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The History of Cast Stone and Concrete:
A Timeline
Cement has been around for at least 12 million years. When the earth itself
was undergoing intense geologic changes natural, cement was being created. It
was this natural cement that humans first put to use. Eventually, they
discovered how to make cement from other materials.
| 12,000,000 BC |
Reactions between
limestone
and oil shale during spontaneous combustion occurred in Israel to form a
natural deposit of
cement
compounds. The deposits were characterized by Israeli geologists in the
1960's and 70's. |
3000 BC
Egyptians |
Used mud mixed with straw to bind dried bricks. They also
used gypsum
mortars and mortars of lime in the pyramids. |
| Chinese |
Used cementitious materials to hold bamboo together in
their boats and in the Great Wall. |
800 BC
Greeks, Crete & Cyprus |
Used lime mortars which were much harder than later Roman
mortars. |
300 BC
Babylonians & As Syrians |
Used bitumen to bind stones and bricks. |
300 BC - 476 AD
Romans |
Used pozzolana cement from Pozzuoli, Italy near Mt.
Vesuvius to build the Appian Way, Roman baths, the Coliseum and Pantheon in
Rome, and the Pont du Gard aqueduct in south France. They used lime as a
cementitious material. Pliny reported a mortar mixture of 1 part lime to 4
parts sand. Vitruvius reported a 2 parts pozzolana to 1 part lime. Animal
fat, milk, and blood were used as admixtures (substances added to cement to
increase the properties.) These structures still exist today! |
1200 - 1500
The Middle Ages |
The quality of cementing materials deteriorated. The use of
burning lime and
pozzolan
(admixture) was lost, but reintroduced in the 1300's. |
| 1678 |
Joseph Moxon wrote about a hidden fire in heated lime that
appears upon the addition of water. |
| 1779 |
Bry Higgins was issued a patent for hydraulic cement
(stucco) for exterior plastering use. |
| 1780 |
Bry Higgins published "Experiments and Observations Made
With the View of Improving the Art of Composing and Applying Calcereous
Cements and of Preparing Quicklime." |
| 1793 |
John Smeaton found that the calcination of limestone
containing clay gave a lime which hardened under water (hydraulic lime). He
used hydraulic lime to rebuild Eddystone Lighthouse in Cornwall, England
which he had been commissioned to build in 1756, but had to first invent a
material that would not be affected by water. He wrote a book about his
work. |
| 1796 |
James Parker from England patented a natural hydraulic
cement by calcining nodules of impure limestone containing clay, called
Parker's Cement or Roman Cement. |
| 1802 |
In France, a similar Roman Cement process was used. |
| 1810 |
Edgar Dobbs received a patent for hydraulic mortars,
stucco, and plaster, although they were of poor quality due to lack of kiln
precautions. |
| 1812 -1813 |
Louis Vicat of France prepared artificial hydraulic lime by
calcining synthetic mixtures of limestone and clay. |
| 1818 |
Maurice St. Leger was issued patents for hydraulic cement.
Natural Cement was produced in the USA. Natural cement is limestone that
naturally has the appropriate amounts of clay to make the same type of
concrete as John Smeaton discovered. |
| 1820 - 1821 |
John Tickell and Abraham Chambers were issued more
hydraulic cement patents. |
| 1822 |
James Frost of England prepared artificial hydraulic lime
like Vicat's and called it British Cement. |
| 1824 |
Joseph Aspdin of England invented
portland
cement by burning finely ground chalk with finely divided clay in a lime
kiln
until carbon dioxide was driven off. The sintered product was then ground
and he called it portland cement named after the high quality building
stones quarried at Portland, England. |
| 1828 |
I. K. Brunel is credited with the first engineering
application of portland cement, which was used to fill a breach in the
Thames Tunnel. |
| 1830 |
The first production of lime and hydraulic cement took
place in Canada. |
| 1836 |
The first systematic tests of tensile and compressive
strength took place in Germany. |
| 1843 |
J. M. Mauder, Son & Co. were licensed to produce patented
portland cement. |
| 1845 |
Isaac Johnson claims to have burned the raw materials of
portland cement to
clinkering
temperatures. |
| 1849 |
Pettenkofer & Fuches performed the first accurate chemical
analysis of portland cement. |
| 1860 |
The beginning of the era of portland cements of modern
composition. |
| 1862 |
Blake Stonebreaker of England introduced the jaw breakers
to crush clinkers. |
| 1867 |
Joseph Monier of France reinforced William Wand's (USA)
flower pots with wire ushering in the idea of iron reinforcing bars
(re-bar). |
| 1871 |
David Saylor was issued the first American patent for
portland cement. He showed the importance of true clinkering. |
| 1880 |
J. Grant of England show the importance of using the
hardest and densest portions of the clinker. Key ingredients were being
chemically analyzed. |
| 1886 |
The first rotary kiln was introduced in England to replace
the vertical shaft kilns. |
| 1887 |
Henri Le Chatelier of France established oxide ratios to
prepare the proper amount of lime to produce portland cement. He named the
components: Alite (tricalcium silicate), Belite (dicalcium silicate), and
Celite (tetracalcium aluminoferrite). He proposed that hardening is caused
by the formation of crystalline products of the reaction between cement and
water. |
| 1889 |
The first concrete reinforced bridge is built. |
| 1890 |
The addition of gypsum when grinding clinker to act as a
retardant
to the
setting of concrete was introduced in the USA. Vertical shaft kilns were
replaced with rotary kilns and ball mills were used for grinding cement.
