U-BOOT TECHNOLOGY IN CONSTRUCTION 2019

I. INTRODUCTION

The voided slabs are reinforced concrete slabs in which voids allow to reduce the amount
of concrete. In building construction, slab is very important structural member to make a space.
And the slab is one of the largest member consuming concrete. The main obstacle with concrete
constructions, in case of horizontal slabs, is the high weight, which limits the span. For this
reason major developments of reinforced concrete have focused on enhancing the span
reducing the weight or overcoming concrete’s natural weakness in tension. In a general way
the slab was design only to resist vertical load. However recently due to more use at domestic
level slabs are subjected to more noise and vibration, so to minimize it there is need to increase
the thickness which ultimately result in increased weight of slab. Increasing the slab thickness
makes the slabs heavier, and will increase column and foundation size. Thus, it makes buildings
consuming more materials such as concrete and steel reinforcement. To avoid these
disadvantages which were caused by increasing of self-weight of slabs, the voided slab system
is used.
With depleting natural resources, deteriorating environmental conditions and tough
economic times, Engineers and Researchers worldwide are seeking to introduce technology
that is environment-friendly and cost effective. Developments in the building industry are
geared toward cost effective and environmentally sustainable construction. Concrete is the
most common construction material used in the world and cement is the main ingredient in
concrete. However, cement manufacturing is a source of greenhouse gas emissions, accounting
for approximately 7% to 8% of CO2 globally. Due to these facts, it is important to reduce the
environmental impacts of cement production by reducing the quantity of concrete used in
construction.
A new system is introduced in order to increase the span of slab and to decrease CO2
production was patented in 2001 by an Italian engineer, Roberto II Grande. U-Boot Beton, or
U-boot, is a voided slab system from the Italian company Daliform. U-boot does not use
spherical void formers like previous systems, but uses truncated-pyramid shaped void formers
instead. These void formers create many grid shaped beams making up the slab.

U-Boot Beton is a recycled polypropylene formwork that can be used to create two way
voided slabs and rafts. U-boot beton is the simple solution for most problems in laying slabs
and laying foundations where the capacity of the layer soil is very low. It can be used as a
replacement for raft foundation where slabs were used to distribute the loads to the deeper soils.

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But we use U-boot betons for transferring loads to deeper soils in U-boot technology.
Disposable formwork for two-way voided slabs in reinforced concrete cast on site. U-Boot
Beton is used to create slabs with large span or that are able to support large loads without
beams. U boot beton is consist of two different types of betons. They are single u-boot beton
and double u-boot beton. The single u boot beton is generally used while laying single
reinforced slabs where as we use double u-boot beton for laying of double reinforced slabs.
Single U boot beton is generally an open type polypropylene box which can be closed by using
a closing plate to resist the entry of concrete into the beton. Double U boot beton consists of
two boxes which are closed against each other. The width between shuttering and u-boot is
called as spacer consist of sharp edges which can be fixed into the lower reinforcement. Spacer
helps u-boot not to move aside when concrete is placed.

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CONCEPT OF U-BOOT TECHNOLOGY

BENDING STRESS CONCEPT

In this type of slab due to U-boot betons voids created in central section and the cross
section behaves like as I section. We all know I section is the best section to take more bending
stresses by saving concrete material.

SHEAR STRESS CONCEPT

Generally, slabs are safe against shear stresses. In this type of slab, the negligible
amount of shear stresses is taken at columns. So, at corners column caps are provided to take
shear stresses. This is achieved by providing solid section at columns by do not providing U-
boot betons at corners.

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The technology of U-Boot Beton is inspired from Human Bone structure to create the
voided slab using cement concrete and steel.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

[1] Akshay Bhoite (2019)

In this paper, an experimental study is carried out on conventional slab and voided slab with
U-boot technology. Concrete is made of standard Portland cement with max aggregate size of
20 mm, steel reinforcement is Fe500 grade. 8mm diameter steel bar is used, U-boot-Generally,
they used to be recycled plastic material slab with normal concrete of grade M25 and Voided
Slab with normal concrete of grade M25. As per the study, this technology is not feasible for
small works as the smaller U-BOOT size does not achieve economy as compared to mass and
Concrete usage is reduced as 1 kg of recycled plastic replaces 8 kg of concrete. This avoids the
cement production and allows reduction in global CO2 emissions. Hence this technology is
environmentally green and sustainable.

