Designation: D 5502 – 00 An American National Standard

Standard Test Method for

Apparent Density by Physical Measurements of
Manufactured Anode and Cathode Carbon Used by the
Aluminum Industry1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D 5502; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (e) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

1. Scope 5. Apparatus
1.1 This test method covers the determination of the appar- 5.1 Drying Oven, capable of being controlled to 110 6 5°C
ent density of core samples from manufactured articles of (230 6 9°F).
anode and cathode carbon used by the aluminum industry in 5.2 Desiccator, charged with indicating desiccant.
the production of aluminum. 5.3 Balance, capable of weighing to 6 0.01 g.
1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the 5.4 Core Drill, drill equipped with a diamond core bit
standard. The values given in parentheses are for information capable of producing a core with a minimum diameter of 50
only. mm with true surface qualities.
1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the 5.5 Cut-Off Saw, a saw capable of cutting the cored sample
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the resulting in a surface free of chips or gouges.
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro- 5.6 Micrometer, a micrometer or other measuring device
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- capable of measuring the diameter and length of the prepared
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. sample to an accuracy of 0.001 cm.
2. Referenced Documents 6. Preparation of Test Specimens
2.1 ASTM Standards: 6.1 Core drill samples with a minimum diameter of 50 mm
C 559 Test Method for Bulk Density by Physical Measure- from the manufactured article in the form of a right circular
ments of Manufactured Carbon and Graphite Articles2 cylinder.
IEEE/ASTM SI 10 Standard for Use of the International 6.2 Cut samples from the core to a minimum length of 50
System of Units (SI): (The Modern Metric System)3 mm. It is recommended that triplicate samples from the core be
prepared, analyzed, and averaged to attain a result representa-
3. Terminology tive of the core apparent density.
3.1 Definitions: 6.3 It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to
3.1.1 apparent density—the weight per unit volume of a establish the quantity and location of core samples from the
substance, including voids inherent in the material tested. manufactured article for testing.
6.4 No particle contained within the sample can be larger
4. Significance and Use than 19 mm. If particles are larger the sample size, quantity, or
4.1 Apparent density as determined by this test method is a both, must be increased accordingly to give comparable
basic material property of importance in manufacturing and accuracy in the results.
application of anode and cathode carbon. 6.5 During the coring operation, use no lubricant having a
4.2 This test method can be used for quality and process boiling point above 100°C. All edges and faces of the specimen
control, material characterization and description, and other should be free of chips or gouges. Ensure that the specimen is
purposes. free of any residue from the coring operation. Dry the
specimen for a minimum of 2 h at 110°C, and then allow it to
cool to 25 6 5°C in a desiccator. The specimen shall not be
removed from the desiccator until immediately prior to weigh-
1
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D02 on ing.
Petroleum Products and Lubricantsand is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee
D02.05.0Don Petroleum Coke Sampling and Procedures.
Current edition approved June 10, 2000. Published July 2000. Originally
7. Procedure
published as D 5502 - 94. Last Previous edition D 5502 - 99.
2
7.1 Weigh the prepared specimen to an accuracy of 0.01 g
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 05.05. using a balance or scale.
3
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 14.02.

Copyright © ASTM, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.

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 D 5502
7.2 Measure each dimension of the test specimen to an
accuracy of 0.001 cm.
7.2.1 Measure the length at four points, 90° apart on the
periphery of the circular end faces. Make two sets of diameter
measurements. Each set shall consist of four measurements,
one at each end and two at intermediate points along an axial
line. These sets shall lie at 90° to each other. Determine the
mean of the four length measurements (l) (see Fig. 1) and the
mean of the eight diameter measurements (d) (see Fig. 2).

8. Calculation
8.1 Record the mass to the nearest .01 g and the dimensions
to the nearest .001 cm. Conversion factors are available in
IEEE/ASTM SI 10.
8.2 The volume of the right circular cylinder specimen can FIG. 2 Determining the Mean of the Eight Diameter
be calculated as follows: Measurements

V 5 p~d2/4!l (1) 9. Report

9.1 Report the following information:
where: 9.1.1 Type, source, and form of the original article.
V = volume, cm3,
9.1.2 Apparent densities of the individual specimens and the
l = mean length, cm, and
d = mean diameter, cm. mean reported to the third decimal point (.001 g/cc).
8.3 The apparent density of the specimen can be calculated 10. Precision and Bias 4
as follows: 10.1 Precision—The precision of this test method as deter-
D 5 M/V (2) mined by the statistical examination of the inter-laboratory test
results is as follows:
where: 10.1.1 Repeatability—The difference between successive
D = apparent density, g/cm3, results obtained by the same operator with the same apparatus
M = mass, g, and
under constant operating conditions on identical test materials
V = volume, cm3.
would, in the long run, in the normal and correct operation of
the test method exceed the following values only in one case in
twenty.
Repeatability 5 0.005 (3)
10.1.2 Reproducibility—The difference between two single
and independent results obtained by different operators work-
ing in different laboratories on identical material would in the
long run, exceed the following values only in one case in
twenty.
Reproducibility 5 0.015 (4)
NOTE 1—The values in the statements were determined in a cooperative
program following RR:D02-1007.5
11. Keywords
11.1 aluminum industry; anode; anode carbon; apparent
density; bulk density; cathode; cathode carbon; core; density

4
Round-robin data is available from ASTM Headquarters. Request RR:D02-
1318.
5
This research report is available from ASTM Headquarters. Request RR:D02-
FIG. 1 Determining the Mean of the Four Length Measurements 1007.

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 D 5502

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