|
| 1891 |
George Bartholomew placed the first concrete street in the
USA in Bellefontaine, OH. It still exists today! |
| 1893 |
William Michaelis claimed that hydrated metasilicates form
a gelatinous mass (gel) that dehydrates over time to harden. |
| 1900 |
Basic cement tests were standardized. |
| 1903 |
The first concrete high rise was built in Cincinnati, OH.
|
| 1908 |
Thomas Edison built cheap, cozy concrete houses in Union,
NJ. They still exist today! |
| 1909 |
Thomas Edison was issued a patent for rotary kilns. |
| 1929 |
Dr. Linus Pauling of the USA formulated a set of principles
for the structures of complex silicates. |
| 1930 |
Air entraining agents were introduced to improve concrete's
resistance to freeze/thaw damage. |
| 1936 |
The first major concrete dams, Hoover Dam and Grand Coulee
Dam, were built. They still exist today! |
| 1956 |
U.S. Congress annexed the Federal Interstate Highway Act.
|
| 1967 |
First concrete domed sport structure, the Assembly Hall,
was constructed at The University of Illinois, at Urbana-Champaign. |
| 1970's |
Fiber reinforcement in concrete was introduced. |
| 1975 |
CN Tower in Toronto, Canada, the tallest slip-form
building, was constructed.
Water Tower Place in Chicago, Illinois, the tallest building was
constructed. |
| 1980's |
Superplasticizers were introduced as admixtures. |
| 1985 |
Silica fume was introduced as a pozzolanic additive.
The "highest strength" concrete was used in building the Union Plaza
constructed in Seattle, Washington. |
| 1992 |
The tallest reinforced concrete building in the world was
constructed at 311 S. Wacker Dr., Chicago, Illinois. |
Lightweight precast concrete is usually called GFRC or glass fibre reinforced
Concrete. Precast concrete usually weights 100 lbs per cubic foot. Gfrc usually weights 10 lbs per lin foot. Precast concrete is a lower end product. Precast
concrete does not simulate limestone as does cast stone. Precast concrete
resembles finished concrete and the surface looks like your garage floor. Cast stone resembles limestone or sandstone. Lightweight cast stone is not a new
product but has been used for years, but not in architectural uses. We at Cast Stone Co are pleased to introduce this lightweight cast stone or lightweight precast concrete if you will, into our line of precast concrete and cast stone.
Because lightweight cast stone is made from fiberglass mixed with real limestone which gives it that stone look, it is not suitable for fireplace mantle treatments.
Although it is A-class fire rated it may scorch. Precast concrete is usually used in lower end track homes where budget is a concern, cast stone is usually used in higher end homes where budget is not a concern. The difference between cast stone and precast concrete is easily seen, and even the novice can appreciate the high quality limestone like finish on a cast stone product. Fireplace mantels or as some call them fireplace mantles look beautiful when constructed from cast stone. Cast stone fireplace mantels are used in any situation. Cast stone fireplace mantels or precast concrete fireplace mantels are both strong and fireproof. Lightweight cast stone fireplace mantels may scorch. Fireplace mantels are a thing of beauty when made from cast stone or precast concrete. Fireplace mantels are also made from wood. Fireplace mantels or fireplace chimneys are the main feature in any room and a fireplace mantel made from cast stone or precast concrete is a sight to behold.
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