Assessment of wormhole concretionary laterite stone for use in masonry construction

The issue of housing challenges around the globe is an established fact. Conventional building materials including concrete, bricks, steel and aluminium dominate the industry. However, these have proven to be uneconomical and their production process harmful to the environment, thereby necessitating an economical and environmentally friendly materials. Laterite stones have beneficial properties, but generally fail to resonate well with professionals because of the relatively low compressive strengths, influenced by their inherent cavities. Notwithstanding, wormhole concretionary laterite stone is alluded to have better compressive strength performance in comparison to soft doughy-like laterite stone studied previously. This study therefore aimed at assessing the suitability of wormhole concretionary laterite stone as a building stone by experimental test. The study results revealed an average dry compressive strength of wormhole concretionary laterite stone to be 2.55 MPa. For standard compliance, an average value of 3.2 MPa was obtained for the cube strength in the wet condition. Also, its average water absorption and apparent specific gravity were found to be 15 % and 2.23, respectively. When compared to soft doughy-like laterite stone previously studied, wormhole concretionary laterite stone did not exhibit superior compressive strength. Both were closely comparable. Wormhole concretionary laterite stones marginally fall short from the specified limits (3.5 MPa; 12 % and 2.5) contained in IS: 3620-1979 for cube compressive strength; water absorption and specific gravity, respectively. This implies that wormhole concretionary laterite stone is suitable for application in all environmental conditions including waterlogged grounds, unlike the conventional clay bricks and concrete blocks which barely perform in such grounds.