Why the Pantheon has not crumbled: Roman concrete mortar used secret ingredient that could reduce [View all]

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Carbon Emissions.

Ancient Roman architecture has managed to stand the test of time for 2,000 years because the concrete mortar used for the structures included a secret ingredient, scientists have discovered.

Monuments such as the Pantheon, Colosseum, and Trajan's Markets were built with mortar made from volcanic ash, researchers at the US Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have found.

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"The dense intergrowths of the platy crystals obstruct crack propagation and preserve cohesion at the micron scale, which in turn enables the concrete to maintain its chemical resilience and structural integrity in a seismically active environment at the millennial scale," Jackson said.

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Modern concretes are mostly bound by limestone-based Portland cement, which requires heating to 1,450C – a process that releases an estimated 7% of the total carbon emitted into the atmosphere every year.


http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/why-pantheon-has-not-crumbled-roman-concrete-mortar-used-secret-ingredient-that-could-reduce-1479938

The old ways are best.