Reading about the Roman concrete in the harbor at Caesarea

I always heard Roman concrete was good, but a paper from the University of Utah said the seawater actually made it stronger over time by forming rare minerals. That's the opposite of modern concrete. It makes me wonder if we should be trying to copy that old recipe for coastal projects, or if the materials are just too different now. Anyone know of modern projects actually using a similar volcanic ash mix?

3 comments

3 Comments

emma_jones13d ago

Wait, didn't Roman concrete just get weaker in water like everything else? That's wild that the saltwater actually makes it stronger. Are they trying to make new stuff with the ash mix now?

sam_cooper13d ago

Check out the new research on that ash mix, @emma_jones.

hunt.hayden13d ago

Actually modern concrete mixes already use fly ash which works on a similar idea.