AAC PANEL RESEARCH

The aerated nature of AAC facilitates breathability. There are no toxic substances and no odour in the final product. However, AAC is a concrete product and calls for precautions similar to those for handling and cutting concrete products.

It is advisable to wear personal protective equipment such as gloves, eye wear and respiratory masks during cutting, due to the fine dust produced by concrete products. If low-toxic, vapour permeable coatings are used on the walls and care is taken not to trap moisture where it can condense, AAC may be an ideal material for homes for the chemically sensitive.

Weight for weight, AAC has manufacturing, embodied energy and greenhouse gas emission impacts similar to those of concrete, but can be up to one-quarter to one-fifth that of concrete based on volume.
AAC products or building solutions may have lower embodied energy per square metre than a concrete alternative. In addition, AAC&rsquo is much higher insulation value reduces heating and cooling energy consumption.

AAC has some significant environmental advantages over conventional construction materials, addressing longevity, insulation and structural demands in one material. As an energy and material investment it can often be justified for buildings intended to have a long life.

Offcuts from construction can be returned to the manufacturer for recycling, or be sent out as concrete waste for reuse in aggregates; alternatively, the odd pieces can be used directly for making, for example, garden walls or landscape features.
 
The clear difference between the lower and higher course of blockwork in the loadbearing AAC walls of an apartment building under construction shows the difference in quality that can be achieved with the same material by differently skilled tradespeople.

NEXT: RESEARCH OF AAC