Advantages Of Concrete Blocks

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Concrete masonry and its alternatives

Dense masonry aggregate blocks

In use from the 1940s onwards, dense aggregate blocks are very much the work-horse of the construction industry. Their distinctive properties of durability and strength make them an ideal and cost-effect solution for all types of load-bearing walls. Dense aggregate concrete blocks are manufactured from cement, sand and aggregates.

• Typical thermal conductivity: 0.70 – 1.28 W/mK

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Lightweight masonry aggregate blocks
Lightweight blocks are manufactured from cement together with one of a variety of natural or man-made expanded aggregates including: granulated / foamed blast-furnace slag, expanded clay or shale, furnace bottom ash (FBA), pulverised fuel ash (PFA), or the less common pumice (a volcanic material) . The density of the aggregate is generally proportional to the strength of the block - so for example ‘super-lightweight’ aggregates such as expanded clay and pumice used for their excellent thermal performance, feature a relatively low compressive strength.

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Aerated masonry concrete or ‘aircrete’ blocks
First produced in Sweden in 1923 and used in the UK since the 1960s (when they were known as ‘cellular’ or ‘gas’ concrete blocks), aerated concrete or ‘aircrete’ blocks are the lightest of the family …show more content…

The blocks can be used both as the inner leaf in cavity walls or as a single skin for external load-bearing construction. As well as their use in walls, clay honeycomb blocks can be used in many of the same applications as concrete blocks. The blocks are formed with a cellular structure of vertical perforations that reduces the material quantity as well as weight whilst providing an increased thermal performance. Blocks are assembled through dry vertical interlocking and thin-mortar horizontal

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