1

Development of an Innovative Interlock

Blocks
Abstract:
Each block has two interlocks (i) a projection ‘tongue’ part and a depression
‘groove ’part, this helps to resist the lateral movements and horizontal
compressive stresses caused due to earthquakes. (ii) a ‘T’ projection in the
end of block‘s side face and a depression in other end .The projection of one
block fits in to the depression of the next so that they always align perfectly.
And a partial replacement of fly ash to cement is done. Fly ash decreases
mechanical properties while increasing durability of blocks. One of the main
aims of our approach, is to build mortar-free structures with the help of this
type of interlocks.
Introduction:
(SCI soil cement interlock) brick is inexpensive and can be used without
cement or mortar, easy to handle, mould and manufacture, the hollow
portions allow insertion of certain fixtures or conduits without having to do
extra work on the building structure, no need fire treatment and therefore
ease the fast depletion of the forest cover, need less water for their
production and treatment compared with the production of other bricks and
use very small amount of cement per brick.
Firstly, Interlocking bricks are not baked, it is just mud in high density
pressed using a pressing machine and allowed to solidify by drying
naturally. Some chemicals are added for increasing the bond strength.
Whilst, normal bricks are baked ones. Secondly, size of interlocking brick is
more. It is approximately 2.5 times more in volume than the baked bricks.
Thirdly weight of Interlocking bricks is more than equivalent volume of
baked bricks.
CONCEPT OF OUR INTERLOCKING PATTERN
 The blocks are shaped with projecting parts, which fit exactly into
depressions in the blocks placed above, such that they are automatically
aligned horizontally and vertically thus brick laying is possible without
special masonry skills.
 Each block has a ‘T’ projection in one end of block‘s side face and a
depression in other end
 Since the bricks can be laid dry, no mortar is required and a considerable
amount of cement is saved.
A. Different materials
 Soil-cement blocks
Depending on the soil and cement qualities, the cement-to-soil ratio
usually lies between 1: 6 and 1: 10, by volume. (Laboratory tests are
essential).
 Rice husk ash (RHA) cement blocksThe cement-to-RHA ratio is
generally 1: 4, by volume. Two types of blocks can be produced: white
blocks, with a compressive strength of 4 N/mm, using ash (amorphous
silica) from field kilns, burnt below 900C;black blocks, with a
compressive strength of 1.4 N/mm, using boiler ash (crystalline silica),
burnt up to 1200C; concrete blocks. A typical mix proportion of cement-
to-sand-to-gravel is 1: 5: 3.
B. Different shapes and sizes
 Full blocks (300x 150x 100 mm) for all standard walls (single or
double brick thick)
 Half blocks (150 x 150 x 100 mm), which can be moulded to size, or
made by cutting freshly moulded full blocks in half.
CONCLUSION AND SUGGESIONS
Although the study revealed unparalleled advantages of interlocking-
block masonry in terms of shorter period of operation, lesser gang of
labour and reduced cost of construction, its usage in construction of
houses is very low. This is partly due to low level of awareness on the
part of professionals and the public and its non-availability in the
market. In view of this, Government agencies and stakeholders in the
building industry should accept the use of the material as proposed in
this research to give a wide publicity to them and make the proposed
building materials available in the market for users. Interlocking-
block masonry should be used in public housing projects to
demonstrate government’s sincerity and to create awareness within
the populace. In conclusion, accelerated dry masonry system through
interlocking masonry is recommended for housing projects as an
alternative method
that is cheaper than the conventional wet type. Since this innovative
interlock system is earthquake resisting. It is also faster in operation
with a potential of saving over 65% of time and cost of the masonry
work. It reduces wastage of materials, and gangs of labour required
for operation. Interlocking blocks can be produced with the same
materials as used in the production of conventional blocks.
2
Behavior of post-tensioned dry-stack
interlocking masonry walls under out of plane
loading
Abstract:
The researches done on wall construction to make it appropriate, easy,
fast and cost effective have led to a promising technique known as ‘‘Dry-
stack interlocking masonry system”. Nevertheless, there are several
disadvantages attributed to using this system. One of the major drawbacks of
this system is the low bending capacity that can be resisted by the
interlocking keys alone. To overcome this problem grouting and reinforcing
of the hollow block cells are required, which make the system a bit
expensive. Additionally, the dry-stacked units had to settle down to balance
uneven surfaces and notches, which may reduce strength and stiffness of the
walls. One method that has been suggested to minimize this drawback is
post-tensioning (PT) of these walls to eliminate grout and enhance the
bending capacity.
3
Behavior of the Dry Bed Joint in the
mortar less Interlocking Masonry
System

