cement

The major cements: composition and properties

Portland cement

Chemical composition

Portland cement is made up of four main compounds: tricalcium silicate (3CaO ·

SiO2), dicalcium silicate (2CaO · SiO2), tricalcium aluminate (3CaO · Al2O3), and a tetra-
calcium aluminoferrite (4CaO · Al2O3Fe2O3). In an abbreviated notation differing from
the normal atomic symbols, these compounds are designated as C3S, C2S, C3A, and C4AF,
where C stands for calcium oxide (lime), S for silica, A for alumina, and F for iron oxide.
Small amounts of uncombined lime and magnesia also are present, along with alkalies
and minor amounts of other elements.
Hydration

The most important hydraulic constituents are the calcium silicates, C2S and C3S. Upon

mixing with water, the calcium silicates react with water molecules to form calcium
silicate hydrate (3CaO · 2SiO2 · 3H2O) and calcium hydroxide (Ca[OH]2). These
compounds are given the shorthand notations C–S–H (represented by the average
formula C3S2H3) and CH, and the hydration reaction can be crudely represented by the
following reactions:2C3S + 6H = C3S2H3 + 3CH2C2S + 4H = C3S2H3 + CHDuring the initial
stage of hydration, the parent compounds dissolve, and the dissolution of their chemical
bonds generates a significant amount of heat. Then, for reasons that are not fully
understood, hydration comes to a stop. This quiescent, or dormant, period is extremely
important in the placement of concrete. Without a dormant period there would be no
cement trucks; pouring would have to be done immediately upon mixing.
Following the dormant period (which can last several hours), the cement begins to
harden, as CH and C–S–H are produced. This is the cementitious material that binds
cement and concrete together. As hydration proceeds, water and cement are
continuously consumed. Fortunately, the C–S–H and CH products occupy almost the
same volume as the original cement and water; volume is approximately conserved, and
shrinkage is manageable.

Although the formulas above treat C–S–H as a specific stoichiometry, with the formula
C3S2H3, it does not at all form an ordered structure of uniform composition. C–S–H is
actually an amorphous gel with a highly variable stoichiometry. The ratio of C to S, for
example, can range from 1:1 to 2:1, depending on mix design and curing conditions.
Structural properties

The strength developed by portland cement depends on its composition and the fineness
to which it is ground. The C3S is mainly responsible for the strength developed in the
first week of hardening and the C2S for the subsequent increase in strength. The alumina
and iron compounds that are present only in lesser amounts make little direct
contribution to strength.

Set cement and concrete can suffer deterioration from attack by some natural or
artificial chemical agents. The alumina compound is the most vulnerable to chemical
attack in soils containing sulfate salts or in seawater, while the iron compound and the
two calcium silicates are more resistant. Calcium hydroxide released during the
hydration of the calcium silicates is also vulnerable to attack. Because cement liberates
heat when it hydrates, concrete placed in large masses, as in dams, can cause the
temperature inside the mass to rise as much as 40 °C (70 °F) above the outside
temperature. Subsequent cooling can be a cause of cracking. The highest heat of
hydration is shown by C3A, followed in descending order by C3S, C4AF, and C2S.
Types of portland cement

Five types of portland cement are standardized in the United States by the American
Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM): ordinary (Type I), modified (Type II), high-
early-strength (Type III), low-heat (Type IV), and sulfate-resistant (Type V). In other
countries Type II is omitted, and Type III is called rapid-hardening. Type V is known in
some European countries as Ferrari cement.

There also are various other special types of portland cement. Coloured cements are
made by grinding 5 to 10 percent of suitable pigments with white or ordinary gray
portland cement. Air-entraining cements are made by the addition on grinding of a
small amount, about 0.05 percent, of an organic agent that causes the entrainment of
very fine air bubbles in a concrete. This increases the resistance of the concrete to
freeze-thaw damage in cold climates. The air-entraining agent can alternatively be
added as a separate ingredient to the mix when making the concrete.

