CONSTRUCTION

MATERIALS AND TESTING

Cagayan State University – Carig Campus
College of Engineering
Civil Engineering Department
Engr. JOHN MICHAEL B. CASIBANG, CE, MST
Faculty, College of Engineering
Head, TWG-Infrastructure Projects, CSU -Carig Campus
MODULE I - INTRODUCTION TO CE
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND
TESTING
INTRODUCTION TO CE
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND
TESTING
General Learning Outcome:
 Students will learn how to:
 Identify various construction materials;
 Classify various construction materials;
 State the use of construction materials;
 Apply sampling procedures for various construction
materials;
 Identify testing methods and equipment;
 Receive, handle and store samples;
 Prepare construction materials samples for testing;
 carry out tests on materials;
 Prepare test results
INTRODUCTION TO CE
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND
TESTING
 The course of Construction Materials and
Testing is a vital subject in Civil Engineering
although it doesn’t require much computations.
Getting to know the basic and the more
advanced characteristics and properties of the
materials used in construction will help students
analyze the principles lying behind the design of
structures.
Construction Materials
Testing (CMT) primarily
involves testing structural materials used
to build new projects from the ground
up, materials and components used to
construct new additions or new
components being added to an existing
facility
MATERIALS TESTING helps us to
understand and quantify whether a
specific material or
treatment is suitable for a particular
application. ...
MATERIAL TESTING may include
methods that yield information about
the structure or mechanical properties
of the material.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 Learning the properties of the construction
materials is just a part of the course. The course
lets students learn about the sources of these
materials, the different American Standard for
Testing Materials (ASTM) standards used in
testing them, common defects of these materials
and the ways to safeguard the construction from
these defects, precautions in handling these
materials for better durability, and to guide
students in choosing the proper material for a
particular purpose in construction.
BASIC CONCEPTS IN
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS

 Students should also be able to understand

which tests are possible for the materials in
constructions as well as be knowledgeable in
the standard values to expect from these
laboratory tests.
 Learning these parameters with the properties of
these materials will guide the contractor in
handling and working with them.
INTRODUCTION AND BASIC
CONCEPTS

 Engineering structures are composed of materials.

These materials are known as engineering
materials or materials of construction. It is
necessary for the civil engineer to become
conversant with the properties of such materials.
 The service conditions of buildings demand a wide
range of materials and various properties such as
water resistance, strength, durability, temperature
resistance, appearance, permeability, etc. They are
to be properly studied before making final selection
of any building material for a particular use.
CLASSIFICATION OF ENGINEERING
MATERIAL

• The factors which form the basis of various

systems of classifications of materials in material
science and engineering are:
The chemical composition of the material;
The mode of occurrence of the material in nature;
The refining and manufacturing processes to
which the material was subjected prior to the
acquisition of the required properties
The atomic and crystalline structure of material;
and
The industrial and technical use of the material
 CLASSIFICATION OF ENGINEERING
MATERIAL
• Common engineering materials that fall within the scope of material
science and engineering may be classified into one of the following
groups:
 Metals (ferrous and non-ferrous) and alloys
 Ceramics - Structural, pipes, including bricks, roof tiles & floor
 Polymers - a substance that has a molecular structure consisting
chiefly or entirely of a large number of similar units bonded together,
e.g., many synthetic organic materials used as plastics and resins.
 Composites - Concrete is a composite of aggregate, cement, additives
and water. Disc brake pads are composites of hard ceramic particles
embedded in soft metal. The polymer binds the reinforcement &
particulate together. Polymer matrix composites are lighter than steel,
aluminum, concrete and brick.
 Advanced materials
 PROPERTIES OF ENGINEERING
MATERIALS
 Physical properties. A material undergoes transition under the
influence of temperature and pressure, and these changes are
physical in nature, because their molecules remain intact.
[Density, specific gravity, porosity, water absorption, etc…
 Mechanical properties. It is the property of material which
opposes the deformation or breakdown of material in presence of
external forces or load. [tensile strength, compressive strength,
rigidity, hardness, creep, fatigue, etc…
 Thermal properties. The properties of a material which is
related to its conductivity of heat. These are the properties
whichare exhibited by a material when heat is passed through it.
 PROPERTIES OF ENGINEERING
MATERIALS
 Chemical properties. A chemical property is any of a material’s
properties that becomes evident during, or after, a chemical
reaction; that is, any qulaity that can be established only by
changing a substance’s chemical identity. Chemical properties
cannot be determined just by viewing or touching the substance;
the substance’s internal structure must be affected greatly for its
chemical properties to be investigated. [resistance to acids,
alkalies, brine, and oxidation.
 Economic characteristics. Cost saving characteristics.
 Aesthetic properties. The qualities that make a product
attractive to look at, or pleasing to experience. [color, surface
smoothness, the reflection of light, etc…
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS

• Density, ρ is defined as mass per unit volume

for a material in kg/m³.
𝑀
ρ=
𝑉
Where: M = Material Mass; V = Material Volume
 PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS
• Relative density, d, is the ration of the density of the material with pure water at 4°C.

