Structural, acoustic, and aesthetic

performances of double layer wall made of

oyster shell and polymer as green material in
green construction
Cite as: AIP Conference Proceedings 1977, 040033 (2018); https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5043003
Published Online: 26 June 2018

Erni Setyowati, Purwanto, Gagoek Hardiman, et al.

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AIP Conference Proceedings 1977, 040033 (2018); https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5043003 1977, 040033

© 2018 Author(s).
 Structural, Acoustic, and Aesthetic Performances of Double
Layer Wall Made of Oyster Shell and Polymer as Green
Material in Green Construction
Erni Setyowati1, a), Purwanto2, Gagoek Hardiman1 and Edward E. Pandelaki1
1
Architecture Department, Engineering Faculty, Diponegoro University, Jl. Prof. Soedarto, SH, Tembalang,
Semarang, 50275, Indonesia
2
Civil Engineering, Engineering Faculty, Diponegoro University, Jl. Prof. Soedarto, SH, Tembalang, Semarang,
50275, Indonesia
a)
E-Mail: ernisyahdu@gmail.com

Abstract. The aim of research was to introduce green material for construction project by using waste material made of
oyster shell and polymer as a substitute material to reduce the use of cement. In this research, the use of cement was
replaced by oyster shell powder and mortar that was injected with polyurethane to lighten the weight on the structure.
The methods used to find out the structure performance was DOE method based on the standards of ASTM 109/ C 109M
- 08 as well as the modulus of elasticity test. Acoustic test was also conducted with the standard test based on ASTM E
2611-09 and ASTM E 413. The aesthetic approach was conducted by an establishment of a model that represented the
concept of double layer in the wall of the building. The results of this study proved that poly-urethane injection on mortar
could decrease the weight of mortar by 20%. The absorption coefficient of polymer concrete was 0.9 – 1.00 at the
frequency of 1500 – 2500 Hz and the Sound Transmission Loss (STL) of material was above 51 dB. Innovation of
double layer building materials can be enriched by additional materials, such as natural fiber composite and fiber
reinforced polymer. Aesthetically, the double layer wall material made of shells and polymer have a positive prospect to
be used as construction material and can be applied in the architectural sphere as an aesthetic component of building,
such as wall panel, wall ornament, double skin facade, and acoustical wall treatment.

INTRODUCTION

The use of cement in construction industry which contributes to the global emission must be reduced
significantly in order to realize the concept of Green Construction. The efforts to substitute cement in order to
reduce carbon dioxide gas emissions have been performed by researchers, but researches pertaining to the waste-
based materials that have bold contribution to the architectural world are limited. In a previous research, foam and
polymer mortar were evidenced to reduce the waste of styrofoam and polymer, to reduce the load of construction, to
save the budget because they were made of waste, and to minimize the dimension of the structure in building. This
research was expected to be a mutual effort to create innovation of new material in construction industry by using
waste material in the frame of sustainable development.
This research provided solutions to the problems of low cost housing industry by developing new materials made
of waste material based on the concept of green construction. Design of double layer on the component building was
definitely required especially on the buildings in noisy urban regions such as the housing close to the airport,
highways, and industrial area.

Human-Dedicated Sustainable Product and Process Design: Materials, Resources, and Energy
AIP Conf. Proc. 1977, 040033-1–040033-7; https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5043003
Published by AIP Publishing. 978-0-7354-1687-1/$30.00

040033-1
 THEORETICAL REVIEW

In this research, the use of poly-urethane powder and shells that are rich in calcium (lime substance), which can
lighten the weight of material and create material with a light colored visual appearance was examined in order to
reduce the use of cement. In addition, the collision of rough shells makes the beautiful visual effects depending on
the type of the mollusks. This research aimed to re-affirm the result obtained in previous study carried out in 2010 to
2015 and to complement the Road Map of the research, the Innovation of pre-fab Modular housing with double
layer as a response to the demand for low cost housing in noisy urban areas.

