APPROPRIATE BUILDING MATERIAL TECHNOLOGIES

Housing is a high-priority area for all countries in the world. Population growth, urbanization and
the growth of insanitary dwellings all emphasize the urgency of the problem.
The building materials industry plays a key role in solving economic and social objectives of
housing since nearly 50 per cent of the investment in the construction sector is on building
materials and components. In order that he housing problems are solved in a practical way, it is
Necessary to adopt local materials and construction technologies that will minimize the use of
scarce national resources such as capital and energy. The local construction industry must
recognize that the problems cannot be solved by a quick recipe but instead requires
interdisciplinary interaction among engineers, researchers, architects, planners and builders.
A multifaceted approach involving
(1) indigenous building materials, technical knowledge and skills
(2) promotion of labor intensive technologies and
(3) the development of national policies and finance mechanisms is required. Finally, the
spectrum of human settlement problems must be addressed ranging from research and
development on building materials, development of a viable building industry base,
entrepreneurship and social and functional aspects of low-cost housing.

Choice of Building Materials

Cement with its inherent advantages such as better binding properties, early strength
development and availability in ready to use condition became the obvious choice during the last
few decades. This has led to the decline of the use of traditional materials such as earth,
limestone and rubble. The establishment of the steel industry based on imported raw materials
too had been contributory to this development
However, in recent times production of such materials has not kept pace, with the increased
demand of the construction industry. This has led to the importation of raw materials, products
and components resulting in a considerable drain of valuable foreign exchange. Also, the
indiscriminate use of new and imported materials with scant attention to their quality,
performance and application probably made their optimization less important. In Sri Lanka,
Portland cement is predominantly used in low-strength applications, for foundations, plasters
and mortars. This wrong application of Portland cement escalates the cost of construction. The
degree to which Portland cement is wrongly applied in construction has reached alarming
proportions, and it is estimated that only 20 per cent of the worldwide use of cement requires
the strength of Portland cement (Journal of the Network, 1989). Furthermore, some of the
imported building materials such as asbestos and corrugated iron roofing sheets are unaffordable
to the vast majority of the rural population.
The use of timber adds another dimension to the problem. Our forest resources are dwindling at
an alarming rate. But first-class timber species are still the prime commodities in construction.
The selection and use of secondary and less durable timber species for building are issues of
utmost importance. The question that now arises is how appropriate the choice of building
materials is.
The "appropriateness" of a building material or construction technology can never be
generalized. The following questions show some of the main factors which determine
appropriateness:
• Is the material produced locally, or is it partially or entirely imported?
• Is it cheap, abundantly available, and/or easily renewable?
• Has it been produced in a factory far away (transportation costs!); does it require special
machines and equipment, or can it be produced at lower cost on the building site? (Good quality
and durability are often more important than low procurement costs).
• Does its production and use require a high energy input, and cause wastage and pollution? Is
there an acceptable alternative material which eliminates these problems?
• Is the material and construction technique climatically acceptable?
• Does the material and construction technique provide sufficient safety against common natural
hazards (eg fire, biological agents, heavy rain, hurricanes, earthquakes)?
• Can the material and technology be used and understood by the local workers, or are special
skills and experience required?
• Are repairs and replacements possible with local means?
• Is the material socially acceptable? Is it considered low standard, or does it offend religious
belief? Does it match with the materials and constructions of nearby buildings?

The Search for a Solution

In order to overcome the problems created by the over dependence on cement and other
imported building materials, the production and application strategy of our building materials
need to be redesigned. A number of alternatives exist, some of which have been adopted in other
developing countries where socio-economic conditions are not too dissimilar to Sri Lanka. In
summary, these may be grouped as follows:
(1) Rationalization on the production and use of cement,
(2) Production of blended cements with OPC and other cementitious materials produced
from clays and agricultural and industrial waste.
(3) Adoption of other appropriate building materials and construction technologies such as
- use of bricks and blocks
- fiber reinforced concrete
(4) Development of lime-based binders and products.
FACTORS TO CHANGES IN BUILDING MATERIALS
the scarcity of the traditional resources, international organizations’ involvement, durability of
the materials as well as policy and regulatory reforms are some of the main contributing factors
to the changes in the building material types in most developing countries. In terms of scarcity of
materials, Wells et al. (1998b) for instance, found that the increased distance from sources of
traditional building materials such as poles fueled the use of conventional materials for urban
housing development in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Similar findings are also demonstrated in
studies conducted in other parts of the SSA such as Mali (Wells et al., 1998a), Ethiopia (Duguma
and Hager, 2010). However, in other parts this has been due to the government-initiated
programs. For instance, in Ethiopia, the government’s idea to ban the use of endangered wood
species sourced from forest reserves since the 1990s has contributed to the scarcity of wood for
housing construction hence affecting the quality of wood currently used for housing
construction. In Egypt on the contrary, it was observed that the scarcity of good soil for red brick
manufacturing was due to the construction of Aswan dam leading to the loss of the traditional
raw material brought about from the Nile river hence contributing to the change in the type of
building materials to cement, lime and gypsum-based materials (Farag, 2004). Therefore, as
suggested by Duguma and Hager (2010) the use of ABMs would solve such problems in respective
countries.
Although some materials are always available, they are evaded due to their low durability and
poor aesthetics hence contributing to the on-going changes. Earth for example, which is being
promoted in other developed countries parts due to its low embodied energy, is regarded as a
material suitable for low-income societies who can hardly afford other options on the market.

PRESSED SOIL-CEMENT BLOCK: AN ALTERNATIVE BUILDING MATERIAL FOR MASONRY

Soil is the most commonly available material. It is the basic material for the production of bricks.
Burnt brick has been considered as a satisfactory material for masonry construction. They are
produced by employing a burning process and hence consume considerable amount 0f thermal
energy during production. Also, very often they are transported over great distances. Pressed
soil-cement block is an alternative to burnt bricks. These blocks can be produced in a
decentralized fashion employing simple manually operated or semi-mechanized presses utilizing
local soil. Also, these blocks are economical and consume less thermal energy during production.