DILLA UNIVERSITY

SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING

BUILDING MATERIALS & CONSTRUCTION

(ADDT2111)

CLASSIFICATION OF MATERIALS
A building can be generally considered as structure consisting of
floors, walls & roofs erected to provide covered space for different
uses.
I. Climate & its effect
II. People & their requirements (capacity & culture)
III. Material for construction & method of construction ( with cost
consideration)
Buildings are classified based on occupancy as follows,
A. Residential buildings (private dwellings, hotel, dormitories,
apartment houses, guest houses)
B. Educational buildings ( college, schools, university)
C. Assembly( theatre, exhibition halls, worship places, transport
terminals)

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D. Institutional buildings( hospitals, clinics)
E. Business buildings( banks, insurances)
F. Industrials buildings( factories)
G. Storage buildings( ware house, barn)
H. Worship buildings( mosque, churches)
The primary motive of building houses is to desire better living
condition. The initial causes which compelled man to obtain shelter
were,
 To hide from wild animals

 To protect against cold & heat

 To get shelter against rain & wind

 To protect & gather his family & domestic animals

The development of part of a building starts from a floor, which is a

grass spread inside the eave.

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1.1 COMPONENTS OF A BUILDING
 A building has two basic parts:
Sub-structure
Super structure

Sub-structure: is the lower portion of the building, usually located

below the ground level, which transmits the loads of the super-
structure to the supporting soil.
Super-structure: is that part of the structure which is above the
ground level, and which serves the purpose of its intended use.

 The basic component of a building include:

♦ Foundations ♦ Walls ♦ floor
♦ structures ♦ Roof structures ♦ Building finishes
♦ Doors, windows and other openings ♦ Vertical transportation
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Sub-structure

Super-structure and sub-structure 5

 Masonry
Concrete - Brick Bitumen
Aggregate - Mortar - Asphalt
-HCB - Tar
Cement
Metal Rubber
- ferrous /
non ferrous Wood

Composite Paint
- FRP
Glass
Plastic
- PVC Ceramic Adhesive
1. INTRODUCTION

Properties Types

Uses Material Testing

Production
1. INTRODUCTION
1.3 SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 Factors need to be considered when selecting a material for a
specific use are:
i. Economic factors
 Manufacturing cost, transportation, maintenance, etc.
ii. Properties
 Ability to accept load (stress-strain) as required, weight, thermal
expansion, etc.
 Durability
iii. Production & Construction
 Availability of material & ability to fabricate into desired shapes
iv. Aesthetic
 Appearance

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1. 3 SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
Example-1: Floor Finishing Selection
 The following are the factors that affect the choice of flooring
materials:
1. Initial cost: The cost of the material should be in conformity
with the type of building, and its likely use.
2. Appearance: covering should give pleasing appearance, it
should produce a desired color effect and architectural beauty.
3. Cleanliness: the flooring should be capable of being cleaned
easily, and it should be non absorbent.
4. Durability: the flooring should have sufficient resistance to
wear, temperature changes, disintegration with time and decay.
5. Damp resistance: flooring should offer sufficient resistance
against dampness.

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1.3 SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
6. Thermal insulation: the flooring should offer reasonably good
thermal insulation.
7. Sound insulation: flooring should insulate the noise. It should
not be such that noise is produced when users walk on it.
8. Fire resistance: Flooring material should offer sufficient fire
resistance so that fire barriers are obtained between different
levels of building.
9. Smoothness: the flooring material should be smooth, and should
have even surface. However it should not be slippery.
10. Hardness: It should be sufficiently hard so as to have resistance
to indentation marks, imprints etc.
11. Maintenance: the flooring material should require least
maintenance. However, whenever repairs are required, it should
be such that repairs can be done easily with least expenditure.

