RAMAKRISHNA MISSION SHILPAMANDIRA

FIELD TESTS OF CEMENT

What is Cement???

Cement is a fine, soft, powdery-type substance.

It is a factory made product which mainly contains CaO(60-67%), SiO2(17-25%), Al2O3(3-8%), Fe2O3(0.5-6%)

When cement is mixed with water, it can bind sand and gravel into a hard, solid mass called

concrete.

Purpose of Cement..

Cement plays a key, but often unnoticed, role in our lives. Cement is mainly used as a binder in concrete, which is a basic material for all types of construction, including housing, roads, schools, hospitals, dams and ports, as well as for decorative applications

Tests of Cement...

Field Tests Field tests on cements are carried to know the quality of

cement supplied at site. It gives some idea about cement quality based on colour, touch and feel and other tests.

Laboratory Tests Laboratory tests are required to confirm the Indian

Standard Specifications. Tests are- Fineness test, Setting time tests, Soundness tests, Heat of hydration tests and Chemical composition tests.

Field Tests of Cement

IS Code

Manufacturing date

Manufacturer

Type of Cement

Cement grade

Continued...

Open the bag and take a good look at the cement. There should not be any visible lumps.

The colour of the cement should normally in greenish grey.

Continued...

Thrust your hand into the cement bag. It must be giving you a cool feeling.

It feels smooth when rubbed it in between fingers.

Continued...

Take another handful sample of cement and throw itin the bucket full of water. Particles of cement shouldfloat a while before sinking down.

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A thick paste of cement with water is made on a piece of glass plate and it is kept under water for 24 hours. It should set and not crack.

A block of cement 25 mm ×25 mm and 200 mm long is prepared and it is immersed for 7 days in water. It is then placed on supports 15cm apart and it is loaded with a weight of about 34 kg. The block should not show signs of failure.

Sieve Test for Fineness..

Fineness of cement is measured by sieving it on standard sieve. The proportion of cement of which the grain sizes are larger than the specified mesh size is thus determined. Standard size of the sieve for the test is 90μm.

IS Sieve

Soundness Test...

In the soundness test a specimen of hardened cement paste is boiled for a fixed time so that any tendency to expand is speeded up and can be detected. Soundness means the ability to resist volume expansion.

Le Chatelier's apparatus

Properties Obtained from Field Tests..

Chemical Compounds

Air content availability

Moisture Absorption

Fineness & Soundness of Cement

Compressive Strength. Etc.

Advantages of Field Tests...

Can be conducted by site engineers or labours in convenient locations.

Significantly very lower costing in comparison to lab Tests.

Performed under ‘real world’ conditions.

Tests are time saving than lab tests.

Disadvantages of Field Tests..

Limited parameters can be monitored.

It may not be as reliable and accurate as lab tests.

The percentage of error can’t be visible.

The results can be different in different weather condition and person.

Conclusion..

It is not possible to check all the engineering qualities of cement on site but there some field test which gives us a rough idea of quality of cement. While on site we can perform these field tests to judge the quality of cement. Also in household purposes. That’s why field tests are very important.

Name- Pradipta SurDept. -DCE(2nd Year)Roll No. - 09