Institute of Technology of Cambodia Road design II (TP)

5) After that lower the needle gradually until it touches the bitumen sample’s surface. Click
the circle button to drop the weight and allow the needle to make contact with the sample
surface. Take note of the first penetration depth, 𝑑0 . Maintain the applied load for 5
seconds. Record the penetration depth after 5 seconds, 𝑑1 .
6) We can determine the penetration depth

7) Perform this experiment three times in different locations with 10mm apart.

Figure 5: Place sample Figure 6: adjust needle Figure 7: Drop the Figure 8: Penetration
in Penetrometer to the sample’s surface applied load depth after 5 seconds

6. Data and Calculation

Table 2: Data and Calculation

Test 1 Test 2 Test 3

Remark: 1° = 0.1𝑚𝑚
Therefore, the average depth of penetration:

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 Institute of Technology of Cambodia Road design II (TP)

7. Conclusion
After the test, we successfully evaluated the consistency of the bitumen sample. The
average penetration value of 6.93𝑚𝑚 indicated a medium-hard bitumen which corresponds to
a 60/70 bitumen grade in Table 3: Penetration Grading. Based on Table 4: Acceptable Error,
the maximum difference value is 4. According to the calculations, the bitumen test sample is
suitable for road construction.
When we do the penetration test, there may be some common errors due to poor
sampling, poor maintenance of the laboratory equipment and needles, and incorrect
temperature and time.
Table 3: Penetration Grading

Penetration Grading
Grade Penetration in 0.1mm
40/50 40-50
60/70 60-70
85/100 85-100
120/150 120-150
200/300 200-300

Table 4: Acceptable Error

Acceptable Error Bar of Penetration test

Penetration in 0.1mm 0-49 50-149 150-249 250-500
Maximum difference 2 4 12 20

8. References
[1]. Pro, U. M. (2014). Penetration Test. Retrieved from Scribd.
[2]. Rizvi, M. (2021). Temperature Zoning of Pakistan for Asphalt Mix Design. Temperature
Zoning of Pakistan for Asphalt Mix Design.
[3]. Zahedi, M. (2024). Bitumen Penetration Test – Procedure and Purpose. Retrieved from
Infinity Galaxy: https://infinitygalaxy.org/bitumen-penetration-test/

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