INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Mankind since time immemorial had been looking for sturdy and strong

construction materials that are suitable in building structures at lesser cost. For

the past years, interest on alternative housing materials had been gaining

attention in the country and in other less developed countries of the world. The

increase in the price of fossil fuels is expected to affect greater emphasis on the

research and development of alternative construction materials.

The use of brick as construction material for foundations, piers,

buttresses, arches of buildings and other structures, ducts, linings and chimneys

of furnaces had been done hundreds of years ago and is still practiced by several

countries in the world. The practice of using bricks as construction materials,

however did not last long, for today, almost all buildings and other structures are

built of concrete and hollow blocks. This transition period from the use of bricks

to the extensive utilization of Portland cement was brought about because the

latter material was relatively cheaper and stronger as construction materials,

hence, became popular among architects and builders in the country.

Nowadays, the economic and commercial value of bricks is given

importance. Commercialized bricks cost high not only because of the minerals

and other raw materials it contains but also because of the labor and the brand

name of the manufactures. This is one of the reasons why people tend not to buy

bricks, and these reasons lead the researcher to make bricks made of ordinary

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materials that are easily available in the surroundings. Kans grass or talahib and

rice straws are being burned by people to minimize the dirt in their surroundings.

This contributes to air pollution and depletion of the ozone layer. In addition,

wood shreds are pieces of woods that are by-products of logging industries. One

use of wood shreds is for industrial composting. These materials have the

properties as aggregates of bricks that urged the researchers to come-up with

this study.

The kans grass or talahib same as rice straws have fibrous property that

when mixed with other materials and undergone in a process, will give a higher

density than that of the ordinary bricks. On the other hand, wood shreds don’t

contain any greenhouse gasses that made it suitable in acing an eco-friendly

brick.

This study will help people know the potential use of these indigenous

materials in making bricks and arouse their interest to develop similar products

by using these indigenous resources.

Statement of the Problem

The study aims to find the effectiveness of using indigenous materials for

making bricks.

Specifically, it sought to answer the following query:

1. Which treatment of the bricks is the best in terms of:

a. Compressive strength

b. Brick Density

c. Shatter resistance

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Hypothesis of the Study

1. Treatment 1 (wood shreds) is the best treatment in terms of:

a. Compressive strength

b. Brick density

c. Shatter resistance.

Significance of the Study

Many people dream of having a good quality, sturdy but low-cost house.

However, there are many problems that they encounter and have to hurdle. One

of these is the high cost of the materials used in building their house including

bricks which takes up a large part of the total amount needed in constructing it.

Because of this, many people especially the poor who are forced to live in a

temporary house made from woods and other bare houses that are easily

destroyed whenever calamities happen.

The researchers sought for a substantial way to help solve the problem

and found out that there are indigenous materials that are readily available in the

surroundings which can be used as substitute components of the commercialized

bricks. These materials are wood shreds, kans grass (talahib) and rice straw.

This study can help many people to avail bricks made of alternative materials

with good quality and low in cost compared to the commercial ones and at the

same time reduce the pollution to the air that is caused by burning of these raw

materials.

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Scope and Limitations

This study focused mainly in determining the effectivity of indigenous

materials like wood shreds, kans grass and rice straw as components in making

quality bricks in terms of compressive strength, density and shatter resistance.

This study was conducted in the Philippine Center for Postharvest

Development Mechanization (PHilMech) from July – August 2013.

Review of Related Literature

Bricks, locally known as “tisa” were first introduced in the Philippines by

the Spaniards and can be made from primary raw materials such as fire clay,

surface clay and shales (Punzalan, 1998). It is a solid masonry unit having a

shape usually of a rectangular prism that can be a mixture of lime, cement, sand

and other suitable aggregates. A handy sized unit of building or paving material

typically being rectangular and of moist clay hardened by heat

(http://i.word.com/idictionary/brick). It has been used over years, providing one of

the best and most versatile materials in the construction industry

(http://construction.about.com/Masonry-Masonry-Information.htm).