Oyster Shell Concrete and Polymeric Aggregate Concrete

The polymeric mortar was produced by heating the polymeric waste into coarse aggregate in concrete. The
oyster shell material was made by grinding it into fine and raw aggregate to substitute cement and gravel. Tests
conducted in this research were compressive strength test and density based on DOE method and ASTM 109/C
109M-08 [1] and continued by acoustical tests based on the ASTM E 2611-09 on testing materials [2].
Plastics are widely used to wrap goods or food such as instant noodle, snacks, and other foods. Unfortunately,
plastic waste cannot be easily degraded by the nature that trigger soil and water pollutions. The use of polymer as
filler in concrete will reduce the plastic waste. The polymer filler will lighten the weight of the concrete structure,
which eventually will reduce the load of the structure on the building construction industry [3]. Yamada et al. (2006)
suggested that polymer is a kind of Recycled Concrete Aggregates (RCA) which is used as super plasticizer in
cement to enhance the durability of concrete structure [4]. A number of researchers found out that polymer
aggregate can increase the water resistance and the fragmentation resistance [3, 5].
Research on the polymeric nano-sized concrete has been done to observe the influence of nano on the
compressive strength of the mortar [6]. Meanwhile, the oyster shell concrete was examined in the previous research
that used three types of oyster shell as the main components for the oyster shell concrete [7]. In another research, in
order to neutralize the acidity of rainwater recycling shells, the concrete was calcinated and foamed by the addition
of cement and poly-urethane or poly styrene to produce foamed shell brick [8].

Polymer Injection Concrete

Molecular structure of polyurethane materials is porous and consequently, it has a very good performance
in sound absorption. In previous study, the effect of the filling of magnesium hydroxide against the sound absorption
efficiency of polyurethane foam was discussed. Polymerization catalysts for polyurethane was tested in non reactive
and reactive catalysts because in the manufacture of polyurethane, it is significant to find out the reaction and
environmental impacts such as blowing the problem of fogging in the final product [9]. Meanwhile in another
research, the polyurethane foams produce a large amount of carbon dioxide during the reaction process with water.
Subsequently, carbon dioxide is captured in the polymer space by applying pressure on the cell of the polyurethane
wall. The result of the research showed that the volume increased and the density decreased [10].

RESEARCH METHODS

The methods used to find out the structure performance were DOE method based on the standards of ASTM 109/
C 109M - 08 and the modulus of elasticity test. Acoustic test was conducted with the standard test based on ASTM
E 2611-09 and ASTM E 413. The aesthetic approach was conducted by establishing a model that represented the
concept of double layer in the wall component of the building.

Structural Performances of Concrete

The coarse aggregate was substituted by polymeric waste, while the fine aggregate was obtained from local sand.
This method was based on the material constituents of concrete aggregates, i.e., rough, smooth, cement, and
aggregates as binder. In accordance to the previous research, the best composition between cement and SCBA was
0.80: 0.20, thus the mixture ratio for making polymeric mortar was set as it was. The cubic shape specimens were
weighted and recorded as the initial weight (m), length (p), width (l), and thickness (t). The volume of the specimens

040033-2
was calculated as volume x width x thickness (cm3). After the volume was determined, then the density could be
calculated with the formula (1):
m
U
V (1)

where ρ is density of material in gr/cm3, m is the initial weight of specimen or sample of material in gram and V
is volume of sample in cm3. In addition, the compressive strength is an equation of load per square centimeters of
cubic samples of material [1].
F
V
A (2)

where σ is compressive strength in kg/cm2, F is load in kilograms (kg) or Newton (N) and A is the surface area
on square centimeter (cm2) or square meter (m2). It also can be in megapascal (Mpa).

