Thus, now, LECA IRAN became the biggest producer of LECA in the region with opening third line and starting construction of fourth line of expanded clay aggregate and third line of lightweight block production.
LECA Iran has been registered under license of LECA International more than 40 years ago. The factory is located at 20 kilometer to Saveh, Iran. By opening the first production line in 1976 which was a start to operate its mass production significantly from 1981 onwards under the name of LECA IRAN. The second production line was started its activity in 2006.
Nowadays, LECA Factory occupied with three operating lines of Lightweight Aggregate with nominal capacity of 750,000 cubic meter per year and three lines of lightweight block production with nominal capacity of 35,000,000 blocks annually.
At the moment LECA taking big steps by constructing fourth line of expanded clay aggregate and one line of lightweight block that will not only make it the biggest expanded clay production in Asia and the Middle East but also in all over the planet.
Expanded Clay aggregate is porous ceramic product with a uniform pore structure. It is manufactured in rotary kilns from raw materials containing clay minerals. The raw material is prepared, palletized and then subjected to a firing process at temperatures between 1100 °C and 1200 °C, resulting in a significant increase in volume due to expansion. The LECA grains internal cellular structure with thousands of air-filled cavities gives thermal and sound insulation properties.
The production of artificial lightweight aggregates becomes more popular due to the scarcity, variability in density and also not well distribution of natural sources all over the world. Among artificial lightweight aggregates, the light expanded clay aggregate (LECA) is manufactured from clay as a widely available raw material that allows a process to manufacture lightweight pebbles with uniform density and better quality.
Scientists are almost certain that human activities causes global warming. The sum of energy which consume to produce materials is called embodied energy. Minimizing this energy helps to reduce Carbon Dioxide footprint (CO2) and as a result decreasing global warming potential.
As LECA Lightweight Aggregate has less density than Normal weight Aggregate, the concrete made out of LECA has an embodied energy almost half of normal weight concrete. Releasing carbon dioxide of lightweight aggregate is about 0.16 kg co2 per kilogram of aggregate comparing with Portland cement which is slightly less than one kg CO2 per kilogram.
Considering an embodied energy criteria and greenhouse gas emissions of LECA Lightweight aggregate either as an aggregate itself or lightweight concrete, this material can make a considerable contribution to enhancing sustainability.
LECA Lightweight Concrete density ranges from 600 kg/m3 to 1900 kg/m3.The use of lightweight concrete especially for structural purposes results in a significant reduction in dead load and the size of the columns and slabs, will decrease the amount of reinforcement steel. All of these savings effects Architects and structural engineer’s decision to use lightweight concrete in many designs.
While LECA is superior in the daily design`s demands such as Fire proofing and Sound Insulation where the main consideration becomes energy conservation, It offers a combination of lightness, Thermal Insulation and low water absorption.
