Structural engineering: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 09:30, 20 February 2024

Revision as of 09:50, 20 February 2024

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[[File:Pont du Gard BLS.jpg|thumb|[[Pont du Gard]], France, a [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] era aqueduct circa 19 BC]]

[https://avonprojects.in/ Structural engineering] dates back to 2700 B.C. when the step pyramid for Pharaoh [[Djoser]] was built by [[Imhotep]], the first engineer in history known by name. Pyramids were the most common major structures built by ancient civilizations because the structural form of a pyramid is inherently stable and can be almost infinitely scaled (as opposed to most other structural forms, which cannot be linearly increased in size in proportion to increased loads).<ref name = Saouma/>

The structural stability of the pyramid, whilst primarily gained from its shape, relies also on the strength of the stone from which it is constructed, and its ability to support the weight of the stone above it.<ref name=Fonte>{{cite report|title=Building the Great Pyramid in a Year: An Engineer's Report |author=Fonte, Gerard C. A.|publisher=Algora Publishing: New York|pages=34}}CV</ref> The limestone blocks were often taken from a quarry near the building site and have a compressive strength from 30 to 250 MPa (MPa = Pa × 10⁶).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stanford.edu/~tyzhu/Documents/Some%20Useful%20Numbers.pdf|title=Some Useful Numbers on the Engineering Properties of Materials (Geologic and Otherwise)|publisher=Stanford University|access-date=2013-12-05|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120616163119/http://www.stanford.edu/~tyzhu/Documents/Some%20Useful%20Numbers.pdf|archive-date=2012-06-16}}</ref> Therefore, the structural strength of the pyramid stems from the material properties of the stones from which it was built rather than the pyramid's geometry.