1 - lab guidelines fresh concr-15 (1).pdf

CHE2MES – Materials in Engineering and Science Semester 2, 2015

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DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL ENGINEERING AND PHYSICAL SCIENCES

GUIDELINES FOR

LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS

(also consult the mentioned AS)

CONTRETE TESTS Concrete preparation and tests on fresh concrete

DATE/TIME OF TESTING: WEDNESDAY, 9

th SEPTEMBER 2015, 1 pm (3 hours) GROUP 1

THURSDAY, 10th

SEPTEMBER 2015, 9 am (3 hours) GROUP 2

LOCATION: CONCRETE AND SOLIDS LABORATORY, ROOM 127, PHYSICAL

SCIENCES 2, REPORTS DUE: FRIDAY 18TH SEPTEMBER 2015, 6 pm (ASSIGNMENT BOX, LEVEL 1, BETH GLEESON BUILDING or on LMS)

Worth 6% (out of 25% allocated for laboratory reports)

ASSESSMENT OF CONTRIBUTION OF GROUP MEMBERS AND SELF TO THE TEAM-WORK SHOULD BE SUBMITTED BY MONDAY, 21ST SEPTEMBER 2015, 6:00 PM (to the lecturer, via email)


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WORKING GROUPS FOR THE LABORATORY SESSIONS

Please note that:

The working groups for both laboratory test days and report writing are specified below.

Group 1 – Wednesday 9 September 2015, 1 pm (3 Hrs)

Laboratory conducted by Dr Vidal Paton-Cole and Mr Yi Lu

Crt no Student’s given name Student’s surname Signature

Gr1a

1 Michael Ouster

2 Mustapha Salem

3 Matthew O'Neill

4 Ali Hamed Ali Abdulaah Al Alawi

Gr1b

1 Mark Fitzsimmons

2 Anthony Lucente

4 Cristina John

Gr1c

1 Yifeng Wang

2 Tian Chen

3 Zhi Shang

Gr1d

1 Louie Pittas

2 James Ternes

3 Anam Khan

4 Jarryd Norman

Group 2 – Thursday, 10 September 2015, 9 am (3 Hrs)

Laboratory conducted by Dr Vidal Paton-Cole and Mr Yi Lu

Crt no Student’s given name Student’s surname Signature

Gr2a

1 Hanya Al-Sadoon

2 Zainab H S T E Busalehah

3 Andrew Molino

4 Long Thanh Nguyen

Gr2b

1 Tram Anh Nguyen

2 Edson Beiza

3 Andrew Scoberg

4 Ayden Silva

Gr2c

1 Wei Hsen Poh

2 Cagla Buzluk

3 Nick Margerison

4 Saif Alotuibi

Gr2d

1 Shaman Costa

2 Brodie Papas

3 Ashley Vanderpol

4 Timothy Walsh


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OH&S Note

Please note that attendance to the laboratory session is permitted only if you

wear protective footwear (steel capped boots) and long pants.

An OH&S induction will be delivered at the beginning the laboratory session.

All students should follow the instructions of the academic and technical staff

running the session.

Any attempt to disobey these instructions will result in you being expelled from

the laboratory session.

Not attending the laboratory session means you cannot contribute to the report

writing and you will not get a mark for the laboratory session.

SNEAKERS ARE NOT ALLOWED IN THE LAB.

ANYONE WEARING SNEAKERS WILL BE

DISMISSED FROM THE LAB SESSION


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PREPARATION AND TESTING OF FRESH CONCRETE

Please note that this document contains only brief guidelines on the work that needs to be

carried out during the laboratory session. Detailed test procedure is presented in the

Australian Standards AS 1012 series concerned with concrete testing (these standards are on

LMS for easy access). It is each student’s responsibility to read the marked sections in these

standards prior to the laboratory session to enable both understanding of the work carried out

as well as performing the specified tests according to the standard procedure.

1. INTRODUCTION/AIM

During the concrete production a series of tests are carried out in order to ensure that the fresh

concrete satisfies the design requirements. The slump test, a simple and commonly used test,

is used to check on the workability of the plastic concrete. The air-content test checks on the

volume of air present in the compacted fresh concrete, while using the mass per unit volume

test the density of the plastic concrete is assessed.

During the laboratory session each group will be in charge with a different aspect of the

production of concrete, manufacture of specimens for strength of hard concrete tests and fresh

concrete tests in order to:

batch and mix concrete to specification;

produce sufficient concrete to enable tests on fresh concrete and production of concrete

specimens to be tested at a later stage;

identify the effect of various admixtures on the behaviour of fresh concrete;

produce (from each batch) the specified number of concrete specimens for compression,

indirect tensile and flexural strength tests;

become familiar with the specifications of Australian Standards associated with the

production of concrete batches in the laboratory and the methodology of slump, air

entrained and mass per unit volume tests.

2. WORK TO BE CARRIED OUT (note that all quantities, except for water and

superplasticisers, were computed already in Tuesay’s lecture)

You are required to batch concrete using a mix proportion design 1:3:4 (C:FA:CA) and a

300kg/m3 cement content.

