REE BUDDHA COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING, PATTOOR

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGG

ELECTIVE 1 - ACT
MODULE 1

CONCRETE
It is an artificial material obtained by mixing the constituents in suitable proortion. The main
constituents are cement, aggregate(fine & coarse), and water. Also certain admixtures are added
to improve its quality.
CEMENT
It is a finely ground powder, when mixed with water produce a very hard and strong binding
medium. It provides an exothermic reaction.
Portland cement is commonly used.
Cement is obtained by burning a mixture of calcareous and argillaceous materials at a very
high temperature.
I ngredients of Cement
Ingredient Percentage composition Function
Lime CaO 60 - 65 % Give strength
Silica SiO
2
17 - 25 % Give strength
Alumina Al
2
O
3
3 - 8 % Quick setting property
Iron Oxide Fe
2
O
3
2 - 4 % Gives strength & imparts colour
Magnesium Oxide MgO
1 - 5 %
Gives strength, but excess presence
is harmful
Sulphur trioxide SO
3

1 - 3 %
Small amount provide sound
cement, excess presence is harmful
Alkalies 0.3 - 1.5 % Cause effloresence when in excess

Functions of Cement I ngredients
1. Lime (CaO) - It is the major ingredient. It makes the cement sound and provides strength to
the cement.
2. Silica (Sio
2
) - It is an important ingredient. It provides strength.
3. Alumina (AI
2
O
3
) - It provides quick setting quality of cement.
4. Calcium Sulphate (CaSO
4
) - It is present in the form of gypsum. It helps to increase the
initial setting time of cement
5. Iron Oxide (Fe
2
O
3
) - It provides colour, hardness and strength to cement
6. Magnesium Oxide (MgO) - It provides hardness and colour to cement.
7. Sulphur(S) - IT makes the cement sound if present in very small quantity.
8. Alkalies - It may be present in very small quantity. In excess amount it will cause
efflorescence.
Qualities of Cement
Colour should be uniform.
It should be cool when felt with hand.
When a small quantity of cement is thrown into a bucket of water, it should sink.
It should be free from lumps.
Cement mortar at the age of 3 days and 7 days have a compressive strength of 11.5 N/mm
2
&
17.5 N/mm
2
and a tensile strength of 2 N/mm
2
& 2.5 N/mm
2
.
Ratio of alumina to ironoxide should not be less than 0.66.
When ignited it should not loose more than 4% of its weight.
Sulphur content should not be more than 2.75%.
Weight of insoluable residue should not be more than 1.5%.
Specific surface area should not be less than 2250 mm
2
/gm.
Initial setting time should not be less than 30 minutes and final setting time should not be
more than 10 hours.
Expansion of cement should not be more than 10 mm.
Fineness of cement should be less than 10 % of the original weight

TESTS ON CEMENT
Field tests for cement:
Colour
Physical properties
Presence of lumps
Strength
1. Colour
Colour should be uniform
Typical cement colour (gray colour with light greenish shade)
It gives an indication of excess of lime or clay and the degree of burning.
2. Physical properties
Feel smooth when touched or rubbed in between fingers. If it felt rough, indicates
adulteration with sand.
If hand is inserted in cement bag, hand feels cool and not warm.
If it is poured in water, it should sink and should not float.
A paste of cement feel sticky.
If it contains clay & silt as adulterant, it give earthy smell.
3. Presence of lumps
It should free from hard lumps.
It is due to the absorption of moisture from atmosphere.
If a bag contains lumps it should be rejected.
Laboratory tests for cement:
1. Fineness test
Fineness is the measure of the size of the cement particles. Fineness test is done to check whether
cement has been properly ground. (As hydration takes place at the surface of the cement particles, it is
the surface area of cement particles which provide the material available for hydration. The rate of
hydration is controlled by fineness of cement. For a rapid rate of hydration a higher fineness is
necessary). Higher fineness requires higher grinding cost. Finer cements require more gypsum for
proper hydration. Finer cements are very sensitive to alkali-aggregate reaction. Finer cements
deteriorate faster upon exposure to atmosphere.
Sieve Test : - Take 100 gm of cement. Then it is sieved through IS sieve no. 9 (90 micron) for 15
min. Then the residue is weighed and this weight should not be more than 10 % of the original
weight. This procedure is continued till we get a concordant value.
Fineness = w x 100 = w %
100
For a good quality cement, fineness should be less than 10 % of the original weight.
2. Compressive Strength Test
Preparation of cement mortar cubes:

Take 555 gms of standard sand, 185gms of cement (i.e.ratio of cement to
sand is 1:3) in a non porous enamel tray and mix them with a trowel for one
minute.
Add water quantity (P/4 + 3.0) % of combined weight of cement and sand
and mix the three ingredients thoroughly until the mixture is of uniform
colour. The time of mixing should be less than three minutes and not more
than four minutes.
Immediately after mixing fill the mortar into a cube mould of sizes 7.06cm.
Compact the mortar either by hand compaction in a standard specified
manner or on the vibrating table.
Place the moulds in cabin at a temperature of 27 2 C for 24 hours
Remove the specimen from the moulds and submerge them in clean water
for curing.

Testing of cement mortar cubes:

Take the cube out of water at the end of three days with dry cloth. Measure the
dimensions of the surface in which the load is to be applied. Let be L and B
respectively.
Place the cube in compressive testing machine and apply the load uniformly at
the rate of 35N/mm
2
.
Note the load at which the cube fails. Let it be P.
Calculate the compressive strength of the cube by using formula. The
compressive strength at the end of three days should not be less than 16N/mm
2

Repeat the same procedure (steps 1 to 4) for other two cubes.
Repeat the whole procedure (Step 1 to 5) to find the compressive strength of
the cube at the end of 7 days and it should not be less than 22 N/mm
2
.
3. Tensile Strength Test
For this test 12 briquettes are tested.
Take cement and sand in 1:3 ratio, then it is mixed well until uniform colour is obtained. Then
add water to it with a w/c ratio of 0.4 and mixed well to form a standard cement mortar. Then it
is placed in the briquette mould to form 12 briquettes with 2.54 cm height. It is beaten down by a
standard spatula till water appears on the surface of mortar and is kept in a damp cabin. After 24
hours, remove the mould and is immersed in water for curing. After 3 days, 6 briquettes are
taken and is placed in a testing machine for tensile strength. Gradual loading is applied at the rate
of 35 kg/cm
2
. After 7 days, remaining 6 briquettes are tested. The cross section of briquettes
should be at least 6.45 cm
2
at failing load.
Ultimate tensile stress = failing load .
cross sectional area
For a good quality cement 3 day tensile strength 2 N/mm
2


7 day tensile strength 2.5 N/mm
2
4. Consistency Test
Take 300 gm of cement and sufficient water (25% weight of water). Paste is prepared in standard
manner and it is filled in the mould within 3 5 min. The interval between the addition of water
to the commencement of filling the moulds is known as the time of gauging.
Vicat apparatus is used for this test. It consists of a moving rod of 300 gm weight. Indicator
moves on a vertical scale shows the penetration of the rod in cement paste. For this test, attach a
plunger to the moving rod. Lower the plunger gently to the surface of the paste in the mould and
release it quickly. So that it can penetrate by its own weight. Take the reading by noting the
depth of penetration. Then conduct a second trial by increasing the water content and find the
depth of penetration. More trials are conducted till the plunger penetrates to a depth 33 35 mm
from the top (or 5 to 7 mm from bottom). That particular % of water which allows the plunger to
penetrate only to a depth of 33 to 35 mm from the top (or 5 to 7 mm from bottom) is known as
the % water required to produce a cement paste of standard consistency.As per IS 269 1969,
consistency should be between 26 33 %.


5. Setting Time
Setting refers to a change from liquid state to solid state. Although, during setting cement paste
acquires some strength, setting is different from hardening.
The water content has a marked effect on the time of setting. In acceptance tests for cement, the
water content is regulated by bringing the paste to a standard condition of wetness. This is called
normal consistency.
I nitial Setting Time
Initial Setting Time of cement is the time interval between the addition of water to the cement
and the time at which the cement paste just started to loss its plasticity.
Take 500 gm of cement and is mixed with 0.85 % of water required for standard consistency.
Then a paste of standard manner is prepared. Then the cement paste is filled in the Vicat mould
and placed in the Vicat apparatus. It consists of a moving rod of 300 gm weight. Indicator moves
on a vertical scale shows the penetration of the rod in cement paste. For this test, attach a needle
of 1 mm
2
area to the moving rod. Lower the needle gently to the surface of the paste in the
mould and release it quickly. So that it can penetrate by its own weight. Take the reading by
noting the depth of penetration of the needle. This process is continued on the same paste till we
get the reading 33 to 35 mm from the top (or 5 to 7 mm from bottom). Thus we get the initial
setting time.
As per 269 1976, Initial setting time should not be less than 30 minutes.
Final Setting Time
Final Setting Time of cement is the time interval between the addition of water to the cement and
the time at which the cement paste should completely losses its plasticity.
Take 500 gm of cement and is mixed with 0.85 % of water required for standard consistency.
Then a paste of standard manner is prepared. Then the cement paste is filled in the Vicat mould
and placed in the Vicat apparatus. It consists of a moving rod of 300 gm weight. For this test,
attach a needle of 1 mm
2
area with an anular collar to the moving rod. Lower the needle gently to
the surface of the paste in the mould and release it quickly. So that it can penetrate by its own
weight. Take the reading by noting the depth of penetration of the needle. This process is
continued untill the impression of the needle should remain but there will not be any impression
of the collar. Thus we get the final setting time as the time interval between the addition of water
and the needle gives an impression but the collar failed to give an impression over the cement
paste.
As per 269 1976, Final setting time should not be more than 10 hrs.
6. Soundness of cement
Soundness of cement paste refers as the ability to retain its volume after setting. If there is any
appreciable expansion in a restrained structure, the hardened cement paste will crack.
Take 100 gm of cement and mix it with water. The quantity of water should be 0.78 times the
Water required to give a paste of standard consistency. Place the mould on a glass sheet and
fill it with the cement paste. Cover the mould with another piece of glass sheet and place a small
weight on it. Immediately submerge the whole assembly in water at a temperature of 27 2C
and keep it there for 24 hours. Measure the distance separating the indicator points. Submerge
the mould again in water at a temperature prescribed above. Bring the water to boiling in 25 to
30 minutes with the mould submerged in it. Keep it boiling for 3 hours. Remove the mould
from water, allow it to cool and measure the distance between the indicator points. The
difference between these two measurements indicates the expansion of the cement paste.

Chemical Compostion Test


Test for insoluble residue
A well stirred mixture of 1 g of cement , 40 cc of water and 10 cc of concentrated
HCl is boiled for 10 min and filtered. The container is rinsed five times and filter
washed ten times with hot water. The residue is washed, filtered with hot water and
boiled for 10 mins with Na
2
CO
3
solution. (2N). The solution is filtered again,
through the same filter paper with acid and finally with water till it is free from
chlorides. The filter paper is dried , ignited and weighed to give the weight of the
insoluble residue. The insoluble residue is restricted to 1.5 % by weight.