The Potential of Laterite as Fine Aggregate in Foamed Concrete Production

Abstract

This paper presents the results of an investigation into the potential use of laterite as fine aggregate in foamed concrete production.The influence of varying the proportion of laterite addition on the free flowing characteristic and the compressive strength properties of foamed concrete were determined. The results obtained show a decrease in free flowing capacity of the foamed concrete with increase in laterite content. The spread values obtained at w/c of 0.7 were 580 mm, 547 mm, 460 mm, 210 mm and 0 mm for 0%, 10%, 20%, 30% and 40% laterite contents respectively. Increase in water/cement ratio improved the spread values and allowed for higher percentage of laterite addition into the foamed concrete. The results further show that the compressive strength of the concrete produced at water/cement ratio of 0.7, 0.8 and 0.9 increased with increase in laterite content. The results also indicate that for a given value of laterite content, the compressive strength decreased with increase in water/cement ratio. Foamed concrete produced with w/c of 0.7 containing 20% laterite has better combine values of workability and compressive strength when compared to other laterized foamed concrete. Laterite has the potential as fine aggregate replacement in foamed concrete.

Keywords: Foamed Concrete, Laterite, Compressive Strength and workability