Concrete Technology

|| Jai Sri Gurudev ||

S.J.C Institute of Technology, Chickballpur
Department of civil engineering
Concrete technology
Module-1 AGGREGATES

Aggregates: - Aggregates are the important constituents in concrete. They give body to
concrete, reduce shrinkage and effect economy. Aggregate occupy 70-80% of the volume of
concrete hence characteristics and properties of aggregate are of considerable important

Classification of aggregate
Classification of aggregate is generally based on their size, shape, Specic gravity, availabity,
texture.
Classification according to size
Size of aggregates used in concrete ranges from few cm to few micons.different size of
aggregate are used for different work and they are used with different particle size
distribution which is called as grading of aggregate
According to size aggregate are classified as
 Fine aggregate
 Coarse aggregate

Fine aggregate
These are the aggregate which Posses through a 4.75mm are sieve and contain only the
particles/materials of that size.

Fine aggregate may be are of following types

Natural sand-aggregates resulting from natural disintegration of rock and deposited at beds
stream/glacial agencies
Crushed stone sand-fine aggregate produced by crushing the stone
Crushed Gravel sand-fine aggregate produced by crushing natural gravel.

Again according to size fine aggregates are further classified as fine, medium, and coarse
sand
Depending upon the particle size distribution IS: 383-1970 has divided the fine aggregate into
four grading zones
Grading zone become progressively finer from Zone 1 to Zone 4

Coarse Aggregates
Aggregates most of which are retained on 4.75 mm IS sieve and containing only that much
sized particles/material are termed as coarse aggregate

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Graded coarse aggregate is described by its nominal size i.e. 40mm, 20mm, 16mm, 12.5mm
etc.
If nominal size is 16mm then most of the aggregate are passing through 16 mm IS sieve and
retained on 12.5mm

Classification according to Shape

Shape of aggregate influence properties of concrete depending on shape, aggregates may be
classified as rounded, Irregular or Angular and Flaky Aggregate

1. Rounded Aggregates
Aggregates with rounded particles (river or sea shore gravel).It has less surface area for the
given volume of aggregates thus it requires less cement paste to produce a good workable
concrete. Thus it requires less cement paste to produce a good workable concrete

Only disadvantage is that interlocking between particles is less and hence bond is poor,
making this aggregate unsuitable for high strength concrete

2. Irregular aggregates
Aggregate with irregular shapes. It requires more cement paste to produce a good workable
concrete. Interlocking and bonding is good when compared to rounded aggregates but less
that angular aggregates but it is not suitable for high strength concrete

3. Angular aggregates
Aggregates with angular and rough surface interlocking between particles are good and
thereby providing a good bond. These aggregates require more cement paste to give good
workability. These aggregates are suitable for high strength concrete and pavement subjected
to tension

4. Flaky and Elongated Aggregates

Aggregates is termed as flaky when its least dimension(thickness)is less than 3/5th of its mean
dimension ( mean dimension is the average of sieve size through which aggregate pass and
retain e.g.: if aggregate pass through 40mm sieve and retain on 30 mm then is mean size is
(40+30)/2)=3.mm)
Aggregates is said to be elongated if its greatest dimension (length) is greater than 9/5th of its
mean dimension
Angularity of aggregate affects the workability or stability of mix which depends on
interlocking of particles
Elongated and flaky aggregates adversely affect the durability of concrete as they tend to
orient in one place
Presence of such particles should be restricted to 10 to 15%

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Classification based on unit weight

Aggregates can also be classified according to their unit weight as normal weight, heavy
weight and light weight aggregates

Normal weight aggregates

These are commonly used aggregates and are composed of granite, basalt, quarts, sandstone
and lime stone which have sp.gravity b/w 2.5 to 2.7

Heavy weight aggregates

 these are also called as high density aggregates
 It composed of barite, Ferro phosphorus, goethite hematite, de-greased scrap iron and
iron shots etc...
 used high density concrete
 specific gravity of light weight aggregates vary based on composition and ranges b/w
(3.5 to 7.8)
Light weight aggregates
 these aggregates are used for the manufacture of light weight concrete, masonry
blocks, for reducing self-weight of the structure
 main requirement of light weight aggregate is low density
 specific gravity is less than 2.5

Grading of Aggregates
It is defined as the particle size distribution of aggregate as determined by sieve analysis.
The proper grading of an aggregate produces dense concrete and needs less quantity of fine
aggregate and cement paste. It is therefore, essential that the coarse and fine aggregate be
well graded to produce Quality concrete.

The grading of an aggregate is expressed in terms of percentages by weight retained on or

passing through a series of sieve taken in order 80mm ,40mm, 20mm, 10mm ,4.75mm, for
coarse aggregate
Similarly for fine aggregates 10 mm,4.75mm,2.36mm,1.18mm,600microns,300microns,150
microns

TEST ON AGGREGATES
Sieve Analysis:
 The operation of dividing a sample of aggregates into various fractions each
consisting of particles of same size is termed as sieve analysis
 It is conducted to determine the practical size distribution in a sample of aggregates.
 Grading pattern of a sample of CA or FA is assessed by sieving a sample successively
through all the sieve mounted one over the other in order of size with larger sieve on
top.
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 Order of sieve used as given below

 80mm ,40mm, 20mm, 10mm, 4.75mm, 2.36mm,600microns, 300microns and 150
microns, aggregate fraction from 80mm to 4.75 mm are termed as coarse aggregate
and fraction from 4.75mm to 150 microns are termed as fine aggregate.
 Material retained on each sieve after shaking represents the fraction of aggregate
coarser than the sieve in present sieve and finer than the sieve above.
 Sieve can be done either manually or mechanically from the sieve analysis fineness
modulus is calculated. Fineness modulus is the index of coarseness or fineness of the
material.
 Fineness modulus is obtained by adding the cumulative % of aggregate retained on
each sieve and dividing the sum by an arbitrary number 100
 Larger the fineness modulus, coarse is the sample

Specific gravity of fine aggregate

Specific gravity of fine aggregate is determined with the help of a vessel know as pycnometer
Following procedure is adopted to determine the specific gravity
 Take the sample of aggregate and place it in pycnometer(C)
 Pour distilled water it is full
 Eliminate the entrapped air
 Weigh the weight of pycnometer + FA+water,let the weight be (A)
 Transfer the aggregates into tray
 Refill the pycnometer with distilled water to the same level and weigh the bottle plus
water let the weight be (B)
 Surface dry the sample and place it in oven in a tray at a temperature of 100oc to
1100c for 24 hours
 Cool the sample and weigh it, let the weighed be D

• C=weight of the sample taken for the test (SSD)

• A= wt. of pycnometer+sample+water
• B= wt. of pycnometer+water
• D= wt. of oven dry sample
𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑎𝑖𝑟
• Specific gravity = 𝑙𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑖𝑛 𝑚𝑎𝑠𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑠𝑎𝑚𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑤𝑎𝑡𝑒𝑟
C
=
C−(A−B)
D
• Apparent specific gravity = D−(A−B)
C−D
• Water absorption = ∗100
D

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Determination of Bulking of Sand

The apparatus and procedure to determine percentage bulking of fine aggregates is described
below.