Kans grass (Saccharum spontaneum L.) or commonly known as talahib

is a coarse, erect, perennial, bunch grass growing to a height of 1 to 3.5 meters

in height. It develops from underground root stocks. The leaves are harsh, long

and slender, 0.5 to 1 meter long; 6 to 15 millimeters wide. The panicles are white

and erect, measuring 15 to 30 centimeters long, with slender and whorled

branches, the joints covered with soft white hair. The very young shoots are

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grazed by some animals but the mature plants are too hard and harsh for forage

(Espiritu, 1999).

Wood shreds or chips are one of the best performers in terms of moisture

retention and temperature moderation. Additionally, the materials vary in their

size and decomposition rate, creating a more diverse environment that is

subsequently colonized by a diverse soil biota (Scott, http://

www.puyallup.wsu.edul-Linda%chalker-scott/wood20%chip%20references.html).

Rice straw is the vegetative part of the rice plant (Oryza sativa, L.), cut at

grain harvest or after. It may be burned and left on the field before the next

sloughing, ploughed down as soil improver or used as a feed for livestock

(Kadam et al., 2000). Rice straw is major forage in rice-producing areas.

(http://www.feedipedia.org/node/557) Using rice straw for high-value fibrous

applications will help to add value to the rice crops, provide a sustainable

resource for fibers, and also benefit the environment

(http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17032012).

Review of Related Studies

There were many studies that have been conducted about the making of

alternative bricks and one of these was entitled “Use of Sewage Sludge Ash as

brick material” where bricks that were manufactured from incinerated sewage

sludge ash and clay were investigated. Results of tests indicated that the ash

proportion and firing temperature were the two key factors determining the quality

of brick. Increasing the firing temperature and decreasing the amount of ash in

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the brick resulted in a decrease of water absorption. The appropriate percentage

of ash content for producing quality bricks was in the range of 20 to 40% by

weight with a 13 to 15% optimum moisture content prepared in the moulded

mixture and firing at 1,0007C for 6 hours. With 10% ash content, the ash clay

bricks exhibited higher compressive strength than normal clay bricks. This study

showed that the pulverized sludge ash could be used as brick material. The

bonding strength can be further enhanced by controlling operating conditions

(Deng-fong & Chi-huang, 2001).

Another was entitled “Recycled Chopped Rice Straw- Cement Bricks:

Mechanical, Fire Resistance & Economical Assessment”. This study

addressed the recycling of chopped rice straw to produce lightweight cement

bricks. Different tests were performed to evaluate the rice straw brick (R-brick)

with proposed mix proportions. Its weight is 25% lighter than the traditional ones.

Indirect fire exposure tests were performed in accordance to the ASTM 119-00A

standards to compare fire exposure behavior of the R-bricks to market cement

bricks. One and two hours exposure tests were performed, with temperatures

ranging between 300 and 8000 C. Both types of bricks did not suffer any

significant loss in compressive strength when exposed to 3000 C for 1 hour. A

loss of 70% in compressive strength of the rice-straw cement brick was reported

when exposed to 8000 C for 1 hour and 80% for 2 hours fire exposure. The

economical investigation showed that the R-bricks under study cost 25% less

than the standard cement brick. It was concluded that the proposed R-bricks

provides an economical, light weight brick, with competing thermal insulation

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properties, while maintaining adequate mechanical properties, and fire resistance

(Allam, Giras & El Kady, 2011).

On the other hand, the study “Valorization of wood sawdust in making

porous clay brick” investigated the application of a variety of sawdust materials

in the production of lightweight insulating bricks. First, the mineralogical and

chemical composition of clays was determined. Next, ceramic bricks were

fabricated with different quantities of materials (3 to 6 and 9 wt. % for sawdust,

(65 wt. % for grey clay, 24 to 27 and 30 wt. % for yellow clay and 2 wt. % of tuff).

