For those who didn't follow the lively discussion we had in Skybar, I have a vague, very-long-term notion of building a mile-high pyramid. Admittedly, the concept came out of a sleeping-pill-induced reverie, but even fully sober I still find the idea attractive. This would not be like a standard project where you make a plan and then execute it, but more like an exploration - a "let's see where we can go with this" sort of thing.
First, some disclaimers:
Quote:
- The details of this plan will change many times.
- This plan is not a schedule. There is no schedule. There will never be a schedule. I will move along at whatever pace suits me.
- I am having fun. If you are not, that is your problem.
- This is not the only thing I'm doing, but one of several unrelated long-term projects, some of which are more realistic than others.
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I.
Concept
The basic pyramid is not smooth-sided, but left as an open step configuration in sizes amenable to using as stairs. Since the angle of the pyramid is intended to equal the Khufu pyramid at 51° 51', the size and angle of the steps is not ideal for stairs - i.e., the tread must either be shorter than ideal, or the step higher than ideal - but it is still workable as a stairway (and far more so than a lot of ancient, stone-carved stairways in Asia).
The block size is intended to be small, having only the height of a single step, which greatly reduces weight and the complication of moving the materials. This eliminates the need for earthen ramps or powerful winches, and with some simple mechanical systems could allow blocks to simply be "walked" up the stairs if no more efficient means is found.
A mile is just a Moon Shot figure - it sounds cool, and is unprecedented. But a more accurate description is, I think it would be interesting to begin building a pyramid and then just see how far I can go before I quit or the EPA warns me that I'm altering the local climate, or something like that. Perhaps I should call it The Pyramid of Undetermined Height, but that just doesn't sound as cool. So don't whine to me that I couldn't possibly get all the materials together for a mile pyramid - the point is whether I can get them together for the Next Step, whatever that is.
II.
Materials
This remains to be determined. I have not yet done analysis of weight, strength, cost, and availability to decide what materials should be used. As for the expenses involved, I have no intention of paying for materials when avoidable, for the obvious reason that I'm not rich. This leaves the following options for the acquisition process:
1. Scavenging
2. Donations
3. Self-production
4. Circumventing the need
Scavenging is easy - finding large rock piles and mounds of discarded building materials is not difficult. The main challenge would be ensuring quality and shaping the scavenged material into the proper shape. For shaping raw stone, I would either need potentially expensive power tools or develop some skills with a chisel. This will be the primary method of material acquisition for the early stages.
Donations would come later, when I have something substantive to show people and they can begin to appreciate the aesthetic and sentimental qualities of an indefinitely-growing pyramid to which they can contribute and add their remembrances through small carvings or other means.
Self-production could be expensive, unless I invested the time to reverse-engineer the production systems down to cheap sub-components and build my own low-quality machinery. This option largely applies to concrete, so I don't know how applicable it would be, but might also be used to shape scavenged rock with hacked power tools.
A very significant possibility, however, is making an end-run around the need for large amounts of volume by using existing landforms. This can radically reduce the material need, but introduces complications in the need to have a detailed geological understanding of the area to keep each level on a plane. If the existing landform is reliable, solid rock through and through, the question would remain open whether it would take longer to whittle it into useful planes or to have filled the volume with cut stone in the first place (sculpting explosives are obviously out of the question for someone with my quasi-zero budget and lack of training or licensing).
However, I can state the following broad intention: I want the pyramid to be bright white, so at least the materials used on the outermost shell of blocks will be like that. The interior materials obviously have no aesthetic constraints, so they can be anything that meets the structural needs. There are complex possibilities I haven't explored that may yield promise as cheap and efficient solutions for the interior bulk.
III.
Blocks
I haven't settled on a block size, but for simplicity of exploration in Google SketchUp I'm using (roughly) 2' x 2' x 1.25' with a 1' exposed tread and 15'' rise. This isn't ideal, but I'm working with it at this point for simplicity. See part VII below for possible mitigations.
IV.
Location & Workspace
Also TBD, but should be in an unincorporated desert area whose land has not already been parceled and that doesn't have any environmental hangups. Some kind of road access is obviously necessary, and it would be nice to be within modest range of mundane supplies or emergency services if necessary, but clearly tradeoffs would be called for. The geography should be flat and rocky rather than sandy or undulating. Buying the land would be one option - or buying it in stages - but just squatting and counting on no one noticing (or at least not caring) what's going on would be another possibility.
V.
Start small
The first step would be a ten-foot pyramid. I could build this anywhere, but since I would want it to serve as the core of a progressive expansion, it should be in a location conducive to much larger versions. The top level in all scales would be flat, and just large enough to sit on comfortably. Expansion would occur in shells exactly one block thick, so that at regular intervals there is a complete pyramid to analyze and deal with subsidence in the ground and other issues. With each new shell, it would resemble more closely a smooth pyramid because the step size would stay the same while the entire object grows. This also gives me opportunities to quit while still having built something complete. I would not, however, add the white stone exterior shell until I had decided to quit or until I reached the plan maximum.
VI.
Sustainability
Relying on scavenging contributes to sustainability because the material is already there and has been discarded - it's surplus, and has not been produced simply for this project. Being in the desert, using solar power could also be practical for applications requiring electricity. I could also work during the winter to limit the size of those electricity needs, and increase the efficiency of the systems.
VII.
Step configuration
The short-tread / high-step configuration isn't ideal for a stairway, so I'm considering various options to cut into a short strip in the middle of one face that might make walking easier. You can't really have an ideal staircase with a 51° 51' angle, but there are ways to make it easier, I think. In any case, I'll experiment in practice. This is one tentative idea that allows a person to choose their own balance of tread width vs. rise height with each step:
Stair concept by
troubadour1, on Flickr
If I did this, it would only be in a narrow strip on one face, so it wouldn't add substantially to the complexity of building. And just to keep the carved steps from compromising the strength of the blocks, I suppose I could support the sides of each step with metal - it it wouldn't take much material relative to the overall pyramid. There are a number of different variations of carved steps to mitigate the relatively steep rise.
Here's a tentative sketchup render of the 10-foot pyramid, with a variation of the carved steps included:
Tenfooter by
troubadour1, on Flickr
With each new shell, I would introduce filler into the steps of the preceding shell to keep them structurally as sound as a solid block, if not even more so.
I continue to work on a full mile-high sketchup, but that's still a ways from completion.
As always, I welcome suggestions. Ones concerning materials, practices, and other logistical considerations are most welcome. Those concerning my sanity, emotional development, or ability to get laid go into a special suggestion box - consult your proctologist for its location.
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