Characteristcs of cooked briks with incorporation of expanded polystyrene used in building construction

Abstract

The article presents the evaluation of local building materials in Benin for their efficient use in building construction. The aim of the study is to produce cooked and lightened bricks with good mechanical, thermal and acoustic properties, and enhance using polystyrene waste. The article shows the results of experimental work on a broad field of applied science: building mechanics. Terracotta blocks have been chosen as a reference material, to which polystyrene was added. The percentage of polystyrene ranges from 0 to 100%, the volume of the reference material being con-stant. The results showed that the polystyrene percentage increase lowers mechanical properties. These results also showed that the gradual addition of polystyrene-laterite clay mixture has a sig-nificant influence on the density and the mechanical strength of the final composite material. The clay used in blocks is taken from Porto-Novo, a town about 30 km from Cotonou, and laterite (red soil) comes from Bakhita, a town 10 km from Cotonou.