PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF TERNARY BLENDED COMPOSITE WALL PANEL REINFORCED WITH COCONUT HUSK FIBER

Purpose: The blending of naturally/locally sourced materials in the production of Building components such as concrete, bricks and mortar has been found to have a lot of advantages over the conventional construction materials. The aim of this study is to produce hybrid wall composite of cement, gypsum, and bamboo leaf ash and coconut husk fiber as natural reinforcement that will serve as an alternative to sandcrete blocks. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the aim, binders of cement, gypsum and Bamboo Leaf Ash in the ratio of 45: 45: 10 by weight were blended together, and Coconut husk fiber in the range of 0-3% content by weight of the binders was added to the blend as reinforcement. A single water/binder ratio of 0.55 was maintained for all the mixes. The wet mixtures were cast in wooden moulds of sizes 160 mm × 40 mm × 40 mm and 100 mm × 100 mm × 40 mm and tested for compressive strength, density, and water absorption, respectively at ages of 7, 14 and 28 days. Findings: The result of the compressive strength decreases with addition of coconut fiber but increases with hydration period. The density was observed to reduce with increase in fiber content and had values between 600 kg/m3 to 1800 kg/m3 which are comparable to other wall panels. The water absorption increases with increased in fiber content but decreased as curing age increases Research limitations/Implications: The limitations include the use of mix ratio of 45: 45: 10 (gypsum: Portland cement: Bamboo Leaf Ash) by weight and blended with Coconut husk fiber up to 3% content by weight of the combined binders as reinforcement with a water-to-cement (w/c) ratio of 0.55. The contribution to knowledge is that the study has established the fact that the blending of these locally sourced materials in the production of wall panels is suitable for used in both internal and external conditions Practical implications: The properties of the panel investigated satisfied the requirements for wall panels Originality/value: The study revealed that the use of eco-friendly materials such as bamboo leaf ash and coconut husk fiber could go a long way in the production of innovative and sustainable building element such as for wall panel.