Reduction of Cracking and Shrinkage in Compressed Clay Beams during Drying
Uncontrolled evaporation of moisture from compressed clay beams can cause surface cracks, resulting in reduction of strength. This paper presents various treatments applied to clay beams during the process of casting, compacting and drying in order to curtail the possibility of cracking and to dec...
Main Authors: | , , |
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Mehran University of Engineering and Technology
2016-07-01
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Series: | Mehran University Research Journal of Engineering and Technology |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://publications.muet.edu.pk/research_papers/pdf/pdf1367.pdf |
Summary: | Uncontrolled evaporation of moisture from compressed clay beams can cause surface cracks, resulting
in reduction of strength. This paper presents various treatments applied to clay beams during the
process of casting, compacting and drying in order to curtail the possibility of cracking and to decrease
percentage of drying shrinkage. Following treatments were applied to the beams during casting and
drying: (i) a steel plate and double layer of plastic sheet was provided between the beam and the plank, (ii)
the beam was enveloped with a propylene fabric sheet during casting and (iii) beams were covered with
plastic sheet during drying. Using these treatments, the clay beams were cast and compacted at various
intensities of compaction. The results show that the drying shrinkage was reduced to minimum and the
cracks were curtailed. The rate of drying shrinkage was decreased depending upon the level of compaction.
Thus at the higher degree of compaction, more density of clay beams was achieved, which resulted in higher degree of compressive strength in baked and unbaked state |
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ISSN: | 0254-7821 2413-7219 |