1. Laboratory Test for Bulking of Sand

Apparatus
1. 250ml measuring cylinder
2. Weighing balance
3. Fine aggregate
Procedure
1. Take 500 grams of fine aggregate over dried at a temperature of 100 to 110 degree Celsius
for 24 ± 0.5 hours. This weight is measured as W1
2. The cooled sand is taken in an airtight container. This weight is measured as W2.
3. The water content of the sample is calculated as
Wc = (W1-W2)x 100/W1 Eq.1
4. In a pan, 250 grams of sand is taken
4. To this 2% by weight of water is added. This is properly mixed
5. The mixture is poured into a 250ml cylinder. This is consolidated by shaking
6. The surface is levelled. The reading is measured as Y1.
7. The test is repeated for the remaining quantity of sand for 2% water by weight each
time. The readings are taken as Y2, Y3…..etc. until a decreasing reading of the volume is
observed.
8. After this level, 4% water is added and the test is continued until the sample becomes
fully saturated.
9. To the standard sample in the measuring cylinder, add about 50 ml water ore and stir
the sample well.
10. Note down the surface level of inundated sand (Y ml).
Calculations
Percentage Bulking of Sand = (Y1-Y) x100/Y

Results

A graph is plotted with percentage water content along X -axis and percentage bulking along
y-axis. From the graph the following results are obtained:

1. % of bulking occurred =
2. % of water content at maximum bulking=
3. % of water content when bulking is zero=

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4. % of bulking for the initial water content (W) of the sample =

Shape test (flakiness and elongation index) of the coarse aggregates

Test for determination of elongation index
 Elongation index of an aggregate is the % by weight of particles whose greatest
dimension (length)is greater than 1.8 time their mean dimension
 This is not applicable to sizes smaller than 6.3mm .length gauge is used to conducted
this test
 Sufficient quantity of aggregate is taken to provide a min of 200 pieces of any fraction
to be tested
 Each fraction shall be gauged individually from length on the metal guage.total
amount retained by the gauge length shall be weighed to an accuracy of 0.5% of
weight of test sample taken
 Elongation index is the total weight of the material retained on the various length
gauges expressed as % of total weight of sample gauged

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Test for determination of flakiness index

 Flakiness index of aggregate the % by weight of particles in the sample of aggregate
whose least dimension(thickness) is less than 3/5th of their mean dimension
 This test is not applicable to size smaller than 6.3mm
 Test is conducted using a thickness gauge sufficient quantity of aggregates is taken
such the min number of 200 pieces of any fraction o be tested. Each fraction is gauged
in turn for thickness on metal gauge the total amount passing in each gauge is
weighed accurately.
 Flakiness index is taken as the total weight of the material passing the various
thickness gauge expressed as percentage of total weight of the sample taken.

Specific Gravity of coarse aggregate

• Take 3 kg of aggregate by method of quartering, reject all material passing on 10 mm

IS sieve.
• Immerse the sample in water for period of 24 hrs(30 min for laboratory practice)
• Remove the aggregate from water and roll the same in a large piece of an absorbent
cloth until all visible films of water are removed.
• Now weigh 3 kg of this sample in the saturated surface dry condition and note down
the mass as W1
• Place the weighed aggregate immediately in the wire basket and dip it in water.
Weight this basket with aggregate, while keeping water, with help of the balance.
Note its mass W3

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• Dry the sample to constant weight at the temperature of 100 to 110 c for 24 hrs.
• Cool to room temperature and weigh W4

W1 =mass of saturated surface dry sample in air

W2 = mass of basket in water
W3 = mass of basket + sample in water
W4 = mass of oven dry sample in air

W1
• Specific gravity = W1−(W3−W2)
W4
• Apparent specific gravity = W4−(W3−W2)
W1−W4
• Water absorption = ∗ 100
W4
Aggregate Impact Value

• keep the aggregate for 4 hr in oven at temperature of 100 to 100 c

• The aggregate 500 gms, size passing through 12.5 mm and retained on 10 mm IS
sieve and measured by filling of 75 mm in dia and 50 mm height and three equal
layers and giving each layer of 25 strokes with standard rod.
• Weigh and pour the aggregate in the cylinder of impact testing machine and level the
surface.
• Release the falling hammer and repeat the procedure in 1 sec in Interval.
• Remove the sample from the cylinder and subject to sieving on IS 2.36 Sieve.
• Weigh the sample passing through IS 2.36 mm sieve and expressed in % age of total
mass of aggregate.

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Aggregate Crushing Value

• keep the aggregate for 4 hr in oven at temperature of 100 to 100 c

• Take the aggregate of size passing through 12.5 mm and retained on 10 mm IS sieve
and measured by filling of 11.5cm in dia and 18cm height and three equal layers and
giving each layer of 25 strokes with standard rod.
• Weigh and pour the aggregate in the cylinder of CTM testing machine and level the
surface and place the plunger over it.
• Apply the load at a uniform rate of 4 tonnes per minute until the total applied load in
40 Tonnes.
• Remove the sample from the cylinder and subject to sieving on IS 2.36 Sieve.
• Weigh the sample passing through IS 2.36 mm sieve and expressed in % age of total
mass of aggregate.

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Aggregate Abrasion Value

Indian Standard 2386 (Part IV) of 1963 covers two methods for finding out the abrasion
value of coarse aggregates: namely, by the use of Deval abrasion testing machine and by the
use of Los Angeles abrasion testing machine.
Test sample and abrasive charge are placed in the Los Angeles Abrasion testing machine and
the machine is rotated at a speed of 20 to 33 rev/min.
For grading’s A, B, C and D, the machine is rotated for 500 revolutions. For grading’s E, F
and G, it is rotated 1000 revolutions.

• Aggregate weighing 5 kg for Grading B may be taken as test specimen and place in
the cylinder
• The abrasive charges are also chosen in accordance with grading consider.
• A machine is rotated at a speed of 32-33 revol/min the machine is rotated for 500
revolutions.
• After the desired number of revolution the machine is stopped and material is
discharged from the machine Taking care to take out entire stone dust using the sieve
of size 1.7mm the material is sieved

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Recycled aggregates
What are recycled aggregates?
• Recycled aggregates are the aggregates produced from the processing of previously
used construction materials such as concrete or masonry
• These materials are generally obtained from buildings, roads(pavement, concrete),
bridges, tested specimens in laboratory, worm out rail ballast
• Concrete made with such aggregates is called as recycled aggregate concrete(RAC)

Why recycled aggregates

• Due to rapid growth in population and urbanization the natural resources are
depleting.
• High cost of good quality crushed aggregates, as compared to recycled aggregates.
• Shortage of dumping sites has resulted in sharp increase in transport and disposal
costs.
• An enormous increase in the quantity of waste materials and the shortage of dumping
sites.
•
Properties of recycled aggregates
• Particle Size distribution
Better particle size distribution than natural aggregates
• Specific Gravity
Lower as compared to natural aggregates
• Water absorption
Relatively higher (up to 50%) than that of the natural aggregates.
• Compressive strength
The amount of reduction in strength (up to 25%) depends on parameter such as grade
demolished concrete, replacement ratio, w/c ratio, processing of recycled aggregate etc...

