Brick

**What are they made of?** "Bricks" for building may be made from [|clay], [|shale] , soft slate, [|calcium silicate] , concrete, or shaped from quarried stone. However, true bricks are ceramic, and therefore created by the action of heat and cooling. Clay is the most common material, with modern clay bricks formed in one of three processes - soft mud, dry press, or extruded. Normally, brick contains the following ingredients: Silica (sand) - 50% to 60% by weight Alumina (clay) - 20% to 30% by weight Lime - 2 to 5% by weight Iron oxide - 5 to 6% (not greater than 7%) by weight Magnesia - less than 1% by weight

**What are they used for?** Bricks are used for building and [|pavement]. In the USA, brick pavement was found incapable of withstanding heavy traffic, but it is coming back into use as a method of [|traffic calming] or as a decorative surface in [|pedestrian precincts]. For example, in the early 1900s, most of the streets in the city of [|Grand Rapids], [|Michigan] were paved with brick. Today, there are only about 20 blocks of brick paved streets remaining (totalling less than 0.5 percent of all the streets in the city limits). Bricks in the [|metallurgy] and [|glass] industries for lining [|furnaces]. They have various uses, especially [|refractory] bricks such as [|silica], [|magnesia] , [|chamotte] and neutral ( [|chromomagnesite] ) [|refractory bricks]. This type of brick must have good [|thermal shock] resistance, [|refractoriness] under load, high melting point, and satisfactory [|porosity]. There is a large refractory brick industry, especially in the [|United Kingdom], [|Japan] , the [|United States] , and the [|Netherlands]. In the United Kingdom, bricks have been used in construction for centuries. Until recently, almost all houses were built almost entirely from bricks. Although many houses in the UK are now built using a mixture of [|concrete blocks] and other materials, many houses are skinned with a layer of bricks on the outside for aesthetic appeal. In the UK a [|redbrick university] is one founded and built in the Victorian era, often as a [|technical college]. The term is used as differentiation from older, more [|classics] -oriented universities. Colombian architect [|Rogelio Salmona] was noted for his extensive use of red brick in his buildings and for using natural shapes like spirals, radial geometry and curves in his designs. Most buildings in [|Colombia] are made of brick, given the abundance of clay in equatorial countries like this one. **How many types of brick are there?** //Mud bricks// The soft mud method is the most common, as it is the most economical. It starts with the raw clay, preferably in a mix with 25-30% sand to reduce shrinkage. The clay is first ground and mixed with water to the desired consistency. The clay is then pressed into steel moulds with a [|hydraulic] press. The shaped clay is then fired ("burned") at 900-1000 °C to achieve strength. //Rail kilns// In modern brickworks, this is usually done in a continuously fired tunnel [|kiln], in which the bricks move slowly through the kiln on conveyors, rails, or kiln cars to achieve consistency for all bricks. The bricks often have added lime, ash, and organic matter to speed the burning. //Bull's Trench Kilns// In [|India], brick making is typically a manual process. The most common type of brick kiln in use there are Bull's Trench Kiln (BTK), based on a design developed by British engineer W. Bull in the late 19th century. An oval or circular trench, 6–9 meters wide, 2-2.5 meters deep, and 100–150 meters in circumference, is dug. A tall exhaust chimney is constructed in the centre. Half or more of the trench is filled with "green" (unfired) bricks which are stacked in an open lattice pattern to allow airflow. The lattice is capped with a roofing layer of finished brick. In operation, new green bricks, along with roofing bricks, are stacked at one end of the brick pile; cooled finished bricks are removed from the other end for transport. In the middle the brick workers create a firing zone by dropping fuel (coal, [|wood], oil, debris, and so on.) through access holes in the roof above the trench. The advantage of the BTK design is a much greater energy efficiency compared with [|clamp] or [|scove kilns]. Sheet metal or boards are used to route the airflow through the brick lattice so that fresh air flows first through the recently burned bricks, heating the air, then through the active burning zone. The air continues through the green brick zone (pre-heating and drying them), and finally out the chimney where the rising gases create suction which pulls air through the system. The reuse of heated air yields savings in fuel cost. As with the rail process above, the BTK process is continuous. A half dozen laborers working around the clock can fire approximately 15,000-25,000 bricks a day. Unlike the rail process, in the BTK process the bricks do not move. Instead, the locations at which the bricks are loaded, fired, and unloaded gradually rotate through the trench. //Dry pressed bricks// The dry press method is similar to mud brick but starts with a much thicker clay mix, so it forms more accurate, sharper-edged bricks. The greater force in pressing and the longer burn make this method more expensive. //Extruded bricks// For extruded bricks the clay is mixed with 10-15% [|water] (stiff extrusion) or 20-25% water (soft extrusion). This is forced through a [|die] to create a long cable of material of the proper width and depth. This is then cut into bricks of the desired length by a wall of wires. Most structural bricks are made by this method, as it produces hard, dense bricks, and suitable dies can produce holes or other perforations. The introduction of holes reduces the volume of clay needed, and hence the cost. Hollow bricks are lighter and easier to handle, and have thermal properties different from solid bricks. The cut bricks are hardened by drying for 20 to 40 hours at 50 to 150 °C before being fired. The heat for drying is often waste heat from the [|kiln]. European-style extruded bricks or blocks are used in single-wall construction with finishes applied inside and outside. Their many voids are a greater proportion of the volume than the solid, thin walls of fired clay. Such bricks are made in 15, 25, 30, 42 and 50-cm widths. Some models have very high thermal insulation performance suitable for zero-energy buildings. //Calcium silicate bricks// The raw materials for [|calcium silicate] bricks include [|lime] mixed with [|quartz], crushed [|flint] or crushed siliceous rock together with mineral [|colourants]. The materials are mixed and left until the lime is completely hydrated, the mixture is then pressed into moulds and cured in an [|autoclave] for two or three hours to speed the chemical hardening. The finished bricks are very accurate and uniform, although the sharp [|arrises] need careful handling to avoid damage to brick (and brick-layer). The bricks can be made in a variety of colours, white is common but pastel shades can be achieved. Sck bricks are common in Sweden, especially in houses built or renovated in the 1970s,, and are known as "Mexitegel" (en: Mexi[can] Bricks). In India these are known as Fly ash bricks, manufactured using the FaL-G (fly ash, lime and gypsum) process. Calcium silicate bricks are also manufactured in Canada and the United States, and meet the criteria set forth in ASTM C73 - 10 Standard Specification for Calcium Silicate Brick (Sand-Lime Brick). It has lower embodied energy than cement based man-made stone and clay brick.

**What is the meaning of brick laying techniques?** Bricklaying is a trade that specialises in building and repairing walls, floors, partitions, fireplaces, chimneys, as well as other structures with brick or concrete block. A bricklayer may use their skills for residential or large commercial development projects. Additionally, bricklayers may also refurbish brickwork on restoration projects. Bricklayers are responsible for a variety of work. Typically it involves hands on bricklaying like measuring the work area following the architect's plans, mixing mortar by hand or with a mechanical mixer, laying the bricks and applying the mortar, shaping and trimming bricks using bricklaying tools and checking that the brick wall is straight.

**Describe 2 brick laying techniques** The running bond is the simplest of the six patterns, consisting of all stretchers. Because the bond has no headers, metal ties usually form the structural bond. The running bond is used largely in cavity wall construction, brick veneer walls, and facing tile walls made with extra wide stretcher tile. The common, or American, bond is a variation of the running bond, having a course of full-length headers at regular intervals that provide the structural bond as well as the pattern. Header courses usually appear at every fifth, sixth, or seventh course, depending on the structural bonding requirements. You can vary the common bond with a Flemish header course. In laying out any bond pattern, be sure to start the corners correctly. In a common bond, use a three-quarter closure at the corner of each header course.
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 * What are their advantages and disadvantages?**

Disadvantages:Extreme weather may cause degradation of the surface due to frost damage. This type of damage is common with certain types of brick, though relatively rare with concrete block. If non-concrete (clay-based) brick is to be used, care should be taken to select bricks suitable for the climate in question.Plus, brick adds a lot of weight to the foundation and the high weight increases structural requirements, especially in earthquake prone areas. Advantages:Of all exterior finish products, brick has a greater market appeal. Studies by the National Association of Home Builders and other building organizations continually find that 60% of the nation's homebuyers prefer brick homes. Brick homes command higher selling prices. Brick homes also provide higher profit margins for the builder. To the consumer, a brick home means a sound investment and savings. It increases a home's investment value, sells faster and brings a higher resale price. Brick is virtually maintenance-free. It never needs painting, caulking or staining. Brick won't burn or rot like other finish materials, nor will it chip off at the whim of a woodpecker. Brick won't burn and subsequently can reduce fire insurance premiums by up to 50%. Brick is energy efficient. Its inherent mass qualities help keep a home cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. Brick's mass also makes it a very effective noise insulator as well. **Reply to the podcast** The brick is a great material that resist to water and fire, so the structures built with this material are quite firm and strong, it is also very easy to find and transport it, it is not expensive to be such a good material and is low maintenance. Its efficiency is shown that was used from ancient times.

media type="file" key="Reynaldo's brick recording.wma" width="243" height="243" Brick compares favorably with stone __as__ a structural material Regular bricks __are__ bonded either as headers (short side out) or stretchers (long side out). Special shapes can be produced by molding to meet particular structural or expressive requirements (__for example__, wedge-shaped bricks are sometimes employed in arch construction and bricks with rounded faces in columns). The commonest ancient Roman bricks __were cut into triangles__ and laid with the base out and the apex set into a concrete filling __that provided additional strength__. Brick which has been used __since__ the 4th millennium BC
 * Worksheet 2**
 * 1) //Comparison and contrast//
 * 1) //Description//
 * 1) //Exemplification//
 * 1) //Cause/Effect//
 * 1) //Chronology//