Low-alkali cements are portland cements with a total content of alkalies not above 0.6
percent. These are used in concrete made with certain types of aggregates that contain a
form of silica that reacts with alkalies to cause an expansion that can disrupt a concrete.

Masonry cements are used primarily for mortar. They consist of a mixture of portland
cement and ground limestone or other filler together with an air-entraining agent or a
water-repellent additive. Waterproof cement is the name given to a portland cement to
which a water-repellent agent has been added. Hydrophobic cement is obtained by
grinding portland cement clinker with a film-forming substance such as oleic acid in
order to reduce the rate of deterioration when the cement is stored under unfavourable
conditions.

Oil-well cements are used for cementing work in the drilling of oil wells where they are
subject to high temperatures and pressures. They usually consist of portland or
pozzolanic cement (see below) with special organic retarders to prevent the cement from
setting too quickly.
Slag cements
The granulated slag made by the rapid chilling of suitable molten slags from blast
furnaces forms the basis of another group of constructional cements. A mixture
of portland cement and granulated slag, containing up to 65 percent slag, is known in
the English-speaking countries as portland blast-furnace (slag) cement. The
German Eisenportlandzement and Hochofenzement contain up to 40 and 85 percent
slag, respectively. Mixtures in other proportions are found in French-speaking countries
under such names as ciment portland de fer, ciment métallurgique mixte, ciment de
haut fourneau, and ciment de liatier au clinker. Properties of these slag cements are
broadly similar to those of portland cement, but they have a lower lime content and a
higher silica and alumina content. Those with the higher slag content have an increased
resistance to chemical attack.

Another type of slag-containing cement is a supersulfated cement consisting of

granulated slag mixed with 10 to 15 percent hard-burned gypsum or anhydrite (natural
anhydrous calcium sulfate) and a few percent of portland cement. The strength
properties of supersulfated cement are similar to those of portland cement, but it has an
increased resistance to many forms of chemical attack. Pozzolanic cements are mixtures
of portland cement and a pozzolanic material that may be either natural or artificial. The
natural pozzolanas are mainly materials of volcanic origin but include some
diatomaceous earths. Artificial materials include fly ash, burned clays, and shales.
Pozzolanas are materials that, though not cementitious in themselves, contain silica
(and alumina) in a reactive form able to combine with lime in the presence of water to
form compounds with cementitious properties. Mixtures of lime and pozzolana still find
some application but largely have been superseded by the modern pozzolanic cement.
Hydration of the portland cement fraction releases the lime required to combine with
the pozzolana.
High-alumina cement

High-alumina cement is a rapid-hardening cement made by fusing at 1,500 to 1,600 °C

(2,730 to 2,910 °F) a mixture of bauxite and limestone in a reverberatory or electric
furnace or in a rotary kiln. It also can be made by sintering at about 1,250 °C (2,280 °F).
Suitable bauxites contain 50 to 60 percent alumina, up to 25 percent iron oxide, not
more than 5 percent silica, and 10 to 30 percent water of hydration. The limestone must
contain only small amounts of silica and magnesia. The cement contains 35 to 40
percent lime, 40 to 50 percent alumina, up to 15 percent iron oxides, and preferably not
more than about 6 percent silica. The principal cementing compound is calcium
aluminate (CaO · Al2O3).

High-alumina cement gains a high proportion of its ultimate strength within 24 hours
and has a high resistance to chemical attack. It also can be used in refractory linings for
furnaces. A white form of the cement, containing minimal proportions of iron oxide and
silica, has outstanding refractory properties.
Expanding and nonshrinking cements

Expanding and nonshrinking cements expand slightly on hydration, thus offsetting the
small contraction that occurs when fresh concrete dries for the first time. Expanding
cements were first produced in France about 1945. The American type is a mixture of
portland cement and an expansive agent made by clinkering a mix of chalk, bauxite, and
gypsum.
Gypsum plasters

Gypsum plasters are used for plastering, the manufacture of plaster boards and slabs,
and in one form of floor-surfacing material. These gypsum cements are mainly produced
by heating natural gypsum (calcium sulfate dihydrate, CaSO4 · 2H2O) and dehydrating it
to give calcium sulfate hemihydrate (CaSO4 · 1/2H2O) or anhydrous (water-free) calcium
sulfate. Gypsum and anhydrite obtained as by-products in chemical manufacture also
are used as raw materials.

