Typical Material Densities
Table of Contents
Actions on structures and typical material densities
This article contains common material densities that are used on site. Density of construction materials are usually denoted as kg/m3, but this article has converted them in kN/m3 as shown by Eurocodes 1 Loading. All the loading presented have been extracted from BS EN 1991-1-1 (Actions on structures).
This is very useful when calculating the Permanent (Dead) and Variable (Live) loads on any type of structure. Also, the variable loads are categorized in accordance to Eurocodes and the usage of the building determines what kind of load is used.
For example, an office building and residential building will have different environments in terms of when they are used and the amount of people using it. In high rise offices, it is unlikely that all floors will used simultaneously, so a load reduction can be applied which reduces the amount of load onto the foundation.
It’s always important to consider the usage of the building/structure as this will give you a rough ideas on loading and how the building will act under loads.
The load tables for variable and horizontal loads can be found in BS EN 1991-1-1 (Action on structures) and it’s national annex. These tables are useful when designing any structure using Eurocode loadings and typical material densities.
Typical masonry and concrete density
| Material | Bulk density \(kN/m^3\) |
|---|---|
| Dry Concrete | 25 |
| Wet Concrete | 26 |
| Mortar | 12-23 |
| Engineering brick | 22 |
| Dense aggregate blocks | 18-21 |
| Concrete bricks | 19-21 |
| Aircrete blocks | 4-9 |
Timber Density
| Material | Bulk density \(kN/m^3\) |
|---|---|
| Wood | |
| Timber C14 | 3.5 |
| Timber C16 | 3.7 |
| Timber C18 | 3.8 |
| Timber C22 | 4.1 |
| Timber C24 | 4.2 |
| Timber C27 | 4.5 |
| Timber C30 | 4.6 |
| Timber C35 | 4.8 |
| Timber C40 | 5.0 |
| Glued laminated timber | |
| Homogenous GL24h | 3.7 |
| Homogenous GL28h | 4.0 |
| Homogenous GL32h | 4.2 |
| Homogenous GL36h | 4.4 |
| Combined glulam GL24c | 3.5 |
| Combined glulam GL28c | 3.7 |
| Combined glulam GL32c | 4.0 |
| Combined glulam GL36c | 4.2 |
| Plywood | 4.5-7 |
| Particle Boards | 7-12 |
Glass and Metal Densities
| Material | Bulk density \(kN/m^3\) |
|---|---|
| Aluminium | 27 |
| brass | 83-85 |
| bronze | 83-85 |
| copper | 87-89 |
| Iron, cast | 71-72.5 |
| Iron, wrought | 76 |
| lead | 112-114 |
| steel | 77-78.5 |
| zinc | 71-72 |
| Material | Bulk density \(kN/m^3\) |
|---|---|
| Glass, broken | 22 |
| Glass, in sheets | 25 |
| plastics | |
| Acrylic sheets | 12 |
| Polystyrene, expanded, granules | 0.3 |
| Foam glass | 1.4 |
| Asphalt | 18-25 |
| Bridge infill | 13.5-21.5 |
| Material | Bulk density \(kN/m^3\) |
|---|---|
| Aggregates, lightweight | 9-20 |
| Aggregates, normal | 20-30 |
| Gravel and sand | 15-20 |
| sand | 14-19 |
| Blast furnace slag | 9-17 |
| Bentonite | 8-11 |
| Fly ash | 10-14 |
| Gypsum | 15 |
| Lime | 13 |
| Plastics | 5-13 |
Variable Loads : Imposed Floor loads
| Category of Use | Specific Use | Uniformly distributed load, qk | Concentrated load, Qk |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | A1. All usages within self-contained dwelling units (a unit occupied by a single family or a modular student accommodation unit with a secure door and comprising not more than six single bedrooms and an internal corridor). Communal areas (including kitchens) in blocks of flats with limited use (see Note 1). For communal areas in other blocks of flats, see A5, A6 and C3 | 1.5 | 2.0 |
| A2. Bedrooms and dormitories except those in self-contained single family dwelling units and in hotels and motels | 1.5 | 2.0 | |
| A3. Bedrooms in hotels and motels; hospital wards; toilet areas | 2.0 | 2.0 | |
| A4. Billiard/snooker rooms | 2.0 | 2.7 | |
| A5. Balconies in single family dwelling units and communal areas in blocks of flats with limited use | 2.5 | 2.0 | |
| A6. Balconies in hostels, guest houses, residential clubs and communal areas in blocks of flats except those covered by Note 1 | Same as the rooms to which they give access but with a minimum of 3,0 | 2,0 (concentrated at the outer edge) | |
| A7. Balconies in hotels and motels | Same as the rooms to which they give access but with a minimum of 4,0 | 2,0 (concentrated at the outer edge) | |
| B | B1. General use other than in B2 | 2.5 | 2.7 |
| B2. At or below ground floor level | 3.0 | 2.7 | |
| C | C1. Areas with tables | ||
| C11. Public, institutional and communal dining rooms and lounges, cafes and restaurants (see Note 2) | 2.0 | 3.0 | |
| C12. Reading rooms with no book storage | 2.5 | 4.0 | |
| C13. Reading rooms with no book storage | 3.0 | 3.0 | |
| C2. Areas with fixed seats | 4.0 | 3.6 | |
