Characteristics of Good Building Stone | Construction Aggregate Properties

Building stones used in construction

Characteristics of Good Building Stones Every building stone which is used for construction, cannot satisfy all the ideal requirements. For example, when the stone satisfies the requirement of strength and durability, it may not do the same with other necessities such as ease of dressing. Hence it is the job of the site engineer to … Read more

Introduction to Structural Concepts and Design

Structural Concepts and Design

Introduction to Structural Concepts and Design •Concrete design in Australia follows AS 3600; •Concrete behaviour varies depending on whether it is in tension or compression; •The strength of concrete is given in terms of the characteristic strength; •Characteristic strength is defined in AS 3600 as “the value of material strength, as assessed by standard test, … Read more

Cement & Concrete Mix Design

Concrete Mix Design

Concrete Mix Design Concrete is a construction material composed of : Cement (commonly Portland cement) as well as other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement. Aggregate (generally a coarse aggregate such as gravel, limestone, or granite, plus a fine aggregate such as sand). Water  and Chemical admixtures. The word concrete comes from … Read more

Concrete in Brief

Concrete in Brief

Concrete in Brief Properties of concrete Easily mixed, handled, transported, placed in position and compacted Segregation Separation of constituent materials of concrete Creates larger voids and reduces the durability and strength. Bleeding Water from concrete comes out of the surface Produces pores in concrete and reduces strength. Strength Compressive strength, tensile strength, flexural strength. Elasticity … Read more

Hidden strength of a spider’s web( @ MIT news)

The silk that spiders use to build their webs, trap their prey and dangle from your ceiling is one of the strongest materials known. But it turns out it’s not simply the material’s exceptional strength that makes spider webs so resilient; it’s the material’s unusual combination of strength and stretchiness — silk’s characteristic way of first softening and then stiffening when pulled.

These properties, scientists have found, vary depending on the forces applied, as well as on the overall design of the web.

Markus Buehler, an associate professor of civil and environmental engineering (CEE) at MIT, has previously analyzed the complex, hierarchical structure of spider silk and its amazing strength — on a pound-for-pound basis, it’s stronger than steel. Now,

Read more