Building wall and method of constructing same

A building comprising a support surface defining a plurality of continuous, upwardly open channel sections bounded by lateral, spaced-apart, upright channel side walls, at least one channel section being angularly inclined relative to another channel section, and a homogeneous building wall extending upwardly from the channel sections and exhibiting a substantially uniform rate of thermal expansions and contractions when subjected to temperature changes;

• the wall including spaced-apart, outer, fiber-reinforced, porous cement boards aligned with the channels and a fiber-foam cement core filling an interior space between the spaced-apart cement boards and extending from a base of the channel sections to a top of the boards;
• the cement core being formed in situ in the interior space and comprising cured cement;
• a foam forming a multiplicity of voids distributed throughout the core;
• and a multiplicity of relatively short nylon fibers, at least some of the cement and some of the fibers being disposed in pores of the cement boards, the at least some of the fibers extending partially from the cement board into the core so that materials of the core and the boards only form an intimate and uniform bond between the core and the boards;
• whereby the generation of temperature induced stresses and cracks resulting therefrom in the wall are substantially prevented.

A method of constructing a building wall comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a set of first and second boards, each board having open pores extending from at least one porous surface a substantial distance into an interior of the board so that flowable materials can penetrate a substantial distance into the boards;
• (b) positioning the boards so that the porous surfaces face each other;
• (c) placing a plurality of spacers between the opposing porous surfaces;
• (d) biasing the boards against the spacers so that the boards define a casting form with an interior space between them;
• (e) pouring into the interior space a fluid mix comprising at least cement, a foam equally distributed through the mix so that, upon pouring, the mix disposed in the space includes a multiplicity of closed voids, and a multiplicity of relatively short plastic fibers throughout the mix;
• (f) penetrating the pores in the boards with at least some cement and some fibers a substantial distance into the boards so that portions of the at least some fibers extend from the interior of the boards into the fluid mix in the interior space;
• and
• (g) curing the mix to form a solid core and an intimate, uniform bond between the solid core and the boards and thereby complete the wall.

A method of constructing a building having upright walls comprising the steps of:

• (a) preparing a support surface for the walls;
• (b) forming elongated channels having upright, laterally spaced sides on the support surface where walls are to be erected;
• (c) assembling multiple sets of first and second, fiber-reinforced, porous cement boards face-to-face and firmly securing the board of each set in parallel, spaced-apart relationship to each other so that the sets form and can be moved as units and define a hollow interior space between the board of each unit, the boards being spaced so that a distance between their exterior surfaces facing away from the interior space is substantially equal to a spacing between the channel sides and permits the units to gravitationally drop into the channels, the boards being penetrable by flowable materials;
• (d) positioning the units side-by-side in the channels so that opposing edges of the boards of adjacent units are separated by gaps;
• (e) sealing the gaps over a height of the boards in substantial alignment with the exterior board surfaces;
• (f) mixing a flowable core fill including cement, a foam, and relatively short nylon fibers so that a substantially homogeneous mix is formed which includes evenly distributed, closed voids and nylon fibers;
• (g) pouring the flowable core fill into the interior spaces and the gaps defined by the units in the channels;
• (h) causing the flowable core fill including at least cement and nylon fibers to enter past surfaces of the boards facing the interior spaces into an interior of the boards so that some of the nylon fibers have portions disposed in the interior of the board and in the interior spaces;
• and
• (i) thereafter curing the flowable core fill to form a lightweight, solid core including a multiplicity of evenly distributed closed voids and nylon fibers and the boards and the rigid core become intimately and uniformly bonded to each other and the cured core fill in the gaps bonds and thereby interconnects the opposing edges of adjoining boards and forms, with the exterior board surfaces, a substantially continuous, smooth exterior wall surface;
• whereby temperature changes in the building walls cause substantially uniform thermal expansions and contractions therein to prevent the formation of temperature induced stresses and cracks in the building walls.