Millions of people are driving on black asphalt roads on a daily basis, and it is rare to see a person stopping to think about the source of such a marvellous substance. One of the most common materials in the present-day infrastructure is asphalt, or bitumen. Asphalt keeps on the move whether on highways and parking lots or on runways at the airports. However, who invented asphalt? The response transports us back to the times of thousands of years ago and continents.
What Is Asphalt?
Before exploring its origins, let’s understand what asphalt really is.
Asphalt is a petroleum that is sticky, black and semi-solid. It consists of bitumen (a natural tar-like material) combined with such aggregates as sand, gravel or crushed stone. This mixture forms a strong and elastic surface that is suitable in paving roads.
Asphalt is favored because it’s:
Durable: Survives heavy traffic and extreme weather conditions.
Flexible: Change of temperature without cracking easily.
Recyclable: Old asphalt can be recycled, and hence, the material is environmentally friendly.
Having known what it is now, we shall now examine how mankind discovered and evolved this material.
The Earliest Use of Asphalt: Ancient Civilizations
Asphalt is not a new technology, but it is many thousands of years old. Archaeological evidence indicates that Mesopotamians (c. 3,000 B.C.) applied natural asphalt deposits to seep proof boats and buildings.
Ancient Mesopotamia
Asphalt was employed in Babylon (present-day Iraq) to construct and seal such structures as the popular Walls of Babylon. Historical literature states the manner in which constructors applied bitumen to cement the bricks, to avoid water erosion and enhance their longevity.
Ancient Egypt
Asphalt-like materials were also used by the Egyptians in the process of mummifying. They used bitumen to help the preservation of bodies to be buried as they thought it was protective.
Indigenous Use
Native American tribes had been using natural asphalt in the La Brea Tar Pits of California to make baskets, canoes, and tools waterproof even before the arrival of European settlers. This natural bitumen appeared as a seepage of the earth and was a significant substance of daily use.
The Birth of Modern Asphalt Roads
Although the use of asphalt in ancient civilization was based on the necessity to waterproof, and to construct buildings, the origins of modern asphalt paving can be traced back to the 19th century.
Early European Experiments
In 1824 Loudon McAdam, a Scottish engineer, came up with a new road construction technique called McAdam. His roads were made of small stones glued by natural tar or bitumen in small compacted layers. McAdam did not innovate asphalt but his approach transformed the design of roads.
The First True Asphalt Pavement
In 1854, the initial asphalt pavement was applied in Paris, France, by a man by the name Pierre-Marie-Jerome Tresaguet (building upon the techniques of McAdam). Nonetheless, mass asphalt paving did not gain momentum until a process was invented by another French engineer Emile Degrand to combine natural asphalt with sand and gravel to form a smooth surface.
The Introduction of Asphalt
Asphalt was introduced on the other side of the Atlantic in the late nineteenth century. Asphalt pavement was first used in 1870 in Newark, New Jersey.
The Role of Edmund J. DeSmedt
Edmund J. DeSmedt, a Belgian chemist and engineer, is the man who is credited with introducing asphalt paving to the U.S. In 1870, a natural asphalt available in Trinidad was used to lay the first asphalt pavement by DeSmedt on Battery Park and Fifth Avenue in New York City.
The success of DeSmedt resulted in the popularity of asphalt in the construction of roads in the major American cities. His approach gave smoother and more permanent roads- ideal with the increasing number of horse-drawn carriages, and later automobiles.
The Growth of the Asphalt Industry
Towards the beginning of the 20th century, the growing transportation system of America required superior and more robust roads. The asphalt became the material of choice due to development of the automobile and interstate highway system in the mid-20th century.
Key Milestones
1907: Techniques of refining petroleum were refined; asphalt could be made synthetically instead of being taken out of nature.
1956: Federal-Aid Highway Act speeded up the construction of highways in the U.S. with the demand on asphalt rising.
Modern Era: Asphalt is currently being used to construct more than 94 percent of the paved roadways in the United States.
Asphalt has kept up with the changes in regards to sustainability and technology such as recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) and warm-mix asphalt that emit less and consume less energy.
Modern Innovations in Asphalt
The asphalt today is much more developed than the mixtures that were used several centuries ago. Contemporary engineers are concerned with durability, environmental effects and performance.
Sustainable Asphalt
One of the largest benefits of asphalt is recycling. The U.S asphalt industry recycles approximately 100 million tons of material annually, and it is the most recycled product in the country.
Smart Roads
Even new technologies are enabling asphalt to repair its cracks on its own and produce energy with sensors embedded into it or solar materials. This innovation is a reference to a time when our roads will not only be used to travel- but to be sustainable and to collect data.
Conclusion: Who Really Invented Asphalt?
Although no one could be said to have invented asphalt, there are a number of individuals who made significant contributions towards its invention. Natural asphalt was initially used in ancient civilizations to make waterproof. John Loudon McAdam introduced the new road design and Edmund J. DeSmedt introduced modern asphalt paving in America.
Combined, they were the ones that made the roads we are driving on today. The many years of Asphalt, having been made from ancient tar pits, to highways that are smart, have demonstrated that innovation is made layer after layer, just like the roads themselves.