Analysis of micro-morphology and heat-insulating property of leaf concrete

To make full use of leaves as an environmentally-friendly insulating building material, we have done SEM–EDS tests of several kinds of leaves and leaf concrete hydrated products, obtaining main chemical components of a few kinds of leaves and leaf concrete hydrates; analyzed the micro-morphology and hydrates of leaf concrete with different mix ratios and different ages, and tested the heat-isolating property of test specimens with different micro-morphologies. The results indicate that the crushed leaf granules, which mainly contain CK(CaCO3-Feldspar), OK(SiO2-Feldspar), and other elements, differ in form and shape; the micro-morphology of leaf concrete is greatly different from that of ordinary concrete; the structure compactness of leaf concrete hydrates increases with the trial age; with the increase of grain size of leaf granules, the bigger the gel-surrounded and leaf-granules-focused closed spherical foramens, the better the heat-isolating property; the increased amount of leaves helps the formation of hydrate with compact structures, reduces the volume of concrete, diminishes the thermal conductivity, and enhances the heat-insulation effect of the leaf concrete.