Abstract
Interlocking mortarless masonry has numerous benefits over the
conventional masonry due to its ease of construction and higher
compressive strength by virtue of absence of mortar joints. Dry
contacting surfaces between the blocks play a major role on the
performance of dry stack masonry. In this paper, Dry joint surface
characteristics and close-up deformation properties of interlocking dry
stack blocks and bricks were reviewed as well as the dry joint opening.
It was observed that the contact area increases with increasing of the
compressive load. It’s concluded that the behavior of the interlocking
mortaless system is extremely affected by the behavior of the contact
 surface and the dry joint under compressive loading. Therefore, further
research related to dry surfaces contact and interface closure and
opening characteristics under compressive loads is needed.
Introduction
One simple thing that absolutely contrasts interlocking bricks from
conventional bricks is the mortar between bricks layers where mortar is not
required for the construction of interlocking bricks. Due to that
characteristic, the construction of masonry walls is faster and needs even
unskilled workers as the bricks are arranged dry and interlock each other by
the protrusions [2]. An assortment of interlocking bricks have been
manufactured and produced during the last few years, varying in the
composition of material, shape, size, strengths required, and usage needed,
including Sparlock, Meccano, Sparfil, Haener, and Hydraform block system
[3].
Due to the absence of mortar and the filling material between the masonry
brick joints, the contact area need to be study with particular attention. The
understanding of the compressive behavior of dry joints is a vital design
parameter, for this reason only dry joint compressibility should be examined.
Moreover, dry contacting surfaces between the blocks and bricks play a
major role on the performance of dry stack masonry [4]. Thus,
dry interfaces characterize the behavior of dry stack masonry under different
loads. When the dry stack masonry is subjected to compression the
interfaces gradually close and the surface contact area increases with the
increment in loading [5,6]. However, very limited research outcomes are
reported in the literature on the characterization of the dry interfaces under
key loading conditions. In this paper, a review on the behavior of the contact
area between interlocking bricks or blocks layers is presented

TESTS
 Investigated the dry joint closure behavior of refractory bricks under
compressive loading. Finally, the procedure of joint closure was
estimated in a roundabout way by stressing specimens with and
without joints in wide temperature extend.
 Compressive tests and cracking pattern for individual block, single joint (two blocks), and multiple joints (three
blocks) [11].
 Analyzed the effect of contact area and the clearance between the blocks on the mechanical behavior of
interlocking stabilized earth block (ISEB). The ISEBs were placed dry without grouting and tested
under compression load tests to the mechanical behavior and the contact area effects, while the effect
of the local stress around the clearance were performed by finite element modeling. The ISEB
manufactured by red earth, sand, and 8 percent of cement. The compressive tests were conducted on
individual block, single joint which consists of two interlocking blocks, and multiple joints that consists
of three interlocking blocks as shown in Figure 6. As a result, the compressive strength for individual
block, two blocks, and three blocks were 11.9MPa, 8.2MPa, and 5.5MPa, respectively. That means the
contact area and the clearance between the blocks have an effect on the masonry compressive
strength, causing it to decrease.

Figure 7: Details of interlocking block unit and the dry bed joint [14].

Dry Joint Opening

 Studies stated that opening mechanism of wall specimens may be
explained by arching mechanism in out-of plane wall. When a wall is
subjected to load that is perpendicular direction to wall face, the wall will
deflect in the out-of-plane direction (same direction where load applied). In
mortarless construction, the wall tends to create an opening between courses
where the location of maximum bending moment occurs. Opening
mechanism in dry joint is related to the arching behavior during out-of-plane
loading. Resistance of hollow masonry walls to out-of-plane loads can be
increased by imposing large in-plane compression forces that can be induced
when the wall is rigidly supported [12]. With increasing loading, flexural
opening occurs at mid span. With the increased load, the wall is hard-
pressed against the un-yielded supports producing clamping forces ( ) at the
ends as shown in Figure 8.

Figure 8: Forces in development of arching mechanism [12].

Three hinged arches reshaped where the external moment

is resisted by the internal couple where ru is the

arch height. The clamping force Pu is a function of dry joint and contactβ
area.
t
The arch height ( ru ) is a function of the wall geometry, contact area (
2 ) and deflection (∆o.β ) is a slope of the bottom course opening, where (t)
is the wall thickness. Therefore, the more the wall deflects, the lower the
clamping force Pu due to the reduction of contact area and thus decreasing of
resulting moment.
Discussion and Conclusion
 Dry joint surface characteristics and close-up deformation properties of
interlocking dry stack blocks and bricks were reviewed in this study as well
as the dry joint opening. It’s found that the carbon paper image analysis
method is unsuitable to determine the contact area between the block
surfaces accurately. Meanwhile, the tactile sensors system computes the
surface contact area consistently and reliably. It has been concluded that the
contact surface of the mortar less masonry bricks on initially remained
negligible due to the initial gap and voids between the blocks and
undulations on the dry joint surface. After certain amount of time the contact
area increased with a steep slope until it stabilized. Moreover, through the
image analysis of contact prints, it was shown that the contacting areas
increase with the increasing of the compressive load. The behavior of the
interlocking mortar less system is extremely affected by the behavior of the
contact surface and the dry joint under compressive loading. The geometric
imperfections of the bed interlocking blocks and bricks were found to be a
significant factors impacts the structural behavior of the mortar less masonry
system. Finally, for increasing the acceptance of dry stack masonry system,
further research related to dry surfaces contact and interface closure and
opening characteristics under compressive loads is needed.

