ABSTRACT
Wood-cement compounds (WCCs) are composite materials made of wooden aggregates and mineral (cement) binders. These materials are widely used as prefabricated panels in the construction industry. A main obstacle for using casted WCC in construction elements is high shrinkage of the young product and frequently difficult workability of the mixes. This project addresses both of these problems by developing self-compacting low-shrinkage WCCs. An-other objective of the study is to reduce cement content, which is typically very high in WCCs (500 to 700 kg/m3 of Portland cement). By replacing Portland cement with inert fillers or pozzolanic waste materials, the environmental impact of the WCCs can be lowered and a “greener” cement-based material is created. To assess the effectiveness of the developed recipes, WCC specimens are evaluated with regard to shrinkage, workability and mechanical performance.
