ENVIRONMENT STUDIES

Impact of Bricks on
Environment
 What is a Brick ?
A brick is building material used to make walls, pavements and other elements
in masonry construction. Traditionally, the term brick referred to a unit
composed of clay, but it is now used to denote rectangular units made of clay-
bearing soil, sand, and lime, or concrete materials. Bricks can be joined together
using mortar, adhesives or by interlocking them. Bricks are produced in numerous
classes, types, materials, and sizes which vary with region and time period, and
are produced in bulk quantities. Two basic categories of bricks are fired and non-
fired bricks.
History of Bricks
Man has used brick for building purpose for thousands of years. Bricks
date back to 7000 BC, which makes them one of the oldest known
building materials. They were discovered in southern Turkey at the site
of an ancient settlement around the city of Jericho. 
The first bricks, made in areas with warm climates, were mud bricks
dried in the sun for hardening. Ancient Egyptian bricks were made of
clay mixed with straw. The evidence of this can be seen today at ruins of
Harappa Buhen and Mohenjo-daro. Paintings on the tomb walls of Thebes
portray Egyptian slaves mixing, tempering and carrying clay for the sun
dried bricks. 
The greatest breakthrough came with the invention of fired brick in
about 3,500 Bc. From this moment on, bricks could be made without the
heat of sun and soon became popular in cooler climates. 
Archaeologists have found bricks in the Middle East dating 10,000 years
ago. Scientists suggest that these bricks were made from mud left after
the rivers in that area flooded. The bricks were molded by hand and left
in the sun to dry. Structures were built by layering the bricks using mud
and tar as mortar. The ancient city of Ur (modern Iraq) was built with
mud bricks around 4,000 B.C. The Bible (Exodus 1:14; 5:4-19) provides
the earliest written documentation of brick production—the Israelites
made bricks for their Egyptian rulers. These bricks were made of clay
dug from the earth, mixed with straw, and baked in crude ovens or
burned in a fire. Many ancient structures made of bricks, such as the
Great Wall of China and remnants of Roman buildings, are still standing
today. The Romans further developed kiln-baked bricks and spread the
art of brickmaking throughout Europe.
The oldest type of brick in the Western Hemisphere is the adobe brick.
Adobe bricks are made from adobe soil, comprised of clay, quartz, and
other minerals, and baked in the sun. Adobe soil can be found in dry
regions throughout the world, but most notably in Central America,
Mexico, and the southwestern United States. The Pyramid of the Sun was
built of adobe bricks by the Aztecs in the fifteenth century and is still
standing. In North America, bricks were used as early as the seventeenth
century. Bricks were used extensively for building new factories and
homes during the Industrial Revolution. Until the nineteenth century,
raw materials for bricks were mined and mixed, and bricks were formed,
by manual labor. The first brickmaking machines were steam powered,
and the bricks were fired with wood or coal as fuel. Modern brickmaking
equipment is powered bygas and electricity. Some manufacturers still
produce bricks by hand, but the majority are machine made.
Types of Bricks
There are thousands of types of bricks that are named for their use, size, forming
method, origin, quality, texture, and/or materials.

Categorized by manufacture method:

Extruded – made by being forced through an opening in a steel die, with a very
consistent size and shape.
Wire-cut – cut to size after extrusion with a tensioned wire which may
leave drag marks
Moulded – shaped in moulds rather than being extrude
Machine-moulded – clay is forced into moulds using pressure
Handmade – clay is forced into moulds by a person
Dry-pressed – similar to soft mud method, but starts with a much thicker clay mix
and is compressed with great force.
Categorized by use:

Common or building – A brick not intended to be visible, used for

internal structure
Face – A brick used on exterior surfaces to present a clean appearance
Hollow – not solid, the holes are less than 25% of the brick volume
Perforated – holes greater than 25% of the brick volume
Keyed – indentations in at least one face and end to be used with
rendering and plastering
Paving – brick intended to be in ground contact as a walkway or roadway
Thin – brick with normal height and length but thin width to be used as a
veneer
Specialized use bricks:

Chemically resistant – bricks made with resistance to chemicals

Acid brick – acid resistant bricks
Engineering – a type of hard, dense, brick used where strength, low
water porosity or acid (flue gas) resistance are needed. Further
classified as type A and type B based on their compressive strength
Accrington – a type of engineering brick from England
Fire or refractory – highly heat-resistant bricks
Clinker – a vitrified brick
Ceramic glazed – fire bricks with a decorative glazing
Bricks named for place of origin

Cream City brick – a light yellow brick made in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Dutch – a hard light coloured brick originally from the Netherlands
Fareham red brick – a type of construction brick
London stock – type of handmade brick which was used for the majority
of building work in London and South East England until the growth in
the use of machine-made bricks
Nanak Shahi bricks – a type of decorative brick in India
Roman – a long, flat brick typically used by the Romans
Staffordshire blue brick – a type of construction brick from England
How bricks are manufactured ?

