Modern concrete is much less resilient than the concrete used in Roman times. Now researchers think they know why.
In June, the Italian Ministry of Culture announced the excavation of a new room, not yet open to the public,. A few weeks later, a group of archaeologists gathered to marvel at it: walls covered with bright blue paint – an expensive pigment reserved for special rooms – and detailed frescoes of agricultural images remarkably well preserved after almost 2000 years.
Moreover, the manufacture of concrete is a major driver of climate change, producing 8 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions worldwide. By learning the secrets of Roman concrete, researchers like Masic are trying to devise greener, more durable modern options. A map of a two-centimetre fragment of ancient Roman concrete collected from the archaeological site of Privernum, Italy . A calcium-rich lime clast , which is responsible for the unique self-healing properties in this ancient material, is clearly visible in the lower region of the image. Also seen are silicon and aluminum .
But it’s difficult to prove the Romans intentionally left chunks of quicklime in their concrete because the chunks changed chemically over the centuries. By examining the clasts with special microscopes, Masic said, he and his colleagues have shown they indeed started out as quicklime. The initial reaction of lime and pozzolana generated the CASH compounds that acted as the glue in ancient Roman concrete. And the materials continued reacting, forming rare minerals like stratlingite for many years after the concrete was made, Jackson found. The stratlingite crystals, shaped like flakes and needles, helped bond together rough chunks of material in the concrete and blocked the growth of cracks.
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