Korea University

College of Engineering - KUA

Architectural materials
2023.09.22

Masonry 3
Clay bricks
Fabio Dacarro
Today

1. Historical notes
2. Raw material: clay
3. Clay bricks production process
4. Modules
5. Elements (basic assemblage)
 1. CLAY BRICKS.
HISTORICAL NOTES
Man has used bricks for building purposes for thousands of years. The preference for
bricks over stone developed in regions where stone was less available or difficult to
quarry. This choice was thus closely tied to the characteristics of the territory and has
influenced building traditions for centuries
The earliest bricks were dried mud-bricks (or adobe bricks), namely, formed from
clay-bearing earth or mud and dried in the sun until they were strong enough for use.
The oldest discovered bricks, originally made from shaped mud and dating before 7500
BC, were found at Tell Aswad, in the upper Tigris region and in southeast Anatolia close
to Diyarbakir
(Elaborated from Brick, Wikipedia)
Ziggurat of Ur, Iraq, 21th c. BC (dried mud-bricks)
The greatest breakthrough in brick technology came with the invention of fired brick.
They were invented between 5000 and 4500 BC in Mesopotamia.

Ishtar Gate, originally in Babylon, 6th c BC (glazed fired bricks)

Rome was a large fired brick manufacturing center. As already seen for the stone, the
Romans usually used concrete as the main material, using bricks as a cladding.
Sometimes the bricks were, in turn, covered with another material such as stone itself,
or plaster
Trajan’s market, Rome, 100–110 AD (concrete and brick)
During the Middle Ages, the concrete technique was lost and the structural walls, in
areas where stone was not readily available, were built entirely of bricks

Sant’Ambrogio basilica, Milan, 1099 (bricks)

The use of brick (exposed or hidden behind plaster) characterized all the Renaissance,
Baroque and Neoclassicism (15th~18th c)

Filippo Brunelleschi, Dome of Santa Maria del

Fiore, Florence, from 1420
Brick retained its position as the
primary structural material well into the
19th century

Images from an Italian 19th c. handbook:

Carlo Formenti, La pratica del fabbricare,
1898
During the 20th century, bricks as a structural material were gradually replaced,
especially in larger buildings, by materials like reinforced concrete and steel. In RC and
steel structures, bricks primarily serve as infill between structural components or as
cladding. The use of structural brick walls is typically confined to smaller buildings.

Burnham & Root , Monadnock Building, Chicago, 1891. The tallest (66m) load-bearing brick
building ever built. The limit of brick construction technique
Brick remains a powerful means of expression, even when not structurally relevant, and
is the basis of many contemporary projects
Miralles Tagliabue, House in La Clota, Barcelona, 1999
Kengo Kuma, Adobe repository for Buddha statue, Japan, 2002
2. RAW MATERIAL: CLAY
TYPES OF CLAY Clay is a fine-grained natural
soil. It is the main and traditional
material to make bricks.
Clay is plastic when wet, but
can be hardened through drying
or firing.

Pure clay is white, or light gray.

However, it can assume
different colors from impurities,
such as a reddish or brownish
color from iron, yellowish color
from lime etc.

Most natural clays are not pure.

The color of clay (among other
things) determines the color of
bricks. Consequently, especially
in the past, the color of bricks
was closely associated with
specific geographic regions,
reflecting the local clay's
coloration
Milan and its soil (above)
Urbino and its soil (below)
 However, In today's brick manufacturing,
the “location” factor is less crucial
(although it should be considered for
sustainability reasons, see Lecture 3).

Manufacturers can attain desired brick

colors regardless of clay type, by working
on:

Firing Temperature: Clay's color

depends on firing heat; higher
temperatures result in darker shades,
lower temps in lighter hues.

Kiln Atmosphere: Oven air matters;

ample oxygen makes bricks reddish,
limited oxygen darkens them.

Additives and Pigments: Mixing in

minerals, dyes, or other coloring agents
enables precise colors.

This control liberates modern brick-

https://www.archdaily.com/869482/12-dynamic- making from geographic restrictions,
buildings-in-south-korea-pushing-the-brick- providing color flexibility.
envelope
For example, for centuries the traditional gray-black Korean tiles have been obtained by
reducing the oxygen present in the kiln during the last part of the firing phase

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GC2LMczY9Gk
3. CLAY BRICKS PRODUCTION PROCESS
 We will focus on fired clay bricks.
The first phase of the production process is

Quarrying
 The following phase of the process
occurs in
factory
At this point, the brick can be fabricated in three different ways

Workers mold wet

HAND PRESSED clay into bricks
(or molded) manually; drying
and firing follow

Hydraulic or
mechanical presses
MACHINE PRESSED form clay into bricks;
(or molded) drying and firing
follow

