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And that steel reinforcement is why modern Portland cement concrete doesn't last as long. Eventually the steel rusts, which means it expands and cracks the conc
by SAI_Peregrinus 3y ago
And that steel reinforcement is why modern Portland cement concrete doesn't last as long. Eventually the steel rusts, which means it expands and cracks the concrete.
We also use a lot of asphalt concrete. Even less durable than Portland cement concrete, but really fast for making roads, and extremely recyclable. Just melt the asphalt, maybe add some new aggregates, and lay down a new road surface.
- worik 3y agoI am not a chemist, I may have this completely wrong, but: Steel does not rust without cause. It needs something like a drip on to a part of it to wash away the layer of oxide and create more. Electrical effects then spread the decay. There are a lot of steel reinforced structures around from the 1920s that are doing very well with no visible signs of structural decay. Here is one close to me form the nineteenth century. Everything else decayed. It burnt at least once. And it stands, still. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargill's_Castle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cargill's_Castle It will be interesting to see if continues for another few hundred years....