3

TESTS ON AGGREGATES

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Aggregate in Concrete

60-75%

Source: PCA

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Classification of Aggregate:
Size

Coarse
Fine aggregates:
aggregates: > 5 mm
Silt:
60 µm – 5
2 µm – mm
60 µm
Clay:
< 2 µm
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Aggregate Properties

• Aggregates’ properties are used to determine if:

▫ Suitability for a particular application
▫ Types needed for specific concrete mix design
• Following aggregate properties are considered:
▫ Shape and texture
▫ Soundness and durability
▫ Hardness and abrasion resistance
▫ Absorption
▫ Specific gravity
▫ Strength
▫ Gradation
▫ Cleanness and deleterious materials
▫ Alkali-aggregate reactivity BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Aggregate Particle Shapes
• Rounded: river gravel
▫ Better packing, lowest voids ratio= 33%
▫ Less interlocking between particles
• Angular: crushed rock
▫ Loose packing, higher voids ratio
▫ Interlocking between particles is good
• Flaky: small thickness
• Elongated: length considerable
• Flaky & elongated: thin & long
▫ Bad for concrete durability because of easy breakage and
difficulty compacting
▫ Should be restricted to 10-15% in concrete design BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Aggregate Particle Shapes

Angular Rounded Flaky

Elongated Flaky & Elongated

23

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Particle Shape Characterization
• Equidimensional coarse aggregate particles are preferred
• Two types of particles that are not equidimensional:
▫ Elongated
▫ Flaky
• Particle is flaky if its smallest dimension (thickness) is less
than 0.6 times of the “middle” dimension
• Particle is elongated if its largest dimension (length) is more
than 1.8 times of the “middle” dimension
Flaky Elongated

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyaHdCknyi0&list=PL98AAE6FD59AEB06A

Flaky vs. Elongated

Length Gauge
measures Elongation Index

Flakiness Gauge
measures Flakiness Index

• Flaky Particles: Thickness less than 0.6 of nominal size

• Elongated Particles: Length more than 1.80 times the
nominal size BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Failure Mode of Concrete in
Compression
• Shape and surface texture of
aggregate influence strength of
concrete
• These factors are particularly
important for high strength
concrete
• Rougher texture results in
larger adhesive force between
particles & cement matrix
• Larger surface area of angular
aggregate leads to larger
adhesive force
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
 Crushing Test of Bulk Aggregate
• Test on crushing properties of bulk aggregates: Crushing value test
of BS 812: Part 110 : 1990
• Measures the resistance to pulverization
• Useful guide when dealing with aggregates of unknown
performance
• There is no obvious physical relation between crushing value and
compressive strength but results are usually in agreement
• Test rather insensitive to variation in strength of weaker
aggregates - “Ten per cent fines value test” is introduced

Crushing value =
weight of material passing sieve x100%
total weight of sample
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCzsapery1c&list=PL98AAE6FD59AEB06A

Crushing Test of Bulk Aggregate

Whole assembly is placed in a
compression testing machine and
subjected to a load of 400 kN in 10 mins

For normal aggregate

Plunger

For weak aggregate

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 10% Fines Value Test

• Test included in BS 812 : Part 111 : 1990

• Apparatus of standard crushing test is used to determine load
required to produce 10% of fines
• Achieved by applying a progressively increased load in 10
minutes
• Applied force results in a percentage of fines (7.5-12.5%)
passing 2.36 mm (No. 8 ASTM) sieve
• Higher obtained load denotes a higher strength of aggregate
• BS 882 : 1992 prescribes minimum ten percent value of:
▫ 150 kN (15 ton) - aggregate in heavy duty floor
▫ 100 kN (10 ton) - aggregate in concrete for wearing surfaces
▫ 50 kN (5 ton) - aggregate in other concretes
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S25_3M5RPu0&list=PL98AAE6FD59AEB06A
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7xJrhJsOMI

Impact Value of Bulk Aggregate

• Toughness is the resistance of a
sample rock to failure by impact
• Impact applied by a standard hammer
falling 15 times under its own weight
upon the aggregate
• This results in fragmentation
• BS 812 : Part 112 : 1990 and BS 882
:1992 requires:
▫ 25% for aggregate in heavy duty floors
▫ 30% for aggregate in wearing surfaces
▫ 45% for aggregate in other concretes

