Sustainability of autoclaved cellular concrete Essay

Sustainability of autoclaved cellular concrete - Essay Example This building material is suitable for formation of inner leaf of cavity walls, walls, floors by combining with aircrete beams, ceilings due to their excellent thermal insulators. They can easily be shaped into anything the builder’s desire making it favorable. This has given rise to a complete construction system with complementary products all over the World.AAC ensures a comfortable environment with all the satisfactions of the modern building (mhe aac, 2013). Advantages of Engineering and constructing using Autoclaved Aerated Concrete. Engineers and constructors who have been in the game for a long time will weigh many options on what kind of building materials to use for construction. They consider the pros and cons of each building materials they have used to advise a client before settling on one. In this case AAC is the building material of choice. The following are some of the factors of autoclaved aerated concrete which make the choice favorable. 1. Portability. ... 2. Flexibility This is evident in shaping, cutting process as it reduces the chance of wasting so much in terms of building materials. This kind of workability will be of so much good to a client in cutting costs. Since AAC has the ability to offer a combination of structural capability and insulation it makes it suitable for almost everything from walls, roofs and floors. 3. Durability Its ability to resist water, mildew, rotting, rust and insect’s invasion unlike things like timber make it longer lasting. This will ensure a stable construction. 4. Fire Resistance. Autoclaved aerated concrete is known to have a higher thermal mass, provide air tightness making it non combustible. It can resist fire with excellence and will not produce toxic fumes unlike other building materials due to their R-value which is slightly higher than R-1. 5. Air leakage is very low as compared to other building materials due to its production process. Its however not fair to talk of only advantages without mentioning a few drawbacks related to AAC.According to a report written by Stefan Schnitzler AAC has some disadvantages more so in the United States. Stefan states that in the US there are a few manufacturers and the only manufacturer Hebel Operations who was left moved his operations to Mexico making it a bit expensive hence not adopted by many US citizens (Melton, 2012). He also mentions that since the mortar application process has to be precise builders need to learn on curves (Melton, 2012). In the US the material has to come from Mexico meaning that the probability of an increase in mileage will result to a higher cost as well. AAC is only good for residential building rather than for high rising buildings