Fundamentals of Building Construction: The Concrete

As experts in concrete resurfacing, the professional team at Piedmont Concrete Finishing wants you to understand what it is so you know if it’s time to have your concrete

Concrete can be looked at as a material made from sand, gravel and cement. According to Lambert (2002), “the first major concrete users were the Egyptians in around 2,500 BC and the Romans from around 300 BC”. Roman concrete like modern concrete was an artificial building material made up of aggregate, binding agent and water. Aggregate could be gravel, chunks of stone, chunks of rubble, broken bricks, etc. Binding agent could be mud , lime or gypsum, mixed with rubbles stone. The Roman added pozzolona, a special volcanic dust found in central Italy (Archserve, n.d). The addition of pozzolona made the bond with the aggregate far stronger than what was traditionally being used. This development drastically changed and shaped construction work in the life of Rome.

“Roman concrete (opus caementicium), like modern concrete, is an artificial building material composed of an aggregate, a binding agent, and water. Aggregate is essentially a filler, such as gravel, chunks of stone and rubble, broken bricks, etc. Binding agent is a substance which is mixed with the aggregate wet (water added) and solidifies when it dries, or "sets." Many materials, even mud, can be a binding agent, and used to make, what we generally call, mortar. Historically lime or gypsum, mixed with rubble stones, have been used as binding agents in making a strong mortar” (Roman Concrete).

The Romans didn’t invent concrete however, it was how they mixed and what material they used in their concrete, that made it special. They used a material called pozzolana as the basis for the mixture. This chocolate colored material was essentially the ashes originating from volcanoes found near Greek settlements (Kamm, n.d.). With this new

First, concrete durable. Concrete is something that will outlive other products up to three times over (“What Makes…”). In addition to durability, concrete is efficient. Concrete can be made with byproducts from power plants, and other aspects of manufacturing. Concrete is primarily made up limestone, the most abundant material on Earth. Above all of this concrete can be recycled. Concrete can be crushed and recycled into another structure or product, reducing the need to mine the limestone for production. Concrete also allows water to pass through which reduces the chance of flash flooding, erosion, and water table depletion as compared to other materials. This is a major check in the sustainability of concrete; the conservation of soil, landscape and ecosystems. Concrete is a very green option when it comes to building

However, when you choose decorative concrete, you can do anything you like with the surface of your walkway. You can have color pigments added to create a pattern or solid color of your choice. You can have designs stamped into the concrete before it dries so the end result looks like brick, tile, or rocks. If you ever want to change the appearance of the concrete or refresh it in future years, a contractor can refurbish it to make it look like new.

Concrete is a tough and reliable material, and it can be used for a wide range of projects. Eventually though, a structure made from this versatile material will need to be replaced. At the very least, it may require repairs.

Roman building using cement (Labate, 2016) dates from the third century BCE. Cement was used with crushed bricks and rock to produce concrete used for building. The cement was made from volcanic dust (pozzolana), lime (calcium oxide) or gypsum (calcium sulphate). This mixture reacts when mixed with water, binding the concrete into a permanent, strong, impermeable structure. The Roman engineers discovered that the use of cement in their mortar dramatically increased its strength. Special types of cement were discovered and used for under-water structures like harbors and bridge piers. Roman workmen perfected the skill of building with concrete, some of which, like the Parthenon, are still intact and beautiful to this day. During the first century CE, Rome had a “Concrete Revolution”, many concrete buildings being built as skill developed.

Concrete is used for many different things in daily life, although is often taken for granted. Concrete has a very deep history that leads us up to the modern day concrete and variations of. Most people will turn a blind eye, but at one point in history concrete was a stellar invention that had many different purposes and uses and still does today.

This is the most recent type of concrete formwork. It’s an emerging tech for RCC construction as well as architectural design work. This materials’ flexibility creates the ability to make concrete of any shape.

Roman concrete, like its modern counterpart, is an artificial building material composed of an aggregate, binding agent and water. Aggregate can be anything from mud, rubble to stones and broken bricks. Binding agent of choice for the Romans was pozzolona, a form of volcanic dust found in central Italy.

A concrete contractor is a specifically trained and experienced individual or team that is able to manage concrete in its various stages from an unmixed combination to the hard finished product that is produced. A qualified Concrete Contractor can design intricate plans with expert industry knowledge and experience, allowing homeowners to create their own perfect custom products for renovations in their own homes today.

Ancient Roman concrete was a mixture of lime mortar, sand with stone rubble, pozzolana, water, and stones, and stronger than previously-used concrete. The ancient builders placed these ingredients in wooden frames where it hardened and bonded to a facing of stones or (more frequently) bricks. Concrete construction proved to be more flexible and less costly than building solid stone buildings. The materials were readily available and not difficult to transport. The wooden frames could be used more than once, allowing builders to work quickly and efficiently.

Prestressed concrete is a procedure where the loadbearing strength of concrete is increased significantly. Basically, it is a concrete in which suitable internal stresses of suitable magnitude and distribution are introduced so that the stresses caused from the external loads are neutralized to an anticipated degree. The benefit of prestressed concrete is that it can be used for construction of large spans (more than 30m) with slender members, even on encountering with heavy loads. As enhanced materials (controlled concrete and high tension steel) are being used, the modulus of elasticity is higher and ultimate creep strain is smaller resulting in the reduction of cross section of the structural components. Due to smaller dimensions, there is reduction in loads causing smaller deflections and lead to saving cost in the supporting members and foundations.

Autoclaved aerated concrete (“AAC”) is currently one of the many building products being touted as “green” or “environmentally friendly.” AAC is not a new building material. is a lightweight manufactured building stone. Comprised of all natural raw materials, AAC is used in a wide range of commercial, industrial, and residential applications and has been in use in Europe for over 70 years, the Middle East for the past 40 years, and South America and Australia for approximately 20 years.1 According to one manufacturer, AAC now accounts for over 40% of all construction in the United Kingdom and more than 60% of construction in Germany.