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 Bulking
• Presence of moisture in sand creates bulking
• Bulking is the increase in volume of a given mass of sand caused by the
films of water pushing the particles apart
• Formation of meniscus creates thicker water films between aggregate
particles, pushing them apart and increasing the apparent volume
• Bulking can cause errors in
mix proportioning by volume
• For that reason, aggregate is
batched by weight
• Coarse aggregates show much
less bulking since particle size is
large compared to thickness of
water film and effect of
meniscus formation is slight BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Effects of Voids in Aggregates
• A majority of natural aggregates have a SG Impermeable pores

between 2.6-2.7
• Permeable pores in aggregates create
multiple definitions of specific gravity:
• Absolute: Volume of solid material
excluding all pores
• Apparent (ASG): Volume of solid includes
impermeable pores but not capillary pores
Permeable pores
• Bulk-dry (BSGOD) and Bulk-saturated surface
dry (BSGSSD): Since water contained in all
pores of aggregate does not take part in
chemical reactions of cement, it is considered
as a part of aggregate BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyGeyQiNsnk&list=PLPkFQYlyFHFUrGBbRpPfnHPaOuwDDNXfh

Bulk Unit Weight & Voids in

Aggregates
• Sometimes we need to know the mass or weight of
aggregate required to fill a volume (e.g. the volume of
coarse aggregate in a cubic yard of concrete, for the
proportioning of concrete):

• Bulk unit weight or bulk density is the weight of aggregate

required to fill a “unit” volume. Typical units are cubic
meters and cubic feet

• Voids in aggregate is the percentage of voids

between aggregate particles
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Test on Aggregate Bulk Unit
Weight (ASTM C29)
• Loose • Compacted
▫ Shovel dry aggregate into ▫ Shovel dry aggregate into container
container • Fill to 1/3 of volume
▫ Limit drop < 2” above rim of • Rod 25 times
container • Repeat 3x to fill container
▫ Strike off aggregate level with top • Strike off aggregate level with top of
of container container
▫ Determine weight of aggregate in ▫ Determine weight of aggregate in
container, Wagg container, Wagg
▫ Compute unit weight, UW ▫ Compute unit weight, UW

Wagg
UW 
Vbox

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Example

• Coarse aggregate is placed in a rigid bucket and

rodded with a tamping rod to determine its unit
weight. The following data are obtained:
• Volume of bucket = 0.01 m3
• Weight of empty bucket = 8.4 kg
• Weight of bucket filled with dry rodded coarse aggregate =
25.4 kg

(a) Calculate the dry-rodded unit weight

(b) If the oven-dried bulk specific gravity of the
aggregate is 2.63, calculate the percent voids in the
aggregate
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
Cleanness and Deleterious
Materials
• There are THREE main categories of deleterious
substances in aggregates:
Individual
Impurities Coatings Particles
• Organic • Prevent the • Produce weak or
impurities, clay, development of unsound sections
and other fine good bond between • Two types of
materials (e.g. silt aggregate and unsound particles:
and crusher dust) cement paste (1) fail to maintain
• Interfere with integrity, (2) cause
cement hydration disruptive
expansion on
freezing or water
exposure

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Cleanness and Deleterious
Materials
• Deleterious Substances: Aggregate contaminated by
materials that adversely affect the quality of concrete

Substance Harmful Effect

Delay setting and hardening, may reduce strength

Organic impurities
gain, may cause deterioration

Minus 0.075 mm (No.200) Weaken bond, may increase water requirement

Coal, lignite or other low-

Reduce durability, may cause popouts or stains
density materials
Clay lumps and friable
Popouts, reduce durability and wear resistance
particles

Soft particles Reduce durability and wear resistance, popouts

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knrmCbctGEA

Silt Test for Sand

• Silt content = (height of silt layer / height of sand)
• Silt content should not be more than 8%