Applications of recycled aggregates

• Embankments fill materials
The embankments site is on the wet sub grade areas. Recycled aggregates can stabilize the
base and provide an improved working surface
• Backfill Materials
Recycled aggregates can be used as backfill materials in the pipe zone along trenches after
having testing in laboratory
• Building blocks
The masonry should insulated blocks, road paving block, that produced had met all the
requirements during the laboratory testing

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ALTERNATIVE TO RIVER SAND

• Concrete is the most undisputable material being used in infrastructure development
throughout the world.
• Natural sand is a prime material used for the preparation of concrete
• Now a day’s river erosion and other environmental issues have led to the scarcity of
river sand.
• The reduction in the sources of natural sand and the requirement for reduction in the
cost of concrete production has resulted in the increased need to find new alternative
materials to replace river sand
• So that excess river erosion is prevented and high strength concrete is obtained at
lower cost. Partial or full replacement of natural sand by the other alternative
materials like
• Quarry dust, foundry sand, fly ash, filtered sand, and slag sand, and recycled
aggregate, Crushed Waste glass, M-Sand etc…

COPPER SLAG
• Copper slag is made of granulated slag from metal smelting processes (also called
iron silicate).
• At present about 33 million tonnes of copper slag is generating annually worldwide
among that India contributing 6 to 6.5 million tonnes.
• 50 % copper slag can be used as replacement of natural sand in to obtain mortar and
concrete with required performance, strength and durability
GRANULATED BLAST FURNACE SLAG
• Granulated blast-furnace slag (GBFS) is obtained by quenching molten iron slag (a
by-product of Iron and steel-making) from a blast furnace in Water or steam.
• To produce a glassy, granular product that is then dried and ground into a fine
powder.
• GBFS has been adopted for its superiority in concrete durability, extending the
lifespan of buildings from 50 years to 100 years.

WASHED BOTTOM ASH (WBA)

• The WBA is a waste material that is taken from electric power plant and the source
material is called as bottom ash.
• The typical steam generating system that illustrated the bottom ash dispose at the
bottom furnace and fly ash is dispose to atmosphere by very tall chimney.
• The production of coal combustion by-products in steam generating system.
QUARRY DUST (QD
• Quarry dust is fine rock particles. When boulders are broken into small pieces quarry
dust is formed.
• It is grey in colour and it is like fine aggregate. In concrete production it could be
used as a partial or full replacement of natural sand.
• The quarry dust is the by-product which is formed in the processing of the granite
stones which broken downs into the coarse aggregates of different sizes.
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SHEET GLASS POWDER (SGP)

• Use of Glass Powder as Fine Aggregate in High Strength Concrete.
• Glass powder (GP) used in concrete making leads to greener environment.
• In shops, damaged glass sheets & sheet glass cuttings are go to waste, which are not
recycled at present and usually delivered to landfills for disposal.

M-Sand
• Manufactured sand (M-Sand) is a substitute of river sand for concrete construction.
• Manufactured sand is produced from hard granite stone by crushing the
crushed sand is of cubical shape with grounded edges, washed and graded to as a
construction material.
• The size of manufactured sand (M-Sand) is less than 4.75mm

Why Manufactured Sand is used?

• Manufacture sand is an alternative for river sand.
• Having more good quality than the river sand.
• Availability and transportation of M sand.
• Cost of construction is less by using this sand
• It is well graded in the required position
• Absorption of water by M sand is very less.

Advantages of Manufactured Sand (M-Sand)

• It is well graded in the required proportion.
• It does not contain organic and soluble compound that affects the setting time and
properties of cement.
• It does not have the presence of impurities such as clay, dust and silt coatings,
increase water requirement as in the case of river sand which impair bond between
cement paste and aggregate. Thus, increased quality and durability of concrete.
• M-Sand is obtained from specific hard rock (granite) using the state-of-the-art
International technology, thus the required property of sand is obtained.
• Modern and imported machines are used to produce M-Sand to ensure required
grading zone for the sand.

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Manufacturing process (Manufactured sand)

• The process for manufacturing sand commences with quarrying for rocks, which
involves blasting and drilling.
• The process produces rocks of smaller sizes, which are then transported to the
crushing plants.
• Sand is produced using a 3 stages crushing process.
1. In the first stage the rocks are crushed and downsized from 50mm to 150mm by using
jaw crushers.
2. In the second stage, the 150 mm sized rocks fed into a cone crusher to produce a 40
mm sized aggregates.
3. In the third and final stage, the aggregates are passed through a vertical shaft impactor
to produce sand(fine aggregate) of required gradation and shape as per the (IS 383
standards)
Jaw crushers
• The first step of crushing is mostly done by large jaw crusher or also large gyrators.
• A crusher is a machine designed to reduce large rocks into smaller rocks, gravel, or
rock dust.
• Crushing devices hold material between two parallel or tangent solid surfaces.
• Apply sufficient force to bring the surface together to generate enough energy within
the material being crushed...

Cone crusher
• Cone crusher is one of the main types of secondary crushers.
• It is type of heavy-duty machinery suitable for crushing verity types of raw materials,
including ores and medium-hard rocks.
• Compared with a jaw or rock crusher, the cone crusher is easier to adjust and has less
owning and operating cost.

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• Using compressive force, the cone crusher crushes the materials between concave and
convex shaped surface

Vertical shaft impactors (VSI)

• the installation of vertical shaft impactors (VSI) has proved to be an effective way of
producing cubical (even rounded) particles in the small and medium size
fractions(<approx. 5 mm)
• The VSI crusher by its unique design and action produces well shaped fine aggregate
particles that are cubical and angular.
• The process of attrition also enables the reduction of surface roughness of the fine
aggregate particles to some extent.

Screening and Washing

• Screening is used to ensure proper grading for better particle size distribution ( to
separate the aggregate by size range)
• By washing, the percentage of micro fines (passing 75 micron) is controlled below
15% by weight.
• The washing facility also keeps the manufactured sand in wet or partially wet
condition.
• This helps to reduce the water absorption rate by manufactured sand during concrete
manufacturing and hence better workability and workability retention.
• The artificial sand produced by proper machines can be a better substitute to river
sand. The sand must be of proper gradation (it should have particles from 150 microns
to 4.75 mm in proper proportion

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Difference b/w River sand and M sand

Water
Water is an important ingredient of concrete as it actively participates in the chemical
reaction with cement. Since it helps to form the strength giving cement gel, the
quantity and quality of water is required to be looked into very carefully.