The hemihydrate, known as plaster of Paris, sets within a few minutes on mixing with
water; for building purposes a retarding agent, normally keratin, a protein, is added.
The anhydrous calcium sulfate plasters are slower-setting, and often another sulfate salt
is added in small amounts as an accelerator. Flooring plaster, originally known by its
German title of Estrich Gips, is of the anhydrous type.
Cement testing
Various tests to which cements must conform are laid down in national cement
specifications to control the fineness, soundness, setting time, and strength of the
cement. These tests are described in turn below.
Fineness

Fineness was long controlled by sieve tests, but more sophisticated methods are now
largely used. The most common method, used both for control of the grinding process
and for testing the finished cement, measures the surface area per unit weight of the
cement by a determination of the rate of passage of air through a bed of the cement.
Other methods depend on measuring the particle size distribution by the rate of
sedimentation of the cement in kerosene or by elutriation (separation) in an airstream.
Soundness

After it has set, a cement must not undergo any appreciable expansion, which could
disrupt a mortar or concrete. This property of soundness is tested by subjecting the set
cement to boiling in water or to high-pressure steam. Unsoundness can arise from the
presence in the cement of too much free magnesia or hard-burned free lime.
Setting time

The setting and hardening of a cement is a continuous process, but two points are
distinguished for test purposes. The initial setting time is the interval between the
mixing of the cement with water and the time when the mix has lost plasticity, stiffening
to a certain degree. It marks roughly the end of the period when the wet mix can be
molded into shape. The final setting time is the point at which the set cement has
acquired a sufficient firmness to resist a certain defined pressure. Most specifications
require an initial minimum setting time at ordinary temperatures of about 45 minutes
and a final setting time no more than 10 to 12 hours.
Strength
The tests that measure the rate at which a cement develops strength are usually made on
a mortar commonly composed of one part cement to three parts sand, by weight, mixed
with a defined quantity of water. Tensile tests on briquettes, shaped like a figure eight
thickened at the centre, were formerly used but have been replaced or supplemented by
compressive tests on cubical specimens or transverse tests on prisms. The American
Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) specification requires tensile tests on a 1:3
cement-sand mortar and compressive tests on a 1:2.75 mortar. The British Standards
Institution (BSI) gives as alternatives a compressive test on a 1:3 mortar or on
a concrete specimen. An international method issued by the International Organization
for Standardization (ISO) requires a transverse test on a 1:3 cement-sand mortar prism,
followed by a compressive test on the two halves of the prism that remain after it has
been broken in bending. Many European countries have adopted this method. In all
these tests the size grading of the sand, and usually its source, is specified.

In the testing of most cements, a minimum strength at 3 and 7 days and sometimes 28
days is specified, but for rapid-hardening portland cement a test at 1 day also is
sometimes required. For high-alumina cement, tests are required at 1 and 3 days.

Strength requirements laid down in different countries are not directly comparable
because of the differences in test methods. In actual construction, to check the strength
of a concrete, compressive tests are made on cylinders or cubes made from the concrete
being placed.
Frederick M. LeaThe Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Asano Sōichirō

Sections

HomePolitics, Law & GovernmentBusinesspeople & Entrepreneurs

Asano Sōichirō
Japanese businessman

Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | Last Updated: Jan 1, 2022 | View Edit History

Asano Sōichirō, (born 1848, Etchū province, Japan—died 1930, Tokyo), Japanese
businessman who founded the giant Asano zaibatsu, or industrial combine.
Born:

1848 Japan

Died:

1930 (aged 82) Tokyo Japan

See all related content →

The son of a physician, Asano chose a career in business, but his first company failed. In
1871 he became a coal merchant in Tokyo. Five years later he developed methods for
utilizing coke, until then a waste by-product of gas manufacture, in cement production,
and this enterprise prospered. His business acumen interested Shibusawa Eiichi, a
leading figure in Meiji era industrial development, who enabled Asano in 1883 to
acquire a government cement plant being transferred to private ownership free of
charge. It became the Asano Cement Company, cornerstone of the
Asano zaibatsu, which eventually included shipping and shipbuilding, mining, gas and
electricity, oil, iron and steel, and beer brewing. By 1929 it was the fifth-largest such
combine in Japan, with 17 wholly owned companies, 26 subsidiaries, 26 affiliates, and 6
associated concerns. The Allied Occupation authorities broke up the Asano zaibatsu into
separate enterprises in 1947.
portland cement

Sections

HomeTechnologyIndustry

portland cement
Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

portland cement, binding material in the form of a finely ground powder, usually
gray, that is manufactured by burning and grinding a mixture of limestone and clay or
limestone and shale. The inventor Joseph Aspdin, of England, patented the basic
process in 1824, naming it for the resemblance of the cement when set to portland
stone, a limestone from the Isle of Portland. When mixed with water, the anhydrous
calcium silicates and other constituents in the portland cement react chemically with the
water, combining with it (hydration) and decomposing in it (hydrolysis) and hardening
and developing strength. See concrete.
Related Topics:

 
 clinker semidry process hydraulic cement

materials processing

materials processing, the series of operations that transforms industrial materials

from a raw-material state into finished parts or products. Industrial materials are
defined as those used in the manufacture of “hard” goods, such as more or less durable
machines and equipment produced for industry and consumers, as contrasted with
disposable “soft” goods, such as chemicals, foodstuffs, pharmaceuticals, and apparel.

Related Topics:

iron processing aluminum processing lead processing copper processing zinc processing

Materials processing by hand is as old as civilization; mechanization began with

the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century, and in the early 19th century the basic
machines for forming, shaping, and cutting were developed, principally in England.
Since then, materials-processing methods, techniques, and machinery have grown in
variety and number.

The cycle of manufacturing processes that converts materials into parts and products
starts immediately after the raw materials are either extracted from minerals or
produced from basic chemicals or natural substances. Metallic raw materials are usually
produced in two steps. First, the crude ore is processed to increase the concentration of
the desired metal; this is called beneficiation. Typical beneficiation processes include
crushing, roasting, magnetic separation, flotation, and leaching. Second, additional
processes such as smelting and alloying are used to produce the metal that is to be
fabricated into parts that are eventually assembled into a product.

In the case of ceramic materials, natural clay is mixed and blended with various silicates
to produce the raw material. Plastic resins are produced by chemical methods in
powder, pellet, putty, or liquid form. Synthetic rubber is also made by chemical
techniques, being produced, as is natural rubber, in such forms as slabs, sheeting, crepe,
and foam for fabricating into finished parts.

The processes used to convert raw materials into finished products perform one or both
of two major functions: first, they form the material into the desired shape; second, they
alter or improve the properties of the material.

Forming and shaping processes may be classified into two broad types—those
performed on the material in a liquid state and those performed on the material in a
solid or plastic condition. The processing of materials in liquid form is commonly known
as casting when it involves metals, glass, and ceramics; it is called molding when applied
to plastics and some other nonmetallic materials. Most casting and molding processes
involve four major steps: (1) making an accurate pattern of the part, (2) making
a mold from the pattern, (3) introducing the liquid into the mold, and (4) removing the
hardened part from the mold. A finishing operation is sometimes needed.

Materials in their solid state are formed into desired shapes by the application of a force
or pressure. The material to be processed can be in a relatively hard and stable condition
and in such forms as bar, sheet, pellet, or powder, or it can be in a soft, plastic, or
puttylike form. Solid materials can be shaped either hot or cold. Processing of metals in
the solid state can be divided into two major stages: first, the raw material in the form of
large ingots or billets is hot-worked, usually by rolling, forging, or extrusion, into
smaller shapes and sizes; second, these shapes are processed into final parts and
products by one or more smaller scale hot or cold forming processes.

