F

S.
SIEVE ANALYSIS OF FINE & COARSE
AGGREGATES

CIE 309 – CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS LAB

LAB REPORT 3 – ASTM C136
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PREPARED BY

JOHNNY AOUDE – 201003760

REHAM EL-IRANI – 200902434
FARAH NASR – 200901085
SAMER SHAHINE – 201002102

INSTRUCTOR’S NAME: MR. MICHAEL AMMOURY

DATE OF SUBMISSION: 27/10/2011
 CIE 309 – LAB REPORT 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Objective............................................................................................................................... 2
Equipment ............................................................................................................................ 3
Procedure ............................................................................................................................. 4
Data & Calculations ............................................................................................................... 5

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Results .................................................................................................................................. 7
Discussion ............................................................................................................................. 9
Conclusion........................................................................................................................... 10

FIGURES
Sieves for Coarse ................................................................................................................... 3
Sieves for Fine ....................................................................................................................... 3
Weighing of Coarse Aggregates.............................................................................................. 5
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Mechanical Sieving ................................................................................................................ 5

TABLES
Apparatus and Materials ....................................................................................................... 3
Data for Fine Aggregates ....................................................................................................... 5
Data for Coarse Aggregates ................................................................................................... 6
Grading Requirements for Fine .............................................................................................. 7
Grading Requirements for Coarse .......................................................................................... 8

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OBJECTIVE

Sieve analysis is a process used to monitor material quality based on

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particle size. The objective of this experiment (ASTM C136) is to determine the
gradation or particle size distribution of fine and coarse aggregates by sieving.
This is determined by weighing a sample of oven-dried aggregates and separating
it through a series of sieves of smaller openings. Gradation is a crucial and
essential parameter in a concrete mixture. There are certain specifications called
grading requirements set by ASTM that will be followed.

In this experiment, two types of aggregates (sand and gravel) will be

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subjected to sieving, after which the passing and retained percentages as well as
the fineness modulus can be obtained. The fineness modulus will determine
whether the aggregate mix is according to ASTM standards for construction.

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EQUIPMENT

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Gravel (5 kg oven dried at 110oC then cooled to room temp)
Sand (300 g oven dried at 110oC then cooled to room temp)
Sieves for coarse (1”, ¾”, ½”, ⅜”, #4, #8, #16)
Sieves for fine (#4, #8, #16, #30, #50, #100, #200)
Mechanical sieve shaker
Circular tares

S. Digital balance
Scoop
Table 1: Apparatus and Materials

A sieve is an apparatus round or square in shape with square openings (pictured below). It is
identified by the size of the opening or by a number; the higher the number the smaller the
opening.
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Figure 1: Sieves for Coarse Figure 2: Sieves for Fine

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PROCEDURE

FOR FINE AND COARSE AGGREGATES

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1. Dry sample to constant weight a temperature of 110oC.
2. Weigh 5kg of gravel / 300g of sand using a digital balance.
3. Select the required sieves for each procedure.
4. Weigh each sieve individually and weigh the pan.

S. 5.
6.
Place the sieves in order of decreasing size of opening from top to bottom.
Place the pan below the bottom sieve. Place the sample on the top sieve, and close
it with a lid.
7. Place the sieves on a mechanical shaker for 10 minutes.
8. Manually agitate the sieves one by one for more accurate results.
9. Weigh each sieve along with the retained aggregates as well as the pan.
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Figure 3: Weighing of Coarse Aggregates Figure 4: Mechanical Sieving

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DATA & CALCULATIONS

Maximum Size of Aggregate: The smallest sieve opening through which the entire amount

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of aggregate is required to pass.

Nominal Maximum Size of Aggregate: The smallest sieve opening through which most of
aggregate is required to pass.

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Fineness Modulus: Indicator on the average size of the sample. It is the nth sieve counted
upwards from the smallest sieve of the set, where n is the fineness modulus.

