Technical Feasibility of Using Lightweight Concrete with Expanded Polystyrene in Civil Construction Jonas Alexandre 1,a , Afonso Rangel Garcez Azevedo¹ ,b , Caio Lobato de Assis Paula e Silva Silva¹ ,c , Carlos Mauricio Fontes Vieira 2,d , Veronica Scarpini Cândido 3,e and Sergio Neves Monteiro 3,f 1 Laboratório de Engenharia Civil – LECIV, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense. Av. Alberto Lamego, 2000, Horto, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brazil. 2 Laboratório de Materiais Avançados - LAMAV, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense. Av. Alberto Lamego, 2000, Horto, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, Brazil. 3 Department of Materials Science, Military Intitute of Engineering - IME, Praça General Tibúrcio, 80, Praia Vermelha, Urca, RJ, CEP 22290-270, Urca, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. a jonas@uenf.brl, b afonso.garcez91@gmail.com, c caio_lobato_414@hotmail.com, d vieira@uenf.br, e v.scarpini@yahoo.com.br, f sergio.neves@ig.com.br Keywords: Expanded polystyrene, civil construction, light concrete. Abstract. The civil construction sector is considered among one of the most polluting to the environment because of the huge amount of wastes generated in its processes. Lighter and more rational structures not only reduces the amount of waste but also decrease the final price of the buildings and thus become more accessible to lower income population. One possible solution for reducing the weight of building structures is the application of light materials to the concrete, which represents a relatively larger part of the construction cost. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the compressive resistance of a concrete using expanded polystyrene (EPS), as an addition, by replacing the sand. This addition was found to provide lightness as well as economy and flexibility to structures. However, the highest strength obtained was 8.86 MPa. According to the results, it is recommended that the use of EPS should be restricted to non-structural concretes, for which the required strength is below 20 MPa, following the standards prescribed by the regulations. Introduction The use of lightweight concrete in civil construction is nowadays becoming increasingly widespread since it presents a large variety of applications. For the manufacture of lightweight concrete there are various materials available for this purpose in the market. One of the most used is the expanded polystyrene (EPS), also known as Styrofoam  . This material has gained a stable position in the construction industry by being an insulating material, lightweight, sturdy and easy to handle, in addition to its relatively low cost [1]. In 1949, Fritz Stastny and Karl Buchhoz synthesized the EPS in the laboratories of the BASF Company in Germany. EPS beads with 3 mm in diameter when subjected to expansion through steam, changed to 50 times its initial size. In fact, the beads are composed of 2% of polystyrene and 98% of air for a density of less than 0.1 g/cm 3 . Since the EPS contains in its composition pentane, a hydrocarbon that in contact with the sun's rays deteriorates rapidly, it can be recycled back to the condition of a raw material. Bezerra [2] indicated that, more than four decades ago, there was a prediction that the lightweight concrete containing EPS would have a great importance in the construction industry. A lighter concrete presents numerous advantages over a conventional concrete made only on cement, sand and gravel. The lightweight concrete can be fabricated with high quality standard anywhere in the world, being an easy molding material, which greatly facilitates architectural designs. It can be produced in conventional mixer, using cement, sand and EPS Styrofoam  beads, before molded in the final form. Transportation is simply carried out using wheelbarrow or truck bomb, like the conventional concrete. As a low density material, there is a great ease in handling the lightweight concrete. The EPS beads serve as fillers and must be incorporated together with other heavier components, such as sand and cement, in order to obtain a concrete with required resistance after curing. In the Materials Science Forum Vols. 798-799 (2014) pp 347-352 Online available since 2014/Jun/30 at www.scientific.net © (2014) Trans Tech Publications, Switzerland doi:10.4028/www.scientific.net/MSF.798-799.347 All rights reserved. No part of contents of this paper may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without the written permission of TTP, www.ttp.net. (ID: 186.203.236.108-05/09/14,04:58:46)