The Brick and The Common Vein
Building Bricks and Building with Bricks
The brick is the basic building block of many structure around us. It is made of many parts of the soil of the earth bound together by cement and created in an extremely hot environment.
One of the major parts of soil in general and clay soil in this instance, is silicon dioxide (Si02). Si02 is made from 1 part (atom) of Si and 2 parts of oxygen. In the following text, the units to unity principle is applied to Si02, as one of the components that make up the brick.
Atoms
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Molecule
Silicon Dioxide
Silicon and oxygen bond by sharing electrons in their outer shells and thus create a new, molecule called silicon dioxide (Si02). The sharing of the outer electrons (valence electrons) is called covalent bonding.
The Si02 molecules bond with other Si02 molecule with very strong covalent bonds and weaker intermolecular (van der Waal) bonds.
Substance
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The compound silicon dioxide also known as silica is the second most abundant mineral in the crust of the earth. Silicon dioxide is very hard. These properties result from the very strong covalent bonds that hold the silicon and oxygen atoms in the giant covalent structure.
Silicon dioxide most commonly found in nature as quartz. It is found in granite, and is the major compound of sandstone. The sand on a beach is made mostly of silicon dioxid
Mixture
Bricks are manufactured from clay, which is a mixture of substances including, SiO2 and other clay minerals in the soil. Examples of these minerals include kaolin, smectite, iliite, and chlorite .
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Creating Bricks from the Mixture
Bricks are made from clay. The clay is bonded by cement (mortar). The mixture is placed in a kiln and is subjected to up to 2,000° F during the firing process. The clay changes form as it dehydrates. The new anhydrous minerals contain interlocking (bonding) networks of mullite crystals, quartz, and some super-cooled liquid (glass). Brick has compressive strength, is durable, demonstrates thermal and sound insulation, is able to withstand severe weather, and is resistant to fire and wear.
The Clinking Sound of Quality Brick
Bricks
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Wall
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Building
The brick is to the wall, as the wall is to the building.
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Town
And when one brick goes wrong…….