Soundness Test of Cement by Le Chatelier's Method

Soundness test of cement by Le-Chatelier apparatus is very easy but very important test along with many other quality tests on cement. Before going to the exact details, procedure and calculations of soundness test of cement by Le-Chatelier apparatus, let’s first discuss about the overview of soundness. As an engineer what behavior do you expect from a structure that swells when gets hardened? Have ever you heard or witnessed water supply lines being blown out in winters due to icing of waters therein? So if you answer to above questions you would know how destructive the unsoundness is. The word soundness has a meaning of reliability and trustworthiness so in a rigid construction material like concrete; the soundness is an imperative property. Before performing the soundness test of cement by LeChatelier’s Apparatus the standard consistency of the cement paste must be determined by using standard method test. After finding the amount of water that is required for the preparation of the cement past of standard consistency, the test is commenced. First of all the mould of the Le-Chatelier’s apparatus and the glass plates are applied slightly with some oil so that the cement past could not get stuck with them. A sample of 200 grams of cement is taken in a bowl properly weighed with the help of physical balance. The weighed sample can be placed in a mixing tray along with a pit made within it for addition of water. After that 0.78 times the weight of water required for standard consistency is taken in a jar. The water is then added to it and the cement paste is uniformly mixed with the help of showels. After that the oiled Le-Chatelier’s mould is placed on an oiled glass sheet and the cement paste is added in it. After filling the mould the other small glass sheet is placed on top of it and some weight is placed so that the assembly may not get disturbed. The assembly is then placed in a water bath at room temperature i.e. 27 ± 20 C for a period of 24 hours after which it is removed and the distance between indicator needles is noted with the help of measuring scale up to 0.5 mm accuracy. Note this reading as D1. After that the assembly is then placed in water bath and is heated up to boiling point for 25 to 30 minutes and is then kept there for 3 hours after which it is allowed to cool up to room temperature. Again the reading of distance between indicator needles is noted as D2. ======================================== Read Complete Article here https://definecivil.com/soundness-test-of-cement/ * Visit our Blogs https://www.iamcivilengineer.com https://definecivil.com * Subscribe to our Channel https://www.youtube.com/c/saadiqbalengr * follow us on twitter https://www.twitter.com/iamcivilengg * follow us on facebook https://www.facebook.com/iamcivilengineerdotcom