Cement For House Construction

1901

The construction of cement houses is under consideration in Pittsburg, where the millions of tons of furnace slag produced every year could thus be utilized, says the New York Post. It has been shown that this slag can be converted into cement by known processes at a less cost than the $1 a barrel suggested by Mr. Edison as the result of an invention on which he is experimenting.

This cement, it is claimed, can be made fully equal to the best that is known as portland, although a lower and a cheaper grade would suffice for house construction. Pulverized and mixed with lime, the slag has been converted into a superior plaster, showing a tensile strength greater than the ordinary sand and lime.

Cement made from the slag would not only be economical for house construction, but would make practically fireproof buildings. Such use of a product now wasted or used only to fill ravines would also be preservative of the forests.