Accelerated masonry construction:

review and future prospects
METHODS USING INTERLOCKING BLOCKS
From a structural viewpoint, the search for masonry which is less dependent
on labour skill and construction variation led to the use of prefabricated
masonry, with mechanically bedded masonry unit walls from a central plant,
and the use of epoxy glues to replace cement and lime mortar[9]. As the
products were far more expensive, these efforts were not popular. The
alternative method was to use dry-stackable masonry units, which could be
laid without mortar, thus reducing the construction variability. The basic
requirement for a dry-stackable masonry unit is that it should be self-
aligning, thus allowing construction skill to be reduced drastically and
eliminating the need for levelling and aligning instruments.
Dry-stacked masonry
Interlocking blocks differ from blocks used in mortar-bedded masonry; the
block configuration is shaped to facilitate physical interlocking between
blocks. Dry-stacked interlocking block masonry, which lacks stability or
which is required to withstand higher lateral (out-of-plane as well as in-
plane) loads is usually grouted or surface bonded
Surface-bonded/grouted masonry
To enhance the lateral resistance of systems with partial interlocking
features, surface bonding/partial grouting is adopted. Besides improving
flexural resistance, surface bonding also provides protection against
moisture penetration. Hollow interlocking systems, are usually grouted after
dry-stacking. Grouting can be plain, reinforced or prestressed, depending on
the required lateral load resistance.

CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTIVITY STUDIES

Many of the interlocking block masonry systems are stated to have enhanced
construction productivity. However, the methodology and conditions under
which the observations have been made are not readily available in the
published literature. This section presents the data on some of the systems
reported. Studies on 1400-mm-square panels of conventional block masonry
and Whelan interlocking block masonry have been reported[24]. The net
time spent for the conventional masonry as 3.5 h with a crew of one mason
and one helper, indicating a production rate of approximately 1.7 m2/h. With
a crew of one person, the time spent for Whelan blocks was 1.25 h, which
indicates a production rate approximately 4.1 m2/h, which indicate that
production rates for the system were approximately 2.5 times those of the
traditional system. Manufacturers of Haener blocks state that the system
allows block laying up to five times faster than conventional block masonry,
creating labour savings up to 80%. VanderWerf[35] has reported that
workers with experience in Haener blocks stack more than 100 blocks per
hour. Based on the design experience with Haener block on a project site, it
was estimated that the time of completion would be reduced by 60% over
that of conventional masonry [27]. Reduction in labour requirement by 65%
is reported for TSZ block in comparison to brickwork [1]. For soil–cement
blocks a reduction in construction time by 50% is stated compared with that
of the conventional blocks. With AZAR block, unskilled workers routinely
stack 100 blocks each per hour, compared with 40 blocks per hour for one
mason and one helper for conventional masonry, while with Sparlock
system, a crew stacked at a rate equivalent to the size of nearly 40
conventional block per worker per hour[35].
A laboratory-based relative productivity assessment of conventional and
interlocking block masonry (SILBLOCK, HILBLOCK) was carried out[31],
through work sampling, adopting 5-min rating technique for measurement of
utilization of time by members of the team. Productivity enhancement of 80
– 120% was observed for dry-stacked masonry, and 60 – 90% for thin-
jointed and mortar-bedded interlocking block masonry compared with
conventional masonry.
Even though the manufacturing costs of interlocking blocks are
marginally higher than conventional blocks, this is more than offset by the
reduction in labour, construction time and material requirements. With
sufficient early planning and careful detailing, it is easier to overcome
(i) construction difficulties; (ii) the possible reduction in strength and
stiffness due to initial seating deformation; and (iii) problems with stability
during erection against lateral loads.

Future prospects and conclusions

Tracing the development of interlocking blocks reveals that many have

complex shapes, which appear to have been deliberate, and such intricacies
in block geometry (tongue and groove or undercut and dovetail
arrangement) necessitate mechanized production methods. Some of these
blocks are not structurally efficient, as the web shells of successive layers do
not align fully. Hence there is a need to standardize the block geometries to
achieve

(i) simplicity of shape (interlocking without thin tongue and groove or

undercuts) and limited number of basic block shapes; (ii) interlocking
in horizontal and vertical directions with discontinuity of bed joint and
cross joint from inner to outer faces; (iii) economic production by
conventional methods; and (iv) the construction process should
facilitate dismantling and reusability of blocks. Systematic studies are
needed on partially reinforced and reinforced interlocking block
masonry subjected to vertical and lateral loading to understand the
behaviour and cost effectiveness of the system and developing
essential standards/codes of practice for these systems