Wet clay is shaped

EXTRUDED into bricks by forcing
it through a die;
drying and firing
follow
Cutting machine
 The resulting bricks have different characteristics

Shape is irregular, which provides

HAND PRESSED rustic appearance.
(molded) BRICKS Strength is slightly lower than the
following two types, or not uniform.
It can be expensive
Shape is regular, with quite precise
edges
MACHINE PRESSED Strength is high, consistently
(molded) BRICKS distributed.
The cost is moderate
The process is illustrated in
the following slides Shape is accurate and sharp and
dimensions of all the pieces are
consistent and precise.
EXTRUDED BRICKS
Strength is high, and consistently
distributed.
https://theconstructor.org/building/extruded-wood-mold-bricks-
residential-construction/20635/ (Note: there is a mistake when it
Since mass-produced, its cost is
says that the “frog” is on the bottom face, while it is on the Cutting
top) the lower among the three types
machine
Brickmaking process through extrusion

See next slide diagram

In factory, the following phases happen (cf. previous diagram)
1. Gathering clay sources: Various clay sources from different locations are collected. These sources may have
variations in mineral composition, color, and plasticity.
2. Crushing: The raw clays are crushed into smaller particles. This aids in the blending process by ensuring that
the clays from different sources are in a similar particle size range.
3. Blending and grinding: The crushed clays from different sources are mixed together in a large blending
chamber. During blending, samples are tested to ensure that the mixture is consistent in terms of plasticity, color,
and other properties. Adjustments may be made by adding more of one clay source if needed to achieve the
desired characteristics. The blended clay is, then, grinded which further refines it, turning it into a fine powder

4. Mixing: The homogenized dry clay mixture is

transferred to a mixing chamber. Water is added
gradually. The mixer devices use augers or
rotating blades to combine the water and clay
(the final mixture is called “slip”)
4
5. Extrusion: The slip is passed
through an extruder, which
shapes it into a continuous
column with the desired cross-
sectional shape.
5 6

6. Cutting: The column is then cut into individual brick-sized pieces

using wires or knives. These are known as "green bricks."
Brick extrusion machine
 Green bricks are then dried
Drying typically occurs in specially designed drying chambers. The temperature during drying is generally kept
below 100°C to avoid rapid water evaporation, which could cause cracks
 And fired
The device to fire bricks is called kiln. The temperature during firing is around 900°C to 1100°C.
Firing causes the clay minerals to vitrify, making the bricks hard and durable. It also gives bricks their
characteristic reddish-brown color.
 Finally, cooled, packaged, and distributed
After firing, the bricks are allowed to cool slowly in the kiln.
The final bricks are inspected for quality, including dimensions, color, and structural integrity.
Once approved, the bricks are packaged for distribution and sale

Korean brick factory

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFd4a6PtnbM
UK brick making process
https://www.forterra.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/The-UK-Clay-Brickmaking-Process-2.1.pdf
 DIFFERENT TYPES OF CLAY BRICKS Clinker bricks
By varying some steps in the process just CB are produced by exposing
described, bricks with different characteristics are them to intense heat during
Different the to
obtainedtypes of bricks (according firing process (up to 1300°C).
materials)
This temperature vitrifies the clay
and allows to achieve a hard,
dense material. Clinker bricks are
characterized by darker color and
irregular shape. They are highly
durable and weather resistant.
Clinkers are so named for the
metallic sound they make when
struck together.
 Glazed bricks
GB are obtained when, after a first firing, a glaze material (mixture of finely ground glass
and various additives) is applied to the brick's surface by spraying, dipping, or brushing.
The bricks are fired a second time at extremely high temperatures, causing the glaze to
melt and fuse with the brick. This creates a smooth, glassy layer on the brick's surface,
characterized by glossy appearance and water-resistant properties
 Thermal insulation bricks
Suitable for load-bearing and non-load-bearing walls. These blocks are not solid but have multiple
hollow chambers or cells running through them. These hollow cores create an insulating air layer
within the block. Moreover, small plastic spheres (e.g. polystyrene ) are added during the
processing of clay; the spheres melt/evaporate during the firing process and leave cavities filled
with air. The porosity of the brick material caused by these cavities allows lower weight and
improves thermal insulation
 The processes seen before allow to produce tiles

Clay tiles Clinker tiles

 Ceramic tiles
are made from a mixture of clay and other materials, such as silica, feldspar, natural or
artificial colorants, and various other chemical additives, aimed at enhancing a desired
quality (e.g., hardness, strength, smoothness, etc.). The firing temperature is higher than
clay tiles (up to 1250°C).
They can be glazed
 Masonry can also be created using concrete bricks.
They are typically molded rather than extruded. The primary ingredients include Portland
cement, sand, gravel or crushed stone, and water.

Different types of bricks (according to materials)