FERROCEMENT AND ITS APPLICATION TO CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Dr. N. Ganesan, Professor of Civil Engg., NIT Calicut

1.0. INTRODUCTION
Ferrocement is another form of reinforced cement concrete in which the cement
mortar is reinforced with layers of continuous and relatively small diameter wire meshes.
In rationally designed ferrocement structures, the reinforcement consists of small
diameter wire meshes, in which the proportion and distribution of the reinforcement are made
uniform by spreading out the wire meshes throughout the thickness of the element. This
dispersion of fibre in the brittle matrix improves many of the engineering properties of the
material such as fracture, tensile and flexural strength, toughness, fatigue resistance and impact
resistance and also provides advantages in terms of fabrication of products and components.
Fig.1 shows a typical ferrocement section.
The basic idea behind this material is that concrete can undergo large strains in the
neighborhood of the reinforcement and the magnitude of the strains depends on the
distribution and subdivision of the reinforcement throughout the mass of the concrete.
2.0. CONSTITUENT MATERIALS
A brief description of the materials used for ferrocement is given below:
2.1. Reinforcing Mesh
Wire mesh is an essential component of ferrocement. Different types of wire meshes
are available. These generally consist of thin wires either woven or welded in to a mesh, but
the main requirement is that it must be easily handled and if necessary, flexible enough to bent
around sharp corners. The function of the wire mesh and the reinforcing rods in the first
instance is to act as a lath providing the form and to support the mortar in its green state. In
the hardened state its function is to absorb the tensile stresses on the structure which the
mortar, on its own, would not have been able to withstand. The mechanical behaviour of
ferrocement is highly dependent upon the type, quality, orientation, and strength properties of
the mesh.
2.1.1. Hexagonal wire mesh:-
This mesh is commonly known as chicken wire mesh and is fabricated from cold
drawn wire which is generally woven into hexagonal patterns. The diameter of the wire is 0.5
mm to
1 mm. The mesh openings vary from 10 mm to 25 mm. Standard galvanized meshes,
galvanized after weaving are adequate. Fig.2 shows a typical hexagonal wire mesh.
2.1.2. Welded wire mesh:-
Eighteen or nineteen gauge wires, spaced half an inch apart are normally used in this
mesh. These wires are made of low to medium tensile strength steel and are much stiffer than
hexagonal wire mesh. However, in welded mesh the possibility of weak spots at intersections
resulting from inadequate welding during the manufacture of mesh may occur. This type of
mesh is shown in Fig.3.
2.1.3. Woven mesh:-
In this type of mesh shown in Fig.4, the wires are simply woven into the desired grid
size and have no welding at the intersections. The mesh wires are not perfectly straight and a
certain amount of waviness exists. One of the difficulties encountered is that it is difficult to
hold in position but when stretched, it readily conforms to the desired curves.

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2.1.4. Expanded metal mesh:-

It is formed by cutting a thin sheet of expanding metal to produce diamond shape

openings. The manufacturing process is less labour intensive than the method used for
manufacturing hexagonal wire mesh or welded mesh. Fig.5 shows this type of mesh.
2.1.5. Skeletal Steel

Skeletal Steel as the name implies is generally used for making the frame work of the
structure upon which layers of mesh are laid. It is generally desirable to provide skeletal steel
to take care of tensile forces and provide wire mesh reinforcement to ensure crack control. As
ferrocement elements are generally cast in thin sections of about 15 to 30 mm thick, the size of
the bars should be around 6 to 10 mm.
2.3. Cement

The binding material or matrix in ferrocement is known as mortar. It is normally

made of Portland cement and ordinary silica sand. Cement in the presence of water reacts to
form cementitious gel which in turn produces a firm and hard mass, the hardened cement
paste. This paste in the green stage binds the aggregate particles and hence results in a dense
brittle material. The different types of cement normally used in ferrocement are: (i) Portland
and Cement, (ii) Rapid hardening Portland cement, (iii) Sulphate and resisting Portland cement
(in marine environment) and (iv) Portland blast furnace cement.
2.4. Aggregate

The aggregate occupies about 60 to 70 percent of the volume of mortar. The

aggregate should be strong impermeable and capable of producing a sufficiently workable mix
with minimum water/cement ratio of achieve proper penetration of the mesh. The
compressive strength of mortar will change depending upon the variation in sand grading,
volume and type of sand. The size of the aggregate is usually taken as 2 mm in order to permit
a more closely spaced mesh. The grading of the aggregate should comply with the ASTM
specification C 33-74. ASTM Specification limits for fine aggregates are shown in Fig.6 and
Table 1. The desirable ratio of cement to sand is 1:2 by weight.

