{"id":9265,"date":"2022-04-08T22:57:03","date_gmt":"2022-04-08T20:57:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/?p=9265"},"modified":"2022-04-08T22:57:05","modified_gmt":"2022-04-08T20:57:05","slug":"tobermorite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2022\/04\/08\/tobermorite\/","title":{"rendered":"Tobermorite"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Scientists Solve 2,000-Year-Old Mystery of Incredibly Strong Roman Concrete and It Could Help Battle Climate Change<\/h1>\n
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Modern concrete, including its vital ingredient Portland cement, is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. But it could all change with a new discovery.<\/p>\n

Our obsession with concrete accounts for around 5 percent of human-induced emissions. A third of the damage is done by the heat needed to fire the kilns in which the cement is made, while half comes from carbon dioxide released when limestone (CaCO3) is heated. But ancient Romans did it in a different way that was much more environmentally friendly. According to new research<\/a> led by Professor Marie Jackson of the University of Utah, their process reacted the lime with carbon dioxide in seawater, actually reducing its concentration.<\/p>\n

But that isn\u2019t the only reason why the Roman process was superior to ours. The resulting product was (is) also much more long-lasting, as demonstrated by the survival of many 2000-year-old or so roads and buildings that have survived even in earthquake zones. But how did they do it?<\/p>\n

In\u00a0American Mineralogist<\/a>, Jackson reveals that the structural\u00a0strength of Roman concrete was provided by crystals of a layered material called \u201caluminous tobermorite\u201d. The same crystals are present when rocks are forming, for example when volcanic eruptions produce islands. However, these processes were thought to require high temperatures.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one has produced tobermorite at 20\u00ba Celsius,\u201d Jackson said in a\u00a0statement<\/a>. \u201cOh \u2013 except the Romans!\u201d<\/p>\n

Roman concrete is known to have been composed of lime (CaO) volcanic ash, and seawater. Now the researchers mapped samples taken from ancient Roman concrete using an electron microscope, and then drilled down to an extremely high resolution with X-ray microdiffraction and Raman spectroscopy. Using these advanced techniques, they could identify all the mineral grains forming in the ancient concrete over centuries.<\/p>\n

We can go into the tiny natural laboratories in the concrete, map the minerals that are present, the succession of the crystals that occur, and their crystallographic properties,\u201d says Jackson.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been astounding what we\u2019ve been able to find.\u201d<\/p>\n

As it turns out, aluminous tobermorite and a related mineral called phillipsite actually grow in the concrete thanks to the sea water sloshing around it, slowly dissolving the volcanic ash inside. This gives space to developing a reinforced structure from these interlocking crystals.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Romans created a rock-like concrete that thrives in open chemical exchange with seawater,\u201d Jackson said.<\/p>\n

That is exactly the opposite of what happens in modern concrete, which erodes as saltwater washes away the compounds that hold the material together, including the steel reinforcements.<\/p>\n

Making concrete the way Roman way would be a blessing to the modern building industry, especially when it comes to constructing structures constantly exposed to seawater. Since the Romans weren\u2019t too advanced in the area of chemistry, it is thought that they discovered the formula by watching volcanic ash turn to stone upon being exposed to seawater.<\/p>\n

But unfortunately, the actual formula was lost sometime after Rome fell to less technologically developed invaders, so the only way to recreate the ancient material would be to reverse-engineer it based on our knowledge about its chemical properties. And Jackson\u2019s work to identify its precise contents could help us do just that.<\/p>\n

Of course, since can we cannot access the right volcanic ingredients everywhere, it\u2019s not like we can replace all the world\u2019s cement with the historical stuff just like that.<\/p>\n

\u201cRomans were fortunate in the type of rock they had to work with,\u201d Jackson said. \u201cWe don\u2019t have those rocks in a lot of the world, so there would have to be substitutions made.\u201d<\/p>\n

But if Jackson and her colleagues can find out the recipe, marine engineers could eventually get hold of a material that doesn\u2019t require steel reinforcements, can last for centuries, and makes fewer carbon emissions.<\/p>\n