Cement (Type to be checked in the lab) 300 kg/m3

Sand (pre-blended/coarse) kg/m3

Crushed basalt (20/10/7 mm blend) kg/m3

[STAGE A] First Group (Gr1a or Gr2a):

Batch and mix ? Litres of concrete following the flowchart provided in AS 1012.2-

1994 Preparation of concrete mixes in the laboratory;

Add sufficient water to achieve a 50 mm slump (make sure that you add the water in

small increments so the specified slump is achieved and also record the amount of water

added to be able to calculate the water/cement ratio for your mix);


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The group will carry out 1 (one) slump test (AS 1012.3.1-1998) to check on the

workability of fresh concrete; if the 50 mm slump is not achieved, add more water and

ensure that the mix is homogeneous;

This group will also be in charge with the cleaning of the equipment after the

laboratory class is completed.

[STAGE B] Second Group (Gr1b or Gr2b):

First of all ensure that the specified workability was achieved (50 mm slump) so carry

out 1-2 slump tests as required (AS 1012.3.1-1998);

Also perform these tests: air-content (AS 1012.4.2-1999) and mass/unit volume (AS

1012.5-1999);

Make two 100x200mm cylinders (AS 1012.8.1-2000), one 150x300mm cylinder

(AS 1012.8.1-2000) and one 100x100x350mm beam (AS 1012.8.2-2000); compaction

should be done by hand ramming.

[STAGE C] Third Group (Gr1c or Gr2c):

Estimate the volume of the concrete left in the mixer (vol ? Litres). Add 200 mL/m3

air-entraining agent (determine how much is needed).

Perform the following tests: slump tests (AS 1012.3.1-1998), air-content

(AS 1012.4.2-1999) and mass/unit volume (AS 1012.5-1999);


(AS 1012.8.1-2000) and one 100x100x350mm beam (AS 1012.8.2-2000); compaction


[STAGE D] Fourth Group (Gr1d or Gr2d):

Estimate the volume of the concrete left in the mixer (vol ? Litres). Add 2 L/m3

superplasticiser agent (determine how much is needed).

Perform the following tests: slump tests (AS 1012.3.1-1998), air-content

(AS 1012.4.2-1999) and mass/unit volume (AS 1012.5-1999);


(AS 1012.8.1-2000), two 100x100x350mm beams; if there is left over concrete,

depending on the quantity, make another large cylinder or a large beam; compaction


NOTE:

During the air content test the concrete is contaminated with water and has to be

discarded.

Make sure that you record the numbers of each mould and specify from which batch it

was prepared. This enables correct identification and marking of specimens when the

moulds are stripped (24 hours later) as well as recording the correct batch against the hard

concrete specimens. ALL STUDENTS attending the same laboratory session ARE

RESPONSIBLE WITH THE STRIPPING OF THE MOULDS 24 h after the


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preparation lab (Group 1 – Thursday, 10 Septenber, 4 pm and Group 2 – Friday, 11

September, 12 pm). Note that this is independent of what task the students were

responsible for during the preparation session.

Each group is responsible to identify and record the number of the moulds on the

specimens and place them in the curing bath. The moulds have to be cleaned after

specimens’ removal.

All specimens will be cured in a curing bath at a constant temperature (record the

temperature) until testing.

3. RESULTS

Following are several forms for the data/results collection. Become familiar with the

information that should be recorded in each of them.

Concrete quantity

Specimen/test type No of specimens Volume per

specimen/test (L) Total volume (L)

Small cylinders 6 2 12

Large cylinders 3 6 18

Small beams 4 5 20

Air content test 3 6 18

Total volume of concrete to be prepared (L) 68

0.068

Proportions C:FA:CA 1:3:4

Cement content kg/m3 300

Fine Aggregates kg /m3 900

Coarse Aggregate kg/m3 1200

Components

quantity

Cement

(kg) Fine Aggregates

(kg)

Coarse Aggregate

(kg)

Water

(kg) Water/Cement

20.4 61.2 81.6

Rounding

Coarse Aggregates quantity

Sieve size (mm) Percent passing

(%)

Percent retained

(%)

Mass retained

(kg) Rounding

19 100

9.5 31 69 56.3

6.7 7 24 19.6

4.75 0 7 5.7


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Concrete used

Specimens prepared/test

performed

No of specimens Actual volume per


100x200 Cylinder

150x300 Cylinder

100x100x350 Beam

Air-content test

Total volume of concrete used (L)

Volume of concrete left (L)

Air-entraining agent (mL)

Concrete used

Specimens prepared/test

performed

No of specimens Actual volume per


100x200 Cylinder

150x300 Cylinder

100x100x350 Beam

Air-content test

Total volume of concrete used (L)

Volume of concrete left (L)

Super-plasticiser agent (mL)

Tests on fresh concrete

Mix type Batch A Batch B Batch C

Admixture(s) added Control (no admix) Air-entraining Air-entraining &

superplasticiser

Slump test

Slump (mm)

Water

quantity (L)

Water

quantity (L)

Water

quantity (L)

Note that water is added only for the preparation of Batch A.


