International Journal of Latest Research in Engineering and Technology (IJLRET) ISSN: 2454-5031 www.ijlret.com || Volume 02 - Issue 07 || July 2016 || PP. 62-73 www.ijlret.com 62 | Page Manufacturing of building blocks using Hempcrete Nayana Manohari T K 1 , Sunil H G 2 , Devika Rani 3 , Akshay Kumar 4 1 (Civil Engineering, Sai Vidya Institute of Technology/ VTU, India) 2 (Civil Engineering, Sai Vidya Institute of Technology/ VTU, India) 3 (Civil Engineering, Sai Vidya Institute of Technology/ VTU, India) 4 (Civil Engineering, Sai Vidya Institute of Technology/ VTU, India) ABSTRACT: Hemp (Cannabis sativa) is an agricultural crop that can be used as a building material in combination with lime and cement. A composite building material that combines a cementitious binder (building limes and cement) with hemp shives, the woodycore of the hemp stalk is generally referred to as hemp concrete (HC). However,industrial facilities to separate hemp shives and fibres are currently not available in India. HC has many advantages as a building material but it is not load-bearing and must be used in combination with a load-bearing RCC frame.The aim of this research was to evaluate the feasibility of using both hemp shives and fibres in a HC to determine an optimal mix of the different binding agents and to investigate if adding cement binder would improve mechanical strength of the material. The effects on compressive strength of pre-mixing the binder or creating perforations in the test specimens were also investigated. KEYWORDS : Concrete, Fibers, Hempcrete, Lime, OPC 1. INTRODUCTION The rapid ascending interest in sustainable development has been the case in many developed countries. It is due to the fact that the depletion of raw materials and resources has been extensive and almost non-controllable leading to major environmental impacts and concerns. For example, the production of paper, power, and concrete has exploited natural resources such as trees, fossil fuel, and rock aggregates, respectively. Sustainable development aims at saving natural resources without negatively affecting the living standard of societies and communities. Sustainable construction materials are gaining more interest worldwide because of their positive environmental impact and alleviation role. Sustainable materials must complement the performance requirements and the saving of natural resources. In the construction industry, concrete is one of the main components that contribute to the natural resources depletion due to the large amounts of aggregates consumed during the production process. Besides, the cement production contributes to the greenhouse gas production affecting global warming and climate change, i.e. every one ton of cement production results in about one ton of emission. The current trend is to produce a durable concrete of high performance, instead of a very high strength concrete and less durable. Durable concrete is expected to last longer and to sustain its quality when exposed to freeze and thaw, chlorides and chemical attacks, and dynamic and impact loads, without being deteriorated. Sustainable materials and buildings are characterized by their long-term cycle cost and durability, compared to traditional materials where the initial cost is only of concern. Using concrete for construction is causing rapid material depletion and is leading to drastic environmental impact on the nature and surroundings. This issue has been of major concern worldwide and particularly in the local context of Lebanon. Sustainable concrete material may be described as a concrete recycled from existing concrete material, or a green concrete produced by incorporating waste materials and reducing the use of natural aggregates. In general, it is of interest to produce a new material with an acceptable performance while saving on natural resources. The reduction of aggregates agrees well with some of the sustainable interests, while the use of agricultural fibres agrees with the development of agricultural activities and farming prosperity. The addition of industrial hemp fibres and hurds into concrete masonry blocks would result in the reduction of the aggregate material used and the improvement of thermal properties, similarly to hemp-fibre-reinforced concrete. It is worth noting that in the current research, the hemp material is added as raw material, without any treatment, in order to simplify the manufacturing process. The use of hemp as an agricultural waste material in concrete masonry blocks would promote a wide market for industrial hemp usage. Concrete masonry blocks are mainly used, as non-load bearing members, for partitioning and external façade, in any construction job. When the thermal properties of the masonry units are improved, the result is mainly reflected in improving the insulation potential of the building units. Consequently, the demand for air conditioning would be decreased resulting in major savings with respect to fuel demand and consumption. Specifically, nowadays fuel crisis have been reflected in the sharp increase in the fuel prices worldwide and locally, which has exhausted the economical status of developing countries, affecting mostly the poor community. Besides, the addition of hemp material to