SYNOPSIS

Preparation and testing of interlocking masonry bricks

Abstract
Conventional bricks are the most elementary building materials for houses construction.
However, the rapid growth in today’s construction industry has obliged the civil engineers in
searching for a new building technique that may result in even greater economy, more efficient
and durable as an alternative for the conventional brick. Moreover, the high demands for having
a speedy and less labour and cost building systems is one of the factors that cause the changes of
the masonry conventional systems. These changes have led to improved constructability,
performance, and cost as well. Several interlocking bricks has been developed and implemented
in building constructions and a number of researches had studied the manufacturing of
interlocking brick and its structural behaviour as load bearing and non-load bearing element.
This technical paper aims to review the development of interlocking brick and its structural
behaviour. In conclusion, the concept of interlocking system has been widely used as a
replacement of the conventional system where it has been utilized either as load bearing or non-
load bearing masonry system. In dry stack concrete masonry systems, masonry units are laid
without mortar joints, reducing the cost and the time required for construction. Despite these
advantages, mortarless construction has not been widely implemented which is attributed to the
fact that the behaviour of dry stack masonry wall systems is not yet fully understood. The main
objective is to model and prepare interlock concrete brick models and test them under various
loading patterns and compare the results with that of the conventional brick.
Keywords: Interlocking bricks, load bearing masonry, dry stack masonry.

Objectives:
1. To model and prepare interlock bricks units and to test them under various loading
patterns.
2. To compare the results of the interlock brick units to that of the conventional brick.
3. To propose the scope of work that can be further done to enhance the effectiveness
and implementation of dry stacked interlocking masonry.

Methodology:
 Literature review:
To study various research papers about interlock masonry and recognize the scope of work that
needs to be done in this field.

 Brick modelling:
A thorough study of the interlock brick models in the industry and their standards is studied
and a new model is prepared which is suitable for the project to be conducted.

 Mould preparation:
A wooden mould of 260mm x300mm x200mm (lxbxh) is prepared with top and bottom
interlocking and side interlocking.

 Mix proportion:
The mix proportion adopted for using interlock blocks is M20, i.e.., 1 part of Cement ,1.5 parts
of Fine Aggregate, 3parts of Coarse Aggregate. Admixtures such as Fly Ash and Vermiculite can
be added in order to reduce the weight of an individual Block.

 Testing of interlock bricks and conventional bricks.

Different tests have to be conducted on the interlock brick units created like crushing strength
test, compressive strength test, determination of block density, water absorption test, lateral
load tests etc.

 Comparison of the results

The results of both the types of bricks is compared to check the adequacy of the models
prepared during the study.

Conclusion
Among the papers that we studied half of them were about keeping light weight concrete and
another half were about the design of interlocking models. Most of the people used glue
instead of using mortar. If interlocking blocks are not light in weight, they are difficult to place
but if they are light in weight then they are easy to place and has low maintenance. EPS beads
and fly ash are easily available so they can be used as light weight material. Interlocking is not
only effective in modern terms but in traditional way also. By using interlocking concrete
blocks, the cost of labour is considerably reduced. With interlocking of concrete blocks, we can
improve the aesthetic view of building. And also, the failure at joint is reduced.
Members of the project:
Guide: Prof. H.M. Jagadeesha
Students:
Manas Singh (160904368)
Devraj Sharma (160904340)
Waseem Raja
Rajat Kumar (160904262)