| C21. Assembly areas with fixed seating (see Note 3) | 3.0 | 2.7 | |
| C22. Places of worship | 3.0 | 2.7 | |
| C3. Areas without obstacles for moving people | |||
| C31. Corridors, hallways, aisles in institutional type buildings not subjected to crowds or wheeled Corridors, hallways, aisles in institutional type buildings not subjected to crowds or wheeled by Note 1 | 3.0 | 4.5 | |
| C32. Stairs, landings in institutional type buildings not subjected to crowds or wheeled vehicles, hostels, guest houses, residential clubs, and communal areas in blocks of flats not covered by Note 1 | 3.0 | 4.0 | |
| C33. Corridors, hallways, aisles in all buildings not covered by C31 and C32, including hotels and motels and institutional buildings subjected to crowds | 4.0 | 4.5 | |
| C34. Corridors, hallways, aisles in all buildings not covered by C31 and C32, including hotels and motels and institutional buildings subjected to wheeled vehicles, including trolleys | 5.0 | 4.5 | |
| C35. Stairs, landings in all buildings not covered by C31 and C32, including hotels and motels and institutional buildings subjected to crowds | 4.0 | 4.0 | |
| C36. Walkways — Light duty (access suitable for one person, walkway width approx 600 mm) | 3.0 | 2.0 | |
| C37. Walkways — General duty (regular two-way pedestrian traffic) | 5.0 | 3.6 | |
| C38. Walkways — Heavy duty (high density pedestrian traffic including escape routes) | 7.5 | 4.5 | |
| C39. Museum floors and art galleries for exhibition purposes | 4.0 | 4.5 | |
| C4. Areas with possible physical activities | |||
| C41. Dance halls and studios, gymnasia, stages (see Note 5) | 5.0 | 3.6 | |
| C42. Drill halls and drill rooms (see Note 5) | 5.0 | 4.5 | |
| C5. Areas susceptible to large crowds | 5.0 | 4.5 | |
| C51. Assembly areas without fixed seating, concert halls, bars and places of worship (see Note 4 and Note 5) | 5.0 | 3.6 | |
| C52. Stages in public assembly areas (see Note 5) | 7.5 | 7.0 | |
| D | D1. Areas in general retail shops | 4.0 | 3.6 |
| D2. Areas in department stores | 4.0 | 3.6 | |
| E | E11. General areas for static equipment not specified elsewhere (institutional and public buildings) | 2.0 | 1.8 |
| E12. Reading rooms with book storage, e.g. libraries | 4.0 | 4.5 | |
| E13. General storage other than those specified (see Note) | 2.4 per metre of storage height | 7.0 | |
| E14. File rooms, filing and storage space (offices) | 5.0 | 4.5 | |
| E15. Stack rooms (books) | 2.4 per metre of storage height but with a minimum of 6.5 | 7.0 | |
| E16. Paper storage for printing plants and stationery stores | 4 per metre of storage height | 9.0 | |
| E17. Dense mobile stacking (books) on mobile trolleys, in public and institutional buildings | 4.8 per metre of storage height but with a minimum of 9.6 | 7.0 | |
| E18. Dense mobile stacking (books) on mobile trucks, in warehouses | 4.8 per metre of storage height but with a minimum of 15.0 | 7.0 | |
| E19. Cold storage | 5.0 per metre of storage height but with a minimum of 15.0 | 9.0 |
Horizontal Loads
| Category of loaded area | Sub-category | Examples | Qk (kN/m) |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | (i) | All areas within or serving exclusively one dwelling including stairs, landings etc. but excluding external balconies and edges of roofs [see (vii)] | 0.36 |
| (ii) | Residential areas not covered by (i) | 0.74 | |
| B1 and C1 | (iii) | Areas not susceptible to overcrowding in office and institutional buildings, reading rooms and classrooms including stairs | 0.74 |
| (iv) | Restaurants and cafes | 1.5 | |
| C2, C3, C4 and D | (v) | Areas having fixed seating within 530 mm of the barrier, balustrade or parapet | 1.5 |
| (vi) | Stairs, landings, balustrades, corridors and ramps | 0.74 | |
| (vii) | External balconies and edges of roofs Footways within building curtilage and adjacent to basement/sunken areas | 0.74 | |
| (viii) | All retail areas | 1.5 | |
| C5 | (ix) | Footways or pavements less than 3 m wide adjacent to sunken areas | 1.5 |
| (x) | Theatres, cinemas, discotheques, bars, auditoria, shopping malls, assembly areas, studios. Footways or pavements greater than 3 m wide adjacent to sunken areas | 3.0 | |
| (xi) | Grandstands and stadia | See requirements of appropriate certifying authority | |
| E | (xii) | Industrial; and storage buildings except as given by (xiii) and (xiv) | 0.74 |
| (xiii) | Light pedestrian traffic routes in industrial and storage buildings except designated escape routes | 0.36 | |
| (xiv) | Light access stairs and gangways not more than 600 mm wide | 0.22 | |
| F and G | (xv) | Pedestrian areas in car parks including stairs, landings, ramps, edges or internal floors, footways, edges of roofs | 1.5 |
| (xvi) | Horizontal loads imposed by vehicles | See BS EN 1991-1-1:2002 Annex B |