Experimental evaluation of the properties of lightweight breathable concretes

Abstract

Breathable concrete is a novel construction material that is being developed at the University of Aberdeen. The advantages of this new material are its light weight, resource efficiency through reduced use of cement and aggregates, improved thermal insulating properties, and permeability to air flow. New variants of breathable concrete, made using lightweight and synthetic aggregates (as opposed to natural, normal density aggregates), are presented. Breathable concretes made using lightweight aggregates have better thermal insulation properties due to the presence of air voids, lower thermal conductivity of aggregates, and lower specific density. With that come lower structural dead loading, smaller structural members, reduced material demand, reduced embodied energy, and a more sustainable construction. In this paper, we introduce lightweight aggregate breathable concretes, and present the results of experimental tests to determine selected physical properties for a range of mix designs of this sustainable material.