Tests In Civil Engineering

Building Material
Cement Tests
1) Field Test:
a) Colour Test
 Uniform Grey Colour
b) Properties Test
 Smooth in Texture
 It should Shink in water
 Have No Lumps
c) Strength Test
 Prepare a block of cement of size 25*25*200 m3
 Immerse in water for 7 days
 Now remove the mould and subject it to point load of 340N by placing it over
supports 150mm apart
 Sample Should show no sign of Failure under the application of Load
2) Lab Test:
a) Fineness Test
It is used to check proper grinding which has direct impact on rate of hydration, rate of gain of
strength and evolution of heat
i. Sieve Test:
 Take 100gms of Cement and place it on IS Sieve No. 9 (90 Micron)
 Perform Sieving for 15 mins
 Weight of Residue should not exceed 10% of original weight for
OPC
ii. Air Permeability Test:
It Represented in Terms of specific surface area (cm2/gm)
Blaine’s Air Permeability Apparatus is Used
 Based on relationship between flow of Air through cement bed and
surface area of cement
 For OPC, SSA should not be less than 2250 cm2/gm
Percentage of Residue Specific Surface (m2/kg)
Type of Cement
by Weight Not less than
1. Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) 10 225
2. Rapid Hardening Cement (RHC) 5 325
3. Portland Pozzolana Cement (PPC) 5 300

3) Standard Consistency Test:

Standard Consistency should be known before we know about Soundness
 Standard Consistency – Permits penetration of vicat plunger of size 10mm  and 50mm
Height up to a depth of 33-35mm from top into the mould
 We find the water content at which the cement consistency is produced
 Take 500gm of Cement and add 23% of water by weight of cement in first trial
 Lower the plunger gently up to surface of mould and release quickly
 The moisture content at which this cement paste of standard consistency is produced is
termed as ‘P’
4) Setting Time Test:
This Test is carried out to know whether cement is deteriorated due to storage. These factors are
associated with setting of Cement either Initial Setting Time or Final Setting Time

a) Initial Setting Time:

Time which is measure from the instant water is added to cement up to the time cement starts
losing its plasticity.
 Take 500 gm Cement and Gauge it with 0.85P
 Lower the square needle gently and release it quickly
 Note the time required by the needle to penetrate 33-35mm
 This time required is called Initial Setting Time. For OPC the time required is 30
mins
b) Final Setting Time:
Time which is measure from the instant water is added to cement up to the time cement
completely loses its plasticity and attains sufficient firmness.
 Take 500 gm Cement and Gauge it with 0.85P
 Lower the annular collar with needle gently and release it quickly
 Note the time required by the annular collar to stop making an impression on the
mould but the needle does show
 Time required is called Final Setting Time. For OPC the time required is 10 hours
5) Soundness Test:
It is important that cement after setting does not show any appreciable change in volume as it
seriously affects the durability of the structure
Soundness of Cement is due to Lime, Magnesium, and Sulphur
If the Cement is unsound due to Lime, then the Le Chatlier Apparatus
a) Soundness due to Lime:
Guage 100gm Cement with 0.78P and fill the paste in mould
Cover Top and Bottom with Glass plates and immerse entire assembly in water having
temperature 27-32C for 24 Hours
Remove mould and note the displacement of split with help of indicator arms
Then again, we immerse entire assembly, increase temperature in 25-30 mins up to boiling
point, and maintain it for next three hours
* Note the displacement of split with the help of indicator arms (165mm length and 30mm )
The difference in reading in both the parts of test should not exceed 10mm of OPC
b) Soundness due to Lime and Magnesium:
Autoclave apparatus is sensitive to both Lime and Magnesia
 Prepare a mould of Cement of Size 25*25*250 mm
 Place in Autoclave in which Steam Pressure is increased up to 21kg/cm 2 and is
maintained for next three hours
 The mould is removed, Percentage of expansion of the mould is noted in Each
direction
 Which should not Exceed 0.8% for OPC
6) Strength Test of Cement
How to differ Test of Cement and Concrete?
For cement the mould size is 70.5mm and For Concrete the size is 150mm
a) Compressive Strength Test
This Test can be performed in Universal Testing Machine (UTM)
 With a ratio of Cement: Sand = 1:3
Three Specimen Cubes are prepared as Cement 185gm, Sand 555gm, and Water (P/4+3.5).
 Where, P = % of Water required for Standard Consistency Test
 This motor is filled in cubes of 70.5mm mould and immersed in water for 7 days
curing preriod
For OPC 33 Grade, Strength
 At 28 days = 33N/mm2
 At 7 days = 2/3 (Strength at 28 days)
 At 3 days = 50% (Strength at 28 days)
b) Tensile Strength Test
This Test can be performed in Briquettes Test Apparatus
 In which, Quicker indication of Defects in Cement is obtained than any other tests
 Cement: Sand is taken as 1:3 by weight
 Water used is calculated as P/5+2.5 (P=% of water required for standard consistency
at 27C)
 OPC should have a tensile strength of not less than
 2N/mm2 after 3 days
 2.5 N/mm2 after 7 days
Tensile Strength = Failing Load
(25.4)2
c) Chemical Composition Test
The ratio of alumina to iron oxide should not be less than 0.66
 The ratio of Lime to Silica, Alumina and Silica should not exceed than 1.02 and
should not be less than 0.66. The ratio is termed as Lime Saturation Factor.
d) Specific Gravity Test
This Test can be performed in Le Chatlier Flask otherwise known as Spc. Grv. bottle
 The flask is filled with either Kerosene free of Water, or Naphtha to a point on the
stem between 0 to 1 ml mark on the flask.
 64gm of Cement is added to it and the rise in Volume is Observed
 Specific Gravity of (Homogeneous Cement Particles) Cement is 3.15
 Bulk Density of Cement is 1440 Kg/m3
Total Weight of Magnesia should not be Greater than 5%
Total Loss on Ignition When Heated to 1000 C should not be greater than 4%
Total Sulphur Content should not be greater than 2.75%
Weight of Insoluble Residue should not be greater than 1.5%

7) Brick Testing
For Brick Testing, 50 Bricks is taken at random for a lot of maximum 50,000 bricks
a) The bricks should be at least table moulded, well burnt and free from Cracks
b) Dimension Tests
 20 pieces out of the selected pieces are taken and laid flat and checked for tolerance
limit
 Tolerance Limit of L= ± 80mm, W= ± 40mm, and H= ± 40mm
 The Brick Should be uniform shape and size
 Conventional Size of Bricks = 224mm*114mm*76mm
 Standard Size of Bricks = 190mm*90mm*90mm
  With Mortar = 200mm*100mm*100mm
 Weight of 1m3 Bricks = 1800 Kg
 Weight of 1 Brick = 3.5 – 3.6 Kg
c) Sound Test
 The Brick when struck together should sound produce a metallic ringing sound
d) Structure Test
 The Bricks should be free from any voids. It should have a uniform Homogenous
Structure across all the sections
e) Absorption Test
 The Bricks when Immersed in Water for 24 Hours, should not absorb more than
 20% in case of 1st Class Bricks
 22% in case of 2nd Class Bricks
 25% in case of 3rd Class Bricks
f) Compressive Strength Test
 The Bricks should have minimum Compressive Strength of
 10 KN/mm2 in case of 1st Class Bricks
 7.5 KN/mm2 in case of 2nd Class Bricks
 3.5 KN/mm2 in case of 3rd Class Bricks
g) Toughness Test
 When dropped from 1m unto a levelled Ground the Brick Should not break into
pieces
h) Hardness/ Abrasion
 The Brick should not show any impression of when scratched on by Finger Nails
i) Efflorescence Test
 The Brick when immersed in Water for 24 hours should not show any signs of
Efflorescence and staining
The