These bricks were fired at 800 and 950°C. The effect of adding this sawdust on

the technological behaviour of the brick was assessed by drying and firing

shrinkage, water absorption, porosity, bulk density and compressive strength.

The results have shown that the optimum sintering temperature is 950°C. Below

this temperature, at 950°C, increased open porosity was observed, which

decreased the compressive strength of the bricks. Based on the results obtained,

the optimum amounts of waste were 9 wt. % sawdust of eucalyptus, 24 wt. %

shaping moisture and 1.6 particle size diameter. These percentages produced

bricks whose mechanical properties were suitable for use as secondary raw

materials in ceramic brick production (Chemani, 2013).

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Definition of Terms

Binder- cement was used to bind with wood shreds, kans grass and rice straw.

Ceramic Brick- brick that is essentially from a non-metallic mineral.

Compaction- is the state where cement has bonded totally to the aggregate.

Compressive Strength- is the measurement of hardness of the bricks.

Dense- the particles are closely compacted.

Density- is the ratio of weight to the volume of the bricks.

Grinder- is a machine used for grinding to have finer particle size.

Moisture Retention- ability to retain the liquid on the bricks to avoid moisture.

Moulder- used in moulding and shaping of bricks.

One-meter Drop Test- used to test the shatter resistance of the bricks.

Porous- material that is capable of being penetrated.

Portland Cement- most common type of cement in general use around the
world.

Rheometer- is the machine that measures compressive strength of materials.

Shatter Resistance- resistance of the bricks to drop damage.

Shredder- is a machine used for shredding to make the material length smaller.

Vernier Caliper- a device used to measure the dimension of the bricks.

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Research Paradigm

The diagram below shows the relationship among the variables under

study mainly the independent variable, dependent variable and the controlled or

extraneous variables.

INDEPENDENT VARIABLE DEPENDENT VARIABLE

Wood Shreds, d
Kans Grass Effectivity as Main
and Rice Straw Component for Brick
Making

EXTRANEOUS VARIABLE

➢ Tests to be used
➢ Kind of moulder
➢ Kind of cement
➢ Amount of water
➢ Amount of cement used as
binder

Figure 1. Paradigm of the variables under study.

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 METHODOLOGY

Preparation of Indigenous Materials

The kans grass and rice straw were obtained from a rice field while the

wood shreds were obtained from a lumber shop. They were sun-dried for one

day to remove the moisture and then were placed in three clean 50 kg sacks

separately for temporary stocking. Afterwards, they were shredded into small

pieces using a shredder machine then were dried separately in a clean flat

container under the sun for a day to ensure that there is no moisture present.

Then they were grinded using a machine to attain finer particle size for

compaction.

Mixing and Moulding of Bricks

The wood shreds, kans grass, and rice straw were each placed separately

in a flat, clean container in the ground for mixing. Then the treatments for the

mixtures of aggregates were prepared as follows:

T1 – (60% Wood shreds, 40% Cement)

T2 – (60% Kans grass, 40% Cement)

T3 -- (60% Rice straw, 40% Cement)

Mixing was done using shovels on a level concrete slab or steel plate.

Then the proportions of the materials and cement for each treatment were mixed

until the color became uniform. The mixture was spread out and the right amount

of water was sprinkled all over the surface and mixed. This process continued

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until the water has been mixed in thoroughly and the cement has bonded totally

to the mixture. Then the mixtures were moulded using a wooden mould with

12cm x 6cm x 3cm dimension or volume.

Demoulding of Bricks

Just after moulding and compaction, demoulding or removal of the mould

was done. Using hand gloves, the moulder was removed carefully from the

moulded bricks without hitting or damaging the edges and corners of the freshly

moulded bricks. Fresh bricks were protected from rain by using plastic sheets as

suitable covering and from the drying effects of the sun and wind until curing

starts. Covering with plastic sheeting with the edges held down was normally

sufficient.

