Concrete

= CONCRETE =

Concrete is a mixture made of cement, water, small stones and sand. Sometimes aditives can be add depending on the strenght it needs. It's weak in tension and very strong in compression.
=== Strengths: cheap, fireproof and weatherproof, molds to any shape so it has a variety of structural elements. It has many aplications. For example: domes, arch bridges, structure, walls, etc. It also works good fusing with other materials. === Weaknesses: cracks with temperature changes. It's heavy.

__Reinforced concrete:__ was developed to add the tensile strenght of steel to the compressive strength of mass concrete. It's always used in construction, specially those ones that are tall and heavy.

Nowadays exists some ways of concrete production, for example:

1. precast-concrete: employs bricks, slabs and supports made under optimal factory conditions to increase waterproofing and solidity, to decrease time and cost in erection, etc. 2. prestressed concrete: provides bearing members into which reinforcement is set under tension to produce a live force to resist a particular load. 3. post-tensed concrete: is when steel is tensed after put concrete on the construction. For example: Museo de Bellas Artes in Caracas works that way. Museo de Bellas Artes. Caracas.

Le Corbusier was one of the most important architects that had ever existed, and he used concrete for almost all his projects. He managed it very well.

Ronchamp. Villa Savoye. La Casa del Puente. Mar del Plata, Argentina