Ancient Roman Aqueducts
An aqueduct is a water system in which water is channeled through tunnels, canals, ditches and structures guided to any place where it is needed. Ancient Rome had eleven aqueducts that were built between 312 B.C. and A.D. 226. The eleven aqueducts totaled over 260 miles in length, the longest being 59 miles. When the cities population was over a million, the distribution system used by Rome was able to provide over one cubic meter of water per day for each inhabitant: more than we use today. Although Ancient Persia, India, Egypt, and other Middle Eastern countries used aqueducts hundreds of years before Rome, the Romans are known to be the greatest aqueduct builders. Usually when people think of an aqueduct system, arched bridges come to mind. In fact, out of the 260 miles only 30 of them included these arches. For most of their length the early aqueducts were simply channels bored through the rock, from water intake in the hills almost to the distribution cistern in Rome. The depth of the
In order to keep the flow constant, the aqueducts took a roundabout route following the contours of the land and heading along spurs that lead towards Rome. Some of the later aqueducts were as high as 27 meters above ground leveling some places. When the aqueduct went through impermeable rock it was not lined, but where the rock was porous, and where the conduit ran on arches, a layer of impermeable concrete was applied to form a waterproof lining. There was only one that continued to flow which was because it ran entirely under ground. , when the power of Rome was declining, the Goths besieged Rome and cut almost all the aqueducts leading into the city. This is why the arches were more commonly used. Only in the final stretches was the conduit raised in arches to give a sufficient head for distribution of the water within the city. This was an expensive method because it required lead pipes, which needed to be imported from Spain or Great Britain and it was difficult to make joints strong enough to withstand the pressure. Also enormous amounts of water went to supply the bath complexes all over Rome. Channels where the water flowed were about three and a half feet by six feet, except where closed pipes were used. Closed pipes were occasionally used to cross-valleys using the inverted siphon method: the pressure forced the water down and then up again on the other side to a level slightly lower than before. On some of the aqueducts there was a sedimentation tank, where the water flow slowed down and impurities were deposited. Most of it was available to the population through a network of public fountains, which were located at crossroads throughout the city no more than100 meters apart. channel below ground in order to maintain a constant, very shallow flow throughout the length of the aqueduct; vertical shafts were bored at intervals to provide ventilation and access. During the middle ages there was one or two that had been restored and put back into use.
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