Curing of the Bricks

Curing is the process of maintaining satisfactory moisture content and a

favourable temperature in the bricks to ensure hydration of the cement and

development of optimum strength. The day after production, bricks were

removed from the production slab or pallets (demoulded) and stored in the

stacking area, ready for curing. Stacks were carefully built to avoid chipping

edges and corners. Curing was done by putting the bricks under room

temperature to be compacted with the right temperature from 30° − 38℃. Water

was sprinkled consistently to maintain hydration of the bricks. Bricks were cured

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for at least a day. The next day after the curing process, the cured bricks were

dried under the sun for minimum of 5 hours a day for three days.

Testing for Compressive Strength

Compressive strength of a hollow block is the maximum amount of

compressive load it can stand before it fractures. The compressive strength of

the hollow blocks was tested using a Rheometer (ZHIMADSU) where each

hollow block was placed on the tester and the computer connected to it

monitored and recorded the results. First, the mass of the blocks was recorded to

provide useful information in case of disputes. The compressive strength was

measured by dividing the maximum load at failure by the cross-sectional area.

Compressive strength tests results are primary used to determine that the

concrete block mixtures as delivered meet the requirement of the specified

strength using the formula.

𝒍
𝒇=
𝒂

Where:

𝒇 = 𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑡ℎ 𝒂 = 𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 − 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑎𝑙 𝑎𝑟𝑒𝑎

𝒍 = 𝑚𝑎𝑥𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑓𝑎𝑖𝑙𝑢𝑟𝑒

Testing for Density

The density of the bricks made from wood shreds, kans grass, and rice

straw was determined by measuring the volume and the weight of the three

treatments. Weighing was performed using the analytical balance (OHAUS) and

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the dimensions were measured using a Vernier caliper. The density was

calculated by determining the ratio of mass to the volume of the material. The

formula was given,

𝒎
𝝆=
𝒗

Where:

𝝆 = 𝑑𝑒𝑛𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝒗 = 𝑣𝑜𝑙𝑢𝑚𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑐𝑐

𝒎 = 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑚𝑠

Testing for Shatter Resistance

The shatter resistance of bricks was determined following the procedure

described by Ghorpade (2006). Three bricks from each treatment formulation

were selected for drop test. The brick with known weight and dimensions was

dropped on the concrete floor from the height of one meter. The weight of

disintegrated bricks and size were recorded. The performance of the bricks was

generally expressed as the resistance to produce fine particles, which means,

good performance would be indicated by greater mass fraction of 6.35 mm

particles remaining after the drop tests. The shatter resistance of the bricks was

measured by determining the maximum number of the drops before it shatters

totally (≤ 6.35mm).

Statistical Analysis

The data gathered was analysed using 4 x 3 factorials in Completely

Randomized design (CRD). ANOVA table was utilized to determine the level of

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significance among treatments. The difference among means was analysed

using Duncan’s Multiple Range Test.

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 Experimental Procedure

Preparation of Materials Mixing and Moulding of Bricks

Demoulding of Bricks Curing of Bricks

Testing for Density

Testing for Compressive
Strength

Data Gathering and Analysis Testing for Shatter Resistance

Figure 2. Flow diagram of the methods employed.

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 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Compressive Strength

After production of the bricks, the compressive strength of the bricks was

measured using a Rheometer (ZHIMADSU). The compressive strength was a

criterion of brick durability (Tuates, et.al, 2013).

Table 1. Amount of compressive load in N/mm2.

Treatment R1 R2 R3 Mean

T1 (wood shreds) 50.50 51.05 49.85 50.47a

T2 (kans grass) 17.80 21.12 17.75 18.89b

T3 (rice straw) 14.04 15.27 15.95 15.09c

*Means with the same superscript letters within column indicate no significant
difference (p≤0.05)

It can be gleaned from Table 1 that the Treatment 1 (wood shreds) had

the highest compressive strength (50.47) than the kans grass and rice straw

treatments measured by using ANOVA with 0.05 level of significance.

