Publication

German Concrete. The Science of Cement from Trass to Portland, 1819-1877.

Abstract

This book describes for the first time ever, the rise of the modern art of building with concrete in the different German territories stretching from Friesland to Pomerania and southwards from Bavaria to Baden during the first three quarters of the 19th century. Based on careful analyses of historic documents and literature, the book traces an engaging history of master builders, engineers, architects, theoreticians, chemists and inventors tracking the evolution of different building techniques, materials, studies and experiments concerning concrete. It analyses German master builders' consideration for classical building culture and for contemporaneous constructions observed in neighbouring countries. This narration starts at the turn of the 19th century with early scientific studies on cement, examples of rudimentary concrete used as filling material in small hydraulic foundations and attempts at producing mortar-based artificial stones and moulded objects. The account then follows the progression of cement and the abilities of master builders who worked with concrete until crucial evolutionary stages were reached in the 1870s. Early scientific theories about the chemical reactions in the production and hardening of cement were developed; concrete was finally used to build huge underwater foundations as well as entire houses; the production of mortar-based artificial stones and moulded objects became an important manufacturing branch; the first standards for the production and sale of Portland cement were defined and officially implemented.

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Related concepts (33)
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete, also called ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having higher tensile strength or ductility. The reinforcement is usually, though not necessarily, steel bars (rebar) and is usually embedded passively in the concrete before the concrete sets. However, post-tensioning is also employed as a technique to reinforce the concrete. In terms of volume used annually, it is one of the most common engineering materials.
Cement
A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel (aggregate) together. Cement mixed with fine aggregate produces mortar for masonry, or with sand and gravel, produces concrete. Concrete is the most widely used material in existence and is behind only water as the planet's most-consumed resource.
Concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement that cures over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most widely used building material. Its usage worldwide, ton for ton, is twice that of steel, wood, plastics, and aluminium combined. When aggregate is mixed with dry Portland cement and water, the mixture forms a fluid slurry that is easily poured and molded into shape.
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