After the material is formed, it is usually further altered. In materials processing, a

“removal” process is one that eliminates portions of a piece or body of material to
achieve a desired shape. Although removal processes are applied to most types of
materials, they are most widely used on metallic materials. Material can be removed
from a workpiece by either mechanical or nonmechanical means.

There are a number of metal-cutting processes. In almost all of them, machining

involves the forcing of a cutting tool against the material to be shaped. The tool, which is
harder than the material to be cut, removes the unwanted material in the form of chips.
Thus, the elements of machining are a cutting device, a means for holding and
positioning the workpiece, and usually a lubricant (or cutting oil). There are four basic
noncutting removal processes: (1) in chemical milling the metal is removed by the
etching reaction of chemical solutions on the metal; although usually applied to metals,
it can also be used on plastics and glass, (2) electrochemical machining uses the
principle of metal plating in reverse, as the workpiece, instead of being built up by the
plating process, is eaten away in a controlled manner by the action of the electrical
current, (3) electrodischarge machining and grinding erodes or cuts the metal by high-
energy sparks or electrical discharges, (4) laser machining cuts metallic or refractory
materials with an intense beam of light from a laser.

Another further alteration may be “joining,” the process of permanently, sometimes

only temporarily, bonding or attaching materials to each other. The term as used here
includes welding, brazing, soldering, and adhesive and chemical bonding. In most
joining processes, a bond between two pieces of material is produced by application of
one or a combination of three kinds of energy: thermal, chemical, or mechanical. A
bonding or filler material, the same as or different from the materials being joined, may
or may not be used.

The properties of materials can be further altered by hot or cold treatments, by

mechanical operations, and by exposure to some forms of radiation. The property
modification is usually brought about by a change in the microscopic structure of the
material. Both heat-treating, involving temperatures above room temperature, and cold-
treating, involving temperatures below room temperature, are included in this
category. Thermal treatment is a process in which the temperature of the material is
raised or lowered to alter the properties of the original material. Most thermal-treating
processes are based on time-temperature cycles that include three steps: heating,
holding at temperature, and cooling. Although some thermal treatments are applicable
to most families of materials, they are most widely used on metals.

Finally, “finishing” processes may be employed to modify the surfaces of materials in

order to protect the material against deterioration by corrosion, oxidation, mechanical
wear, or deformation; to provide special surface characteristics such as reflectivity,
electrical conductivity or insulation, or bearing properties; or to give the material special
decorative effects. There are two broad groups of finishing processes, those in which a
coating, usually of a different material, is applied to the surface and those in which the
surface of the material is changed by chemical action, heat, or mechanical force. The
first group includes metallic coating, such as electroplating; organic finishing, such as
painting; and porcelain enameling.
pozzolana

Sections & Media

HomeTechnologyIndustry

pozzolana
hydraulic cement
Alternate titles: pozzolan, pozzuolana, pulvis puteoli, volcanic-ash cement

Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

pozzolana, also spelled pozzuolana, hydraulic cement perfected by the Romans and

still used in some countries, traditionally made by grinding a material of volcanic origin
(the pozzolan) with powdered hydrated lime. Roman engineers used two parts by weight
of pozzolan mixed with one part of lime to give strength
to mortar and concrete in bridges and other masonry and brickwork. During the 3rd
century BCE the Romans used pozzolana instead of sand in concrete and mortared
rubblework, giving extraordinary strength. Used with an aggregate of
broken tuff, travertine, brick, or marble, the material contributed to the evolution of new
architectural forms in such monumental constructions as the Pantheon and the Baths of
Caracalla at Rome.
Baths of Caracalla

Pozzolana was first found at Puteoli (modern Pozzuoli), near Naples, where there are
still extensive beds, and also around Rome. Natural pozzolana is often composed mainly
of a fine chocolate-red volcanic earth. Industrial, artificial pozzolans are produced in
furnaces where organic materials, such as coal, are burned and the ash is reclaimed. Fly
ash is the most common form of industrial pozzolan.

architecture: Concrete

…made with volcanic-ash cement (pozzolana) permitted a great expansion of architectural...