ρ𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍
d=
ρ𝟒°𝑪𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓
The two types of density are as follows:

 Bulk density, ρ𝒃 . It is the ratio of material mass to total volume of material includin
spaces.

𝑀 𝑴𝑺 + 𝑴W
ρ𝒃 = =
𝑉 𝑽𝑺 + 𝑽V
Where;
𝑴𝑺 = Solid Mass; 𝑴W = Water Mass; 𝑽𝑺 = Volume of solids; 𝑽V = Volume of voids

 Solid density, 𝛒𝐬 . It is the ratio of the mass of solid material to the volume of solid
material without any space.
𝑴𝑺
ρ𝒔 = 𝑽𝑺
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS

• Unit weight, γ, is the ratio of material’s weight to

material’s volume.
w
γ=
V
Where: W = Weight (N); V = Volume (m³)

Or

γ=ρg
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS

• Specific gravity, Gs, is the ratio of solid density of

material and density of distilled water at a
temperature of 4 °C.
ρ𝑺
𝐺𝒔 =
ρw
• Porosity, n, is the ratio of the volume of the spaces in
the material to the over all volume.
Vv
𝑛=
𝑉
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS
• Voids ratio, e, the ratio between the size of the voids to the volume
of solid material.
vv
e=
VS

• Water absorption, Ww or Wv, denotes the ability of the

material to absorb and retain water. It is expressed as percentage in
weight or of volume of dry material.
MS −𝑀 MS −𝑀
Ww = 𝑀 (100%) ; Wv = 𝑀 (100%)

Where:
Ms= mass of saturated material
M= mass of dry material
V= volume of material including the pores.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS
 Water absorption by volume is always less than
100%, whereas that by weight of porous material
may exceed 100%.
 The properties of building materials are greatly
influenced when saturated. The ratio of
compressive strength of material saturated with
water to that in dry state is known as coefficient
softening and describes the water resistance of
materials. For materials like clay which is soaked
readily, it is zero, whereas for materials like glass
and metals, it is 1. Materials with coefficient
softening less than 0.8 should not be
recommended in the situations permanently
exposed to the action of moisture.
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF
MATERIALS
 Weathering resistance. It is the ability of a material to
endure alternate wet and dry conditions for a long
period without considerable deformation and loss of
mechanical strength.

 Water permeability. It is the capacity of a material to

allow water to penetrate under pressure. Materials like
glass, steel and bitumen are impervious.

 Frost resistance. It denotes the ability of a water-

saturated material to endure repeated freezing and
thawing with considerable decrease of mechanical
strength. Under such conditions the water contained
by the pores increases in volume even up to 9 percent
on freezing.
MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES
The properties which relate to material behavior under
applied forces define as mechanical properties.
Strength is the ability of the material to resist
failure under the action of stresses caused by
loads.
Stress, σ, is the applied force P divided by the
original area Ao.
P
σ=
Ao
MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES
There are several types of stress which depend on types of
applied load. These stresses can be classified as:
 Compression stress
 Tension stress
 Shear stress
 Bending stress
 Torsion stress

 When bar is stretched, stresses are tensile (taken as

positive).
 If forces are reversed, stresses are compressive (negative).
 MECHANICAL
PROPERTIES

Strain, ε, is the change in length δ divided by the

original length Lo.
𝞭
ε=
Lo

When bar is elongated, strains are tensile (positive).

When bar shortens, strains are compressive (negative).
IMPORTANCE OF THE STUDY OF
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
 Know the sources of construction materials;
 identify and know the properties of various
construction materials;
 Know how the materials are tested as per
ASTM standards;
 Know how to choose proper material from
the commercially available varieties for a
particular purpose of construction;
 Know common defects in the materials;
 Know various precautions to be taken while
constructing for better durability.
REFERENCES:
• Basic Construction Materials 2002, Theodore W.
Marotta
• Construction Materials Testing Manual by: Lydia De
Castro
• Civil Engineering Materials by Shan Somayaji
• Civil Engineering Materials by: Prakashan
• DPWH Blue Book 2013 Edition
• Materials of Construction 4Ed 1990 Chandigarah
THANK YOU AND GOD BLESS FUTURE
CIVIL ENGINEERS!!!