“Discrecionalidad Minera” por Walter Casquino

Walter Casquino writes "Discrecionalidad minera" motivated by the precept "everything that is ignored is scorned" and also by the poem by Antonio Machado (Seville, Generation of 98) that says,

Caminante, son tus huellas
el camino y nada más;
Caminante, no hay camino,
se hace camino al andar.
Al andar se hace el camino,
y al volver la vista atrás
se ve la senda que nunca
se ha de volver a pisar.

The book "Discrecionalidad minera" is based on notes collected throughout his long career as a mining engineer and the characteristics of his environment. In the presentation of his book, Walter tells us what four objectives motivated him to write "Discrecionalidad minera". That four objectives motivated him to undertake the writing of it. The first, the precious gift of freedom of thought and expression that happily continues to be revered in our culture; the second that the following generations do not stumble over the same stone; the third is honouring that line of teachers who support the culture by making a devotion to the transfer of knowledge, and the fourth, thanking their friends and acquaintances who go around the world caring for the common good.

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Green Employment in Fuerteventura - Interview with Juanma Revuelta - Radio Sintonía

Entrevista a Juanma Revuelta – 09.09.21

Project engineering does not want the client to know about the existence of the Functional Basis

Ergonomics is defined etymologically as the scientific discipline that uses the principles of biotechnology and engineering to make products more comfortable and user-friendly. But ergonomics as science goes beyond product design and also takes into account how we use things.

The FB-Functional Basis is the pillar of ergonomics applied to megaproject engineering, as Victor Dvornikov explains in his article: "Megaprojects: Introduction into Functional Basis."

Victor Dvornikov considers that project engineering prefers to keep customers ignorant about the mere existence of the Functional Basis since this can substantially increase the project budget concerning design bases. It also highlights that three key factors currently arouse interest in the Functional Base.

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What are polymer concretes?

Conventional concrete results from the combination of aggregates and a binder material or hydraulic glue, for example, portland cement, which is one of the most used. Concrete aggregates play a fundamental role in the final characteristics of concrete. The final result will depend on the chemical nature of the aggregates: silicic, limestone, basaltic, pozzolanic, etc., on their composition and granulometry. This last characteristic determines whether we are talking about concrete or mortars; thus, when the aggregate granulometry exceeds 5 mm, we speak of concrete.

Polymeric concretes in which the cementitious binder or glue is completely changed: portland, lime ..., for an exclusively polymeric binder or glue, and the most common is that curing resins are used as polymer at room temperature.

Polymers are organic macromolecules whose origin can be natural or synthetic, consisting of chains of thousands of repeating structural units. The chains of a particular polymer have a specific size and shape, and that is why there is an immense number of polymers that differ between them: by the different lengths and conditions of their chains, by the type of bonds and forces that make them they unite, and according to the conformations or spatial arrangement that they acquire, which gives each polymeric material different characteristics and properties.

Polymeric concretes has the nature of composite materials, also called "composites", which are mixtures of different materials used to take advantage of their combined qualities. Attention, it is not about alloys or chemical compounds, but materials that, when forming each one, maintain their original identity, but in such a way that in the mixture, a synergistic effect or improvement and reinforcement of the properties that each develops is produced separately.

More generally, polymeric concrete is the name given to concretes. Polymeric binders or glues, organic compounds, only partially replace the hydraulic matrix, inorganic compounds, or modifiers to obtain an organic-inorganic hybrid material. For this reason, polymeric concretes can be classified based on the nature of the binder, or glue, into three types:

Polymer Portland Cement Concrete (PPCC)

We speak of "polymeric portland cement concrete" or PPCC when the polymer is incorporated into the concrete mass at its manufacture and distributed equally in it.

Polymer Impregnated Concrete - PIC

We consider that a block of concrete is impregnated with polymer (PIC) when the addition of the polymer is carried out after the setting of the cementitious concrete. The polymer will only partially or superficially cover the mass of the concrete.

Polymeric concrete - PC

"Polymeric concrete" or PC is manufactured when an exclusively polymeric matrix entirely replaces the hydraulic binder.

Typical characteristics of polymeric concrete

Impermeability
Durability
Resistance to chemical attacks
Thermal insulator
Electrical insulator

These are the uses and Typical applications of polymeric concrete

Structural repair
Pave roads
Pipe manufacturing
Decorative panels and flooring
Construction

Sources: Own elaboration by the GLOBAL3CCS team

CONCRETES WITH POLYMERS IN THEIR CONSTRUCTION PROPERTIES AND APPLICATIONS
A. Aguado, Dr. Ing. Caminos. - E.T.S. Ingenieros de Caminos, Canales y Puertos.
J. M. Salla, Dr. Ing. Industrial. - E.T.S. Ingenieros Industriales de Barcelona.
Universitat Politécnica de Catalunya.
© Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas Licencia Creative Commons 3.0 España (by-nc)
http://informesdelaconstruccion.revistas.csic.es

Polyurea

Polyurea is a synthetic polymer product of the reaction of a diamine with an isocyanate; it is a polymerization reaction very similar to that of polyurethane. However, for Polyurea, the resulting bond is of the "urea" type, which is why it is called Polyurea.