This implies that the bricks made of wood shreds can withstand a high

load stress. This could also be associated to the density of bricks because

T1(wood shreds) had the highest density which made it the most durable. On the

other hand, bricks with high compressive strength can be associated by viscous,

glutinous or sticky binding media which are good hardening binders according to

Grover, et al (1996). It means that the kind and amount of binder is one factor

that will determine its compressive strength.

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Brick Density

The density of the bricks made from wood shreds, kans grass, and rice

straw was manually operated by dividing the mass by the volume.

Table 2. Density of the samples in g/cc.

Treatment R1 R2 R3 Mean

T1 (wood shreds) 0.77 0.80 0.76 0.78a

T2 (kans grass) 0.51 0.50 0.50 0.50b

T3 (rice straw) 0.49 0.48 0.47 0.48c

*Means with the same superscript letters within column indicate no significant
difference (p≤0.05)

The above table shows that the density of bricks made of wood shreds is

relatively higher than the two other treatments. The analysis of variance revealed

significant differences (p ≤ 0.05) on the density of the three samples where wood

shreds got the highest mean of 0.78 g/cc while rice straw had the lowest mean

with 0.48.

This implies that the high density of wood shreds could be due to its

particle size and compaction of its particles together. Since all the three materials

were grinded accordingly, thus, producing similar particle sizes, it was concluded

that particle size has no direct effect on the density but the pressure applied

during compaction affects it, since there was no definite compactor used during

compaction and moulding process. Tumuluru et al. (2010) reported that smaller

particle size produces denser products and dense products have particles that

are compacted evenly.

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Shatter Resistance

The shatter resistance was used to determine the resistance of the bricks

to impact during handling and transport (Tuates et al, 2013).

Table 3. Shatter resistance of the bricks using one-meter drop test.

Treatment R1 R2 R3 Mean

T1 (wood shreds) 5.0 6.0 7.0 6.0a

T2 (kans grass) 3.0 4.0 4.0 3.67b

T3 (rice straw) 1.0 2.0 1.0 1.33c

*Means with the same superscript letters within column indicate no significant
difference (p≤0.05)

As indicated in Table 3 the treatment of wood shreds have the highest

number of drops with mean of 6.0 and rice straw had the lowest mean of 1.33

which showed apparent significant difference among the three treatments by

using analysis of variance (ANOVA) of 5 % level of significance.

Bricks made from wood shreds had the highest impact resistance because

it has the highest number of drops. The bricks which exhibited maximum number

of drops were more resistant to damage even when plunged or dropped to the

ground from a height, it will not easily be broken down into pieces, and hence,

bricks are more durable. This was expected as these bricks have higher density

so its particles are very intact compared to bricks made of kans grass and rice

straw (see Table 2). The fine particles make compaction process easier, provide

less pore spaces and more mass of the material per given volume (Maninder, et

al, 2012).Increase in density enhances durability according to Olorunnisola

(2007).

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 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

The physical properties of the bricks made from each of the three

treatments were tested for compressive strength, density and shatter resistance.

Based on the results of the experiment, T1 (wood shreds) had the most explicit

results. Bricks made of wood shreds had the highest and most favourable result

from the three tests that were done. Therefore, wood shreds can be a good

alternative material to produce cheaper yet strong types of bricks.

RECOMMENDATIONS

The following are the suggestions from the researchers for the

enhancement of this study for other future researches.

1. Development of a machine that will serve as moulder in the production of

specified sizes of bricks.

2. Addition of clay, fine sand or ash in the mixture to produce stronger types

of bricks.

3. Use of other binders rather than cement like starch or other cheaper

products.

4. Utilization of fuel briquettes from these materials to have a dependable

renewable energy source.

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