Qualities of Water

 Carbonates and bi-carbonates of sodium and potassium effect the

setting time of cement. While sodium carbonate may cause quick setting, the
bi- carbonates may either accelerate or retard the setting. The other higher
concentrations of these salts will materially reduce the concrete strength. If
some of these salts exceed 1,000 ppm, tests for setting time and 28 days
strength should be carried out.
 Brackish water contains chlorides and sulphates
when chloride does not exceed 10,000 ppm and sulphate does not exceed
3,000 ppm the water is harmless, but water with even higher salt content has
been used satisfactorily.
 Salts of Manganese, Tin, Zinc, Copper and Lead cause a marked reduction in
strength of concrete. Sodium iodate, sodium phosphate, and sodium borate
reduce the initial strength of concrete to an extra- ordinarily high degree.
 Another salt that is detrimental to concrete is sodium sulphide and even a
sulphide content of 100 ppm warrants testing.
 Silts and suspended particles are undesirable as they interfere with setting,
hardening and bond characteristics. A turbidity limit of 2,000 ppm has been

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suggested. Table 4.1 shows the tolerable concentration of some impurities in

mixing water.

Use of Sea Water for Mixing Concrete

• Sea water has a salinity of about 3.5 per cent. In that about 78% is sodium chloride
and 15% is chloride and sulphate of magnesium. Sea water also contains small
quantities of sodium and potassium salts.
• Sea water slightly accelerates the early strength of concrete
• It reduces the 28 days strength of concrete by about 10 to 15 percent. If sea water
cannot be avoided for making reinforced concrete, particular precaution should be
taken to make the concrete dense by using low water/cement ratio coupled with
vibration and give an adequate cover of at least 7.5 cm

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ADMIXTURES
Admixtures are the material other than the basic ingredients of concrete (cement, water,
aggregate) added to the concrete mix immediately before or during mixing to modify one or
more of the specific properties of concrete in fresh or hardened state

Chemical admixtures-plasticizers, super plasticizers, retarders, accelerators, air entertainers

Mineral admixtures-fly ash, silica fume, GGBS, rice husk ash,

Plasticizers and super plasticizers

 The organic substances or combination of organic substances which allow a reduction
of water content for give workability or give a higher workability at same water
content are known as plasticizing admixtures
 The purpose of adding plasticizers for concrete mortar or grout id to fluidity the mix
& improve the workability

The basic properties contributing plasticizers are

a. Ligno-sulphonate
b. Polyglycon Esters
c. Other such as Carbohydrates

Super plasticizers
 They are used in the production of following concrete self-levelling and self-
compacting concrete in the production of HPC
 In case of super plasticizers the reduction in mixing water is expected to be in the
order of 25 to 30% as compared to plasticizers which are in the order of 5 to 15%
 By the use of Super plasticizers the W/c ratio can be brought down to as slow as 0.25
 Basic products consisting the super plasticizers are
a. Modified lingo sulphate
b. Sulphonated malanie

Action of plasticizers:
Plasticizers when added to the mix, get adsorbed on cement particles the absorption of
charged polymer on the cement particles creates particles to particle repulsive force crates
particle to particle repulsive force which over comes attractive force. This repulsive force
known as ZETA POTENTIAL. Disperse the cement particles and deflocculated them
resulting in fluidifying the concrete

Super plasticizers is a improved version of plasticizers use of super plasticizers permit the
reduction of water up to 3% without reducing workability whereas plasticizers permit up to
15% reduction in water

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The mechanism of action super plasticizers is almost same as plasticizer except that the super
plasticizers are more power full dispersing agent (zeta potential).use of super-plasticizers can
reduce the w/c ratio as low as 0.25 with good workability and obtain strength around 120
n/mm2.
This enables saving in cement for a given strength and are ideal for pumping concrete,
casting heavily reinforced concrete members and the precast elements of concrete.

Effect of plasticizers or Super plasticizers on properties of Fresh concrete

and Hardened Concrete

 Properties of fresh concrete

Plasticizers or super plasticizers do not participate in any chemical reaction with
cement.
Plasticizers or super plasticizers only fluidise the mix even with low water content
And this fluidising action lasts only as long as the mix is in plastic condition, Hence
A good quality of plasticizers and super-plasticizers used in small dose (up to 3% by
wt. of cement) has no bad effect on the concrete
 Properties of Harden concrete
Bad quantity of plasticizers or super plasticizer may reduce the strength of concrete in
harden state
There is no bad effect of S.P on hardened concrete up to 3% instead there is increase
in strength
It has retarding effect (This is not significant up to 3%) beyond 3% it has some effect
in respect of 1 day strength only
There is no effect 7 days strength and beyond on impermiability and durability
It reduce the penetration of sulphates and fluorides

RETARDERS
An admixture used to delay or prolong the setting time of concrete is termed as retarder
.
Types of Retarders
Retarders are divided into 2 categories depending on the nature of the retarders, they are

1. Organic Retarders
 Lignosulphonates
 Hydroxy carboxylic acids and their salts
 Phosphonates
 Sugars
2. Inorganic or Chemical Retarders
 Phosphonates
 Borates
 Salts of Pb, Zn, Cu, As, Sb

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Effects of Retarding Admixtures on Properties of Concrete

1. Strength
The initial compressive strength of a concrete to which retarding admixtures are added, is
lower than the compressive strength of a similar concrete which was not treated with
retarding admixtures.

2. Workability and Rheological Values

Retarding admixtures also have a small influence on the workability of concrete. They can
cause an increase of initial slump by 60-100mm.

3. Slump Loss
Retarding admixtures have proven to be very effective in reducing slump loss and in this way
increasing the initial workability.

4. Air Entrainment
Retarding admixtures do not normally entrain air but there are some types of retarders that
do. Especially these based on hydroxycarboxylic acid may actually reduce air content.

. Freeze-Thaw Cycles
Air entraining admixtures are often used to improve the freeze-thaw resistance of concrete.
When the water in the concrete starts freezing, the air cells function as microscopic expansion
chambers for the freezing water.

6. Bleeding
Since retarding admixtures delay the beginning of the setting process, retarded concretes are
always more likely to bleed.

7. Heat of Hydration
Retarding admixtures do not reduce the heat output of concrete but delay the rise of the peak
temperature by a time interval similar to the one by which the concrete was retarded.

8. Volume Deformation
Creep and drying shrinkage are not significantly affected by the inclusion of retarding
admixtures but plastic shrinkage may be slightly increased.

9. Durability
If concrete is correctly cured, retarded concrete should be just as durable as equivalent plain
concrete.

Advantages of Retarder in Concrete

 Complex concrete placement or grouting.
 Special architectural surface finish: exposed aggregate finish.
 Compensating the accelerating effect of high temperature towards the initial set.
 Preventing cold joint formation in successive lift

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Accelerating Admixtures
Accelerating admixtures are used to reduce the initial setting time of concrete. They speed up
the process of initial stage of hardening of concrete hence they are also called as accelerators.

These accelerators also improves the strength of concrete in it early stage by increasing the
rate of hydration

Earlier hardening of concrete is useful in several situations such as early removal of

formwork, less period of curing, emergency repair works, for constructions in low
temperature regions etc.

