Masonry Magazine July 2006 Page. 34
GROUT
Self-consolidating Grout
ONE OF THE MOST exciting new areas is the advent of self-consolidating grout (SCG). This is an offshoot of the self-consolidating concrete industry. Using new grout formulations incorporating a newer class of chemical admixtures called poly-carboxylates develops very fluid, but stable, mixes. These materials can make a cementitious mixture have a flowing consistency. For the tight spaces where grout is required to flow, these mixes have a distinct advantage. Not only do they get where they need to be, they require no vibration to do so.
Another potential advantage of SCG is that it's easier to place the material-walls can be grouted faster and/or with smaller crews. In conventional grouting, grout is placed into the cores and then vibrated to consolidate it. In fact, assuring that grout has filled the cores of the block is one of the most important inspection items in conventional grouting. The already constricted core space contains reinforcement, and grout has to completely fill this space as it embeds the reinforcement. Compared to traditional grout, a fluid material like SCG can more easily accomplish those objectives.
As a new type of product, SCG is being studied to learn about its behavior in anticipation of its introduction to building codes. The National Concrete Masonry Association (NCMA) is conducting research into both fresh and hardened properties of the material to ensure satisfactory performance.
In all, SCG formulations, with the promise of saving construction time or reducing labor, offer an opportunity to make masonry an even more competitive building system.
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Self-consolidating grout moves freely in tight spaces, as seen through the clear plastic on this demonstration panel.
The Highs and Lows of Grouting
GROUTING TECHNIQUES have been developed to ensure that walls are completely grouted. Section 1.16.1 of the 2005 Masonry Standards Joint Committee (MSJC) Code outlines provisions for the designer. Low- and high-lift grouting are both traditional grouting methods, with the difference being the height of lift. Lifts five feet or less are considered low lift, while lifts greater than five feet are considered to be high lift.
The MSJC Code and Specification previously limited builders to a maximum lift height of five feet for grout placement. In 2005, code developers introduced language allowing contractors to exceed that five-foot lift limitation. Article 3.5 of the MSJC Specification addresses grout placement, where it states that grout can be placed in lifts up to 12.67 feet tall, as long as the following three conditions are met:
* The masonry has cured for at least four hours (might need more time if the weather is cold);