Brick-Concrete Structure Houses and Prefabricated Panels

Brick-concrete structure houses and prefabricated panels are not the same thing; they have significant differences in terms of concept, seismic performance, application, and construction characteristics.

Different Concepts

A brick-concrete structure is a load-bearing structural system for houses that uses brick walls and reinforced concrete beams, floor slabs, and other components to share the load. Among them, vertical load-bearing components are constructed using bricks or blocks, while horizontal components are made of reinforced concrete. This structural system combines the advantages of bricks and reinforced concrete and is relatively common in construction. On the other hand, prefabricated panels are materials used for building construction. They are like building blocks, pre-made in factories and then directly transported to construction sites for assembly and installation.

Seismic Performance

The seismic performance of brick-concrete structures is relatively weak. During an earthquake, the deformation capacity of brick walls is limited, and they may collapse when the deformation exceeds 2 centimeters. For example, in the Jishishan earthquake in Gansu, 75% of brick-concrete houses developed large cracks. Prefabricated panel buildings have poor integrity and weak seismic resistance, especially older prefabricated panel houses, which are more dangerous. Due to their numerous joints and poor integrity, data from the Ludian earthquake in Yunnan and relevant data from Japan indicate that the damage rate of such houses is high. However, new prefabricated panel technology has been upgraded. Machine-pressed hollow panels are lightweight and have pre-installed electrical conduits, improving their seismic resistance. For instance, newly built resettlement houses in Gansu remained intact during a magnitude-5 aftershock. Currently, the state strictly prohibits the construction of non-standard older prefabricated panel houses.

Application

After the founding of New China, brick-concrete structures were widely used in China. In the 1970s and 1980s, most housing was of brick-concrete structure. Many old buildings constructed in the 1970s, 1980s, and even the 1990s used a combination of brick-concrete structures and prefabricated hollow floor slabs. After 2008, the state urgently revised building seismic codes, gradually phasing out prefabricated panels and promoting cast-in-place floor slabs.

Construction Characteristics

The construction speed of prefabricated panels is extremely fast, and costs can be saved by about 20% compared to other methods. In contrast, the construction of brick-concrete structures is relatively slower, but they offer better stability and provide more reliable support for houses.