Abstract

The increase in cost of building materials has pushed scientists and engineers to search for composites boards reinforced with cheap and eco-friendly materials. The dimensional stability of ceiling boards produced from gypsum reinforced with natural fibres was assessed. Twenty-seven (27) medium density boards of 600kg/m3 having dimension 200 x 200 x 10mm were produced from Plaster of Paris (POP) in combination with Cocos nucifera, Thaumatococcus danielli and yarns at four different mixing proportion of 100%, 75%, 50% and 25%. Water absorption (WA) and thickness swelling (TS) properties of the experimental boards were assessed after 24 and 48 hours using standard methods. Data obtained were analyzed using descriptive statistics and analysis of variance at p<0.05 level of significance. Boards obtained from different mixing proportion of gypsum, natural and synthetic fibres displayed water absorption values which ranged from 4.18 to 26.01% and thickness swelling values of 1.11 to 3.6%. The percentage of WA and TS reduces as the percentage of natural fibres to synthetic fibres increases. Hence, it is concluded that gypsum reinforced with natural fibres are reliable materials which could be used to produce ceiling boards for low-cost housing constructions