There are four different operations are involved in the process of

manufacturing of bricks:
 Preparation of clay
 Molding
 Drying
 Burning
1. Preparation of clay for brick manufacturing

Preparation of clay for bricks manufacturing is done in six

steps: Unsoiling of clay We need pure clay for the preparation of bricks.
The top layer of soil may contains impurities, so the clay in top layer of
soil about 200mm depth is thrown away. This is called
unsoiling. Digging After the removal of top layer, the clay is dug out
from the ground and spread on the plain ground. Cleaning In this stage,
the clay is cleaned of stones, vegetable matter etc. if large quantity of
particulate matter is present, then the clay is washed and screened. The
lumps of clay are converted into powder with earth crushing rollers.
Weathering The cleaned clay is exposed to atmosphere for softening. The period of weathering may be 3 to 4 weeks or a full rainy season.
Generally, the clay is dug out just before the rainy season for larger projects  Blending If we want to add any ingredient to the clay, it
is to be added in this stage by making the clay loose and spread the ingredient over it. Then take small portion of clay into
the hands and tuning it up and down in vertical direction. This process is called blending of clay. Tempering In this stage,
water is added to clay and pressed or mixed. The pressing will be done by cattle or with feet of men for small scale projects,
pug mill is used as grinder for large scale projects. So, the clay obtains the plastic nature and now it is suitable for molding.
2. Molding of clay for brick manufacturing

In the molding process, prepared clay is mold into brick

shape (generally rectangular). This process can be done in
two ways according to scale of project.
 Hand molding ( for small scale)
 Machine molding ( for large scale)
Hand molding of bricks
If manufacturing of bricks is on a small scale and manpower is also cheap then we can go for
hand molding. The molds are in rectangular shape made of wood or steel which are opened at
the top and bottom. The longer sides of molds are projected out of the box to serve it as
handles. If we take durability in consideration steel molds are better than wooden molds
Machine molding of bricks

