Rice Husk Ash as a Suitable Aggregates for Concrete Production and Sustainable Building Material in Enugu State Urban, Southeast Nigeria

Abstract

Rise husk ash, a by- product from the burning of rice husk during the parboiling process, is a great threat to the environment causing damage to the land and the surrounding areas in which it is dumped. Nigeria being a major rice producing country, creates about 5.2million tons of rice and 1.2 tons of rice husk annually, most of which is disposed in nearby rivers or lands of the rice mills. Though, finding and giving a suitable application of this by product may have a great impact on reducing pollution, reuse and economic benefits for the society. In this paper, the potentiality of Rice Husk Ash is discussed as a sustainable building material. The objectives of this paper are to identify the physical properties of rice husk ash, to examine the various application of rice husk ash as a sustainable building material and to investigate the use of RHA as a sustainable building material in Enugu urban area. The study observed that 63.5 percent of building developers and owners of industries uses rice husk ash as additive in block production and 21.5 percent of them use it as waterproof agent in building foundation. Based on the findings of the study, the study recommends that rice husk ash stabilized concrete block can be a potential alternative which will be sustainable not only by its cost and energy efficiency, but also by turning agricultural waste into block producing material.