Prepared and presented by:

Purchia Jeda A. Pague

TRANSLUCENT CONCRETE ARS1 – 05815 (4:30-5:30 P.M.)
Ar. Alvin V. Morales
 TRANSLUCENT CONCRETE
Is the integration of both concrete
and optical fibers.
 Brainchild of a conceptual thought Aron Losonczi and his conceptual design of a
of Aron Losonczi Hungarian “glass” concrete in 2003.
architect in 2001.
Originally used glass instead of
optic fiber in 2003.
Later released and commercially
sold as LiTraCon on to the market in
2004.
An example of an optic fiber commonly used in
(Kashiyani, B. K., Raina, V., Pitroda, J., & Shah, D. B., 2013) telecommunications
 Short for “Light-Transmitting
Concrete” An example of an application of the LiTraCon
 Is the trademark for pre-fabricated panels.

translucent building material

 Is lightweight and has an
appealing aesthetical quality.
 Made of 96% concrete and
4% optical fiber.
An example of an application of the LiTraCon pre-fabricated
panel as interior decorative signage and piece.
(Kashiyani, B. K., Raina, V., Pitroda, J., & Shah, D. B., 2013)
 ITALIAN PAVILION – SHANGHAI EXPOSITON 2010

An example of an application of the LiTraCon pre-fabricated An interior view of the Italian Pavilion at the Shanghai
panels on the Italian Pavilion’s exteriors at the Shanghai Exposition 2010 in China during day time.
Exposition in 2010.
 COARSE WASTE GLASS ALTERNATIVE
Composition of the Translucent Concrete Panels with coarse waste glass
inclusions are more ideal for internal wall applications rather than for
an exterior envelope due to their inability to couple well with insulating
materials and other materials used for external envelope.
(Pagliolico, et al., 2015)

Light Transmissoin effect of a single BC panel (50x50x2.5 cm) in a clear sky day (a); LT of an interior real BC wall during
a clear sky day (b), an afternoon sky day (c) and in an electric lighting condition at night (d); illuminance measurements
under the sun simulator (e) and the sky scanning simulator (f
 GROUND GRANULATED BLAST-FURNACE SLAG
(GGBS) ALTERNATIVE
Fifty percent (50%) of a partial GGBS replacement done on the
Portland Cement content yielded good results in terms of their
respective compressive strength after curing periods of 7, 14, 21 and
28 days.
(Harika & Reddy, 2017)

Arrangement of Optical Fibers (left) and Casting of Cubes with GGBS as a Compressive strength test for after
Replacement to Portland Cement. specific curing periods.
 COSTING
Table 6.1: Cost comparison of materials.
Material Price
Plastic Optical Fiber (Commercial Grade) Php 57.45/meter (3.83 g/m)
Coarse Waste Glass Virtually none, can be procured from recycling
centers.

Material Price
Ground Granulated Blast-Furnace Slag (GGBS) Php 80/50kg (approx. Php 65/bag of 40 kg)
Portland Pozzolana Cement Php 255/bag (40 kg)
Sand Php 600/ cu. M.
COSTING
Translucent Concrete with Optical Fiber Block with
LiTraCon Pre-cast Blocks End Pricing.
Class “A” (1:2:4) mix.

Material Cubic Unit Price Price

Panel Min. Available Net Price
Meter (Php)
Thickness Quantity Block Std. per Sq. m.
(mm) Order Dimensions (Php/Sq.m.) Cement 0.0126 40/bag 5.03
Sand 0.0063 600/cu.m. 3.78
150 (6 in.) 3 245203.59 Coarse
600 x
Aggregate 0.0126 700/cu.m. 8.81
300mm (24
(Gravel)
in. x 12in.) to
1200 x Optical
200 (8 in.) 2 400mm (47 315838.12 Fiber 0.0058 57.45/m 0.33
in. x 15 in) (4%)
Total 17.95
 COSTING
Translucent Concrete with Coarse Waste Glass Translucent Concrete with GGBS Block with Class “A” (1:2:4) mix
Block with Class “A” (1:2:4) mix.