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 Soundness of Aggregate
• Soundness: Ability of aggregate to resist excessive
changes in volume caused by changes in physical
conditions
• Physical causes of volume changes: freezing and thawing,
thermal changes, alternating wetting/drying
• Unsound aggregate: when volume changes cause
deteriorations of concrete (e.g. pop-outs, cracking…)
• Tests for soundness of aggregate:
▫ British - BS 812 : Part 121 : 1989
▫ American - ASTM C 88-90
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
 Soundness & Durability
• Water freezes in voids and fractures and disintegrates aggregates
• Test method uses salt solution (sodium or magnesium sulfate) to
simulate freezing (ASTM C88)
• Formation of salt crystals in aggregate pores disturbs particles
• Reduction of particle sizes denotes the degree of unsoundness

Prepare sample Soak 16 hrs – dry 4 hrs Measure gradation

minimum mass Repeat cycle 5 times
specified gradation
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
 Abrasion
• Wear of aggregate by abrasion through the:
• rubbing of a foreign material against the stone under test (e.g.
abrasion charge in a rotating drum)
• attrition of stone particles against each other
(e.g. friction between particles)
• Abrasion value test: BS 812 : Part 113 : 1990
• Aggregate particles between 10-14 mm tested
• Aggregate abrasion value: percentage loss in mass on abrasion
• Higher the abrasion value, lower is the resistance to abrasion
• Los Angeles Test (ASTM C131, C535):
• Combines attrition and abrasion
• Provides a good correlation with actual wear of aggregates and
strength of concrete containing the aggregate
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RL9SN2PCFeU

Los Angeles Test

• Aggregate of specified grading is placed in cylindrical drum,
mounted horizontally with a shelf inside
• Charge of steel balls is added
• Drum is rotated a specified number of revolutions (e.g. 500)
• Tumbling and dropping of the aggregate and balls result in
abrasion and attrition of the aggregate

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rKbc9KLy5g&list=PL98AAE6FD59AEB06A

Hardness & Abrasion Resistance

▫ Resist load damage
▫ Los Angeles abrasion test
• During construction
(ASTM C131, C535)
• Traffic loads

• Prepare sample • Charge drum w/ • Sieve

• Minimum original sample
mass • Steel spheres
• Specified gradation • 500 revolutions
BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus
 Alkali-Aggregate Reactivity
• Alkali-silica reaction: Silica in some aggregate reacts with
the alkalis (Na2O, K2O) in Portland Cement (especially in
warm, humid climates)
▫ Excessive expansion

▫ Cracking

▫ Spalling

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 Alkali-Aggregate Reactivity

• Alkali-carbonate reaction: Carbonates in

aggregate can also react to a lesser extent

• If a reactive aggregate has to be used, reactivity must be

minimized:
▫ Type II cement – minimizes alkali content of PC
▫ Keep concrete as dry as possible
▫ Fly Ash, GGBS, silica fume reduce alkali reactivity
▫ Sweetening – add 30% crushed limestone to the aggregate

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

 Tests on Alkali-Aggregate
Reactivity

• ASTM C227 – tests expansion potential of

cement-aggregate combination
▫ expansion of mortar bar at specific temperature &
humidity

• ASTM C289 – reactive silicates in aggregate

• ASTM C586 – reactive carbonates in aggregate

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Thermal Properties of
Aggregate
• There are three thermal properties of aggregate that may be
significant in the performance of concrete:
▫ Coefficient of thermal expansion
▫ Specific heat
important in mass concrete
▫ Conductivity

• If the coefficient of thermal expansion of coarse aggregate and of

the hydrated paste differ too much:
▫ a large change in temperature may introduce differential
movement, and
▫ break the bond between aggregate particles and surrounding paste

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Thermal Expansion of
Composite Materials

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Thermal Properties of Aggregate

• The linear coefficient of thermal expansion:

▫ Aggregates: ~ 5 – 13 x 10-6 per oC
▫ Hydrated cement paste: ~ 11 – 16 x 10-6 per oC

• When the two coefficients differ by more than 5 x 10-6 per

oC, the durability of concrete can be affected

• A serious difference in coefficients occurs only with

aggregates of a very low expansion (e.g. certain
granites, limestones, and marbles)

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus

Thank you

BITS Pilani, Pilani Campus