[2] Bhuvaneshwari P (2015)

In this paper, Finite element analysis is performed using ANSYS software on six specimens
in which 3 are solid slabs and others are voided slabs. The slab specimens made with
dimensions 1500 × 1500 × 100 mm are tested with symmetric boundary conditions. The void
diameter is taken as 70 mm with a wall thickness of 1 mm and is assumed to be made up of
HDPP. The clear spacing between the voids varied between 30, 50 and 70 mm. The voids with
a spacing of 30 mm prove to be more efficient because even though removes 20% of concrete,
the deflection shown by the specimen is near to that of solid slabs. The results from finite
element analysis are compared with that of plate theory which is used to compute reference
values of deflection for corresponding load. The maximum deflection observed for V30 slab
was 19.52 mm by numerical methods.

[3] C S Aslam Basha (2019)

This paper, deals with voided slabs using U-boot beton technology made by recycled
polypropylene. The technology is designs for light weight slabs in RCC. It is a solution to build
slabs of large spans with more bearing capacity. It is simple to use. U-Boot its lightweight,
stability, modularity, can be used to make structures without mechanical helps of equipment.
By using U-boot beton, it is easy to build raft foundations with a low quantity of concrete. It
reduces the construction time and also requires less labors. It has high fire resistance and it’s
economical. Higher number of floors can be built.

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[4] Fathima Rafi Ahamed (2017)

This paper presents the comparative study on Conventional Slab and Air Voided Slab under
Impact Loading Test. Three Slabs each for Conventional and Air Voided Slab of 1100mm X
1100mm X 100mm dimensions have been tested to obtain the First Crack Impact and Ultimate
Crack Impact using the Impact Loading Test. High-Density reusable Polyethylene balls were
used for casting Air Voided Slab. Impact test of slab was performed by drop test using a steel
ball of mass 21kg. The result of the test revealed that there is not much variation in the number
of blows for the occurrence of first crack. The energy absorbed for first crack is approximately
similar to both conventional slab and air- voided slab. The impact resistance of air voided slab
is as good as conventional slab and hence Air Voided slabs can be used in place where
conventional slabs are used. Air Voided slabs can be used in areas where cost effectiveness is
given more importance without compromise to safety. Reduction in weight of slabs is also
studied in this paper.

[5] K Harish Reddy (2018)

In this paper, the conclude that using polypropylene gives many advantages than using
polystyrene. Polystyrene cannot be used as it evolves large amount of toxic gases at room
temperature. When the slab with polystyrene catches to fire, it releases gases and if we don’t
arrange any vents, there might be a chance of blasting of slab.

[6] M Surya Prasanth (2018)

This paper presents, a new methodology to increase the number of lanes without exceeding the
cost. This can work out with U-Boot technology. It is the technique applied where U-Boots can
be placed in deck slab along with concrete and steel with proper arrangement. As U-Boot is a
plastic product, it minimizes the self-weight of deck slab and also reduces the depth of slab
with same strength. It also reduces the amount of concrete and steel provided on deck slab. The
quantity of concrete and steel saved by placing U-Boots can be used for constructing other
lanes. For modeling NX-CAD software is used and for analysis NX-NASTRAN is used. The
details of modeling and analysis are presented in this paper. By using U-BOOT Technology, it
is possible to save large amount of concrete and steel and also possible to reduce the self-weight
of the structure. On comparison with the deck slab without U-BOOT, it has less deflections
and stresses at different nodal points. The cost of the deck slab construction also will be reduced
with U-Boot technology.

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[7] Nagesh Hanche (2015)

In this paper, an experimental study is carried out on bubble deck slab made with elliptical balls
made of polypropylene. This paper gives a report regarding deflections for two different grades
of concrete i.e. M25 and M35 and with different diameters of elliptical balls i.e. 180, 186 and
240 mm. All the five specimens are made with same dimensions. On comparing the five
specimens, the specimen with M35 grade of concrete with diameter 186 mm shows less
deflection with value 15.18 mm.

[8] Njuguna Anne Wanjiku (2017)

This paper seeks to find out whether the u-boot slab is cheaper compared to traditional solid
slab used in Kenya, and to find out the amount of concrete reduction that is achieved by use of
u-boot slabs and its impact on the environment, and also compare the strength characteristics
of u-boot slab and traditional solid slab. The study involved the design and analysis of two-
way spanning solid slab, and u-boot slab. The u-boot slab and a solid slab were also cast and
strength tests were carried out on them. From the study, it was found that the use of u-boot slab
resulted in a saving of concrete of about 10%, and up to 25% decrease in carbon dioxide
emissions when compared to a solid slab and from the test, it was concluded that the strength
properties of the u-boot slab were better than those of the solid slab.

