This document defines bricks and their constituents and manufacturing process. It provides the following key details: - Bricks are clay constructions of uniform size and shape, traditionally 23cm x 11.4cm x 7.6cm or modular 19cm x 9cm x 9cm. - Good bricks contain 50-60% silica, 20-30% alumina, up to 5% lime, and 5-6% iron oxide. - Bricks are manufactured through processes of preparation, molding, drying for 7-14 days, and burning at 750-1000°C using clamp or kiln methods. - Various bonds including English, Flemish, stretcher and header are used in brickwork construction

2. CONTENTS
Definition
Constituents of a good brick
Size of bricks
Characteristics of a good brick
Manufacturing process
Classification
Technical Terms
Bonds in brick work
Tests

3. DEFINITION AND SIZE OF BRICK
The artificial material of construction in the form of
clay bricks of uniform size of shape are known as
bricks.
Size of brick
1) Traditional brick:- 23cm X11.4 cm X 7.6 cm
2)Modular Brick :- 19 cm X 9 cm X 9 cm

4. CONSTITUENTS
Silica
Alumina
Lime
Oxide of iron
Magnesia

5. SILICA
Percentage:- 50% to 60%
Function:-
Prevents brick from shrinkage, cracking & warping.
Effect of Excess:-
Makes brick brittle and useless

6. ALUMINA
Percentage:- 20% to 30%
Function:-
Absorbs water and imparts plasticity to clay so that
it can properly molded.
Effect of Excess:-
Shrink and warp during drying & burning.

7. LIME
Percentage:- should not exceed 5%
Function:-
Binding particles together.
It allows sand to fuse or to melt during burning.
Effect of Excess:-
Cause to brick melt and loose it’s shape..

8. OXIDES OF IRON
Percentage:- 5% to 6%
Function:-
Imparts color.
It helps to fuse the lime & sand during burning.
Bind particles to give hardness & Strength.
Effect of Excess:-
Bricks becomes dark blue.

9. MAGNESIA
Percentage:- about 1 %
Function:-
Decrease shrinkage
Gives yellow tint to brick.
Effect of Excess:-
Decay of Brick.

10. CHACTERISTICS OF A GOOD BRICK
Brick should have sharp edges.
Brick shall not break in to pieces when dropped from
height about 1 meter.
Brick shall have low thermal conductivity.
Brick shall be sound proof.
Brick when broken shall show a homogeneous and
uniform compact structure, free from voids.
When soaked in water for 24 hour, brick shall not show
deposit of white salt when allow to dry.
Brick shall not have crushing strength less than
55kg/cm2
.

11. MANUFACTURING PROCESS
Preparation of Clay or Brick earth
Unsoiling- to remove impurities of organic matter in
top soil up to 20 cm.
Digging:- Clay is dug out & laid on leveled ground a
little below the general surface.
Cleaning- stone, vegetable matter removed.
Weathering- cleaned earth is spread and exposed to
weather for few months.
Blending- mixing of clay/sand/other material.
Tampering- water is added to clay and it is kneaded.
Cont……

12. Moulding
Hand moulding.
Machine moulding.
Drying: 7 to 14 days.
Burning at 750.
C to 1000.
C.
Clamp burning
Kiln burning
Cont……

13. Clamp Burning:-
No control on burning.
Bottom bricks are over burnt hence become brittle.
Top bricks are under burnt hence become soft.
Kiln burning:-
Better control on burning.
Gives good quality bricks.
It gives better hardness and strength to bricks.
Bricks are more dense & durable.

14. CLASSIFICATION
First Class bricks
Second Class bricks
Third Class bricks
Silica bricks
Fire bricks
Fly ash bricks

15. TECHNICAL TERMS

16. TECHNICAL TERMS
Frog: It is an indentation or depression on the top
face of a brick made with the object of forming a key
for the mortar.
Head: It is a brick or stone, which lies with its
greatest length at right angles to the face of the work.
Stretcher: It is a brick or a stone which lies with its
congest side parallel to the face of the work
Course: A course is a horizontal layer of bricks stones
Header Course: A course of brick work showing only
headers on the exposed face of the wall is known as
header course.

17. TECHNICAL TERMS

18. TECHNICAL TERMS
Stretcher Course: A course of brick work showing
only stretchers on the exposed face of the wall is
known as stretcher course.
Bond: The method of arranging bricks so that the
individual units are tied together
Quoins: The stones used for the corners of walls of
structure
Bat: It is a portion of a brick cut across the width.
Closer: It is the portion of a brickcut in such a
manner that its one long face remains uncut

20. TECHNICAL TERMS

21. TECHNICAL TERMS
Queen closer: it is the portion of a brick obtained by
cutting a brick length-wise into two portions.
King closer: It is the portion of brick obtained by
cutting off the triangular piece between the centre of
one end and the centre of one side.
Bevelled closer: It is the portion of a brick in which
the whole length of the brick is bevelled for
maintaining half width at one end and full width at
the other.

22. BONDS IN BRICK WORK
Stretcher Bond
Header Bond
English Bond
Flemish Bond
Garden Wall Bond
Zigzag Bond

23. STRETCHER BOND
Bricks are laid as stretchers on the faces of walls.
This pattern is used in only for those walls which
have thickness of half-brick.
It is used as partition walls, division walls etc.
The bond is not possible if the thickness of the wall is
more.

24. STRETCHER BOND

25. HEADER BOND
Bricks are laid as headers on the faces of walls.
The pattern is used only when the thickness of the
wall is equal to one brick.
This bond does not have strength to transmit
pressure in the direction of the length of wall.
It is used in construction of footing.

26. HEADER BOND

27. ENGLISH BOND
In this type of bond alternate course of headers and
stretchers are laid.
This bond is considered to be the strongest.
In this bond, the vertical joints of the of the header
course come over each other; similarly, the vertical
joints of the stretcher course also come over each other.
Every alternate header comes centrally over the joint
between two stretchers in course below.
There is no continuous vertical joint.
It is necessary to place queen closer in the heading
course for breaking the joints vertically.

28. ENGLISH BOND

29. FLEMISH BOND
In this type of bond, each course is comprised of
alternate headers and stretchers.
This bond creates better appearance than English
Bond.
This bond is not as strong as English bond and is not
used generally.
Every alternate course starts with a headers at the
corner.
It is of two types:-
Double flemish bond
Single flemish bond

30. FLEMISH BOND

31. COMPARISON OF ENGLISH & FLEMISH
BOND
English bond is stronger than Flemish bond.
Flemish bond gives more pleasing appearance than
the English bond.
Broken bricks can be used in the form of bats in
Flemish bond. However more mortar is required.
Construction with Flemish bond requires greater skill
in comparison to English bond.

32. GARDEN WALL BOND
As the name suggests, this type of bond is used for
the construction of garden walls, boundary walls,
compound walls.
It is used where the thickness of the wall is one brick
thick & the height does not exceed two meters
This type of bond is not so strong as English bond,
but is more attractive.

33. GARDEN WALL BOND

34. ZIGZAG BOND
In this bond bricks are laid in zigzag fashion.
This type of bond is commonly used for making
ornamental panels in the brick flooring.