NTS STUDY

Special Shaped Bricks and Lightweight Clay Bricks

Traditional and Special Shaped Bricks

While standard bricks are used for general construction, several special shapes are manufactured for specific architectural purposes. These help in achieving specific aesthetic and structural goals in building design.

Common Types of Bricks:

• (a) Normal Brick with Frog: The standard brick featuring a central depression (frog) for mortar binding.

• (b) Hollow Brick: A brick containing large internal cavities to reduce weight.

• (c) Perforated Brick: A brick with multiple small holes through its body.

• (d) Bullnose Brick: Bricks with rounded edges, available as single or double bullnose, used for corners and decorative capping.

• (e) Curved Bricks: Specifically shaped for use in circular walls or arches.

Lightweight Clay Bricks

In many engineering scenarios, reducing the deadload (permanent weight) of a structure is critical. Lightweight clay bricks are required in the following situations:

1. High-Rise Buildings: To decrease the load of the walls, thereby reducing the pressure on the foundation.

2. Partition Walls: To lower the weight on floor slabs and provide better sound insulation.

3. Cantilever Beams: To reduce the weight of walls constructed over cantilevered sections of a building.

Methods of Manufacturing Lightweight Bricks

Lightweight bricks can be manufactured using one of the following methods:

• Method A: Porous Bricks These are made by mixing clay with combustible materials. During the burning process in the kiln, these materials burn away, leaving behind tiny pores (voids) in the brick. This makes the brick significantly lighter while remaining fire-resistant.

• Method B: Hollow Bricks These bricks are designed with internal hollow sections separated by thin, strong ribs. Because the ribs must be thin yet durable, these are usually made from high-quality tile clay. They are available in various sizes to suit both exterior and partition walls.

  • Weight Advantage: The weight of these hollow bricks can be as low as one-third (1/3) of the weight of a corresponding solid brick.