[9] Northam R (2015)

In this paper, the slabs are made with plastic ball to reduce the self-weight of the structure.
The main aim of this paper is to give a report about punching shear on voided slabs with plastic
balls. Since the punching shear limit is the most important property of flat slab, this paper
studies about the punching shear on plastic balls. This paper used steel fibers with 0.8% and
1% for defining punching load and deflection. This paper concludes for voided slab, the
punching strength with steel fiber 0.8% and 1% is increased by 2.56% and 7.7% respectively
on comparison with voided slab without steel fiber. Also, the deflection increased by 3.153%
and 15.243% respectively.

[10] Post Tension Services India (2016)

This company successfully constructed Shakthi dam Temple in Aurangabad at Maharashtra
using the U-Boot Technology.

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[11] Prafulla Shinde (2018)

In this study, the design process for flat plate slab is compared with voided slab lightened with
U-boot beton through a design comparison of total slab area of 21m X 21m having panels of
7m X 7m and also the deformation of both type of slabs is analyzed by using ETABS software.
After the comparison they observe that the self-weight of slab is reduced due to the introduction
of U-Boot Beton in voided slabs. Also they observe that the deformation due to self-weight of
concrete in voided slabs with U-Boot Beton is less than flat plate slab, the unnecessary concrete
in middle strip of slab is replaced by voids created by the U-Boot Beton and thus reduced floor
weight causes less deformation due to dead load in case of voided slabs with U-Boot Beton.

[12] Rohit Raj (2017)

This paper reviewed the several studies done on voided slab system. All technical parameters
of voided slab system on which experimental study have been carried out by authors are
tabulated in this paper systematically. The realization of the proposed objectives involves
documentation activity and theoretical study of all work done by several authors on voided slab
concept. The investigation has proven that voided slab technology is more efficient than a
traditional concrete slab. The finite element models of the slab created for the study verify the
prior analysis and experiment.

[13] Snehalatha Bakshetty (2019)

The main aim of this paper is to give a report about the U-boot technology, we come to know
that using polypropylene gives many advantages than using polystyrene. When the slab with
polystyrene catches to fire, it releases toxic gases and if we don’t arrange any vents, there might
be a chance of blasting of slab. So, the U-boot technology is the best technique as compared
with conventional technique. By using this system concrete usage is reduced approximately
1kg of recycled plastic replaces 100kg of concrete. Reducing material consumption made it
possible to make the construction time faster and reduction in overall cost of structure. The
usage of U-boot technology is very rare due to lack of awareness in our country. As we all have
responsibility of saving natural and renewable resources for our future generations, this
technology should be utilized more.

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[14] Sushant S Shekde (2016)

In this paper, they give a detailed report about the replacement of inactive concrete by waste
plastic. To accelerate the 25% strength which is reduced due to removing of concrete with well-
treated recycled polythene with high density can be used as a filling material in place of that
removed concrete area. From the application of high-density polythene, the strength can
accelerate up to 40 to 60 % of the required strength which is nearly 10 to 15 % of the total
strength but the self-weight is reduced by 99% i.e. 1kg. Polythene or plastic replaces 100 kg.
of concrete. Obviously, this intellectual slab design may become the future of slab construction
which gives a tremendous contribution in Sustainable development. Environmentally green
structure and also a waste plastic is used which tends ecofriendly and financially useful and
reduce global CO2 emissions.

[15] U-Boot Beton technical data by daliform group (2016)

The technical data regarding U-Boot i.e. size of U-Boot, height of U-Boot, foot height of U-
Boot, material saving with U-Boot, installation procedure, applications are provided. In this
paper, single U-Boot is used with size 52 x 52 cm, height of U-Boot is 28.8 cm and foot height
are 5 cm.

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ACCESSORIES

U-BOOT BETON

The main element in the U-boot technology is the U-boot beton. It is the heart of
U-boot technology. It is made up of recycled polypropylene which is a by product of
industrial plastic waste. As we all know Polypropylene is a thermoplastic material contains 3
carbon molecules & 6 hydrogen molecules (C3H6). It is a versatile material available in
plenty throughout the world.
It is discovered in the middle 1950’s by Italian scientists. Due to its chemically inert
nature it does not react with any of the materials like water, cement, admixtures etc when it is
placed in concrete. It has high melting point and hence, it can be used in construction industry.
As it is a flexible material, it is resistant to cracks and stress. Thanks to its durable nature, it
can withstand daily wear and tear. The polypropylene has very low density and it is the reason
for the light weight of the slab constructed using u-boot beton. It is commonly used for plastic
mouldings where it is injected into a mould while molten, forming complex shapes at relatively
low cost and high volume. This process is used to make the u-boot formwork. Polypropylene
is resistant to many chemical solvents, bases, acids, and does not deteriorate with time or lose
its characteristics. Polypropylene is normally tough and flexible, especially when co-
polymerized with ethylene. This allows polypropylene to be used as an engineering plastic.
Polypropylene is economical and has good resistance to fatigue.