Some of the accelerating admixtures are triethenolamine, calcium formate, silica fume,
calcium chloride, finely divided silica gel etc. Calcium chloride is the cheap and commonly
used accelerating admixture

Main uses of Accelerating Concrete Admixtures

o These admixtures are suitable for concreting in winter conditions
o During any emergency repair work
o In case of early removal of formwork
Disadvantages of Accelerating Concrete Admixtures
o It has increased drying shrinkage
o It offers reduced resistance to sulphate attack
o CaCl2 high risk of corrosion of steel – not permitted in reinforced concrete
o It is more expensive and less effective

Air-entraining admixtures
These are generally used to improve workability, ease of placing, increased durability, better
resistance to frost action and reduction in bleeding. The common Air-Entraining agents are
natural wood resins, neutralized vinsol resins, polyethylene oxide polymers and sulfonated
compounds
Factors influencing air entrainment
 Volume of air entrained is not dependent on volume of entrapped air, but dependent
on amount of air entraining which has to optimum, beyond which there is no increase
in volume of voids.
 More admixture or agent is required when
a. The cement is more finer
b. Fly ash is incorporated in the mix especially if carbon content can absorb the
air bubbles there by reducing its effectiveness

c. The aggregate has more ultra-fine material

1) If the workability of mix is low

2) If the concrete temperature is high

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 Air-entrainment can be done along with other admixture after proper tests same may
be in compactable and dosage required may differ which has to be determined with
trail mixes
 Mixing time should be optimum.
Cement should be well dispersed in the mix before the admixture is used
Lesser time may not mix the admixture uniformly whereas overtime of mixing
may expel some air

Effect of air entrainment on properties of concrete

 Direct effect: Resistance to freezing and thawing
 Improved workability:
Due to this the concrete becomes more plastic and can be easily placed, with
less segregation, bleeding, honey combing. This makes it easy for placing of
concrete in confused reinforcement
 Strength:
The direct influences reduce the compressive strength due to the presence of
air voids. But due to air entrainment it increases the workability and their by
reduce the water cement ratio which is compensated by increase of strength
 Other effects
1) Reduce segregation, bleeding, and Laitance
2) Decreases permeability
3) Increases resistance to sulphate attack
4) Permits reduction in sand and water content
5) Improve placebility and easily finishing
6) Reduce the cement content and there by the heat of hydration
7) Reduces the unit weight which helps in producing LWC

Mineral additives
Pozzolanic materials are: Siliceous or siliceous-aluminous materials, little or no
cementitious value in finely divided form and in the presence of moisture chemically
react with calcium hydroxide liberated on hydration, at ordinary temperature, to form
compounds, possessing cementitious properties. They are also known as
POZZOLANIC materials.
Artificial Pozzolans
• Fly ash
• Blast Furnace Slag
• Silica Fume
• Rice Husk ash
• Metakaolin

Mineral admixtures improve many qualities of concrete, such as:

• Lower the heat of hydration and thermal shrinkage
• Increase the water tightness

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• Reduce the alkali-aggregate reaction

• Improve resistance to attack by sulphate soils and sea water
• Lower susceptibility to dissolution and leaching
• Improve workability
• Lower costs.

Fly ash
• It is a bi-product in thermal power industries
• It is a finely divided residue from the combustion of powder coal
• It is also called as pulverised fuel ash
• It should be spherical and finely divided(high fineness) and its specific surface should
be between 250 to 600 m2/kg
Types of fly ash
• Class F
• Class C

• Class F
Fly ash normally produced by burning anthracite or bituminous coal, usually has less than
5% Cao
Class F fly ash has pozzolanic properties only
• Class C
Fly ash normally produced by burning lignite or sub-bituminous coal. Some class C fly ash
may have Cao content in excess of 10% in addition to pozzolanic properties,
Class C fly ash also possesses cementitious properties.

1) Use of fly ash in concrete

• Up to 35 % by mass of cement and minimum shall not less than 15%
• As a mineral admixture
• It is used as a part replacement of fine aggregate
• It reduce the heat of hydration
• It reduce the permeability of concrete
• It improves the resistance of sulphate attack
Effect on fresh concrete properties
• The setting time is increased when fly ash is used.
• Workability and flow of concrete are increased due to the spherical shape of the fly
ash particles.
• Bleeding and segregation are usually reduced for well-proportioned fly ash concrete.
• It reduce H2O content i.e. about 5 to 15 % for the same workability of concrete with
OPC
• It reduce the heat of hydration if used as the replacement of cement
• It makes the mix more cohesive
Effect on hardened concrete properties
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• Strength gain of fly ash concrete is slower than normal concrete. However the
ultimate strength usually improved when fly ash is used
• Creep and shrinkage of fly ash concrete are typically higher than normal concrete,
because of the increased amount paste in the concrete.
• Fly ash slightly improves the resistance of concrete to sulphate attack.
• Expansion during alkali aggregate reaction are reduced by use of fly ash
2) Silica fumes
• A bi-product obtained from reduction of high purity parts with coal in the
manufacture of silicon or Ferro silicon alloys.
• Specific gravity: 2.2
• Typical fineness: 20000 m2/kg
• average particle size ~ 0.1 – 0.5 µm(100 times finer than cement)
• Colour: light grey to dark grey (lighter implies purer)
• Typically used at 5 – 15% replacement level
Effect on fresh concrete
• Requires mixing time to more because of its very fine particle size.
• As it is more finer (100 times finer than cement) it increases the water demand. Hence
super plasticizers are used to maintain low water cement ratio and necessary
workability
• Produces more heat of hydration at the initial stage of hydration.
• Lead to lower slump but more cohesive mix
• Make the fresh concrete sticky in nature and hard to handle
• Large reduction in bleeding and concrete with micro silica could be handled and
transported without segregation.
Effect on hardened concrete
• It give early strength development due to heat of hydration is more
• Adequate curing is required initially due to early hydration and strength development
• It reduces permeability of concrete.
• Improvement in durability of concrete.
• Resistance against frost damage.
• Silica fume concrete has grater resistance to abrasion, modules of elasticity shows a
slightly hear value.

