CAVITE STATE UNIVERSITY

Indang, Cavite

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND TESTING

Name: Date Performed:

Student No.: Date Submitted:

LABORATORY EXERCISE No. 2

FINENESS OF PORTLAND CEMENT

Cement plays a major role within a concrete mixture and affects most Important
aspects of the mix, such as: workability, compressive strength, drying shrinkage, and
durability.
As a civil engineering student, each one should be knowledgeable in different cement
testing. It is important to ensure the quality and performance of cement in
construction applications.

I. Objectives
a. To determine the effect of the fineness of Portland cement in terms of
strength
b. To determine the effect of the fineness of Portland cement in terms of
hydration.

II. Apparatus
a. U.S. Standard No. 200 sieve (74 micron), with pan and cover
b. Triple beam balance
c. Bristle brush or paint brush

III. Procedure
a. Place around 150 grams of Portland cement on a clean dry No. 200
sieve with the pan attached.
b. Put the cover and start sieving operations by a gentle wrist motion until
most of the fine materials have passed through the sieve and the residue
looks clean. This operation usually requires 3 to 4 minutes.
c. After sieving, remove the pan and slowly clean the sieve gently with the
brush in order to dislodge any dust adhering to the sieve.
d. Empty the pan and wipe it out thoroughly with a piece of clean cloth.
Replace the pan and continue sieving as described in step 1 to 3 for 5
to 10 minutes depending on the condition of the cement. The gentle
wrist motion involves no danger of spilling the residues if kept well
spread out on the sieve. Throughout the sieving, continuous rotation of
the sieve should be carried on.
e. After the sieving, clean the sieve and then weigh the residue.
 f. Tabulate your data. Conduct two trials.

IV. Discussion

V. Conclusion and Recommendation

VI. References

VII. Sketch of Apparatus Used

 PRELIMINARY DATA SHEET

Experiment Name : Fineness of Portland Cement

Experiment Date :

Student’s Name :
Student Number :
Year/Semester :
Section/Group :

Material Used
Trial Number 1 2
Weight of sample + container
Weight of container
Weight of sample
Weight of sample passing No. 200 Sieve
Weight of residue/retained
Fineness of cement
Average fineness

Group Leader’s Name & Signature :

Instructor’s Signature :
Date :

Calculation:
The fineness shall be calculated as follows:

150 − 𝑅
𝐹= × 100%
150
where:
F = fineness of the cement expressed as percentage passing
the No. 200 Sieve
R = weight of residue on the No. 200 sieve in grams
 FINAL DATA SHEET

Experiment Name : Fineness of Portland Cement

Experiment Date :

Student’s Name :
Student Number :
Year/Semester :
Section/Group :

Material Used
Trial Number 1 2
Weight of sample + container
Weight of container
Weight of sample
Weight of sample passing No. 200 Sieve
Weight of residue/retained
Fineness of cement
Average fineness

Calculation: