Thermo-mechanical characterization of construction material lightened by olive pomace

The development of porous materials requires a thorough knowledge of their physical properties. When used as thermal insulation, the properties that govern their insulating capacity are thermal conductivity, thermal dif-fusivity and specific heat. The presence of moisture, some of its origin, in buildings causes damage to walls that extend from the formation of mold in complete impreg-nation through the degradation of the thermal and mechanical performance. The major objective of this study is to determine the physical properties of a building material lightened by vegetable fiber (concrete pomace olive), used as an insulation bearer. Our goal is to develop and expand the field of use of these materials in con-struction. A judicious choice of additions proportions and implementation techniques will be considered. A particular interest is the thermal characteristics and mechanical strength, which is a decisive criterion for selecting a material in the construction. We determine the thermal conductivity of the materials studied with experimental equipment that allows us to make measurements of the thermal properties under actual use conditions (temperature and humidity) and also the study of the mechanical com-pressive strength of the materials studied and the interest in these materials is highlighted. © The Author(s) 2017. This article is an open access publication.