Concrete

= Definition =

Concrete
Is a manufactured mixture of cement and water, with aggregates of sand and stones, which hardens rapidly by chemical combination to a stonelike, water-and-fire-resisting solid of great compressive but low tensile strength.

Reinforced concrete
Was developed to add the tensile strength of steel to the compressive strength of mass concrete.The metal is embedded by being set as a mesh into the forms before pouring, and in the hardened material the two act uniformly. The combination is much more versatile than either product; it serves not only for constructing rigid frames but also for foundations, columns, walls, floors, and a limitless variety of coverings, and it does not require the addition of other structural materials.

Trump International Hotel and Tower Chicago

Concrete-shell construction
Permits the erection of vast vaults and domes with a concrete and steel content so reduced that the thickness is comparatively less than that of an eggshell.

Beşiktaş Fish Market Istambul

Precast-concrete construction
Employs bricks, slabs, and supports made under optimal factory conditions to increase waterproofing and solidity, to decrease time and cost in erection, and to reduce expansion and contractions.



Prestressed concrete
Provides bearing members into which reinforcement is set under tension to produce a live force to resist a particular load.

Narmada Bridge at Zadeshwar, Gujarat - 1977