Effect of Foaming Agent, Binder and Density on the Compressive Strength and Thermal Conductivity of Ultra-Light Foam Concrete

The study is focused on ultra-light foam concrete (FC) aimed as a thermal insulation material. Two important properties of such material were investigated: compressive strength and thermal conductivity. In the conducted tests, the influence of the air-dry density (200–500 kg/m3), type of foaming agent (synthetic and protein) and binder type (ordinary Portland cement—OPC; calcium sulphoaluminate cement—CSA; metakaolin; siliceous fly ash—SFA; calcareous fly ash—CFA) on the mentioned properties were examined. The results confirmed the dependence of compressive strength and thermal conductivity on the FC density but also indicated the important effect of the nature of the foaming agent and the binder type. The best thermo-mechanical properties were obtained for the foam concrete made of protein-based foaming agent, OPC and metakaolin. Simultaneously, the use of CSA mixed with metakaolin and foam based on the synthetic foaming agent also shows satisfactory properties.