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Article: Secret of sandcastle construction could help revive ancient building technique, researchers say.
- Article from:
- NewsRx Science
- Article date:
- June 21, 2009
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The secret of a successful sandcastle could aid the revival of an ancient eco-friendly building technique, according to research led by Durham University.
Researchers, led by experts at Durham's School of Engineering, have carried out a study into the strength of rammed earth, which is growing in popularity as a sustainable building method.
Just as a sandcastle needs a little water to stand up, the Durham engineers found that the strength of rammed earth was heavily dependent on its water content.
Rammed earth is a manufactured material made up of sand, gravel and clay which is moistened and then compacted between forms to build walls. ...