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> concrete Actually we have been depleting the planets sand resources for a good while now, and could be facing a "sand crisis" in the not distant future, larg

> concrete Actually we have been depleting the planets sand resources for a good while now, and could be facing a "sand crisis" in the not distant future, largely thanks to concrete: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/world-facing-global-sand-crisis-180964815/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/world-facing-g...

cellularmitosis 9y ago
It sounds like the main issue in that article is local shortages. It doesn’t say anything about global supply (e.g., how long would it take to deplete the Sahara, and would that be considered land reclamation?)
- nisse72 9y ago
  Well I don't claim to be an expert, but I've read elsewhere that there are a lot of different qualities of sand, and that desert sand is not (as) useful as building material due to its shape and structure. https://www.quora.com/Why-is-desert-sand-not-used-for-construction https://www.quora.com/Why-is-desert-sand-not-used-for-constr...
  - anfilt 9y ago
    Just asked a friend of mine who is a civil engineer. He said desert sand is a bad idea for standing concrete structures. However, mixing a bit with supported concrete structures like a concrete pad or roads makes them less prone to cracking. For particular demanding applications all sand is sifted and structure/shape of the sand checked. For evening more demanding application sand may be produced via crushing to get long flat sand grains. Also the checking of the quality of sand is called sieve analysis.
anfilt 9y ago
Interesting article. However sand is just mostly ground up quartz (silicon dioxide). It is the second most abundant mineral in earths crust. We could just grind rocks instead of causing erosion in water ways. However, we would need a good energy source to run a grinder/crusher. We are improving along those lines of energy production. Natural, sand is made by wind and hydro power. So if we keep it that way we should fine. Also it seems to more of we are collecting sand and other aggregate in haphazard way. I am not sure I would call that running out? Unless sources with low environmental impact are running out?

cellularmitosis 9y ago

It sounds like the main issue in that article is local shortages. It doesn’t say anything about global supply (e.g., how long would it take to deplete the Sahara, and would that be considered land reclamation?)

nisse72 9y ago
Well I don't claim to be an expert, but I've read elsewhere that there are a lot of different qualities of sand, and that desert sand is not (as) useful as building material due to its shape and structure. https://www.quora.com/Why-is-desert-sand-not-used-for-construction https://www.quora.com/Why-is-desert-sand-not-used-for-constr...
- anfilt 9y ago
  Just asked a friend of mine who is a civil engineer. He said desert sand is a bad idea for standing concrete structures. However, mixing a bit with supported concrete structures like a concrete pad or roads makes them less prone to cracking. For particular demanding applications all sand is sifted and structure/shape of the sand checked. For evening more demanding application sand may be produced via crushing to get long flat sand grains. Also the checking of the quality of sand is called sieve analysis.

anfilt 9y ago

Interesting article. However sand is just mostly ground up quartz (silicon dioxide). It is the second most abundant mineral in earths crust. We could just grind rocks instead of causing erosion in water ways. However, we would need a good energy source to run a grinder/crusher. We are improving along those lines of energy production. Natural, sand is made by wind and hydro power. So if we keep it that way we should fine. Also it seems to more of we are collecting sand and other aggregate in haphazard way. I am not sure I would call that running out? Unless sources with low environmental impact are running out?