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This was posted on Reddit like a month ago. People knew about Roman concrete. According to CivE people in the thread, the problem is that volcanic ash isn't pr
by codexon 13y ago
This was posted on Reddit like a month ago.
People knew about Roman concrete. According to CivE people in the thread, the problem is that volcanic ash isn't present everywhere and it sets much slower than Portland cement.
This study was paid for by a Saudi Arabian University, and as mentioned in the article, Saudi Arabia happens to have a lot of volcanic ash.
- jacques_chester 13y agoThat doesn't mean the principle is unsound, though. Most countries sponsor research into subjects that affect their agricultural, mineral or industrial outcomes.
- sandGorgon 13y agoIn India there is a huge demand (quite outstripping supply) for flyash bricks, made from the industrial byproduct of coal burning furnaces (which supply >50% of India's power supply). They closely resemble the properties of volcanic ash. The supply is likely to go down even further as we transition into gas furnaces and nuclear power.
- InclinedPlane 13y agoOne downside of building things using flyash that people are going to be around a lot is that it increases radioactivity exposure. I'm not sure how it compares to granite though, but it can be fairly significant.