Herbert’s Quarry – ein magischer Ort am Rande der Brecon Beacons [Roving Welsh] https://sciencefiles.org/2023/08/11/herberts-quarry-ein-magischer-ort-am-rande-der-brecon-beacons-roving-welsh/ #Herbert'sQuarry #RovingWelsh #Brynamman #LimeCycle #Limestone #Quicklime

Finally #painted some #trees. This was just diluted #latex paint, primarily against sunburn.

The traditional use of #quicklime (calcium oxide) seems to be all but forgotten. It's super caustic but fun when you slack it (== add water to the powder).

The locals in a tiny #French #seaside hamlet gasped when they saw this crazy foreigner slather suffering ancient fruit trees with quicklime against #lichen.

The following summer they went: Bien fait, 😉 .

Fascinating piece on ancient Roman concrete -- wait, no, don't leave! -- in Ars Technica.

Apparently the #Roman #AncientEngineers mixed their #concrete with #quicklime at high temperatures. This formed veins of calcium carbonate in the concrete. The veins were stress lines, so that if the concrete cracked, it did so along the veins. But the veins could sort of melt and reform, if they got wet. So after a few rains, the cracks in the concrete would heal!

https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/01/ancient-roman-concrete-could-self-heal-thanks-to-hot-mixing-with-quicklime/

#Roman #construction is famous
for enduring for centuries, from architectural marvels to common roads. TIL that some of their #aquaducts are still in use today! And they used a mysterious #concrete formula that makes our modern efforts look like dried Play-Doh. But now scientists have demonstrated the secret the Romans perfected for #selfhealing concrete: #quicklime.

#engineering #materialscience #history #ancient #lime

https://news.mit.edu/2023/roman-concrete-durability-lime-casts-0106

In #movies. #quicklime is by far the most popular stuff to dissolve the body of someone you just killed.

Spoiler alert: that stuff doesn't work very well, let alone fast.

A bunch of chemists discussed this on a forum (purely academic of course, just like Tom Riddle when he asked #Slughorn about #Horcruxes).

We came up with a few great solutions which we, for obvious reasons, can't share with you.

Just don't p*ss off chemists in any way and you're safe.

#Chemistry #Hollywood #HarryPotter

Picture of myself helping load a small #limekiln in Millstone Park, Hyllestad (Norway). Kiln and picture by geologist Per Storemyr who is a main collaborator for my PhD project. He runs a building conservation service called FABRICA and is a protagonist for interdisciplinary work that takes the knowledge of crafters seriously. The #quicklime, made from a white marble from Osterøy, was used as limewash for Fastings Minde, at the University of Bergen.