Faculty of Technology

Department of Civil Engineering

CIV II0I - Engineering Materials I

CLAY BRICKS AND BLOCKS

Raw Materials

Clay
Clay is a mineral formed by the weathering of rocks. It is composed of silicates
and alumina ions which are bonded together in a tetrahedral form. Clay has a
great affinity to water and have plasticity, which permits them to be shaped or
molded when mixed with water; they have sufficient wet and air-dried strength to
maintain their shape after forming.
The manufacture of clay bricks involves mixing clay with water, moulding it, and
drying it in a kiln. There are different types of clay, each composed of different
minerals that give each type a different colour. The final colour of bricks is
determined by impurities. Pure clay gives white bricks. Clay bricks are classified
according to variety type and quality.

Types of Clay
Clays occur in three principal forms:

1. Surface clay –
2. Shales
3. Fire Clay

Surface Clays. Surface clays may be the upthrusts of older deposits or of more
recent sedimentary formations. As the name implies, they are found near the
surface of the earth.
Shales. Shales are clays that have been subjected to high pressures until they
have nearly hardened into slate.
Fire Clays. Fire clays are usually mined at deeper levels than other clays and
have refractory qualities.
Surface and fire clays have a different physical structure from shales but are
similar in chemical composition.

Manufacture of clay bricks

Clay bricks are manufactured by shaping suitable clays and shales to units of
standard size which are then fired to a temperature of about 900 C. The fired
product consists mainly of silica and alumina along with varying amounts of

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metallic oxides. Metallic oxides promote fusion of the particles at lower
temperatures. The manufacturing process can be divided into five stages:
1. Extraction
2. Preparation
3. Forming
4. Drying
5. Firing

Extraction

Surface area is dug or quarried. Sub surface clays are usually mined.

Preparation

This involves removing stones and other such foreign particles from the clay,
breaking down the clay lumps and mixing the clay into a plastic homogeneous
mass. The clay is then ground to a smaller size and fed into a dug mill for mixing.

Forming

Tempering, the first step in the forming process, produces a homogeneous,

plastic clay mass. Usually, this is achieved by adding water to the clay in a pug
mill a mixing chamber with one or more revolving shafts with blade extensions.
After pugging, the plastic clay mass is ready for forming. Forming refers to
shaping blocks. There are three methods. The methods used depend on the
moisture content.

1. The dry process

This is carried out on clays of very low moisture content (7 – 10%). From the pug
mill, the clay is pressed into moulds under pressures from 500 to 1500 psi (3.4 to
10.3 MPa) by hydraulic or compressed air rams and goes straight to the firing
process. The drying stage is eliminated because of the low moisture content. As
a result of the low moisture content also, these clays are moulded at high
pressures.

2. Wirecut process or stiff mud process

This is carried out on clays which have a moisture content of between 15 – 25%.
The plastic clay from the pug mill is shaped with a die into a continuous column of
rectangular section which is then cut into individual bricks by a wire in tension.
These bricks then proceed to the drying stage and then on to the firing stage.

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3. Soft mud process

The clay from the pug mill can either be moulded by hand or by machine. Sand
may be used to coat the mould and the bricks produced upon firing are referred
to as sand struck bricks. If water is used to coat the mould to prevent the bricks
from sticking to the sides, the bricks are called water struck.

Drying
During the drying stage, moisture is removed from the bricks. Drying is usually
done in a separate compartment called the drier and the waste heat from the kiln
is used to dry. Before the firing process begins, most of this water is evaporated
in dryer chambers at temperatures ranging from about 100 ͦ F to 400 ͦ F (38 ͦ C to
204 ͦ C). The extent of drying time, which varies with different clays, usually is
between 24 to 48 hours. In all cases, heat and humidity must be carefully
regulated to avoid cracking in the brick.

Firing
This refers to burning the bricks to remove some of the absorbed moisture and is
done in a kiln. Firing transforms the raw clay brick into a rigid continuous ceramic
by way of a succession of physical and chemical reactions.

Burning can be done intermittently or continuously. There are two types of kilns
used in the firing stage:
• the tunnel kiln
• the periodic kiln

In a tunnel kiln, brick is loaded onto kiln cars, which pass through various
temperature zones as they travel through the tunnel. The heat conditions in each
zone are carefully controlled, and the kiln is continuously operated.

