Optimizing the Thermal Resistance of Concrete Using The Palm Tree Fronds Fibers

Abstract

In the past few years, the issue of global warming has become increasingly visible. Record high as well as record low temperatures are being broken worldwide. Snow is melting in the poles and less sunrays are being reflected causing more temperature to be absorbed by Earth. One of the main reasons of global warming is burning the fossil fuels for producing electrical energy. One of the household items that consumes a lot of electricity is the air conditioner. In the U.S. alone, it is estimated that every airconditioned house produces two tons of carbon dioxide every year. It is believed that if better insulation systems are used in our houses, especially in the GCC area, the use of air conditioners can be optimized to consume less electricity. The main aim of this project is to come up with an environmentally friendly building insulation system that reduces the electrical consumption used in air conditioners in our houses. PTF was prepared and used as a natural free resource that is available locally in the GCC. Several mixes with different PTF ratios have been prepared and tested for thermal insulation and structural integrity. The results indicate a significant improvement in the R value of concrete. This additive also affected the compressive strength of concrete. It was found that replacing of fine aggregate with less than 1% of PTF will increase the R value of concrete without affecting the strength capacity significantly.