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1.3 SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
EXAMPLE-2: SELECTION OF WALL MATERIAL
 Different materials are employed for the construction of walls such
as: brick, stone, HCB, RCC, glass, metals and plastics, “chika”,
etc.
 The materials employed depend on several factors such as:

 Local availability of the material

 The standard of the house planned
 Climatic conditions
 Cost of the material
 Aesthetic requirements
 Skilled labour availability
 Function of the wall to be constructed
 Fire resistance requirement
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1.3 SELECTION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
EXAMPLE-2: SELECTION OF ROOF COVERING
 There are various types of roof coverings and the selection
depends on:
The character of the building,
The type of roofing structure,
Initial cost,
Maintenance requirement,
Fabrication facilities,
Fabrication and special features of the locality,
Durability,
Availability of the material and
Climate of the locality.

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 2. CLASSIFICATION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 Due to availability of materials in a wide range, their classification
are also very wide.

Classification of
materials

Based on Chemical Based on Metallic Based on Physical Based on mode of

composition nature Based on use
nature manufacture

Naturally Binding
Metals Solid
Organic occurring materials

Industrially Building
Non-metals Liquid
Inorganic produced materials

Produced at Finishing
Gas
the site materials

Insulating
materials

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2. CLASSIFICATION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 Some of the criteria on which the materials can be classified are
as under:
i. Based on chemical composition
 Organic materials: are those which have carbon as the
basic element. Timber, bitumen, plastics, etc
 Inorganic materials: are metals, alloys, calcareous,
silicacious and argillaceous materials. Iron, steel, lime,
sand and clay are some of the inorganic materials.
ii. Based on their metallic nature
 Non-metallic: Cementing materials, concrete, timber,
stones, plastics, ceramics, etc.
 Metallic:
• Ferrous: Wrought Iron, Cast iron, steel
• Non ferrous: Aluminum, copper, lead, zinc
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2. CLASSIFICATION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
iii. Based on their physical nature
 Solids
 Liquids
 Gas
iv. Based on their mode of manufacture
 Naturally occurring materials: are those which are
available in the nature and need to be extracted/recovered
and processed. E.g. Stones, sand, timber, etc.
 Industrially produced materials: are those which can
only be manufactured, by physical, chemical or/and
mechanical means in the industry. E.g. Cement, steel,
plastics, etc.
 Materials produced at the construction site: materials
not available in nature but produced at the construction
site. E.g. concrete, mortar, etc.
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2. CLASSIFICATION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS

v. Based on use of materials

 Binding materials: are those materials which helps two
materials to bind or/and bond. E.g. Cement, lime,
bitumen, etc.
 Building materials: are those which help in raising a
structure/building. E.g. Bricks, stones, concrete, etc.
 Finishing materials: are those which are used for final
finishing of the surface. E.g. ceramics, paints, etc.
 Insulating materials: are those which are used for
insulating the buildings, may it be thermal insulation or
acoustic insulation. E.g. glass, wool, asbestos sheets,
etc.

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.1 GENERAL
 The behavior of construction materials such as solids, liquids, and
gases is mainly due to the way in which their atoms are bond
together.
 The basic structural unit of matter is the atom.
 Each atom is composed of a positively charged nucleus, surrounded
by a sufficient number of negatively charged electrons so the
charges are balanced.
 Electrons: -ve charge , this charge is equal to 1.6x10-19amp.sec.
(coulomb)
- have a mass of 9.1x10-28gm
 Protons: +ve charge , carries a charge equal to electron
- have a mass of (9.1x10-28)x1840 gm
 Neutrons: electrically neutral and has the same mass as the
proton

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.1 GENERAL
 Atomic weight is nearly proportional to the total weight of
protons and neutrons in its nucleus.
 Except for density and specific heat, atomic weight has
practically no influence on the engineering properties of
materials.
 It is the number of the electrons, especially the outer most
ones, which is more significant as regards the engineering
properties of the material including its physical, chemical and
mechanical characteristic.
 The number of electrons (atomic number) determines the size
of the atom and establishes the nature of the inter-atomic
bonding.