3) Ground granulated blast furnace slag

• It is a non-metallic compound consists of lime, silicates and aluminate of calcium.
• The molten slag is rapidly cooled by quenching in water to form a glassy
sand.(granulated material)
• It is a waste product in the manufacture of Fig Iron
• It mainly used in the manufacture of blast furnace slag cement
• Also used as a admixture in concrete

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Effect on fresh concrete

• It improves workability
• It makes mix mobile and more cohesive
• It reduce water content because heat of hydration is less
• Bleeding reduction is significant as GGBS is very fine
Effect on Hardened concrete
• there is long term gain in strength( grater fineness of GGBS leads to better strength
development)
• Reduce permeability to external agencies
• Increase resistance to chemical attack
• Reduce heat of hydration

4) Rise husk ash

• Rice husk ash, is obtained by burring rice husk in a controlled manner without
causing environmental pollution
• 1 tonne of paddy can generate 0.2 tonne of husk
• When properly burnt it has high SiO2 content and can be used as a concrete
admixture
• Rice husk ash (RHA) essentially consists of amorphous silica (90%), 5% carbon, and
2% K2O. The specific surface of RHA is between 40-100 M2/g
• RHA used 10% by weight of cement
• It greatly enhances the workability and impermiability of concrete
• Rise husk as exhibits high pozzolanic characteristics and contributes to high strength
and high impermeabiity of concrete

5) Metakaolin
• Met kaolin is obtained by calcination of pure kaolin (clay mineral) at a temperature of
650-800 C and grind it. It has puzzolanic properties
• Met kaolin is a admixture used as a partial replacement of cement in HSC (high
strength concrete)
• Metakaolin, because it is very fine and highly reactive, gives fresh concrete a creamy,
sticky texture that makes finishing easier

Effect of adding Metakaolin to concrete

• Increased compressive and flexural strength
• Reduce permeability
• Increased resistance to chemical attack
• Increased durability
• Reduced effects of alkali-silica reactivity
• Enhanced workability and finishing of concrete
• Reduced shrinkage
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Uses of Metakaolin
• High performance, high strength, concrete
• Pre cast and poured-mould concrete
• Fiber cement and Ferro-cement products
• Glass fibber reinforced concrete

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|| Jai Sri Gurudev ||

S.J.C Institute of Technology, Chickballpur
Department of civil engineering
Concrete technology
Module-1 CONCRETE INGRADEINTS

Cement concrete: - It may be defined as a building materials obtained by mixing of cement,

aggregates and water in a suitable proportion and then curing the plastic mixture to a hard
mass.

Cement:-It is a well-known building material the main raw material is used for the
production of cement is clinker. Clinker is an artificial rock made by heating limestone and
other raw materials in a specific quanties to a very high temperature in a specially made kiln.
A small quantity of gypsum is added to a very fine powder which s known as cement.

Manufacturing of cement
The three distinct operations are involved in the manufacturing of OPC by dry process are:-
1. Mixing of raw materials
2. Burning
3. Grinding

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 The raw materials such as lime stone and clay may be taken in dry condition.
 The raw material is first reduced in size of about 25 mm in crushers.
 The above dried materials are then pulverised (grinding) in the fine powder in ball
mills and tube mills and stored in hopper.
 The above dried materials is mixed in correct proportions and made ready for the feed
of rotary kiln.
 The finely ground powder of raw materials (raw mix) is stored in storage tank.
 The pulverised coal stored in silos is pumped with required quantity of air through the
burner.
 The material is then heated to a temperature of nearly 14000c to 15000c when it gets
fused together the fused product is known as “clinker”
 The size of clinker varies from 3mm to 20mm.The clinker (14000c) come out to a
temperature of about 950c and is collected in containers of suitable sizes.
 The clinkers are obtained from the rotary kiln are finely ground in ball mills and tube
mills.

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 During grinding, add gypsum of about 3 to 4% to control the initial setting time of
cement.It gypsum is not added,the cement, the cement would set soon as water is
added.the gypsum acts as retarder and it delays the setting action of the cement.
 The grinding of the clinkers is carried out in the cement mill containing steel balls and
collected for storage in silos.
 The cement from silos is fed to the packing plant. Each bag cement contains 50 kg or
0.035m3 of cement and stored in dry place for distribution

Manufacturing of OPC by wet process

Steps involved in the manufacture of OPC by wet process are
1. Mixing of raw materials
2. Burning
3. Grinding

 The raw materials such as limestone are crushed and stored in silos similarly the clay
is thoroughly mixed with water and wash.This washed clay is stored in Basins.
 The crushed lime stone from silos and wet clay from basins are allowed to fall in a
channel in correct proportions.
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 This channel leads the materials to grinding mills where they are brought in to
contact to from “slurry” Grinding is carried out either in ball or tube mill.
 The slurry is then led to correcting basin where it is constantly stirred and adjust the
chemical composition.
 The corrected is carried out in rotary kiln. The material is then heated to a
temperature of nearly 14000c to 15000c.the slurry is converted in the form of
“clinkers”.
 The size of clinker varies from 3mm to 20mm.The clinker (10000c) come out to a
temperature of about 950c and is collected in containers of suitable sizes.
 The clinkers are obtained from the rotary kiln are finely ground in ball mills and tube
mills.
 During grinding, add gypsum of about 3 to 4% to control the initial setting time of
cement.It gypsum is not added,the cement, the cement would set soon as water is
added.the gypsum acts as retarder and it delays the setting action of the cement.
 The grinding of the clinkers is carried out in the cement mill containing steel balls
and collected for storage in silos.
 The cement from silos is fed to the packing plant. Each bag cement contains 50 kg or
0.035m3 of cement and stored in dry place for distribution.

Steps to reduce Carbon footprints

Cement manufacturing is considered to be one of the highest carbon dioxide emitting
industries in the world. The process emits around 900 kg of CO2 for every ton of cement
produced which constitutes approximately 5-7% of global anthropogenic carbon dioxide
emission.
The followings are the few selected technique that can be used to reduce CO2 emissions from
the cement manufacturing process:
 Upgrading existing equipment’s: Shifting to more energy-efficiency process(e.g from
wet to dry process, from dry process to pre heater),Installing heat recovery systems
from clinker coolers, Installing new design high-efficiency crushing,grinding,and
milling equipment.
 Adopting new pyro-processing (clinker production) technologies.
 Utilizing bio mass fuels, Waste fuels.
 Replacing high-carbon fuels by low-carbon fuels(e.g Shifting from coal to natural
gas).
 Utilizing alternative cements ( mineral polymers)
 Use of waste heat as an alternative source of energy.
 Use of blended cement by reducing clinker/cement ratio.

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Functions of cement ingredients

Lime-the lime excess causes the cement to expand and disintegrate, on the otherhand,if lime
is in deficiency the strength of cement is decreased and it cause cement to set quickly

Silica (Sio2)-The silica imparts strength to cement due to the formation of dicalcium and
tricalcium silicates. if silica is present in excess quantity, the strength of cement increases but
at same time,its setting time is prolonged

Alumina-The alumina imparts quick setting property to cement, it acts as a flux and it lowers
the clinkering temperature the alumina should not be present excess amount as it weakens the
cement

Iron oxide-It imparts colour, hardness strength to cement.

Magnesia-It imparts hardness and colour to cement if present in small amount, high content
of magnesia makes the cement to expand and disintegrate

Alkalies(soda & Potash)-the alkalies are present in excess, they causes a no of troubles such
as alkali-aggregate reaction,efflorescence and staining when used in concrete, brick work or
masonry mortar.

Gypsum-The gypsum acts as retarder to prevent immediate setting and also improve the
soundness of cement.

