Materials · 1867

Reinforced concrete

Iron bars carry the tension that concrete cannot.

Joseph Monier patented iron-reinforced concrete in 1867, and Francois Hennebique refined systems by the 1890s. It became the most used structural material on Earth.

See it in the living tree Wikipedia

Arcs above join it to what it stood on, arcs below to what it led to. The bar places this stretch on the tree's whole timeline.

What it built on 2

Portland cement 1824
Puddling 1784

What it led to 1

Burj Khalifa 2010

Related measurements

The dashed line marks when it first worked.

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