Material Cubic Unit Price Price Material Cubic Unit Price Price
Meter (Php) Meter (Php)
Cement 0.0126 40/bag 5.03 Cement 0.063 40/bag 0.25
Sand 0.0063 600/cu.m. 3.78 GGBS 0.063 65/40kg 0.41
Coarse Sand 0.0063 600/cu.m. 3.78
Aggregate 0.0126 700/cu.m. 8.81 Coarse
(Gravel) Aggregate 0.0126 700/cu.m. 8.81
(Gravel)
Coarse None;
None;
Waste can be found Coarse
0.0058 00 can be found
Glass at recycling Waste Glass 0.0058 00
at recycling
Inclusion centers. Inclusion
centers.
Total 17.62 Total 13.25
ESTIMATE
Socalized Housing
Parameters
(B.P. 220)
Unit
Total Total
Material Compressive Total Wall
Strength Price per unit or Total Floor Height of
Dimensions Area Total Price
Material (N/mm²) Sq.m No. of Area Area
(Thk. x With 8000lb
Covered (Php)
(Php) Units Covered Covered
Length x Load (Sq.m.)
(Sq.m.) (Meter)
Height)
150mm x
18
LiTraCon 600 mm x
(5 m x
Light 300 mm
24,5203.59/Sq. 4.5 m) 13,976,604.
Transmitting (6 in. x 24 70 320 3 57
m. 18 63
Concrete in. x 12 in.)
(5 m x
Blocks
4.5 m)
ESTIMATE
Socalized Housing
Parameters
(B.P. 220)
Unit
Total Total
Material Compressive Total Wall
Strength Price per unit or Total Floor Height of
Dimensions Area Total Price
Material (N/mm²) Sq.m No. of Area Area
(Thk. x With 8000lb
Covered (Php)
(Php) Units Covered Covered
Length x Load (Sq.m.)
(Sq.m.) (Meter)
Height)

Translucent 18
150mm x
Concrete with (5 m x
400 mm x
Optical Fiber 4.5 m)
00 mm 70 17.95/pc. 712 3 57 12780.4
Block with 18
(6 in. x 8 in.
Class “A” (5 m x
x 16 in. )
(1:2:4) mix 4.5 m)
ESTIMATE
Socalized Housing
Parameters
(B.P. 220)
Unit
Total Total
Material Compressive Total Wall
Strength Price per unit or Total Floor Height of
Dimensions Area Total Price
Material (N/mm²) Sq.m No. of Area Area
(Thk. x With 8000lb
Covered (Php)
(Php) Units Covered Covered
Length x Load (Sq.m.)
(Sq.m.) (Meter)
Height)
Translucent 150mm x 18
Concrete with 400 mm x (5 m x
Coarse Waste 00 mm 712 4.5 m)
Glass Block (6 in. x 8 in. 62 17.62/pc. 18 3 57 12545.44
with Class x 16 in.) (5 m x
“A” (1:2:4) 4.5 m)
mix.
 ESTIMATE
Socalized Housing
Parameters
(B.P. 220)
Unit Material Compressive Total Total
Total Wall
Dimensions Strength Price per unit or Total Floor Height of
Area Total Price
Material (Thk. x (N/mm²) Sq.m No. of Area Area
With 8000lb
Covered (Php)
Length x (Php) Units Covered Covered
Load (Sq.m.)
Height) (Sq.m.) (Meter)
Translucent
Concrete with 18
GGBS Cement 150mm x (5 m x
Replacement 400 mm x 4.5 m)
and Coarse 00 mm 58 13.25/pc. 712 18 3 57 9434
Waste Glass (6 in. x 8 in. (5 m x
Inclusion Block x 16 in.) 4.5 m)
with Class “A”
(1:2:4) mix.
 ADVANTAGES
 Transmits light from one side to other, natural or artificial.
 Reduces the need for large consumption of energy.
 It is an economical solution and saves huge amount of money to be
expended over electricity.
 Can be used in cold countries as fine architecture façade, to transmit heat
with sunlight to the inner end.
 Gives the benefit of using less lights in the day time.
 Lightweight with good compressive strength.

(Sharma & Reddy, 2017)

REFERENCES
Harika, B. M., & Reddy, A. K. (2017, April). Low Cost Translucent Concrete. International Journal and Magazine of Engineering, Technology,
Management and Research, 4(4), 351-359.

Kashiyani, B. K., Raina, V., Pitroda, J., & Shah, D. B. (2013). A Study on Transparent Concrete: A Novel Architectural Material to Explore
Construction Sector. International Journal of Engineering and Innovative Technology, 2(8), 83-86.

Pagliolico, S. L., Lo Verso, V. R., Torta, A., Giraud, M., Canonico, F., & Ligi, L. (2015). A Preliminary Study on Light Transmittance Properties of
Translucent Concrete Panels with Coarse Waste Glass Inclusions. Energy Procedia, 78, 1811-1816.

Paul, S., & Dutta, A. (2013, October). Translucent Concrete. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 3(10).

Pradheepa, R., & Krishnamoorthi, R. (2015). An Experimental Study on Translucent Concrete. International Journal for Scientific Research &
Development, 3(3).

Sawant, A., Jugdar, R., & Chougule, V. (2014, December). Experimental Work on Light Transmitting Concrete By Using Optical Fibre.
International Journal of Advanced Technology in Engineering and Science, 2(12), 636-645.

Sharma, S., & Reddy, O. (2017, March). Transparent Concrete. International Journal of Engineering Sciences and Research Technology, 6(3),
306-308.
END OF PRESENTATION