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Composition of cement (Bouge’s Compound)

Properties of bogue’s compounds

C3S
• Early strength
• First 7 days strength is due to C3S
• Heat of hydration is more
• Cement with more C3S content better for cold weather condition.
C2S
• Hydration takes place after 7 days. It gives strength after 7 days
• C2S hydrates & hardens slowly and provides ultimate strength
• Heat of hydration is less
• It is responsibility for later strength of concrete

C3A
• The reaction of C3A with water is very fast and may lead to an immediate stiffening
of paste, and this process is termed as flash set.
• To prevent the flash set 2 to 3% gypsum is added at the time of grinding the cement
clinker.
• C3A do not contribute to the strength of concrete
C4AF
• C4AF hydrates rapids
• It does not contributes to the strength of concrete
• The hydrates of C4AF show a comparatively higher resistance to sulphate attack that
the hydrates of C3A

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Hydration of cement
• The chemical reaction between cement and water is called hydration of cement
• When cement mixed with water chemical reaction between it’s major final
compounds (C3S,C2S, C3A,C4AF) and water takes place.
• During the chemical reaction i.e. while hydration of cement the new compounds will
produces.
1. Calcium silicate hydrate(C-S-H)
2. Calcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)2)
3. Hydrated calcium aluminate.

C3S+H2O---Hydrated calcium silicate + Ca(OH)2

C2S+H2O---Hydrated calcium silicate + Ca(OH)2
C3A+H2O---Hydrated calcium aluminate + Ca(OH)2

These products produce sticky and thick GEL

• The gel possess adhesive property and binds aggregate and sand together.
• And also fill the voids between sand and aggregates..

Heat of hydration
• It is defined as the heat produced in joules per 1 gm of cement when mixed with water
and forms various chemical compounds.
• The heat of hydration depends on Temperature at which concrete is subjected to and
age of concrete.
• It is estimated about 120 Calories of heat is generated in hydration of 1gm of cement
• The rate of hydration and hydrolysis depends up on fineness of cement.Finner the
cement have quicker action with water and develop high early strength
• For Portland cement: heat of hydration Should not be greater than 65Cal/gm @ 7days
and 75Cal/gm @28days

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Types of Cement
• Ordinary Portland cement
• Rapid hardening cement
• Extra Rapid hardening cement
• Sulphate resisting cement
• Portland slag cement
• Low heat cement
• Portland pozzalana cement
• Quick setting cement
• Air entraining cement
• Colored cement
• Hydrophobic cement
• Masonry cement
• Expansive cement
• Oil well cement
• Very high strength cement

Ordinary Portland cement (OPC)

• Ordinary Portland cement is the most widely used type of cement which is suitable
for all general concrete construction.
• It is most widely produced and used type of cement around the world with annual
global production of around 3.8 million cubic meters per year.
• OPC is classified into three grades namely 33 grades,43grades,&53 grades depending
on the strength of cement at 28 days
• This cement is suitable for all type of concrete construction (Low energy
consumption, economic).

Rapid hardening Portland cement

• Has name indicates it develops strength rapidly.
• It has High content of C3S, it contribute towards high early strength.
• It gain 24 hours strength is nearly equal to that attained by opc after 3 days
• Strength of this cement at 3 days is equal to the strength of OPC at 7 days
Uses- road repair works.
-where formwork is required to remove early for re use.
- in cold weather condition
Extra Rapid Hardening Cement
• It is obtained by adding calcium chloride with rapid hardening cement
• The concrete made by using this cement should transport, placed and compacted and
finished within 20 min.
• Large amount of heat evolved in a very short time, this makes it very suitable for cold
weather.

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Sulphate resisting cement

 It has better performance in resisting sulphate attack than OPC.
 In this cement percentage of C3A is kept low and it results in the increase in resisting
power against sulphate.
 Uses – concrete is used in marine condition
- Construction of sewage treatment plant.
Portland slag cement
 Portland slag cement is obtained by mixing Portland cement clinker , gypsum and
GGBS (reduced heat of hydration, reduced permeability)
 Uses-marine structure
-sewer lines.
Quick setting cement
 This cement sets very early.
 The early setting property is brought out by reducing the gypsum content of clinker
grinding.
 the setting action of cement starts with in 5 min after addition of water it become hard
like stone in less than 30 min
 Mainly used under water construction.
Low heat cement
 Low heat cement is prepared by maintaining the percentage of tricalcium aluminate
below 6% by increasing the proportion of C2S. This makes the concrete to produce
low heat of hydration and thus is used in mass concrete construction like gravity
dams, as the low heat of hydration prevents the cracking of concrete due to heat

Super sulphate cement

• This cement is manufactured by grinding together a mixture of granulated slag,
gypsum,and Portland cement clinkers.
• It has low heat of hydration and high sulphate résistance.
• This cement is particular recommended for use in foundation under chemically
aggressive soil condition
• And also used in fabrication of reinforced concrete pipes.
Masonry cement
• Cement mortar is better than lime mortar in terms of strength but is inferior with
respect to workability, water retentively, shrinkage prosperities and extensibility.
• Additives are added to OPC in order to increase the workability and water retaining
properties

Portland pozzolana cement (PPC)

• It is produced by grinding of 60 to 80% Portland cement and 20 to 40% pozzolana
(fly ash, rise husk ash, burnt clay).
• It has higher resistance to chemical disintegration and sulphate attack.s
Uses

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For hydraulic structure

For marine structures
For sewers and sewage disposal works
For mass concrete structures like dam, piers, thick foundation
Super sulphate cement
 It is used for foundation works due to its high sulphate resistance and also for marine
works and also for fabrication of reinforced concrete pipes.

Coloured cement: white cement

• Cement are used for decorative finishes in swimming ponds,floors,tennis courts.
• For manufacturing various coloured cements either white cement or grey Portland
cement is used as a base.
• The use of white cement as a base is costly.
Oil-well cement
• It is likely that oil is struck; oil or gas may escape through the space between the steel
casing and rock formation.
• Cement slurry is used t seal off the annular space between steel casing and rock strata
and also to seal off any other fissures or cavities in sedimentary rock layer

Air entraining cement

• This cement is used to modified the properties of plastic concrete w.r.t workability,
segregations
• , and bleeding.
Air entraining agents are
• Alkali salt , calcium lignosulphate, calcium salts of glues
Uses
• Workability of concrete increases.
• To reduces the effect of freezing and thawing.
• Improve sulphate resisting capacity of concrete.
• Reduce possibility of shrinkage and crack formation in the concrete surface.

Hydro phobic cement

• It is obtained by grinding OPC cement with water repellent film forming substances
such as oleic acid and stearic acid
• It reduces the deterioration of cement during long storage, transport, under
unfavourable condition.
• Used in the region where rainfall is more and the atmosphere is humidity, where
storage and transportation is difficult

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Testing of cement
Testing of cement can be bought under two categories
a) Field testing
b) Laboratory testing

Field testing
It is sufficient to subject the cement to field tests when it is used for minor works the
following are the field tests
 Open the bag and take a good look at cement. There should not be any visible lumps.
The colour of cement should normally be greenish grey
 Thrust your hand into cement bag.it must give you a cool feeling there should not be
any lumps inside
 Take a pinch of cement and feel between the fingers it should give smooth and not a
gritty feeling
 Take a handful of cement and throw it on a bucket full of water particles should float
on the surface of water .
 Take some amount ( 100 gms) of cement and add small quantity of water and prepare
a thick/stiff paste, put a cake and put it on a glass plate and slowly take it under in a
bucket.
 See that shape of cake in not disturbed and at the same time it retain it shape and
attains strenght

Above tests confirms that cement is not bad, but it really does not mean that it is good for
some important works.

