Editing Brick (section)

== Uses ==
[[File:Historic brick street in Natchitoches, LA IMG 1943.JPG|thumb|right|Front Street along the [[Cane River]] in historic [[Natchitoches, Louisiana]], is paved with bricks.]]
Bricks are a versatile building material, able to participate in a wide variety of applications, including:<ref name=":4" />

* Structural walls, exterior and interior walls
* Bearing and non-bearing sound proof partitions 
* The fireproofing of structural-steel members in the form of [[Firewall (construction)|firewalls]], [[party wall]]s, enclosures and [[Fire lookout tower|fire towers]]
* Foundations for [[stucco]]
* [[Chimney]]s and [[fireplace]]s
* Porches and terraces
* Outdoor steps, brick walks and paved floors
* [[Swimming pool]]s

In the United States, bricks have been used for both buildings and pavement. Examples of brick use in buildings can be seen in colonial era buildings and other notable structures around the country. Bricks have been used in paving roads and sidewalks especially during the late 19th century and early 20th century. The introduction of asphalt and concrete reduced the use of brick for paving, but they are still sometimes installed as a method of [[traffic calming]] or as a decorative surface in [[Pedestrianized zone|pedestrian precincts]]. For example, in the early 1900s, most of the streets in the city of [[Grand Rapids]], [[Michigan]], were paved with bricks. Today, there are only about 20 blocks of brick-paved streets remaining (totalling less than 0.5 percent of all the streets in the city limits).<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090704104107/http://ostpxweb.dot.gov/preserveamerica/stories/michigan/index.cfm Michigan | Success Stories | Preserve America | Office of the Secretary of Transportation | U.S. Department of Transportation].</ref> Much like in Grand Rapids, municipalities across the United States began replacing brick streets with inexpensive [[asphalt concrete]] by the mid-20th century.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2003-07-31-brick-roads_x.htm|title=Bricks come back to city streets|last=Schwartz|first=Emma|date=31 July 2003|work=[[USA Today]]|access-date=2017-05-04}}</ref>

In Northwest Europe, bricks have been used in construction for centuries. Until recently, almost all houses were built almost entirely from bricks. Although many houses are now built using a mixture of [[concrete block]]s and other materials, many houses are skinned with a layer of bricks on the outside for aesthetic appeal.

Bricks in the [[metallurgy]] and [[glass]] industries are often used for lining [[Metallurgical furnace|furnace]]s, in particular [[refractory]] bricks such as [[silica]], [[Periclase|magnesia]], [[Grog (clay)|chamotte]] and neutral ([[chromomagnesite]]) [[fire brick|refractory bricks]]. This type of brick must have good [[thermal shock]] resistance, refractoriness under load, high melting point, and satisfactory [[porosity]]. There is a large refractory [[brick industry]], especially in the United Kingdom, Japan, the United States, Belgium and the Netherlands.

[[Engineering brick]]s are used where strength, low water porosity or acid (flue gas) resistance are needed.

In the UK a [[red brick university]] is one founded in the late 19th or early 20th century. The term is used to refer to such institutions collectively to distinguish them from the older [[Oxbridge]] institutions, and refers to the use of bricks, as opposed to stone, in their buildings.

Colombian architect [[Rogelio Salmona]] was noted for his extensive use of red bricks in his buildings and for using natural shapes like spirals, radial geometry and curves in his designs.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/06/arts/06salmona.html?_r=1&ref=obituaries&oref=slogin | work=The New York Times | first=Simon | last=Romero | title=Rogelio Salmona, Colombian Architect Who Transformed Cities, Is Dead at 78 | date=6 October 2007}}</ref>