Laterite as a prime masonry material for housing construction in Malabar region of western India

Laterite stone blocks are being used as masonry material for housing construction in Malabar region of western India for ages, because of being abundant, relatively easy to cut and shape and showing good performance in many applications. The use of machinery for quarrying of laterite in the last decade resulted in large-scale production of good quality laterite to meet the growing demand in housing construction. This study discusses various advantages of laterite as a masonry material compared to other materials. It also throws light on improving the overall use of laterite in housing construction. Laterite masonry material from Malabar region was evaluated based on its performance in traditional buildings and also by determining engineering properties of fresh laterite from widely located quarries within the region. The wide variation seen in the compressive strength of laterite from the same region brings out the need for testing laterite before using in engineering applications. The results show that laterite from Malabar region of Kerala is weak, but can be successfully used for housing construction. The high water absorption capacity of the material suggests adopting suitable damp protection methods to improve performance of laterite masonry structures. Copyright © 2006 IAHS.