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by  Melissa
Petruzzello.
glue

Sections & Media

HomeTechnologyIndustry
glue
adhesive

Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

glue, gelatin-like adhesive substance extracted from animal tissue, particularly hides

and bones, or from fish, casein (milk solids), or vegetables. Glue was used as early as
3000 BCE in wooden furniture construction in Egypt.

glue

See all media

Related Topics:

adhesive blood albumen glue animal glue hide glue casein glue

See all related content →

Understand the working principle of glue and other adhesives
Overview of how glue and other adhesives work.

Contunico © ZDF Enterprises GmbH, MainzSee all videos for this article

Synthetic resin adhesives such as the epoxies are replacing glue for many uses, but glue
is still widely used as an adhesive in woodworking, in the manufacture of such abrasives
as sandpaper, and as a colloid in industrial processes—e.g., the recovery of solid
particles suspended in a liquid.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by  Adam
Augustyn.
mortar

Sections

HomeTechnologyEngineeringCivil Engineering

mortar
building material

Cite More
BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

mortar, in technology, material used in building construction to bond brick, stone, tile,

or concrete blocks into a structure. Mortar consists of inert siliceous (sandy) material
mixed with cement and water in such proportions that the resulting substance will be
sufficiently plastic to enable ready application with the mason’s trowel and to flow
slightly but not collapse under the weight of the masonry units. Slaked lime is often
added to promote smoothness, and sometimes colouring agents are also
added. Cement is the most costly ingredient and is held to the minimum consistent with
desired strength and watertightness.

Related Topics:

adhesive building material hydraulic lime

See all related content →

Mortar hardens into a stonelike mass and, properly applied, distributes the load of the
structure uniformly over the bonding surfaces and provides a weathertight joint.
Henry J. Kaiser

Sections

HomePolitics, Law & GovernmentBusinesspeople & Entrepreneurs

Henry J. Kaiser
American industrialist
Alternate titles: Henry John Kaiser

Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

FAST FACTS

 Quotes

Henry J. Kaiser, in full Henry John Kaiser, (born May 9, 1882, Sprout Brook, N.Y.,
U.S.—died Aug. 24, 1967, Honolulu, Hawaii), American industrialist and founder of
more than 100 companies including Kaiser Aluminum, Kaiser Steel, and Kaiser Cement
and Gypsum.

Born:

 
 May 9, 1882 New York

Died:

August 24, 1967 (aged 85) Honolulu Hawaii

See all related content →

In 1913 Kaiser was working for a gravel and cement dealer in Washington when one of
his clients, a Canadian road-building company, went out of business. He got a loan to
take over the company’s project and finished it with a profit. From 1914 to 1930, he
built California dams, Mississippi River levees, and highways, including 200 miles of
road and 500 bridges in Cuba, while establishing sand and gravel plants to supply his
own materials. Between 1931 and 1945, he helped organize combinations of construction
companies to build the Hoover, Bonneville, and Grand Coulee dams, as well as other
large projects. To supply the more than 6,000,000 barrels of cement needed for
the Shasta Dam, he erected a cement plant in Permanente, Calif., and a nine-mile
conveyor belt across a mountain to the dam site in 1939.

During World War II he ran seven shipyards that used assembly-line production to
build ships in as little as 4 1/2 days. By the end of the war, his yards had produced 1,490
ships for the U.S. maritime commission. In 1941–42, he built the
only integrated steel mill on the west coast of the United States, to make steel for his
shipyards. He established Kaiser Gypsum in 1944. He bought up aluminum plants from
Alcoa to supply his Kaiser-Frazer automobile business; but, because of
an industry slump, Kaiser stopped making cars in 1953. By then Kaiser Aluminum &
Chemical Corporation had become profitable. From 1954 to 1960, he directed
construction of the Hawaiian Village resort centre, which was sold in 1961 to the Hilton
chain for more than $21,000,000.