A periodic kiln is one that is loaded, fired, allowed to cool and unloaded, after
which the same steps are repeated. Dried brick is set in periodic kilns according
to a prescribed pattern that permits circulation of hot kiln gases.

Firing may be divided into five general stages: 1) final drying (evaporating free
water); 2) dehydration; 3) oxidation; 4) vitrification; and 5) flashing or reduction
firing. All except flashing are associated with rising temperatures in the kiln.
Although the actual temperatures will differ with clay or shale, final drying takes
place at temperatures up to about 400 ͦ F (204 ͦ C), dehydration from about 300 ͦ F
to 1800 ͦ F (149 ͦ C to 982 ͦ C), oxidation from 1000 ͦ F to 1800 ͦ F (538 ͦ C to 982 ͦ C)
and vitrification from 1600 ͦ F to 2400 ͦ F (871 ͦ C to 1316 ͦ C).

Clay, unlike metal, softens slowly and melts or vitrifies gradually when subjected
to rising temperatures. Vitrification allows clay to become a hard, solid mass with
relatively low absorption. Melting takes place in three stages: 1) incipient fusion,

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when the clay particles become sufficiently soft to stick together in a mass when
cooled; 2) vitrification, when extensive fluxing occurs, and the mass becomes
tight, solid and nonabsorbent; and 3) viscous fusion, when the clay mass breaks
down and becomes molten, leading to a deformed shape. The key to the firing
process is to control the temperature in the kiln so that incipient fusion and partial
vitrification occur but viscous fusion is avoided.

CLASSIFICATION OF CLAY BRICKS

In terms of variety
- common
- facing
- engineering
- fire (refractory)
- glazed
- radiation shielding
- other

Common bricks are used for general building work and having no special claim to
give an attractive appearance.

Facing bricks are specially made to give an attractive appearance when used.

Engineering bricks have a dense strong semivitrions body conforming to defined

limits for absorption and strength.

In terms of quality
– internal
– ordinary
– special

Internal bricks are defined as bricks and blocks suitable for internal use only.
Ordinary bricks are less durable than special quality but are normally durable in
the external space of a building.
Special bricks are durable even when used in situations of extreme exposure
where the structure may become saturated and be frozen. eg. retaining walls,
sewerage plants etc.

In terms of type
– solid
– perforated
– hollow
– cellular

A solid clay brick is one in which small holes passing through or nearly through a
brick or block does not exceed 25% of its volume; or in which Proys (depression

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in the face of the brick) does not exceed 20% of its volume. A small hole is one
less than 20mm wide.

A perforated brick is one in which the holes pressing through the brick or block
are not less than 25% of its volume on the condition that the holes are small.
A hollow block or brick is one in which the holes passing through exceeds 25% of
its volume and the holes are not small.
The cellular block or brick is one in which the holes are closed at one end and
exceeds 20% of the volume.

SIZES OF BRICK

There is a rough arithmetical relationship of length to width of 2:1 and length to

height 3:1 in the standard or imperial brick.

The standard size is 222mm long x 106mm wide x 73mm high.

Other sizes include

LENGTH WIDTH HEIGHT

222 90 73
222 40 73
222 90 114
222 140 114
190 90 90
290 90 90

A range of special shapes are available to enhance the aesthetic detailing of

buildings.

According to the British standard a brick is defined as a walling unit not

exceeding 337.5mm in length, 225mm in width and 105mm in height. Any walling
unit exceeding these dimensions is referred to as a block.

PROPERTIES of clay bricks

All properties of brick are affected by composition of the raw materials and the
manufacturing processes. It is for this reason that most manufacturers blend
clays to reduce the possibility of impurities from one clay source affecting the
overall quality of the finished product. Similarly, the standardization of the
manufacturing processes permits the manufacturer to limit variations due to
processing and to produce a more uniform product.

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Product Use

The properties that most concern the users of brick are 1) durability, 2) color, 3)
texture, 4) size variation, 5) compressive strength and 6) absorption.

Durability. The durability of brick results from incipient fusion and partial
vitrification during firing. Since compressive strength and absorption are also
related to the firing temperatures, these properties, together with saturation
coefficients, are taken as predictors of durability. However, because of
differences in raw materials, a single value of compressive strength or absorption
will not reliably indicate the degree of firing.

