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Penetration Test of Bitumen

The document describes the procedure for conducting a penetration test on bitumen samples. It involves heating the bitumen sample, pouring it into a container, allowing it to cool for 1-2 hours, then placing the container in a water bath maintained at 25°C for additional cooling. The cooled sample is then tested using a penetrometer to determine the penetration value by lowering a needle onto the surface and measuring its penetration depth in millimeters after 5 seconds. Multiple measurements are taken and averaged to obtain the final penetration value.

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Irwan Md Zain
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77 views3 pages

Penetration Test of Bitumen

The document describes the procedure for conducting a penetration test on bitumen samples. It involves heating the bitumen sample, pouring it into a container, allowing it to cool for 1-2 hours, then placing the container in a water bath maintained at 25°C for additional cooling. The cooled sample is then tested using a penetrometer to determine the penetration value by lowering a needle onto the surface and measuring its penetration depth in millimeters after 5 seconds. Multiple measurements are taken and averaged to obtain the final penetration value.

Uploaded by

Irwan Md Zain
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Penetration Test of Bitumen Procedure

Sample Preparation

1. Take the bitumen sample in a beaker and heat it to a


temperature above its approximate softening point. For
tars and pitches, it is heated up to 60 °C while bitumen is
heated up to 90 °C.
2. Allow the bitumen to melt until it achieves a pouring
consistency. Keep stirring the sample so that the sample
is homogenous and free from air bubbles and water.
3. Pour the melted bitumen into the container at 35 mm
depth until it is filled up to a depth of 10 mm more than
the expected penetration.
4. Place the container on the transfer dish and allow it to
cool in the atmosphere at a temperature in-between 15-
30 °C for 1.0-1.5 hours when a 35 mm deep container is
used. The time period is increased to 1.5-2.0 hours when
a 45 mm deep container is used.
5. Place the whole assembly with the container and transfer
the dish to a water bath, which is maintained at 25 ± 0.1
°C for about 1.5-2.0 hours when a 35 mm deep container
is used. The time period is reduced to 1.0-1.5 hours
when a 45 mm deep container is used.
6. When cutback bitumen or Digboi type bitumen is to be
tested, the residue left after the distillation process is
used for this test.

Testing of the Specimen

1. Remove the transfer dish from the water bath and fill the water
from the water bath in the dish to such a depth that the container is
covered completely.

2. Place the sample container in this transfer dish and place this
assembly under the penetration needle on the penetrometer.

3. Clean the needle with cotton dabbed in benzene and allow it to


dry. Load the needle to the specified weight.

4. Adjust the needle so that its tip just touches the surface of the
bitumen sample. Finely adjust the needle by raising the platform
slightly with the help of adjusting the screw. Check the contact of
the needle to the surface of bitumen by observing the image of the
needle reflected by the surface of the material.

5. Clamp the needle in this position.

6. Load the needle holder with a weight such that the total moving
weight is equal to 100 ± 0.25 grams.

Moving weight = weight of needle + weight of carrier +


superimposed weights

7. Note down the initial reading of the dial of the penetrometer. Or


bring the pointer to zero.

8. In a standard penetrometer, release the needle for exactly 5


seconds by pressing the knob. Measure the time with the help of a
stopwatch.

9. In an automatic penetrometer, release the needle for exactly 5


seconds by pressing the start button.

10. Rotate the knob on the dial and note down the final reading
from the dial as the penetration value is one-tenth of a millimeter.

11. Clean the needle with benzene after every test and allow it to
dry.

12. Take at least 3 penetration values on the surface of the sample.


(For a sample with penetration value > 225 mm, leave the needle in
the sample and use another needle to take another reading so that
the sample is not disturbed.)

Distance between two test points ≮ 10 mm

Distance between the test point and the side of the dish ≮ 10 mm

13. Take out the average of the three values and note it as the
penetration value of the sample.
14. If the penetration ratio is to be determined: Carry out the entire
test procedure at 4 °C. Tolerance of 0.1 °C can be allowed.

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