In 1942 Kaiser established the first health maintenance organization for his shipyard

employees. A model for later federal programs, the Kaiser Foundation Medical Care
Program built 19 hospitals providing preventive health care for more than 1,000,000
people.
gum

Sections & Media

HomeTechnologyIndustry

gum
adhesive

Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

gum, in botany, adhesive substance of vegetable origin, mostly obtained as exudate
from the bark of trees or shrubs belonging to the family Fabaceae (Leguminosae) of
the pea order Fabales. Some plant gums are used in the form of water solutions in the
manufacture of cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and foods. When the water evaporates, a
film having a considerable adhesive character is formed. Some plant gums, such as gum
arabic, dissolve in water to give clear solutions. Other gums, such as gum tragacanth,
form mucilages by the absorption of large amounts of water.

gum arabic

See all media

Related Topics:

adhesive chicle mucilage gum arabic gum tragacanth

See all related content →

A gum is produced by making an incision in the bark of the tree and collecting the
exudate repeatedly throughout the season. Gums so obtained consist of small lumps,
usually transparent and light yellow. Trees produce gums by a process called gummosis,
possibly as a protective mechanism, either after mechanical damage to the bark or after
a bacterial, insect, or fungal attack upon it. The Acacia senegal tree yields the greatest
amount of gum acacia when it is in an unhealthy condition, and good culture methods
reduce the yield.
 READ MORE ON THIS TOPIC

adhesive: Natural gums

Substances known as natural gums, which are extracted from their natural sources, also...

Gum arabic is the most widely used of the water-soluble gums. True gum arabic is gum
acacia; that is, it is produced by species of Acacia. Examples of true gum arabic are gum
sudan and gum kordofan, both of which originate in Sudan, and gum senegal, which
comes from Senegal. Gum arabic is also collected in northern Nigeria, Libya, Tunisia,
and Tanzania. The name gum arabic is sometimes also applied to substitutes for gum
acacia, including gum gatti, collected in India.

Gum tragacanth is second in importance commercially; it is produced by several shrubs

of the genus Astragalus, principally Astragalus gummifer, native to the arid regions of
Iran, Asia Minor, and Greece. The exudate is produced spontaneously on the bark of the
shrub, but the yield may be increased by making an incision and driving wooden wedges
into it. One of the oldest drugs known, its use dates from pre-Christian times. Gum
tragacanth is still used pharmaceutically as a demulcent (coating) and as a binding agent
in pill manufacture. In processed foods it is used as an emulsifier and in sauces as a
thickener. Gum karaya and carob gum have been used as limited substitutes for gum
tragacanth.

Chemically, the plant gums are complex compounds derived from carbohydrates;

specifically, they are salts, either potassium, magnesium, or calcium, of acidic
polysaccharides, the acidity of which is due to uronic acids in their structure.
Rubber, chicle, and other latex products are not true gums. Varnish gums are actually
resins and are chemically quite different from plant gums.
This article was most recently revised and updated by  Amy McKenna.
putty

Sections

HomeTechnologyIndustry

putty
adhesive
Cite More

BY The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica | View Edit History

putty, cementing material made of whiting (finely powdered calcium carbonate) and
boiled linseed oil. It is beaten or kneaded to the consistency of dough and is used to
secure sheets of glass in sashes, to stop crevices in woodwork, and to fill nail
holes. Whiting putty of a high grade consists of 85 to 90 percent whiting blended with 10
to 15 percent boiled linseed oil. White-lead whiting putty has an admixture of 10
percent white lead, reducing the amount of whiting proportionately. Prepared putty
should roll freely in the hands without exuding oil. Synthetic glazing and
filling compounds have supplanted putty in many applications.

cement iron putty red-lead putty

See all related content →

The name putty is also applied to substances resembling putty, such as iron putty, a
mixture of ferric oxide and linseed oil; and red-lead putty, a mixture of red and white
lead and linseed oil. Certain doughlike plastics are also called putty. Putty powder (tin
oxide) is used in polishing glass, granite, and metal.
provided in every email.