Acoustical Performances of Concrete

The impedance tube with 1/3 octave frequency filter was used in the acoustics test. The output data was
then recorded into Personal Computer (PC) by appropriate software so that the result would be a computerized
tabulation referring to ASTM E413-04 [11].The absorption coefficient of normal sound is called as absorption
coefficient. The sound absorption coefficient (α0) was calculated by measuring sound pressure that came on a
surface of material and reflected by it. A good absorber must have an absorption coefficient at least 0. 2.
4
D0
§1·
n¨ ¸2
©n¹ (3)

Where α0 is sound absorption coefficient and n is standing wave ratio. The standing wave ratio (n) was measured
by substituting resistance with attenuation, determining the ratio of the standing waves from the difference of sound
pressure (L) db by using equation as follows:
§ L ·
¨ ¸
© 20 ¹
n 10 (4)

Where n is a standing wave ratio and L is the difference of sound pressure in deci Bell. In the process of the
absorption coefficient test (α), the acoustics laboratory used impedance tube which was equipped by a unit of
microphone to transmit sound at low to high frequencies. Sound Transmission Class is average sound transmission
loss ability of a material in decreasing sound intensity in a wide range of frequencies. The Frequency scale that was
used in acoustics laboratory was between 125-4000 Hz. The higher the STC value, the better the material to reduce
sound intensity. The STC was determined based on the raw quality ASTM E 413 issued by the American Society for
Testing and Materials [12].
Unlike Absorption Coefficient Test, the Sound Transmission Loss (STL) test used an impedance tube equipped
with four microphones that had sensitivity to high frequency sound. The Sound Transmission Loss/STL of a
partition is defined as the ratio of logarithmic between the transmitted sound powers (W t) and the sound power of
partition material which comes to the surface (Wi). In general, it can be formulated as:

Wt
TL 10 log
Wi (5)
1
TL 10 log
r (6)

Whereas r is the sound transmission coefficient of such material, i.e., the ratio between the transmitted sound
power through partition of material against the sound felt through the material’s surface [12].

040033-3
 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The results of compressive strength analysis of foamed concrete when compared to polymeric aggregate concrete
were as follows:

Table 1. The Comparison of Polymeric Concrete and Foamed Concrete Based on of Compressive Strength.
Age Weight Load Compressive
The sample Description
(days) (gram) (Ton) strength (kg/cm2)
7 1.690 10.76 107.61
Polymeric Concrete 7 1.720 11.21 112.14
Dimension of
28 1.750 13.37 133.69
cubic:
7 1.600 1.02 40.84 5x5x5 cm3
Foamed Concrete 7 1.600 0.80 32.01
28 1.600 1.45 57.85

Table 1 demonstrated that the compressive strength of polymeric concerete was 107.61 – 133.69 kg/cm2. While
the compressive strength of foamed concrete was between 32.01 – 57.85 kg/cm2. The compressive strength of
polymeric concrete was better than those of foamed concrete. The conclusion is that both the materials cannot be
used as structural components of the building. However, those materials can be used as non- structural components
in building like wall panel. The result of the modulus of elasticity test of foam concrete is presented below:

Figure 1. Modulus of Elasticity of Foamed Concrete

Modulus of elasticity is a measure of the stiffness of an isotropic elastic material and a parameter which is used
to characterize materials. Modulus of elasticity (E) is also a measure used to present the stiffness of a material. In
equation, the MOE is the gradient of a linear portion on the Stress Strain Curve. The original equation of the
Modulus of Elasticity is the Hooke’s Law stating that concrete stress is the result of multiplying the voltage
between the modulus of elasticity and strain. The MOE of Oyster concrete obtained at Material and Structure
Laboratory, University of Diponegoro was 382.15 M Pa. Modulus of Elasticity (E) refers on quadratic equations,
where the correlation between variable of displacement and load variable has R 2 = 0.8632. Quadratic correlation of
MOE follows the formula as follows:

y 26904 x  14.033 (7)

The abilities of the acoustics were tested by using impedance tubes. The foamed concrete with fine aggregate
shells with a thickness of 1.8 cm was tested in the laboratory of acoustics. The results of the acoustic performance of
material were as follows:

