Aggregates are among the most common natural resource used in everyday life, having enhanced life quality. Aggregates are essential for construction, being utilized in nearly all residential, commercial, and industrial building construction and most public work projects such as roads, highways and bridges, railroad beds, dams, airports, and tunnels many others. In the future, the rebuilding of deteriorated roads, highways, bridges, airports, seaports, and private and public buildings will require vast amounts of aggregate. Although it is almost impracticable to know the total amount of aggregates extracted every year globally precisely, it is roughly estimated that annual aggregate production totals about 25 billion tons. Both developed and developing nations require extensive use of aggregates.The book "The basics of aggregates" covers all topics related to utilizing this type of material. The book starts with general concepts such as the definition of aggregate, types of aggregates, production data, etc. The second chapter is devoted to the geological occurrence of aggregates (e.g. sedimentary rocks such as limestone or dolostone). The third chapter includes the extraction methods used to mine the aggregates. The fourth chapter is dedicated to the processing techniques to obtain the final products. The fifth chapter covers aggregates' properties and the principal tests used to characterize them. The next chapters are devoted to aggregates' main applications: concrete, roads, ballast, and etcetera. The final chapter of the book includes recycled aggregates.weiterlesen