Cladding Panel Recesses for Brick Slip Bonding
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Solution Overview
Problem
There are difficulties in achieving a good bond between brick slips and a cementitious backing layer, as well as between adjacent brick slips, particularly at the peripheral edges of cladding panels, due to residual dust or slurry from cutting conventional bricks and limited adjacent surfaces for bonding.
Innovation Solution
The cladding panel design incorporates recesses on the rear side of brick slips with a dovetail profile, cut using a water jet, which receive settable material to create mechanical keys and enhance bonding, along with a pattern of settable material joints that provide additional structural support and alignment, using ultra-high performance concrete with fibre reinforcement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If brick slips are cut using a diamond tipped saw, then any required bricks can be used to match existing buildings, but residual dust or slurry is left on the cut bricks which affects adhesion to the backing layer
Solution Approach 1:
The recesses are formed in the brick slips before mounting, creating a mechanical key structure in advance. This preliminary action ensures that when settable material is applied, it engages with the recesses to provide enhanced bonding, compensating for the adhesion issues caused by residual dust from cutting.
Solution Approach 2:
The recesses are strategically positioned at specific locations on the brick slips, particularly at peripheral edges where bonding is most critical. This local enhancement of bonding capability addresses the adhesion problem without affecting the overall versatility of brick selection.
2Ease of manufacture
If brick slips are mounted with standard bonding, then the cladding panel can be constructed, but bond strength is insufficient particularly at peripheral edges where brick slips have limited adjacent surfaces to bond to
Solution Approach 1:
The recesses extend partway into the brick slip thickness, creating a three-dimensional mechanical key rather than relying solely on surface bonding. This dimensional enhancement provides increased bond strength, particularly at peripheral edges where traditional surface bonding is insufficient.
Solution Approach 2:
The combination of brick slip material, settable material, and the geometric recess structure creates a composite bonding system. This composite approach integrates mechanical interlocking with chemical bonding, achieving superior bond strength compared to standard bonding methods.
3Reliability
If recesses are provided in brick slips to receive settable material, then mechanical keys are formed to enhance bonding, but the complexity of the brick slip formation increases
Solution Approach 1:
A water jet is used to form the recesses in the brick slips. This hydraulic approach enables precise and consistent recess formation without requiring complex mechanical machining equipment, thus enhancing bonding reliability while controlling manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The recesses have specific dimensional parameters (extending partway into the brick slip thickness with controlled profiles) that are optimized to provide effective mechanical keys. By controlling these parameters, the bonding reliability is enhanced while the manufacturing process remains manageable.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design improves the bond strength and structural integrity of the cladding panel, providing a strong, lightweight, and aesthetically pleasing exterior with enhanced compressive and flexural strength, allowing for larger fixings and reduced material thickness without increasing cost or weight.
Implementation Method 1
The recesses may be cut in the facing building members rear side with a water jet.
Implementation Method 2
In the specification the term 'mechanical key' on a building member is to be understood as a formation which prevents there being a direct line of sight perpendicularly from the rear of a front face of the building member, to a rear of the building member, at any point.
Data Source
AI summary
A cladding panel and a method of forming a cladding panel. The panel comprises a plurality of facing building members mounted on a backing of settable material. The facing building members are mounted in rows which are usually aligned horizontally in use, with settable material located in joints between adjacent building members in the rows, and settable material located in joints between neighbouring rows of facing building members. The joints between adjacent facing building members in a row are not aligned with the joints between adjacent facing building members in neighbouring rows of facing building members. The facing building members have front faces and a rear side, with recesses in the rear side of at least some of the facing building members in each row. The recesses extend part way into the facing building member and receive settable material. The recesses in facing building members in neighbouring rows are aligned such that one or more columns of settable material in the recesses are provided extending perpendicularly to the rows of facing building members.