Table 1- ASTM C 33-74. A specification for Fine Aggregate (sand)

Sl.No. Sieve Percent Passing
1. 3/8 in. (9.50 mm) 100
2. No.4 (4.75 mm) 95 to 100
3. No.8 (2.36 mm) 80 to 100
4. No.16 (1.18 mm) 50 to 85
5. No.30 (600 micron) 25 to 60
6. No.50 (300 micron) 10 to 30
7. No.100 (150 micron) 2 to 10

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2.5. Mixing Water

Impurities in water may interfere with the setting of cement and will adversely affect
the strength or cause staining of its surface and may also lead to corrosion of the
reinforcement. Necessary care should be taken before using water containing such impurities.
Sea water should not in any case be used for mixing the mortar as it will increase the
risk of corrosion of the mesh and reinforcement. Usually water from public water supply is
regarded as satisfactory. The water - cement ratio normally used is 0.35 to 0.5 by weight.
2.6. Coating

In general, ferrocement structures need no protection unless it is subjected to strong

chemical attack that might damage the structural integrity of its components. Marine
structures and protection against corrosion, and vinyl and epoxy coating were found to be the
most useful organic coatings.
3.0. POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS OF FERROCEMENT (Ref. 1 & 2)

The following is the list of individual applications where ferrocement is found worthwhile.
3.1. Boat Industry

Ferrocement boats have been now built in almost every country in the world. It has
been estimated that around 75 percent of the fishing boats in Asia are less than 10 m long. For
this length range, ferrocement is not an ideal material as its use results in heavier boats than
conventional wooden boats. Thus ferrocement is popular only for boats with lengths ranging
from 10 m to 20 m and around 3000 boats have been reported to have been built in he Asia-
Pacific region.
3.2 Silos

Inadequate storage facilities for grain exist in farms and villages in most developing
countries. Ferrocement silos to store up 30 tons of grain appear quite suitable and economical
for the developing countries. Ferrocement is water tight and with appropriate sealants, can be
made air tight.
3.3. Water Tanks

In view of its lower cost, easier maintenance and relative impermeability, ferrocement
has become a popular material for water storage tanks of capabilities up to 5000 gallons
(22700 litres). Prefabricated ferrocement water tanks of 200 to 5000 gallons capacity (900 to
22700 litres) are reported to be popular in New Zealand. Work in India has been restricted to
mostly small capacity water tank. Circular and Rectangular tanks of 800 litres capacity
developed by SERC are quite popular for the individual residence, while a battery- type
rectangular tank of 7500 litre capacity has been widely used in multi-storeyed housing
projects.

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3.4. Housing

Ferrocement is an excellent material for roofing because of low cost, lighter weight,
high tensile strength to weight ratio, superior cracking behaviour and easy fabrication to any
shape with minimum technical skill. Attempts have been made to develop corrugated
ferrocement roofing sheets to economically replace asbestos cement sheets. Undulated
sections viz. trapezoidal cross-section and channel sections are normally used for ferrocement
elements.
3.5. Bio - gas Holder

The use of bio-gas from animal-vegetable waste is increasing due to the recent oil
crisis which compelled a desperate search for alternative sources of energy. However, due to
constant contact with decomposed material, the mild steel sheets in the gas holder corrode very
fast in spite of periodic maintenance. Recently, SERC at Roorkee and Madras have developed
ferrocement gas holders to replace mild steel gas holders for bio gas plants. These gas holders
are 50 percent cheaper then steel gas holders and have good functional properties.

3.6. Miscellaneous Structures

(i) Structures such as septic tanks, sewage troughs, and lagoons and other treatment
facilities etc.
(ii) Ferrocement surfacing for soil-cement based country roads, surfacing of tennis court
and other similar sports fields.
(iii) Tube well casings and screens which are required to withstand compression and
tension, manhole covers.

REFERENCES
1. New Reinforced Concrete, Ed. R.N.Swamy, Vol.2, Concrete Technology and Design,
Surrey University Press, London
2. Paul, B.K and Pama, R.P.Ferrocement, IFIC, A.I.T, Bangkok, Thailand.
3. Nervi, P.L, Ferrocement Structures, F,W.Dodge Corporation, New York, 1956, pp.50-62.
4. Kari, E.A and Joseph, G.P, Small Capacity Ferrocement Water Tanks, International
Report, SERC, Madras.Dec.1978, 20p.
5. Naaman, A.E and Shah, S.P. Evaluation of Ferrocement in some structural applications,
Proceedings IAHS Symposium, Atlanta, Georgia, 1976, pp.1069-1085.
6. Desayi, P and Ganesan N. Performance of the Ferrocement roof an Experimental Low-cost
House, Proceedings of the Asia-Pacific Symposium, University of Roorkee, April 23-25,
1984 pp.75-86.
7. ACI Committee, 549, State of the Art-report on Ferrocement, Concrete International,
August, 1982, pp.13-38.




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