CVE 230 Mechanics of Materials

Spring 2013 Lab Report #3 PREPARED BY: Juan Villa

Fresh Concrete Tests

February 27, 2013

Fresh concrete is used in various ways in todays world. Fresh concrete can be seen in almost every civilized city in the world. We use fresh concrete for different functions such as constructing buildings, bridges, roads, etc. As a civil engineer, it is essential to know the technicalities of fresh concrete and all of its characteristics and processes. Concrete is an attached companion to a civil engineer and in this lab we will get a small taste as to what the actual process of making concrete is. In this lab, the students would be exposed to process involved when making fresh concrete, from scratch. All of the necessary components for creating concrete were provided to the students and specific instructions on how to make the concrete we also provided. A large amount of concrete was created in this lab in order to provide a good amount for different goals. These goals included performing a slump test, and specimen casting. The slump test would inform how much the concrete slumps. The specimen casting would be used for stress tests later on. Overall, the students were exposed to various methods that are involved when making concrete and were aiming to learn the generic process involved when creating it.

LAB REPORT #1
TE S TI N G O F F R E S H A N D HA R D E N E D C O N C R E TE

Objective: The main objective of this lab was to, in an overall sense, create concrete. But more specifically, the students objective was to create a fresh batch of concrete and use that concrete for different purposes. One purpose was to conduct a slump test, and the other purpose was to do a specimen casting. Both purposes would serve as key for future testing in upcoming labs. The students were provided with all of the components necessary for the creation of concrete. These included: coarse aggregate, fine aggregate, Portland cement, and water. Materials and Methods: The method for creating concrete was fairly simple. The concrete was to be created by mixing the specific amounts of course/fine aggregates, cement and water. These amounts were 59.6 lbs, 48lbs, 24.6lbs, 12lbs respectively. The mixture was placed in that specific order into the concrete mixer for a couple of minutes. Once the batch had reached a uniform consistency, it was placed into a pan for future testing. The temperature of the mixture was also taken and recorded. Once completely mixed, the mixture was placed into a slump cone for the slump test to be done. The slump cone was dampened and placed on a moist surface. The mold was filled with three layers of roughly one third the volume of the mold. Each layer was stroked with a rod 25 times thoroughly. The remaining concrete at the top of the mold was smoothed out flat. The mold was raised from the concrete slowly, leaving the remaining slump. The distance between the top of the slump and the cone was recorded. The specimen casting was done for three cylinders during this lab. Three different layers of concrete were placed on the cylinder. These layers were rodded 25 times with 3/8 rod. Once completed the cylinder was covered with plastic. The same process of adding layers, rodding (with a 5/8 rod) and covering were repeated for the beam. In addition to that, the beams were also vibrated for better quality. All these specimens were placed in a small bath tub for future testing.

Results and Discussion: In this lab, students learn about the main components regarding the composition of concrete and its procedure when making it. When the slump test was conducted on the sample amount of concrete, the measurement came out to be 3.25. The temperature of the concrete was also taken; this measurement came out to be 69.6 o.

Prepared by Juan Villa

Page 2

LAB REPORT #1
TE S TI N G O F F R E S H A N D HA R D E N E D C O N C R E TE

Material Coarse Aggregate Fine Aggregate Cement Water

Weight 59.6 lbs 48 lbs 24.6 lbs 12 lbs

The rationale of the slump test is, in an overall sense, gives the tester an idea of the consistency of the concrete that the tester created. Slump tests are used in various sites and constructions plans in order to determine the perfect concrete to use. The slump test would also provide the tester with a specific slump rating with regards to the concrete created. This slump rating would measure the water levels on the concrete, whether too much water or too little water was used when creating the concrete.

Conclusions: The objective of this lab was successfully executed. The students we able to create a fresh batch of concrete and use that concrete for different tests. The slump test was a success with a measurement of 3.25. The specimens taken into the cylinder were also prepared correctly and efficiently. One source of error during this lab could have happened from the exactness needed when making the concrete. The amounts of fine, coarse aggregates, water and cement all had to be as close to the need ratios as possible, and the accuracy of these rations could have been off by a small amount. Another source of error could have come from how well the concrete mixed in the mixture. It is impossible to say that the concrete got completely mixed to perfection, so there was a small room of inconsistency when mixing the concrete in the mixer. References: ASTM C 33 ASTM C 29 ASTM C 127 Aggregate. ASTM 128 ASTM C 566 Standard Specification for Concrete Aggregates. Standard Test Method for Unit Weight and Voids in Aggregate. Standard Test Method for Specific Gravity and Absorption of Coarse Standard Test Method for Specific Gravity and Absorption of Fine Aggregate. Standard Test Method for Total Moisture Content of Aggregates.

Prepared by Juan Villa

Page 3