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.2 INTER-ATOMIC ATTRACTION
 The attraction b/n atoms are caused by their electronic structures.

 Atoms are held together in molecules by various types of bonds.

i. Primary bonds - generally associated with formation of

molecules.
ii. Secondary bonds - generally associated with attraction
between molecules.
 Primary bonds are much stronger than secondary bonds

Primary bonds:
 Characterized by strong atom-to-atom attractions that involve
exchanging or sharing of valence electrons.
 The different types are ionic, covalent and metallic bonds.

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.2 INTER-ATOMIC ATTRACTION
IONIC BOND
 Atoms of one element give up their outer electron(s), which are in
turn attracted to atoms of some other element to increase electron
count in the outermost shell to eight.
E.g. NaCl

forms of primary
bonding: (a) ionic
3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.2 INTER-ATOMIC ATTRACTION
COVALENT BOND
 Electrons are shared (as opposed to transferred) between atoms
in their outermost shells to achieve a stable set of eight.

E.g. O2, H2, N2, F2, HF

Forms of Primary
bonding: (b) covalent
3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.2 INTER-ATOMIC ATTRACTION
METALLIC BOND
 Sharing of outer shell electrons by all atoms to form a general
electron cloud that permeates the entire block.

Forms of Primary
bonding: (c) metallic
3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.2 INTER-ATOMIC ATTRACTION
SECONDARY BONDS
 Whereas primary bonds involve atom-to-atom attractive forces,
secondary bonds involve attraction forces between molecules.
 No transfer or sharing of electrons in secondary bonding, and
bonds are weaker than primary bonds.
 They are weak surface attraction forces.

 Three forms which are:

i. Dipole forces
ii. London forces
iii. Hydrogen bonding

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.3 INTER-ATOMIC DISTANCES
 The space b/n atoms is caused by interatomic repulsive forces,
which exists in addition to the interatomic attractive forces.
 The equilibrium distance b/n the repulsive and attractive forces,
creates the equilibrium distance b/n the atoms.
 In general the equilibrium distance b/n the centers of the
neighbouring atoms may be considered to be the sum of their
radii.
 Factors which affect the bond length are:

 Temperature
 Number of adjacent atoms and ionic valence
 Mechanical forces

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.4 ATOMIC ARRANGEMENTS
 Atoms can take different arrangements depending the type of
material.
 The arrangements, which strongly affect the properties of materials
may give
 Crystal structure: a repetitious pattern of atoms.
 Amorphous structure: structure with out specific form.
 Molecular structure: grouping of atoms.
Crystal structures:
 Structure in which the atoms are located at regular and recurring
positions in three dimensions.
 Unit cell - basic geometric grouping of atoms that is repeated.

 The pattern may be replicated millions of times within a given

crystal .

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
ATOMIC ARRANGEMENTS
Crystal structures:
 Characteristic structure of virtually all metals, as well as many
ceramics and some polymers.

Body centered cubic (BCC) crystal structure

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.4 ATOMIC ARRANGEMENTS
Crystal structures:

Three types of crystal structures in metals:

(a) body-centered cubic: E.g. Iron, Chromium
(b) face-centered cubic: E.g. Aluminum, Copper
(c) hexagonal close-packed: E.g. Magnesium, Zinc
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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.4 ATOMIC ARRANGEMENTS
Non crystal structures:
 Many solids are noncrystalline, i.e. their structures are not
composed of repetitive, three-dimensional patterns of atoms.
 Many materials are noncrystalline:
 Water and air have noncrystalline structure.
 A metal loses its crystalline structure when melted.
 Important engineering materials have noncrystalline forms in
their solid state:
 Glass
 Many plastics
 Rubber

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3. NATURE OF MATERIALS
3.4 ATOMIC ARRANGEMENTS
Non crystal structures:

Illustration of difference in structure between: (a) crystalline and (b)

non-crystalline materials. The crystal structure is regular, repeating,
and denser; while the non-crystalline structure is more loosely
packed and random.

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THANK YOU!

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