Sources: 1<\/a>, 2<\/a>, 3<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Scientists Solve 2,000-Year-Old Mystery of Incredibly Strong Roman Concrete and It Could Help Battle Climate Change Modern concrete, including its vital ingredient Portland cement, is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions. But it could all change with a new discovery. Our obsession with concrete accounts for around 5 percent of human-induced emissions. A third…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"activitypub_content_warning":"","activitypub_content_visibility":"","activitypub_max_image_attachments":4,"activitypub_interaction_policy_quote":"anyone","activitypub_status":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-senza-categoria"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6daft-2pr","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":7510,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2020\/09\/04\/industrial-waste-can-turn-planet-warming-carbon-dioxide-into-stone-science-aaas\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":0},"title":"Industrial waste can turn planet-warming carbon dioxide into stone | Science | AAAS","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2020-09-04","format":"link","excerpt":"Industrial waste can turn planet-warming carbon dioxide into stone | Science | AAAS Via Slashdot Industrial waste can turn planet-warming carbon dioxide into stone By Robert F. ServiceSep. 3, 2020 , 9:00 AM In July 2019, Gregory Dipple, a geologist at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, hopped on a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Senza categoria"","block_context":{"text":"Senza categoria","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/senza-categoria\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":4603,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2018\/10\/01\/spheres-can-make-concrete-leaner-greener\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":1},"title":"Spheres can make concrete leaner, greener","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2018-10-01","format":"link","excerpt":"Rice University scientists have developed micron-sized calcium silicate spheres that could lead to stronger and greener concrete, the world's most-used synthetic material. Sorgente: Spheres can make concrete leaner, greener","rel":"","context":"In "Senza categoria"","block_context":{"text":"Senza categoria","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/senza-categoria\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1948,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2016\/11\/29\/ford-circle-and-faccia-vista-concrete\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":2},"title":"Ford circle and faccia-vista concrete","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2016-11-29","format":false,"excerpt":"I shall study those Ford circles (found via this Tikz example) a little, they may teach us something about the optimal granulometric distribution of a \"faccia-vista\" (exposed, faced) concrete...","rel":"","context":"In "Documentations"","block_context":{"text":"Documentations","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/documentations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8452,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2021\/05\/26\/concrete-block-cmu-sizes-shapes-and-finishes-archtoolbox-com\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":3},"title":"English acronym mania","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2021-05-26","format":false,"excerpt":"There's a thing of English - well, actually American English, or even better \"technical English\" - they I find quite disturbing: the custom of creating acronyms at every steps. See this example Concrete Block (CMU) Sizes, Shapes, and FinishesConcrete blocks, also known as Concrete Masonry Units or CMUs, provide very\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mood"","block_context":{"text":"Mood","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/mood\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1100,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2016\/03\/12\/unfinished\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":4},"title":"Unfinished","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2016-03-12","format":false,"excerpt":"I found this photo on the website of professional association of architects of Monza and Brianza. It makes me feel sad: I personally designed the concretes used to built that unfinished tower.\u00a0 Then I found this petition asking to demolish it. Then I don't feel sad. Sadness turns into anger.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mood"","block_context":{"text":"Mood","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/mood\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/03\/slider_pic2.jpg?fit=1200%2C380&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/03\/slider_pic2.jpg?fit=1200%2C380&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/03\/slider_pic2.jpg?fit=1200%2C380&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/03\/slider_pic2.jpg?fit=1200%2C380&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2016\/03\/slider_pic2.jpg?fit=1200%2C380&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1549,"url":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/2016\/05\/20\/1549\/","url_meta":{"origin":9265,"position":5},"title":"Every couple of months I\u2026","author":"Paolo Redaelli","date":"2016-05-20","format":"status","excerpt":"Every couple of months I keep dreaming of being adult and working but that I still have to pass some university exams. Tonight I dreamed about \"Prestressed concrete structures\" which is still being taught by Di Prisco. Quite obviously I would say because a couple of weeks ago I attended\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Mood"","block_context":{"text":"Mood","link":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/category\/mood\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9265","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9265"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9265\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9265"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9265"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/monodes.com\/predaelli\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9265"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}