Laboratory testing
Cement may go bad during transportation and storage prior to its use in works, following
tests are usually conducted in the laboratory.
a) Fineness test
b) Setting time test
c) Strength test
d) Soundness test
e) Heat of hydration test
f) Chemical composition test.

Fineness test:
The fineness of cement has an important significance on the rate of hydration rate of gain of
strength and also on the rate of evaluation of heat
Finer cement offers a greater surface area for hydration and hence faster the development of
strength.

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Fineness of cement is tested in two ways

 By sieving-
 By determination of specific surface ( blains Air permeability test apparatus)
Sieve test:
Weigh correctly 100 gm of cement and take it on a standard sieve no 9 ( 90 microns) Break
down the air lumps in the sample with fingers continuously sieve the sample giving circular
and vertical motion for a period of 15 minutes weigh the residue left on the sieve the weight
shall not exceed 10% for OPC and 5% for rapid hardening cement
OBSERVATIONS
 Weight of cement sample taken before sieving =100gms=W1 gms
 Weight of cement retained on the 90 micron sieving =W2 gms
 Time of sieving is less than equal to 15min
𝑊2
 FINNESS CEMENT = 𝑊1 *100

Blaine’s Air permeability method:

 In this method fineness of cement is represented by specific surface expressed as
cm2/g or m2/kg.
 Principle is based on the relation b/w the flow of air through the cement bed and
surface area of the particles.
 We get surface area per unit weight, which can be related to permeability of a bed of
given porosity.
 Setup of apparatus in as show below

 CEMENT bed in permeability cell is 1 cm high and 2.5 cm in diameter knowing the
density of cement the wt. required to make a cement bed of porosity 0.475 can be
calculated. This quantity of cement is placed in a permeability cell in std manner.

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 Slowly pass on air through the cement bed at a constant velocity adjust the rate flow
until the flow meter shows the difference in level of 30-50 cm(h2)
 Note the corresponding difference in level (h1) of the monometer and the specific
surface is calculated from the following formulae.

ℎ1 14 𝑛3𝐴
𝑆𝑤 = 𝑘√ℎ2 k=𝑑(1−𝑛) √ 𝐶𝐿

Where
Sw = specific surface
A=Area of cement bed (d=25cm)
n =porosity =0.475
L=length of cement bed in cm
d=density of cement
C=flow meter constant

STANDARD CONSISTENCY TEST:

 For finding out initial setting and final setting time and all other properties of
concrete, parameter known as standard consistency has to be used.
 Standard consistency of cement paste is defined as the consistency which will permit
a vicat plunger having 10 mm dia and 50 mm length to penetrate to a depth of 33-35
mm from top of the mould
Following procedure is adopted to find out standard consistency
 Take about 400 gms of cement make the cement paste with the known quantity of
water ( say about 10 %)
 Fill the paste into vicat apparatus mould, strike in exiled the air voids
 Make the needle of apparatus i.e plunger to just touch the top surface of cement.
 Release the needle to fall down. Note down the reading ( the depth of penetration
from top)
 If the depth of penetration is less than 33-35 mm then increase the % of water and
repeat the process until the depth of penetration is between 33-35 mm.
 Corresponding percentage of water at which the penetration is equal to 33 -35 mm
gives as the standard consistency.

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Concrete Technology

SETTING TIME TEST

 An arbitrary division has been made for the cement i.e. as initial and final setting. But
it is difficult to draw a rigid line between these two arbitrary divisions.
 For convenience initial setting time is the time elapsed between the moment the water
is added to cement and the point at which the paste starts losing its plasticity.
 Final setting time is the time elapsed between the moment the water is added to
cement and the point of time where paste lose its plasticity completely and has
attained sufficient fineness to resist certain pressure /stress
 Setting time can be calculated with VICAT APPARTUS

INITIAL SETTING TIME

 Add water into cement and start the stop watch
 Prepare a cement paste with std consistency and fill it in the mould
 Lower the needle and bring it in contact with the surface of the test mould and release
the needle
 In the begging the needle will complete penetrate into the mould of cement paste.
 Repeat the process until the depth of penetration is 33- 35 mm from top
 Now note down the time elapsed, till the depth of penetrate is 35 mm from the time
the water is added it is the initial setting time.

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Concrete Technology

FINAL SETTING TIME

 Fix the final setting needle (circular needle) to the vicat apparatus.
 Bring the needle on the top surface of the mould.
 Release the needle, at the beginning the whole needle give impression on the centre
surface.
 Repeat the process at certain intervals until only the centre needle makes an
impression while the circular outer edge fails to make an impression.
 Note down the time elapsed between the time at which the water is added and circular
needle give impression only at centre.
 This time is the final setting time.

SOUNDNESS TEST
 It is very important that the cement after setting shall not undergo any appreciable
change volume.
 So it is important to check the soundness .if the cement is sound then it ensures that
cement does not show any expansion.
 Soundness is tested by Le-Chatelier apparatus

 Apparatus is shown in figure

 It consists of a small spilt cylinder of dia 30 mm and 30 mm height.
 On either side of the split two indicators are attached and it is of 165 mm long.
 Cement paste is prepared with the water content of 0.78 times the standard
consistency.(0.78P)
 Split mould is covered with glass plates from top and bottom.
 Whole assembly in immersed in water at a temperature of 27-320c and kept for 24
hours.
 Measure the spilt distance using indicator points
 Submerge the mould again in water
 Heat the water and bring it to the boiling point gradually in about 20-30 minutes.
 Keep in boiling point of 2 hours. Remove the mould from water, allow it to cool and
measure the difference in splits.
 This gives expansion and it shall not exceed 10 m

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Concrete Technology

STRENGHT TEST
 Compressive strength of cement in most important of all the properties.
 Strength test is not made on neat cement paste because of shrinkage and cracking in
neat cement. Therefore strength of cement is indirectly found on cement mortar in
specific proportions.
 Standard sand is used which shall confirm to 15650-1991
P
 Prepare a cement mortar of ratio (1:3) by adding a water of ( 4 + 3)% of combined wt
of cement and sand mix.
 Mixing of ingredients shall be done properly to get a uniform colour in paste mixing
shall not be less than 3 minutes and shall not be more than 4 min
 Fill the mortar in the mould of size 7.06 cm in all direction and the area of surface
will be equal to 50sqcm.
 Compact the mortar allows it to dry for 24 hr.
 Remove the mould and put it for curing until it is used for testing
 Compressive strength shall be average of 3 test results.

Dept. of civil engineering, SJCIT Chickballapur. Page 16