Introduction to Concrete

Technology: CE-204
Mahendra Kumar Pal, PhD
Department of Civil Engineering
Indian Institute of Technology BHU Varanasi, UP, India
 List of Experiment
Properties of aggregate
Properties of Cement : Experiment #4
1. Experiment #1 F.M. of coarse and Fine aggregate
A. Normal consistency

B. Initial setting time Properties of concrete:

5. Slump test
C. Soundness
6. Compaction factor test
2. Experiment#2
7. Compression test
A. Fineness of Cement
8. Effect of W/C on strength of concrete
B. Strength of cement

3. Experiment#3
A. Specific gravity and unit weight of cement
Introduction

Concrete: it is heterogenous mixture of homogenous materials such as cement,

fine aggregate (sand), coarse aggregate and water
In the mix, CEMENT acts as BINDER and Aggregates serve as FILLER material
Coarse aggregates mainly contains the aggregates of size 20 mm and 10 mm in
the ration of 60% and 40% of the total weight of coarse aggregate

Properties of individual material impacts the strength of concrete

 List of Experiment
Properties of aggregate
Properties of Cement : Experiment #4
1. Experiment #1 F.M. of coarse and Fine aggregate
A. Normal consistency

B. Initial setting time Properties of concrete:

5. Slump test
C. Soundness
6. Compaction factor test
2. Experiment#2
7. Compression test
A. Fineness of Cement
8. Effect of W/C on strength of concrete
B. Strength of cement

3. Experiment#3
A. Specific gravity and unit weight of cement
 Experiment#1A: Consistency of Cement
Objective: determines the quantity of water required to produce a cement paste
of standard consistency
Apparatus Used: Vicat’s apparatus with plunger of 10 mm diameter
Procedure: .
1. About 400 gms of cement is weighed and mixed with 30% by weight of potable water with the
help of spatula for half mins.
2. After about half minute it is thoroughly mixed with hand for about one minute.
3. Fill the mould completely with the paste and remove the excess paste by single stroke of the
trowel making it level with the top of the mould.
4. Place the mould, together with the glass plate, under the plunger. Lower the plunger gently to
touch the surface of the test block, and quickly release, allowing it to sink into the paste.
5. The penetration of plunger (10 mm dia) in cement paste is noted.
6. If the plunger penetrates by 33 to 35 mm from top of the paste, the paste is said to be of Normal
Consistency.
7. Otherwise, %age of water shall be changed accordingly to get the desired penetration is
obtained. The amount of water, thus mixed, expressed as percentage by weight of the dry
cement, is the normal consistency.
 Experiment#1B: Initial Setting Time of Cement
Objective: determines the time at which cement starts setting
Apparatus Used: Vicat’s apparatus with plunger of 1 mm diameter
Procedure: .
1. About 400 gms of cement is weighed and mixed with 0.85 times the water required for standard consistency
with the help of spatula for half mins.
2. After about half minute it is thoroughly mixed with hand for about one minute.
3. Fill the mould completely with the paste and remove the excess paste by single stroke of the trowel making
it level with the top of the mould.
4. Place the mould, together with the glass plate, under the plunger. Lower the plunger gently to touch the
surface of the test block, and quickly release, allowing it to sink into the paste.
5. The penetration of plunger (1 mm dia) in cement paste is noted.
6. The period between the time when water is added to the cement and the time at which the needle penetrates
the test block up to 5 ± 0.5mm from the base, shall be the initial setting time.

Specification: As per I.S.: 269 –1976 initial setting time for cement shall not be less than 30
minutes.
 Experiment#1C: Soundness of Cement
Objective: is to determine the extent of free uncombined lime present in the cement.
Apparatus Used: Le-Chatelior’s apparatus, scale and water bath
Procedure:
1. Taking 100 gms of cement, a cement paste with 0.78 time the water required for normal consistency is
prepared and placed in the mould resting on a glass plate.
2. Another glass plate is placed on its top.
3. The whole thing is then immediately placed in water bath whose temperature is between 270C to 320C
and the distance between the tips of the pointers is measured after lapse of 24 hours.
4. The mould is then immersed in a water bath which is heated to boiling point in 20 to 30 minutes and kept
at this temperature for one hour. After cooling to 270C the distance between the tips of the pointers is
again measured.
5. The difference between the two readings represents the expansion of the cement, i.e., soundness of the
cement.
As per IS : 269-1976 code this should not exceed 5 mm for aerated OPC and 10 mm for
non-aerated OPC and as per IS 1489-1991 for PPC, & as per IS 455 -1989 for Portland
slag cement.
 Experiment#2A: Fineness of Cement
Objective: to find fineness of cement. Finer Cement has quicker action with water, though the ultimate
strength is not much affected

Methods:
1. by Sieve Analysis,
2. by measuring specific surface area of cement using air permeability method
3. Wagner’s Turbidimeter method.