040033-4
 [] A bso rptio n C o eff icient (H , Small)

0,9

0,8

Absorption Coefficient
0,7

0,6

0,5

0,4

0,3

0,2

0,1

0
0 500 1k 1,5k 2k 2,5k 3k 3,5k 4k 4,5k 5k 5,5k 6k
[H z]

Frequency (Hz)

Figure 2. The Absorption coefficient of foamed concrete with oyster shell as fine aggregate.
[dB /20,0u T ransmissio n Lo ss dB ] TL_C ro ss (M agnitude)

60
Sound Transmission Loss (STL)

56

52

48

44

40

36

32

28

24
500 1k 1,5k 2k 2,5k 3k 3,5k 4k 4,5k 5k 5,5k 6k
[H z]

Frequency (Hz)

Figure 3. The Sound Transmission Loss of foamed concrete with oyster shell as fine aggregate.

Figure 2 indicated that the rate of absorption coefficient of a material hadhad a peak at a frequency of 2000 Hz
with a value ranging from 0.9 – 1.0. The figure showed that the material of shell mortar had an excellent acoustic
performance at high frequencies (> 2000 Hz). Thus, the material of lightweight shell mortar of 1.8 cm in thickness is
very absorptive.
Unlike the absorption coefficient test, the Sound Transmission Loss test used four impedance tubes. Material
with a thickness of 1.8 cm also had a relatively high range of Transmission Loss , i.e. in the range of >51 dB as
shown in Figure 3. The conclusion is that the material of foamed concrete with fine aggregate of oyster shell can be
used as absorber (see Figure 3).
The concept of the wall panel with foamed concrete building aims to make building more economics and low in
cost (see Figure 4.a), in addition to its light weight and capacity to decrease the dimensions of the structure. The
double wall panel creates a more supple building because the order of the wall have elastic in springs, according to
the regional earthquake prone buildings (see Figure 4.b). The outer secondary layer can be varied with natural stone
finishing pattern, so that the building do not need finishing such as granite, stone, or ceramics. Natural stone or other
finishing in the facades is expensive material. By using wall panels made of natural stone patterns, the budget can be
reduced evetually (see Figure 5.a and 5.b).
Furthermore, the concept of the wall panel in this research was the application of foamed concrete with oyster
shell-fine aggregate on double wall panel model as the image below:

040033-5
 (a) (b)
Figure 4. (a) Foamed Concrete with oyster shell-fine aggregate as wall panel in various colors; (b). The concept of double layer
wall panel.

(a) (b)
Figure 5. (a) Design of double layer wall panel with natural fibre composite (Fibre Reinforced Polymer) as secondary layer; (b)
The concept of modern lightweight house using lightweight double wall panel

CONCLUSION

Sustainable development requires new material innovations based on the utilization of wastes either artificial or
natural wastes. In addition, the issue of global warming gas emissions where the release of carbon dioxide (CO2) is
increasing requires a concrete solution to eliminate the global emission effects.
Construction industry that causes emissions of CO2 must demonstrate its role in decreasing the use of cement
materials based on the concept of Green Construction. Acoustic approach for innovation is related to the building
construction in noisy urban space is required. Acoustic materials have an aesthetic role in buildings associated with
the surface texture of the building components.
By using a material that has a good acoustic performance, the building can avoid the noisy distractions that cause
inconvenience for modern people. The double layer materials innovation made of oyster shells, polymer and
polyurethane injection will be useful materials for the construction industry as it degrade the construction budget,
increase the resistance to the earthquake due to the lightweight material, and has reliable acoustic performances.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This research was financed by the budget of the Research Grant from Ministry of Research, Technology and
Higher Education, fiscal year 2016 with the scheme of Competency Grant and PNBP Diponegoro Number: SP-
DIPA-042.01.2.400898/2016. The funders did not have any intervention on the data and the content of the
manuscript. Authors thank all private sectors who contributed in this research and gave their valuable opinion,
advices and discourses.

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