Types of Metals Used in Fabrication
The metals commonly used in fabrication — carbon and stainless steel, aluminium, copper, brass, titanium and more — and why each is chosen.
Topic
Construction Materials
Cement, aggregates, bricks, timber and metals: how they are made, what their properties mean on site, and how to choose.
Physical Properties of Cement
The physical properties used to judge cement quality — fineness, soundness, consistency, strength, setting time, heat of hydration and specific gravity.
Aggregate for Concrete
What aggregate is, why it makes up most of a concrete mix, and how aggregates are classified by size, specific gravity, availability, shape and texture.
Physical Properties of Aggregates
How shape, size, texture, specific gravity, bulk density, porosity and water absorption of aggregates affect the cement and water a concrete mix needs.
Chemical Composition of Cement
The oxides in Portland cement, what each one does to setting time, soundness and strength, and the typical percentage range of each.
Timber: Construction Material
Types of trees, the structure of a tree trunk, the common defects in timber and the natural and artificial methods of seasoning timber for construction.
Red Bricks vs Fly Ash Bricks: Which Is Better
A short comparison of traditional clay red bricks and machine-made fly ash bricks, with a chart of water absorption, wastage, shape, strength and weight.
Fly Ash Bricks: Properties, Manufacturing and More
What fly ash bricks are, their properties compared with clay bricks, how they are made from fly ash, lime, gypsum and sand, plus pros and cons.
Cement: Manufacturing, Types and Testing
How Portland cement is made (raw materials, kiln, clinker, wet and dry process), nine types of cement and their uses, and simple field checks.