The bricks required are in large quantity, then machine molding is economical
and also saves more time. Here also we are having two types of machines
 Plastic clay machines
 Dry clay machines
 3. Drying of raw bricks
 After molding process the bricks contain some amount of moisture in it. So,
drying is to be done otherwise they may cracked while burning. The drying of
raw bricks is done by natural process.
 The bricks are laid in stacks. A stack consists 8 to 10 stairs. The bricks in these
stacks should be arranged in such a way that circulation of air in between the
bricks is free.
 The period of drying may be 3 to 10 days. It also depends upon the weather
conditions.
 The drying yards are also prepared on higher level than the normal ground for
the prevention of bricks from rain water.
 In Some situations artificial drying is adopted under special dryers or hot
gases.
4. Burning of bricks
 In the process of burning, the dried bricks are burned either in clamps (small
scale) or kilns (large scale) up to certain degree temperature. In this stage,
the bricks will gain hardness and strength so it is important stage in
manufacturing of bricks.
 The temperature required for burning is about 1100 oC. If they burnt beyond
this limit they will be brittle and easy to break. If they burnt under this limit,
they will not gain full strength and there is a chance to absorb moisture from
the atmosphere.
 Hence burning should be done properly to meet the requirements of good
brick.
 Effects of bricks on environment
Emission of huge quantity of toxic elements from brick kilns is causing serious
health hazards. The brick kilns emit toxic fumes containing suspended
particulate matters rich in carbon particles and high concentration of carbon
monoxides and oxides of sulphur (SOx) that are harmful to eye, lungs and throat.
These air pollutants stunt the mental and physical growth of children. According
to the data, the primary source of SOx — the major pollutants in the air — is
traffic vehicles (55.8%), followed by brick manufacturing industry (28.8%). And
the primary source of NOx (nitrogen oxides) pollutants is also traffic vehicle
(54.5%) and brick manufacturing industry (8.8%). Also, nearly 25 to 26 per cent of
the country’s wood production are used for burning bricks every year, causing
deforestation.
Indiscriminate burning of firewood in brick field kilns
According to the government rule the owners of brick fields are to pay
lincence fee, VAT and land development tax at commercial rate, but the
government is being deprived of such taxes due to unauthorised
manufacturing of bricks.
The use of fire-woods in kilns of bricks fields is prohibited as per brick
burning control ordinance of 1992 and the owners would be punished for
violating the law. The brick field owners have been burning bricks with
firewoods. As a result a large number of trees like keora, ‘chaila’,
sundari, mehgini, bain etc are be­ing felled indiscriminately. The
dishonest brick field own­ers collect the fire woods from dif­ferent forests
with the help of their agents.
Spewing out eco time bomb Raising chimney heights of
brick kilns fails to stop grave air pollution
Bricks are made for building. But the country’s brick kilns are churning out the basic
ingredients for construction in a way that is doing more harm than good. The government
recently ordered the brick kiln owners to raise their chimneys to a height of 120 feet in a
move to limit the kilns destructive pollution emissions. It is not only crops that are being
affected by the tons of smoke coming out of the chimneys. Experts now say that brick
kilns are emitting harmful ‘particulate matters’ (pm) into the air, which are responsible
for the alarming rise of respiratory ailments. According to available statistics, more than
four thousand brick kilns are operating in and around the capital. The alarming figure
suggests that city dwellers and inhabitants of surrounding areas are breathing more
sulphur than oxygen. But the DoE seemed to be happy focusing their attention on bricks
and mortars. Some even claimed a small success with the imposition of the height
restrictions. There also seems to be a lack of proper monitoring of whether the brick kiln
owners are obeying the Brick Kiln Control (amended) Act (2001), which prohibits the
establishment of brick kilns within a three-kilometer radius of human inhabitation as well
as fruit garden. The law remains only a piece of paper as brick kilns are even operating
less than one kilometre of a densely populated area. Making matters worse, the brick
kilns owners are flouting the existing laws of using only coal or gas to keep their furnaces
burning, it is alleged, with some using worn tyres and plastic materials as a cheap form of
fuel. Most shocking of all is the indiscriminate use of wood.
Air Pollution from brick kilns
Being one of the largest consumers of coal in the country, it is one of the
important sources of carbon dioxide emission in the country.
Other air pollutants from brick kilns are:
a) SPM in the flue gases which is generated mainly due to incomplete combustion
of fuel (black smoke) or comes from fine coal dust, ash present in coal and burnt
clay particles.
b) Hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide due to incomplete combustion of fuel.
c) Sulphur oxides, concentration of which mainly depends on the amount of
sulphur present in the coal and is significant where high sulphur content coal is
used
d) Dust pollution generated during removal and laying down of ash layer on the
top of the kiln and also due to blowing of ash stacked on the top and sides of the
kiln
Fired clay brick is one of the most important building materials in
the country. The current (2001) annual brick production in the country is
estimated at 140 billion bricks. Brick making is a predominantly rural
industry with brick making units belonging to small and informal sector.
The number of brick producing units in the country is estimated to
exceed 100,000. It consists of clay preparation, shaping, drying and
firing operations. In India, good agriculture soil is preferred as the raw
material for making bricks. It is estimated that the brick industry
consumes around 400 million tons of good quality soil every year. The
burning of fuel for firing bricks results in emissions of gaseous pollutants
and ash into the environment. Brick firing being an energy intensive
process, brick industry is one of the largest consumers of coal (around 24
million tons/year) in the country and hence is also an important air
polluter. Air pollution and use of good quality agriculture soil are the
major environmental concerns related with brick industry in the country.
Measures to reduce the impact of
manufacturing of bricks on environment
Measures to reduce air pollution from brick kilns
The measures to control air pollution can be classified into two
categories:
a) Measures to reduce generation of pollutants at source or energy
efficiency measures.
b) Measures to control or reduce the impacts of the emissions
To use an “add on” device to remove pollutants from the stack gases
e.g. gravity settling chamber
Measures to reduce generation of pollutants  by Improving combustion
The important source of air pollution is incomplete combustion of fuel. Roughly
about 10% of the fuel supplied to a BTK remains unburnt or partly burnt.
Considerable scope exists for improving combustion in BTK and other traditional
kilns. The main causes of incomplete combustion in a BTK are insufficient air
supply and improper feeding of coal. By improving the kiln operation,
particularly by increasing the draught, improving air control and improving fuel
feeding practices, the unburnts can be reduced to a large extent.

