls without plaster can be constructed
using various bonds. These can be aesthetically very
appealing and cost effective too.

Finishes such as Gypsum Plaster and POP can be
directly applied to the surface of the wall.

Even Kitchen Dado Tiles can be directly pasted on to
the brick surface.

Advantage:
Low water Absorption

The rain water will not seep into the internal wall surfaces. No
dampness is seen.

These bricks do not require soaking in water before use. Nominal
sprinkling of water just before use is enough.
Why is the flyash brick/block industry suffering in the State of West
Bengal ?

The notifications published by the Ministry of Environment & Forests,
Government of India for 100% utilization of flyash bricks, blocks and
tiles for all construction works within a radius of 100 kilometres of a
coal/lignite based thermal power plant is not being adhered to by both
the Government and private construction agencies in the absence of
monitoring by statutory authorities and/or imposition of penal
provisions as provided by law. Even thermal power plants generating
the flyash do not use flyash bricks, blocks and tiles mandatorily in all its
construction works.
The fly ash bricks and blocks industry is burdened with unfair tax regime
vis--vis the clay brick manufacturers, who can get away with evasion of
VAT, Central Excise, ESI, PF and other statutory duties or taxes inspite
of doing enormous harm to the environment through excavation of top
soil, consumption of non-renewable coal and emission of carbon di-
oxide.

Steam Cured

Our manufacturing process involves steam curing method.

As such the shrinkage cracks in walls are reduced.

The bricks are manufactured throughout the year, even during the
monsoons.

The manufacturing process is faster. The bricks are ready for dispatch
within 12 hours of manufacture.

The quality of bricks is consistent and much superior to water cured fly
ash bricks

Why is the fly ash brick/block industry suffering in the State of West
Bengal ?
Some other bottlenecks that are acting as hurdles to the development of
this sun-rise industry in West Bengal are as under :-
a) Entrepreneurs are entering the business on a hype of making fast
money devoid of knowledge about the process technology and
marketing constraints.
b) There is less consciousness and focus on product quality leading to a
wide variation in attributes amongst different manufacturers.
c) Cannibalization amongst manufacturers due to inadequate demand
for the product and very slow evolution of market in absence of use by
Government departments and agencies under their control.
d) Buyers need to be realistic while drawing up specification and price
so that manufacturers are not compelled to compromise on the binder,
which constitutes 60 70 percent of raw material cost of the product.

Conclusion:
Nature always summons for transformations in material science and that is
how balance is atoned in resource availability to fulfill the varietal needs of
human race. Though talk of habits and attunements are popular
arguments, particularly in countries like India while responding to advent of
innovative products, need forces to compromise first and get appeased
next.

The availability and use of clay is exactly at such crossroads. Lack of
technological and material alternates held up clay users all these years in
spite of dire necessities and pressures. The profuse availability of fly ash on
one hand and FAL-G technology on the other have emerged to offer
respite on clay front. Hence it is time to say good-bye to clay bricks and
welcome fly ash brick manufacturing with a big hand for its techno-
economic virtues.



THANK YOU