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Mass/unit volume test


Volume of

mould (L)

Mass mould &

concrete (kg)

Mass mould &

concrete (kg)

Mass mould &

concrete (kg)

Mass of

mould (kg)

Mass of concrete (kg)

Mass/unit volume (kg/m3)

Air content test


Air content (%)

Each working sub-group (see the working groups list) is in charge with specific tasks during

which a series of data will be collected. After the laboratory session, each sub-group

should communicate the information collected to the other 3 sub-groups attending the

same lab session. Make sure that you state the test from which the raw data was collected.

4. REPORT WRITING

Each group will report on ALL TESTS performed during the laboratory session. This means

that if you DO NOT ATTEND THE LABORATORY SESSION, YOU CANNOT

CONTRIBUTE TO THE REPORT WRITING.

TASK 1 (half an A4 page max)

Describe the materials used by aspect (colour, texture and shape as applicable for each) and

report their quantities. State the origin/source of materials and the moisture content of the

aggregates. Also report the ambient temperature. Present the data in tabulated form (where

applicable), and round the reported figures as specified in the AS 1012.2-1994.

TASK 2 (one A4 page max excluding any tables or diagrams as the case may be)

Report the results organised in tables (see at Point 3 in this document suggested format for

data presentation). Show a specimen of computation for the results included in the table.

Identify the individual batches, i.e., Batch A (no admixtures) or Batch B (with air-entraining)

or Batch C (with air-entraining and super-plasticiser). Make sure that you refer to the

individual standard method to ensure that the reported data has the recommended rounding.


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TASK 3 (one A4 page max excluding photos)

Discuss the results: describe the expected behaviour; compare the results from the same test

and discuss the effect of admixtures on the results; comment not only on the slump value but

also on the failure mode vs admixture content; identify any unexpected results. Describe any

physical changes that the mix has shown (aspect of the mix, consistency, temperature).

Reason to your best knowledge the behaviour observed. If may be beneficial to consult the

LTU’s library collection of journals and books on concrete and concrete technology to find

answers for the unexpected behaviour. Where information from different documents is

used to explain/emphasise/enhance the discussion, you have to make reference (in the

report text) to the book/report/document/article/paper utilized. For this purpose use the

Harvard system (explained in the assignment manual, i.e., author/company, year). Also

the complete information on the documents used has to be placed at the end of the

report in a reference list (in alphabetical order). Failure to do so will result in a reduction

of the mark. Please refer, further in this document, to the marking criteria.

Photos showing various stages of the laboratory session (the most relevant ones) can be used

in the report to enhance the statement that you make. Additional photos can be included in

the Appendix at the end of the report. The information placed in the appendix(ces) should

follow a logical flow and the order in which the information is referred to in the report. The

same rule applies if you choose to have more than one appendix. Name them and organise

them in the order that the information is mentioned in the report text. Please note that when

comparing/contrasting/describing results or behaviour you have to make clear reference to

the specific table(s), photo(s) or appendix(ces) where the data is found.

Also, identify any sources of operational error that might have affected the results.

TASK 4 (half an A4 page max)

Include in the report conclusions warranted by the observations and the results. Make sure

that you list all conclusions whether they are trivial or not. Do not forget to comment on the

application of the tests performed to the engineering practice.

5. FURTHER REMARKS REGARDING THE REPORT

A Statement of Authorship, duly completed and signed, must be submitted with the report.

Show all working and discussion neatly, clearly and succinctly (where applicable in dot

form). Stick to the specified length for each task. If results are presented in tabulated form,

where applicable show a specimen of computation. Marks will be deducted for

untidy/unclear work and work exciding the specified length.

For late submission penalties of 5% of the total possible marks for the report for each day or

partial day delay in submission up to a maximum of five (5) working days after the due date.

Reports will not be accepted after the earlier of the following occurrences:

• the fifth (5th) working day after the due date; or

• feedback on the assessment task has been returned to any student by the Lecturer.

On-time assignments shall be submitted in the marked assignment box, Level 1, BETH

GLEESON BUILDING or on LMS before the specified time. Late assignments shall be

handed directly to the Lecturer (Vidal Paton-Cole).


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The laboratory session and the report writing are group work. Hence, on report completion,

each member of the group shall assess the contribution of group members and self to the

development of the test(s) and report writing. Each member of the group should be given a

multiplier (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1.0) in accordance with their contribution to the lab work/report

writing. Same rule applies to the assessment of self-contribution to the team work. Please

note that the assessment should be emailed to the Lecturer ([email protected]),

within 3 days from reports submission (e.g., by Monday, 21 April, 8.00 pm). If any member

of the group fails to do so, the work will not be marked.

mailto:[email protected]


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6. MARKING CRITERIA


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APPENDIX information used for the computation of quantities


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Specification for particle size distribution for fine aggregates


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Recommended gradations for coarse aggregates with maximum grain size

20 mm

1 - lab guidelines fresh concr-15 (1).pdf

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