Reducing the wastage of good quality agriculture soil in brick making

Use of good quality agriculture soil in large quantities for brick making is also a
grave area of concern. In geographical regions having thin topsoil, this result in
reduction in the productivity of land and in extreme cases the land does not
remain fit for agriculture use. To reduce this wastage following steps can be
taken:
a) Promoting deep mining of clay for brick making instead of surface mining.
b) Promoting use of waste materials like fly ash in brick making.
c) Promoting use of perforated and hollow bricks.
Measures to control/reduce impact of pollutants
Reduction in pollution generation at source by better utilization of fuel is the
best way to control pollution. However, it is not always possible to reduce the
emissions to a level below the acceptable limit just by improvement in
combustion and energy conservation measures. In these circumstances
techniques to arrest pollutants before they are released in the atmosphere are
employed. These techniques involve use of filters, scrubbers, gravity settling
chambers etc. In case of fixed chimney kilns gravity-settling chamber, the most
basic technique for arresting SPM is employed. It should be kept in mind that all
the techniques for arresting pollutants result in pressure loss and hence require
additional energy. Low flue gas velocities and draught in fixed chimney kilns
make it virtually impossible to use any other add-on device other than gravity
settling chamber.
The harmful effect of pollutants locally can be reduced by reduction in
concentration of pollutants through dispersion of pollutants in a large area. That
is why recommendations for taller chimneys are given. Tall chimneys ensure
release of pollutants at a higher height, which gives more time to pollutants to
disperse in the atmosphere before reaching the ground.
Energy efficiency measures
Any measure that saves fuel also helps in emission reduction as the total
amount of fuel burned is reduced. Apart from the improvement in
combustion process, it is possible to reduce energy consumption by 10-
15% in a BTK by making small improvements in kiln design, construction
and operation. Better kiln insulation and increase in fire travel rate is
the key to energy conservation in fixed chimney brick kilns.
One of the causes of SPM generation is the high ash content in coal.
Some of the ash is carried by flue gases. It is possible to mix a part of
the fuel in the powdered form with the clay during clay preparation. This
fuel is referred as internal fuel as it is present inside the brick. As the
brick is heated in the kiln, combustion of internal fuel takes place.
However, in this case as the fuel particles are entrapped in the brick,
the ash associated with them remains inside the brick and does not come
out. This helps in reducing the pollution.
Some Plants of Botanical
Garden
Neem  Azadirachta indica, commonly known
as neem, nimtree or Indian lilac, is a
tree in the mahogany family
Meliaceae. It is one of two species in
the genus Azadirachta, and is native
to the Indian subcontinent, i.e. India,
Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri
Lanka, and Maldives. It is typically
grown in tropical and semi-tropical
regions. Neem trees also grow in
islands located in the southern part of
Iran. Its fruits and seeds are the
source of neem oil. It is also used as a
medicine and a vegetable in some
parts of world
Eucalyptus
Eucalyptus is a genus of over seven
hundred species of flowering trees,
shrubs or mallees in the myrtle family,
Myrtaceae. Along with other genera in
the tribe Eucalypteae, they are
commonly known as eucalypts. Plants in
the genus Eucalyptus have bark that is
either smooth, fibrous, hard or stringy,
leaves with oil glands, and sepals and
petals that are fused to form a "cap" or
operculum over the stamens. The fruit is
a woody capsule commonly referred to as
a "gumnut".
Tulsi
Ocimum tenuiflorum (synonym Ocimum
sanctum), commonly known as holy basil or
tulsi, is an aromatic perennial plant in the
family Lamiaceae. It is native to the Indian
subcontinent and widespread as a cultivated
plant throughout the Southeast Asian tropics.
Tulsi is cultivated for religious and traditional
medicine purposes, and for its essential oil. It
is widely used as a herbal tea, commonly used
in Ayurveda, and has a place within the
Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism, in which
devotees perform worship involving holy basil
plants or leaves.
The variety of Ocimum tenuiflorum used in
Thai cuisine is referred to as Thai holy basil it
is not the same as Thai basil, which is a variety
of Ocimum basilicum.
Aloe vera
Aloe vera is a succulen plant species of
the genus Aloe.An evergreen perennial, it
originates from the Arabian Peninsula,
but grows wild in tropical, semi-tropical,
and arid climates around the world.It is
cultivated for agricultural and medicinal
uses.The species is also used for
decorative purposes and grows
successfully indoors as a potted plant.
It is found in many consumer products
including beverages, skin lotion,
cosmetics, or ointments for minor burns
and sunburns. There is little clinical
evidence for the effectiveness or safety
of Aloe vera extract as
a cosmetic or medicine.
Coconut
tree
The coconut tree (Cocos nucifera) is a
member of the palm tree family
(Arecaceae) and the only known living
species of the genus Cocos. The term
"coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can
refer to the whole coconut palm, the
seed, or the fruit, which botanically is a
drupe, not a nut.
The term is derived from the 16th-
century Portuguese and Spanish word
coco, meaning 'head' or 'skull' after the
three indentations on the coconut shell
that resemble facial features.
Peepal Tree
Ficus religiosa or sacred fig is a species of
fig native to the Indian subcontinent and
Indochina that belongs to Moraceae, the
fig or mulberry family. It is also known as
the bodhi tree, pippala tree, peepul tree,
peepal tree or ashwattha tree (in India
and Nepal). The sacred fig is considered
to have a religious significance in three
major religions that originated on the
Indian subcontinent, Hinduism, Buddhism
and Jainism. Hindu and Jain ascetics
consider the tree to be sacred and often
meditate under them and this is the tree
under which Gautama Buddha is believed
to have attained enlightenment.