SREYA GUTTA
I. What comes to your mind when I say sticky rice. Some sticky rice in a bowl with chopsticks, right! What if I told you the same sticky rice can be used to stick everything from paper to bricks. In fact, it was actually used to build dynasties and shape kingdoms!
A. Today I will tell you about the story of sticky rice.
B. I have done extensive research through numerous resources and research articles about how sticky rice was used as an adhesive and binding material.
C. I will discuss how sticky rice was used in construction and conservation projects. I will also tell you how to make a diy glue with sticky rice.
II. Have you ever tried to remove caked sticky rice from the base of a pan? If you did, you know how tough it can be. The same sticky rice was used to build Great Wall of China. Yes, you heard me right. Great Wall of China was built using sticky rice during Ming Dynasty.
A. According to an article published by Accounts of Chemical Research, porridge made out of sticky rice was added to lime mortar to increase strength of the building material while building some parts of the Great Wall.
B. Amylopectin, a carbohydrate found in sticky rice is responsible for adding these adhesive properties. Amylopectin when combined with lime mortar results in smaller calcium carbonate crystals thus strengthening the combination and making it more water resistant. In fact, this was one of the world’s first composite construction material containing both organic and inorganic ingredients.
C. The sticky rice mortar bound the bricks together so tightly that in many parts of the Great Wall that weeds still cannot grow till this day.
D. This ancient technique was first mentioned during the Ming Dynasty period (1368 – 1644 AD). However, recent archeological evidence suggests the technique may have been even older going back to the North-South Dynasty (385 – 589 AD).
E. During ...
