Advantages of using cement - Essay Example

Advantages of Cement in Architecture In architecture, binding materials are very important. No structural elements can be put together without an adequately strong binding material. Cement is one of the most important binding materials in construction. It would not be wrong to state that this binding material is the one that is used most readily in many different kinds of construction works. Its wide use and popularity can be attributed to some very magnificent properties of cement. Cement is easy and cost-effective to produce.

Owing to the fact that the ingredients used in the making of cement, including calcium, iron, silicon, and aluminum (“How Cement is”) are readily available and the chemical reaction required to make cement is easy to set, cement is found everywhere. The wonderful aspect of these ingredients is that their combination in different percentages and under different conditions leads to the manufacturing of cement with different properties and color. These days, a lot of varieties of cement are produced that vary with respect to color, strength, texture, and setting time.

The tendency in cement to be manufactured in different varieties makes it a very useful material in architecture. The different colors of cement are used for aesthetic purposes, whether between bricks, stones, or wall tiles. Certain varieties of cement are so fine and have such beautiful colors that they do not require any additional coatings of paint or varnish over them to look presentable. This saves the cost of the constructors. Cements used in architecture are either hydraulic or non-hydraulic.

Both varieties are made by addition of certain admixtures in the ingredients during the process of manufacturing cement. Hydraulic cement is manufactured by replacing part of cement in the concrete with pozzolanas. This activates the setting of cement in wet conditions, and enhances the tendency of the hardened concrete to deter chemical attack. On the other hand, use of non-hydraulic cement in concrete prevents it from setting in the wet conditions. This is a very useful property as it increases the setting time of concrete, as may be required to form architectural elements of certain shapes and styles.

Cement finds its biggest use in mortar and concrete. Mortar is used as a binding material in bricks and blocks. Concrete is used to form hard surfaces like floors and roofs. The quality that makes cement particularly suitable for inclusion in the mortar and concrete is its high capability of binding the materials together and achieve strengths that cannot be matched by other materials as cheap as cement. Any kind of architecture definitely employs the use of mortar or concrete in some form. Use of cement in the plaster enables the constructors to add unique shapes and features to the structure to make it visibly more appealing.

To conclude, the importance of cement in architecture cannot be overemphasized. Its use in architecture is omnipresent. Its cost-effectiveness; simplicity of manufacturing; tendency to achieve different colors, properties, and strengths; and application in a variety of tasks make cement the number one choice of constructors. Works Cited:“How Cement is Made.” 2014. Web. 2 April 2014. .