Currently, the attention on natural fibre reinforced concrete based materials could be seen increasingly rising around the world in the quest for economic and environmental importance in the construction sector and built environment. Hence this research will focus on inclusion of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB) fibre on drying shrinkage of lightweight foamed mortar (LFM). There were three densities of LFM was considered which were 800kg/m³, 1100kg/m³ and 1400kg/m³.The size for the empty fruit bunch (EFB) fibre was between 15-19mm with diverse volume fractions of 0.15%, 0.30%, 0.45% and 0.60% by LFM mix volume. The drying shrinkage test was performed according to American Standard ASTM C157. The test specimen dimension is a 75mm x 75mm x 275 mm prism shaped utilising a standard stainless mould which conforms to ASTM C490. The experimental results revealed that the inclusion of 0.3% EFB fibre in 800 kg/m3 density, 0.45% EFB fibre in 800 kg/m3 and 1400 kg/m3 densities possess the lowest percentage value of drying shrinkage at the final age of testing compared to control specimen and other EFB fibre volume fraction. In addition, EFB fibre exhibits a micrometer level diameter and hydrophilicity attributes which make it highly dispersible. It also has a capability to be distributed homogeneously along with the synchronicity of a great fibres quantity in unit volume of LFM.

The key players in the construction industry around the globe are very enthusiastic in producing better construction materials that are cost-effective, durable, excellent thermal insulation, lightweight and long lasting without jeopardizing the environment. One of the best ways in producing such building materials are by incorporating industrial waste materials such as Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) fiber in foamed concrete (FC). In recent years, the spotlight has been given towards the use of natural fiber reinforced concrete-based materials especially in Malaysia in a quest of economic and environmental upkeep particularly in the construction sector itself. Hence, this study intended to recognize the influence of Empty Fruit Bunch (EFB) fiber of four different contents (0.15%, 0.30%, 0.45% and 0.60 %) by mix volume on thermal properties of FC. There were three densities of 800kg/m3 , 1100kg/m3 and 1400kg/m3 we cast and tested. The mix design of FC (sand: cement: water) is fixed at the ratio of 1:1.5:0.45. The investigation focuses on three parameters which were thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity and specific heat capacity. Results showed that the addition of EFB in FC plays an important role to improve the thermal performance holistically. The results demonstrated a great potential possesses by the EFB fiber to be utilized in cement-based materials such as the FC mix which is beneficial in reducing the thermal property or the transfer of heat in a produced concrete.