Sustainable Blocks - Alphalite NSW

Austral Masonry™ manufactures a range of masonry bricks and blocks complying with the requirements of the Australian Standard AS/NZS 4455.1: 2008 Masonry Units.
 

Alphalite gives you:
• Fire rated and sound rated masonry
• Highest Slenderness ratio
• Structural lightweight masonry (15MPa)
• Ease of rendering
• Ease of cutting
• Ability to direct nail or screw
• No efflorescence
• Exposure grade durability
 

Materials

Alphalite masonry units are manufactured at our Port Kembla plant, next door to the supplier of half of the aggregates used to make Alphalite material.
All of the aggregates used in the Alphalite mix are by-product materials. No quarrying of natural sands or stones is required and there is no crushing of stone for coarse aggregates.
Almost half of the cement paste is made up from by-product material.
In total over 80% of the block is made from  a combination of by-products and recycled material.
The small amount of production waste that we generate is re-cycled into the Alphalite mix.
 

Emissions

Alphalite is kiln-cured, but unlike clay masonry units, the heat is low and largely exothermic, with some steam added for even curing.
Alphalite masonry units are 30% lighter than standard concrete masonry. This reduces emissions due to transport.
 

Durability

The masonry structures code: AS3700:2001, Section 5, defines what areas require higher durability and prescribes AS/NZS4456.10 as the method of test.
When tested to AS/NZS4456.10, Alphalite masonry units achieved the “Exposure Grade” rating which AS3700 requires for masonry in “severe marine environments” (areas within 1km of a surf coast or within 100m of tidal waters).
 

Summary

The patented Alphalite mix was designed with the intention of using as much by-product material as possible. No beaches or river beds are disturbed and cement usage is minimised.
Alphalite is low-pressure cured with minimal steam required.
This low embodied energy combines with higher durability to make a favourable life-cycle analysis; at the close of which, Alphalite masonry can be crushed and re-used.