Factors Affecting Workability of Concrete A concrete is said to be workable if it is easily transported, placed, compacted and finished without any segregation. Workability is a property of freshly mixed concrete, and a concrete is a mixture of cement, aggregate, water & admixture. Due to this all the properties of concrete, whether in fresh … Read more
Before knowing the term workability let us look at some of the definitions given by scientists and researchers. Definitions of Workability of Concrete According to Granville “it is that property of the concrete which determines the amount of useful internal work necessary to produce full compaction.” Powers defined it as “that property of plastic concrete … Read more
Mix design is a process of selecting suitable ingredients and determining their relative proportions with the objective of producing concrete of having certain minimum workability, strength and durability as economically as possible. Concrete A mix design can be designed in two ways as explained below Nominal Mix Design Nominal Mix It is used for relatively … Read more
What is Gap Graded Aggregate? Generally we use well graded aggregate or continuous graded aggregate, which means representation of all the standard particle sizes in certain proportion. Assumption made in well gradation is that voids created by the higher size of aggregate will be filled-up by immediate next lower size of aggregate and again some … Read more
Field Tests on Cement There are some field tests which gives some basic idea about the quality of the cement without elaborate facility of laboratory in the field. These tests are as given under Date of manufacture should be seen on the bag. It is important because the strength reduces with age. Open the bag … Read more
The volume increase of fine aggregate due to presence of moisture content is known as bulking. Fine sand bulks more as compared to coarse sand. Extremely fine sand particularly the manufactured fine aggregate bulks as much as about 40%. Note: Fine aggregate do not show any bulking when it is absolutely dry or completely saturated. … Read more
Objective The tests are required to determine the strength of concrete and therefore its suitability for the job. Reference Standards IS : 516-1959 – Methods of tests for strength of concrete. Equipment & Apparatus Compression testing machine (2000 KN) Curing tank/Accelerated curing tank Balance (0-10 Kg) Procedure Representative samples of concrete shall be taken and … Read more
Objective Normally, the strength of concrete is found out after 7 days and 28 days. For some construction activities, it may be too late and need to know the strength earlier. Reference Standards IS: 9013-1978-Method of making, curing and determining compressive strength of accelerated cured concrete test specimen. Equipment & Apparatus Accelerated curing tank Compression Testing Machine … Read more
Objective For determination of consistency of concrete where the nominal maximum size of aggregate does not exceed 38 mm using flow table apparatus. Reference Standard IS : 1199 – 1959 – Method of sampling and analysis of concrete. Equipment & Apparatus Flow table Procedure Before commencing test, the table top and inside of the mould … Read more
Objective For determination of consistency of concrete where the nominal maximum size of aggregate does not exceed 38 mm using compacting factor test apparatus. Reference Standards IS: 1199 – 1959 – Method of sampling and analysis of concrete. Equipment & Apparatus Compacting factor apparatus. Procedure The sample of concrete to be tested is placed … Read more