. . =

%
%

ℎ
ℎ (#4, 8, 16, 30, 50, 100
100

"
(1.5" , 3⁄4 , 3⁄8" , #4, 8, 16, 30, 50, 100
)

)
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. . =
100

FINE AGGREGATES

Sieve Sieve (g) Sieve + Material (g) Retained (g) % Retained Cum. % Retained Cum. % Passing
#4 737.00 737.26 0.26 0.1 0.1 99.9
#8 709.00 715.48 6.48 2.2 2.3 97.7
#16 640.00 648.65 8.65 2.9 5.1 94.9
#30 606.00 628.81 22.81 7.6 12.8 87.2
#50 334.00 430.47 96.47 32.3 45.0 55.0
#100 517.00 632.2 115.20 38.5 83.5 16.5
#200 500.00 537.27 37.27 12.5 96.0 4.0
PAN 491.00 502.98 11.98 4.0 100.0 0.0
TOTAL 299.12
Table 2: Data for Fine Aggregates

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COARSE AGGREGATES

Sieve Sieve (g) Sieve + Material (g) Retained (g) % Retained Cum. % Retained Cum. % Passing
1” 1391.69 1391.69 0 0 0 100

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¾” 1440.02 1569.46 129.44 2.6 2.6 97.4
½” 1368.4 2731.26 1362.86 27.3 29.8 70.2
3/8” 1358.41 2924.98 1566.57 31.4 61.2 38.8
#4 1621.73 3402.45 1780.72 35.7 96.9 3.1
#8 1477.53 1549.41 71.88 1.4 98.4 1.6

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#16
PAN
TOTAL
1334.39
723.15
1385.89
750.42
51.5
27.27
4990.24
1.0
0.6

Table 3: Data for Coarse Aggregates

99.4
100.0
0.6
0.0
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0.1 + 2.3 + 5.1 + 12.8 + 45.0 + 83.5
. . = = 1.49
100

2.6 + 61.2 + 96.9 + 98.4 + 99.4

. . = = 3.59
100

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RESULTS

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Grading Requirements for Concrete
ASTM C144 Fine Aggregates
Cumulative % Passing
Sieve
High Low Sample
⅜” 100 100 100

S. #4
#8
#16
#30
#50
#100
#200
PAN
100
100
85
60
30
10
-
-
95
80
50
25
10
2
-
-
99.9
97.7
94.9
87.2
55.0
16.5
4.0
0.0
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120

100

80

60 High
Low
40 Sample

20

0
1" ¾" ⅜" #4 #8
-20

Cumulative % passing with respect to sieve size

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Grading Requirements for Concrete

ASTM C33 Coarse Aggregates (Nominal size ¾”)
Cumulative % Passing
Sieve
High Low Sample

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1” 100 100 100
¾” 100 90 97.4
½” - - 70.2
⅜” 55 20 38.8
#4 10 0 3.1

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120

100
#8
#16
PAN
5
-
-
0
-
-
1.6
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80

60 High
Low
40 Sample

20

0
1" ¾" ⅜" #4 #8
-20

Cumulative % passing with respect to sieve size

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DISCUSSION

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In the experiment, the sum of all retained masses of either fine or coarse
aggregates closely matched the original weight of the sample (within 3%). For the
fine, 299.12 g were retained of the initial 300. For the coarse, it was 4990.24 g out
of 5000. Thus, ASTM standards were followed. For the coarse aggregates, sieve 1”

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was the smallest sieve opening through which all aggregates pass, so the
maximum size of coarse aggregates is 1”. As for the nominal maximum size, it is
¾”, and this result was used in the graph table. The results obtained for the fine
aggregates do not match ASTM standards as seen in the table (on sieves #16, 30,
50, and 100) and on the graph (the green line is outside the ASTM specification
boundaries). For the coarse aggregates, both the table and the plot show that it
graded according to ASTM standards.
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CONCLUSION

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The results of this experiment show that the fine aggregates analyzed
cannot be used in a concrete mix, as shown in the table and plot. The coarse
aggregates, on the other hand, have a gradation between the boundaries, which
make these aggregates suitable for construction. This result is also shown through

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the fineness modulus (1.49 for the fine, 3.59 for the coarse). A high fineness
modulus means a lowers the void percentage in the mix, whereas a low modulus
means lower bonding between concrete elements. These values should not be
too low or too high.
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