Procedure:
For using sieve analysis method, take 100 gms of cement
Sieve it on IS Sieve no. 9 (90 micron) for 15 minutes with gentle motion of the wrists.
To satisfy fineness criterion, retained residue shall not exceed 10% by weight of the sample.
 Experiment#2B: Compressive Strength of Cement
Objective: to determine the compressive strength of cement
Apparatus Used: Mould, Universal Testing Machine (UTM)
Procedure:
1. 185 gms of given cement sample is mixed for one minutes with 3 times is weight of standard sand.
2. Then p% water by weight of dry materials (p=Pn/4 + 3.0, Pn is water required for making paste of normal
consistency) is added to it and mixed for minimum 3 minutes but not more than 4 minutes to bring a
uniform colour.
3. 6 nos. 70.6 mm (50 cm2 surface area) well oiled and greased cube moulds are filled with the mortar and
compacted on standard vibration machine for 2 minutes.
4. The cubes are kept at 27 ±20C in atmosphere of 90% humidity for 24 hrs, and then kept submerged in
clean water.
5. Three cubes are tested at 3 days and three at 7- days with loading rate of 350 Kg/cm2/mt.
Experiment#2B: Compressive Strength of Cement
To satisfy Indian Standards, the observed compressive strength at crushing should not be less than
the following values.
IS 269, OPC 33, IS 455, PSC & IS IS 269, IS 269,
1489, PPC Grade 43 OPC Grade 53 OPC
(N/mm2) (N/mm2) (N/mm2)

After 72 hrs. ± 1 hr. 16 23 27

After 168 hrs. ± 2 hrs. 22 33 37

After 28 days (Min) 33 43 53

After 28 days (Max) 48 58 -

Observation Table:
Curing Load in kN Average Average Remarks
Period 1 2 3 load in stress
kN (N/mm2)
3 - days

7 – day
 Experiment#3: Specific Gravity of Cement
Objective: to determine the specific gravity and unit weight of cement
Apparatus Used: Le Chatelier’s Flask
Procedure:
1. Le Chatelier’s Flask is filled up to zero to 1 ml marks with kerosene oil and first reading is recorded after
immersing it in water bath at 270 ± 20C.
2. About 64 gms of the cement, shall be introduced in the flask after accurately weighing and recording its
weight.
3. Roll the flask after putting the stopper, so as to free the cement from any air bubbles and take the level
reading on the flask.

4. Now, Sp gr. =
 Experiment#3: Unit Weight of Cement
Objective: to determine the specific gravity and unit weight of cement
Apparatus Used: Le Chatelier’s Flask
Procedure:
1. find unit weight of cement by loosely filling a container of known volume and finding weight of the filled
cement.

2. Unit weight =
 Experiment#4: Fineness Modulus of Coarse and
Fine Aggregates
Objective: Fineness Modulus is a method of standardization of the grading of aggregate. It is only a
numerical index of fineness.
Material Used: Aggregates and IS Sieves
Procedure:
1. All the ten sieves are placed one over the other and material is placed in the top one.
2. The sieves are shaken in a sieve shaker.
3. The material retained on each sieve is weighed and the fineness modulus is calculated.
4. It is obtained by adding the percentage by weight of materials retained on each of the ten I.S. Sieves and dividing it
by 100
Experiment#4: Fineness Modulus of Coarse and
Fine Aggregates
 Experiment#4: Fineness Modulus of Coarse and
Fine Aggregates
The fineness modules calculation table is given below:
Coarse Aggregate Fine Aggregate
I.S. 10 mm 20 mm
Wt. Retained Total wt. Cumulative Wt. Total wt. Cumulative Wt. Retained Total wt. Cumulative
Sieve Retained percentage Retained Retained percentage Retained percentage
75mm
40mm
20 mm
10 mm
4.75 mm
2.36 mm
1.18 mm
600 µm
300 µm
150 µm
Total:

Fineness
Modulus
 Experiment#4: Fineness Modulus of Coarse and
Fine Aggregates
Objective: Fineness Modulus is a method of standardization of the grading of aggregate. It is only a
numerical index of fineness.
Material Used: Aggregates and IS Sieves
Procedure:
1. All the ten sieves are placed one over the other and material is placed in the top one.
2. The sieves are shaken in a sieve shaker.
3. The material retained on each sieve is weighed and the fineness modulus is calculated.
4. It is obtained by adding the percentage by weight of materials retained on each of the ten I.S. Sieves and dividing it
by 100
 Experiment#4: Fineness Modulus of Coarse and
Fine Aggregates
The fineness modules calculation table is given below:
Coarse Aggregate Fine Aggregate
I.S. 20 mm 10 mm
Wt. Retained Total wt. Cumulative Wt. Total wt. Cumulative Wt. Retained Total wt. Cumulative
Sieve Retained percentage Retained Retained percentage Retained percentage
75mm
40mm
20 mm
10 mm
4.75 mm
2.36 mm
1.18 mm
600 µm
300 µm
150 µm
Total:

Fineness
Modulus
 Experiment#5: Slump Test of Concrete
Workability: Workability is the property determining the effort required to manipulate a freshly
mixed quantity of concrete with minimum loss of homogeneity - ASTM C 125-93

Compaction and workability are very close to each other. Workability can also be defined as the amount of
useful internal work necessary to produce full compaction.
 Experiment#5: Slump Test of Concrete
Objective: To determine the workability of fresh concrete
Apparatus Used:
1. A mould in the form of frustum a cone having the following internal dimensions)
▪ Dimensions mm
▪ Bottom Diameter 200
▪ Top Diameter 100
▪ Height 300
2. Tamping Rod : Steel tamping rod of 16 mm in diameter, 0.6 m long and rounded at one end.
Procedure:
1. Prepare homogeneous concrete mix of proportion 1: 1.5: 3 by weight and w/c as 0.50.
2. The mould shall be filled in four layers, each approximately one quarter of the height of the mould.
3. Each layer shall be tamped with twenty-five strokes of the rounded end of the tamping rod.
4. The mould shall be removed from the concrete immediately by raising it slowly and carefully in a vertical
direction.
5. the slump shall be measured immediately by determining the difference, between the height of the mould
and that of the highest point of the specimen.
 Experiment#5: Slump Test of Concrete

Figure Source: Fouad M. Khalaf, Using Crushed Clay Brick as Coarse Aggregate in Concrete, Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering,
18(4), 2006
 Experiment#5: Slump Test of Concrete
What is Superplasticizer: Plasticizers are chemical compounds that enable the production of
concrete with approximately 15% less water content. Superplasticizers allow reduction in water
content by 30% or more

Effect of Superplasticizer on slump of concrete:

The use of superplasticizer as admixture in concrete causes reduction in water-cement ratio for same
workability or increase in workability for same water cement ratio. Add 0.3 % superplasticizer by weight of
cement in the above mix and measure the slump.
Slump without superplasticizer =
Slump with superplasticizer =
 Experiment#6: Compaction Factor Test of Concrete
Objective: To determine the workability of fresh concrete in terms of compaction
Apparatus Used:
1. Compaction factor test apparatus
2. Mould
3. Tamping rod
4. Two trowels
5. Balance
6. Vibrator
 Experiment#6: Compaction Factor Test of Concrete
Objective: To determine the workability of fresh concrete in terms of compaction
Procedure:
1. Grease the inner faces of the hoppers and the cylinder.
2. Determine the weight of the cylinder without top plate to the nearest 10 gm and mount it on the
base of the frame.
3. Take sample of freshly mixed (1:1.5:3 Mix by weight and 0.50 W-C ratio) concrete and fill the
upper hopper gently to the brim. Do not press the mix.
4. Open the top hopper door two minutes after the completion of mixing allowing the sample to fall in
to the lower hopper.
5. After the concrete has come to rest, quickly remove the top plate of the cylinder and open the trap
door of the lower hopper allowing the sample to fall into the cylinder. If the concrete mixture does
not easily fall from the hoppers, push the mixture through by a rod gently from the top.
6. Clean the side of the cylinder and weigh to the nearest 10 gm. This weight shall be known as the
weight of partially compacted concrete.
7. The cylinder shall be refilled with concrete from the same sample in layers approximately 5 cm
deep, the layers being heavily rammed or preferably vibrated so as to obtain full compaction.
Clean the side of the cylinder and weigh it to the nearest 10 gm.
Experiment#6: Compaction Factor Test of Concrete
 Experiment#7: Compression Test of Concrete
Objective: to determine the compressive strength of concrete
Apparatus Used:
1. Six cube moulds 150 mm in size,
2. 6 cylinder moulds of 150x300mm size,
3. Mixer, vibrator, weighing machine
4. Compression testing machine
 Experiment#7: Compression Test of Concrete
Procedure:
1. For preparing the concrete of given proportion ( 1 : 1.5: 3) by weight and 0.50 w/c ratio, calculate the required amount of
coarse aggregate, fine aggregate, cement and water. ( 20 mm and 10 mm aggregate should be mixed in the ratio of 0.6 : 0.4 of
total coarse aggregate).

2. Weigh the required quantities of the coarse aggregate, fine aggregate, cement and water and mix them thoroughly in the
mechanical mixer until uniform colour of concrete is obtained. Oil the cube and cylinder moulds. Fill concrete in cube moulds
in two layers of 75mm and ram it thoroughly. Fill cylinder moulds in four layers 75mm each and ram each layer. Flush off
concrete with a trowel.

3. The specimens are removed from the moulds after 24 hrs. and cured in water for 7 and 28 days. Compression tests of cube and
cylindrical specimens are made after removal from curing tank in saturated surface dry condition. The size and weight of each
specimen be recorded. The specimens are tested after 7 and 28 days in the compression testing machine. The load should be
increased uniformly and without shock. The rate of loading should be adjusted through rate control valve by hand to 140
Kg/cm2/min. or 32 tons/min. for cube and 25 tons/min for cylinder. The type of failure and appearance of concrete are noted.
 Experiment#7: Compression Test of Concrete
Weight of Specimen
Curing period Specimen Specimen Specimen Average Remar
No.1 No.2 No.3 Weight ks
(Kg.)

7 days(cube)

28 days(cube)

7 days(cylinder)

Result of cube and cylinder Strength 28 days(cylinder)

Curing Load in kN Average Average
period Specim Specime Specime load in Stress in Remarks
en No.1 n No.2 n No.3 kN N/mm2
7 days
(cube)

28 days
(cube)
7 days
(cylinde
r)
28 days
(cylinde
r)
 Experiment#8: Effect of w/c ratio on Strength of
Concrete
Objective: to study the impact of water content on the strength of concrete
Apparatus Used: Nine cube moulds of 150 mm size, weighing balance, slump cone, bucket and vibrator.
Procedure:
1. Mix the cement fine and coarse aggregate in 1:1.5:3 ratio by weight.
2. Take three specimen and add 0.45, 0.50 and 0.55 W-C ratio.
3. Carry out the slump test with each sample and cast 3 cubes taking fresh sample with the above mix proportion.
4. Test the cubes after 28 days and plot the relationship between W-C ratio (X-axis) and the compressive strength
(Y-axis). ( 20 mm and 10 mm aggregate should be mixed in the ratio of 0.6 : 0.4 of total coarse aggregate).
Experiment#8: Effect of w/c ratio on Strength of
Concrete Sl. No. W-C
OBSERVATION:
Load in kN Average Compressi
ratio Slump Sample Sample Sample (kN) ve strength
No. 1 No. 2 No. 3 in N/mm2

1. 0.45

2. 0.50

3. 0.55
 Technical Editing
Dr. Mahendra Kumar Pal
Asst. Professor, IIT BHU

Recorded By:
1. Sunil Kumar Sinha, Technical Hand, TLC, IIT BHU
2. Bipin Kumar Rai, Project Assistant, TLC, IIT BHU

Recorded at
ABLT Studio, IIT BHU