Study of parameters in making clayey concretes lightened with wood aggregates

The subject of the present study is to highlight the use of clay waste resulting from the operations of aggregate quarries through developing lightened clayey concretes. The lightening is achieved by adding wood aggregates, which are waste materials from woodworking activities. The authors account for the influence of components on the mechanical characteristics of hardened concretes and on the behaviour of the material just after mixing. They propose a formulation allowing the development a dry material with a volumic weight equal to 800 kg/m(3) and a compressive strength, at hydrous stability, equal to 2.5 MPa offering the possibility tof being poured easily. Attempts at treating wood aggregates have proved the necessity for a systematic study to take into account the specificity of clay.