Understanding and Recreation of a 4500 Year Old Reconstituted Limestone

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NON-TECHNICAL DESCRIPTIONHow the Great Pyramids of Giza were built has remained an enduring mystery. In the mid-Eighties a French scientist proposed that blocks of the pyramids were cast in place using limestone aggregate and a cement-like binder. In 2006, Barsoum et al. published a paper presenting evidence that some pyramid blocks were cast. In this grant, Prof. Barsoum?s group will examine more pyramid samples to obtain further evidence that they were cast, including using techniques such as C-dating. Subsequently some discussions and work on reverse-engineering the technology and exploring its potential for today?s world will begin. The impact of this work on society is truly multifaceted and universal. For one it may be possible to rewrite the history books and be of fundamental importance to Egyptologists, archeologists and to the restoration of ancient Egyptian antiquities made with that technology. It could push the date of the invention of concrete back. In the long run, it may be possible to build affordable and durable homes and shelters that are esthetically indistinguishable from natural limestone. Reconstituted limestone such as this would release roughly 80-90 % less CO2 than Portland cement-based concrete. TECHNICAL DETAILSThe microstructure of some pyramid limestones will be studied in order to understand how they were formed. Furthermore, they will carbon date these materials (i) to test the hypothesis that some of the key pyramidal structures are synthetic in nature, and (ii) to supply an independent date for the building of the pyramids. A second aspect of the project is to reverse-engineer this limestone based on what is learned from the characterization through collaborations. The long-term goal is to develop a low technology, low energy and thus low CO2, building material for the third world and possibly the developed world. In terms of outreach and education, a scaled down pyramid (with ~10 m by ~10 m base) is to be built by students at Drexel University and documented. Three-dimensional animations of how the pyramids are believed to have been built will be generated and widely disseminated via several means, including the web (e.g., U-tube).