This standard may only be used by approved subscription and freemailing clients of the SABS.

ISBN 978-0-626-21534-7
SANS 5843:2008
Edition 2.2

Any reference to SABS SM 843 is deemed

to be a reference to this standard
(Government Notice No. 1373 of 8 November 2002)

SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL STANDARD

Water absorption of aggregates

Published by Standards South Africa

1 dr lategan road groenkloof private bag x191 pretoria 0001
tel: 012 428 7911 fax: 012 344 1568 international code + 27 12
www.stansa.co.za
© Standards South Africa
 This standard may only be used by approved subscription and freemailing clients of the SABS.

SANS 5843:2008
Edition 2.2

Table of changes
Change No. Date Scope
Amdt 1 2002 Amended to update normative references.
Amdt 2 2008 Amended to change the designation of SABS standards to SANS
standards, with no technical changes.

Foreword
This South African standard was approved by National Committee StanSA SC 5120.61A, Construction
standards – Cement, lime and concrete, in accordance with procedures of Standards South Africa, in
compliance with annex 3 of the WTO/TBT agreement.

This document was published in July 2008. This document supersedes SABS SM 843:2002
(edition 2.1).
 This standard may only be used by approved subscription and freemailing clients of the SABS.

SANS 5843:2008
Edition 2.2

Water absorption of aggregates

1 Scope and field of application

This standard specifies a method for determining the water absorption of fine and coarse aggregate by
saturation in water, and for determining the difference in percentage by mass between an oven-dry and
a saturated surface-dry test sample.

NOTE Water is absorbed through the permeable pores of the aggregate.

2 Normative references
The following standards contain provisions which, through reference in this text, constitute provisions of
this standard. All standards are subject to revision and, since any reference to a standard is deemed to
be a reference to the latest edition of that standard, parties to agreements based on this standard are
encouraged to take steps to ensure the use of the most recent editions of the standards indicated below.
Information on currently valid national and international standards can be obtained from Standards
South Africa.

SANS 197, Preparation of test samples of aggregates.

SANS 3310-1/ISO 3310-1, Test sieves – Technical requirements and testing – Part 1: Test sieves of
metal wire cloth. Amdt 1

3 Apparatus
3.1 Metal mould, in the shape of a frustum of a cone that has an internal diameter of
37,5 mm ± 1,0 mm at the top and 90 mm ± 1,0 mm at the bottom, and a height of 75 mm ± 1,0 mm.

3.2 Metal tamper, of mass 340 g ± 15 g, that has a flat circular tamping face of diameter
25 mm ± 2 mm.

3.3 Test sieve, of aperture size 4 750 µm and that complies with the requirements of SANS 3310-1.
Amdt 1

4 Procedure
4.1 Fine aggregate
4.1.1 Place a test sample (see SANS 197) of at least 1 kg in a suitable container and cover with
distilled or demineralized water maintained at a temperature of 15 °C to 25 °C. Remove entrapped air by
so agitating the sample that individual particles do not break up.

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 This standard may only be used by approved subscription and freemailing clients of the SABS.

SANS 5843:2008
Edition 2.2

4.1.2 After soaking for a period of 24 h ± 0,5 h, carefully decant most of the water (taking care not to
lose any solids), place the aggregate in a shallow tray, and dry it with a gentle stream of warm air,
stirring frequently to ensure uniform drying. Continue drying until the aggregate approaches a free-
flowing condition.

4.1.3 Place a portion of the aggregate in the mould, tamp it with 25 light strokes of the tamper, and lift
the mould in a vertical movement. If surface moisture is still present, the aggregate will retain its
moulded shape.

4.1.4 Return the tested portion of the aggregate to the bulk of the aggregate and continue drying and
stirring (and testing at frequent intervals) in this manner until the moulded aggregate slumps only slightly
upon removal of the mould. This is regarded as a surface-dry condition.

NOTES

1 Crusher sand samples could collapse although still not surface-dry.

2 Sands with a high clay content do not necessarily slump, even if surface-dry.

4.1.5 Immediately determine the total mass of the specimen in the saturated surface-dry condition
(mass ma).

4.1.6 Dry the aggregate to constant mass at a temperature of 100 °C to 110 °C, cool in a desiccator,
and determine the final mass of the test sample (mass mb).

4.2 Coarse aggregate

4.2.1 Sieve at least 2 kg of the test sample (see SANS 197) on a sieve with apertures of nominal size
4 750 µm and use the material retained on the sieve as the test specimen.

4.2.2 Remove any dust and foreign matter adhering to the particles by thoroughly washing the test
specimen. Place the washed test specimen in a suitable container and cover with distilled or
demineralized water maintained at a temperature of 15 °C to 25 °C. Remove entrapped air by so
agitating the sample that individual particles do not break up.

4.2.3 After soaking for a period of 24 h ± 0,5 h, remove the specimen from the water and allow it to
drain for approximately 5 min. Gently transfer the aggregate to a dry cloth and roll it on the cloth until it
appears to be surface-dry (all visible films of water are removed, but the aggregate still has a damp
appearance).

4.2.4 Determine the mass of the saturated specimen in the surface-dry condition (mass ma).

4.2.5 Dry the aggregate to constant mass at a temperature of 100 °C to 110 °C, cool in a desiccator,
and determine the final mass of the test specimen (mass mb).

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 This standard may only be used by approved subscription and freemailing clients of the SABS.

SANS 5843:2008
Edition 2.2

5 Expression and reporting of results

Calculate the percentage water absorption of the aggregate, as follows:

ma − mb
× 100
mb

where

ma is the mass of saturated surface-dry specimen; and

mb is the mass of dry specimen.

Report the result to the nearest 0,1 %.

© Standards South Africa