FIG 3.1: U-BOOT BETON

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POLYPROPYLENE

Polypropylene is a recycled material which is obtained by a recycled plastic industrial

waste. It is a by-product of plastic industry. It is discovered in the middle 1950’s by Italian
scientists. Since then, it is being used as a versatile material throughout the world. Before that
Polystyrene is used as the recycled plastic material. It is also a thermos plastic polymer which
contain four carbon molecules and eight hydrogen molecules. It can also be used as a
construction material, but it is not used because it emits very dangerous toxic gases into the
atmosphere at room temperature. The melting point of the polystyrene is also very low. Hence
it cannot be used due to these restrictions.
Polypropylene contains three carbon molecules and six hydrogen molecules. Due to its
chemically inert nature it does not react with any of the materials like water, cement,
admixtures etc when it is placed in concrete. It has high melting point and hence, it can be used
in construction industry. As it is a flexible material, it is resistant to cracks and stress. Thanks
to its durable nature, it can withstand daily wear and tear. The polypropylene has very low
density and it is the reason for the light weight of the slab constructed using u-boot beton.
It is commonly used for plastic mouldings where it is injected into a mould while
molten, forming complex shapes at relatively low cost and high volume. This process is used
to make the U-Boot formwork. It is resistant to many chemical solvents, bases, acids and does
not deteriorate with time or lose its characteristics. It is normally tough and flexible when
copolymerized with ethylene. Therefore, it is used as an Engineering Plastic. It very
economical and has good resistance to fatigue.

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DIFFERENT TYPES OF U-BOOT BETON

1) Single U-Boot Beton

2) Double U-Boot Beton

SINGLE U-BOOT BETON

The single U-boot beton is generally used while laying single reinforced slabs. It is
generally an open type polypropylene box which can be closed by using a closing plate to resist
the entry of concrete into the beton.

FIG 3.2.1: SINGLE U-BOOT BETON

DOUBLE U-BOOT BETON

The double U-boot beton is generally used for laying double reinforced slabs. It consists
of 2 boxes which are closed against each other to prevent entry of concrete into beton.

FIG 3.3.2: DOUBLE U-BOOT BETON

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SPACER JOINT

Spacer joint is used to join two or more U-boot betons while fixing on the shuttering so
that there cannot be any change in the distance between gaps while pouring concrete. While
installing the Beton, which helps to fix the position of U-Boot Beton. The rigid interconnection
ensures perfect geometric compliance with the design as well as with the bearing capacity of
the formworks when the operators casting under the pressure of the concrete. Thus, spacer joint
is an effectively fixed spacer joint with graduated scale with the desired width of the beams is
fastly determined.

CLOSING PLATE

Closing plate is used to close the U-boot beton box, which can resist the flow of
concrete into box. The closing plate and its quality plays a major role, so it causes problems if
concrete tends to move into beton from damaged plate after concrete is placed.

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CONNECTION BRIDGE

The connection bridge is necessary in order to join two U-boot betons longitudinally,
wherever the length of the beton needed to be increased.

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ADVANTAGES
 Decreases self-weight up to 40%
 Main advantage is construction is without beams, perimeter edge beam is enough
 Reduces CO2 emission
 Reduces deflections
 Columns cross section reduced
 Reduces total load on foundation due to its decreased self-weight
 Longer spans of construction achieved
 Due to its very low weight, there is no need of lifting devices and movement devices
 Also, number of columns reduced in the construction
 Easy to construct
 Usable height saving in each floor enables a higher number of floors
 Slab thickness is less compared to normal conventional slabs
 Steel and aggregates quantity reduced, so there is great saving in material
 Easy to transport the U-boot betons due to its light weight
 Construction cost reduced up to 15% of total cost of construction
 Due to this construction there is no need of false ceiling at an aesthetical level
 Its main advantage is, it is fire resistance (certification REI 180; concrete cover 3cm)
 Due to its shape, these are easy to stock anywhere This structure have high stiffness
due to its U-boot properties
 Very economical
 Reduces the foundation sizes
 These structures take more vibrations than normal structures
 Architecturally this construction is more beautiful compared to normal buildings
 Reduced seismic mass, less dimensional limitations of elements

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APPLICATIONS

 Raft foundations
 Mushroom pillars
 Sky scrapers/High rise buildings
 Parking lots
 Malls, Hotels, Restaurants
 Auditoriums
 Hospitals
 Fire resistant structures
 Temples
 Schools and public buildings
 Earthquake resistant structures

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