Color. The color of fired clay depends upon its chemical composition, the firing
temperatures and the method of firing control. Of all the oxides commonly found
in clays, iron probably has the greatest effect on color. Regardless of its natural
color, clay containing iron in practically any form will burn red when exposed to
an oxidizing fire, due to the formation of ferrous oxide. When fired in a reducing
atmosphere, the same clay will take on a purple cast. Creating a reducing
atmosphere in the kiln is known as "flashing".

For the same raw materials and methods of manufacture, the darker colors are
associated with firing at higher temperatures, with lower absorptions and with
increased compressive strengths. However, for products made from different raw
clays, there is no direct relationship between strength and color or absorption
and color.

Textures, Coatings and Glazes. Many brick have smooth or sand-finished

textures produced by the dies or molds used in forming. Smooth texture,
commonly called a die skin, results from pressure exerted by the steel die as the
clay passes through the die. In the stiff-mud process, many textures may be
applied by attachments which cut, scratch, roll, brush or otherwise roughen the
surface as the clay column leaves the die. Brick may be tumbled before or after
firing in order to achieve a used brick appearance.

Many plants apply engobes (slurries) of finely ground clay, coloring agents and
water to the roughened column. Engobes are clay slips that are fired onto the
ceramic body and develop hardness, but are not impervious to moisture or water
vapor. Sands, with or without coloring agents, can be rolled into an engobe or
applied directly to the brick faces to create interesting and distinctive patterns in
the finished product.

Although not common to all manufacturing, ceramic glazing is a highly

specialized, carefully controlled procedure, having two basic variations, high-fired
and low-fired glazing. High-fired glazes are sprayed on units before or after
drying and then kiln-fired at the normal firing temperatures of the units. Low-fired
glazes are used to obtain colors which cannot be produced at high temperatures.

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They are applied after the unit has been fired to maturity and cooled; then they
are glazed and refired at relatively low temperatures. Glazes are available in a
wide variety of colors and reflectance. Unlike engobes, glazes are impervious
and do not allow the surface to breathe.

Size Variation. Because clays shrink during both drying and firing, allowances
must be made in the mold box or die size and in the spacing of cutting to achieve
the desired size of the finished product. Both air (dryer) shrinkage and firing
shrinkage vary for different clays, usually falling within the following ranges:

Air Shrinkage 2 to 6 percent

Firing Shrinkage 2.5 to 6 percent

Firing shrinkage increases with higher temperatures which, in turn, produce

darker shades. Consequently, when a wide range of colors is desired, some
variation between the sizes of the dark and light units is inevitable. To obtain
products of uniform size, manufacturers attempt to control factors contributing to
shrinkage. However, because of variations in raw materials and temperature
variations within kilns, absolute uniformity is impossible. Consequently,
specifications for brick include permissible size variations to permit economical
manufacture.

Compressive Strength and Absorption. Both compressive strength and

absorption are affected by properties of the clay, method of manufacture and
degree of firing. Although there are exceptions to the rule, the stiff-mud process
generally produces units having higher compressive strengths and lower
absorptions than units produced by the soft-mud or dry-press process.

For a given clay and method of manufacture, higher compressive strengths and
lower absorptions are associated with higher firing temperatures. Although
absorption and compressive strength can be controlled to a degree by
manufacturing and firing methods, these properties depend largely upon the
properties of the raw materials. Consequently, they vary widely for different
products.

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Brick manufacturing is one of the most efficient uses of materials. Brick plants
are typically located close the source of raw materials. Clay has been termed a
“non-exhaustible resource” by many authorities, confirming that depletion of clay
is not a concern. Mined areas are reclaimed by replacing overburden and top soil
so the resulting property can provide a wide variety of functions including
farmland, residential and commercial building areas and even wetlands.

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Processed clay and shale removed in the forming process prior to firing is
returned to the production stream. Culls after firing are ground to be used as grog
with the prepared material to reduce shrinkage or crushed to be used as
landscaping materials. There is no waste material to be dealt with.

Non-hazardous waste products from other industries are sometimes used as

materials in brick manufacturing. Examples include bottom and fly-ash from coal-
fired generators, other ceramic materials used as grog, and sawdust.