Technological University of the Philippines

Ayala Boulevard, Ermita, Manila

College of Engineering
Department of Civil Engineering



CE 49L 4A
Construction Materials and Testing, Lab.






Experiment No. 3

SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF COARSE AGGREGATES







Fesalbon, Mayson R.
10-205-041


Date of Submission: August 21, 2013






Engr. Reynaldo O. Baarde
Instructor

EXPERIMENT NO.2
SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF COARSE AGGREGATES


I. OBJECTIVE

To determine the specific gravity of aggregates

II. MAIN PRINCIPLE

Specific gravity is the ratio of the mass (weight in air) of a unit volume of a material to the mass of
the same volume of water. In this test, the specific gravity of coarse aggregate is evaluated using
the principle of buoyancy. Specific gravity is a quick indicator of the sustainability of an aggregate.
Low specific gravity frequently indicates porous, weak and absorptive material, while high specific
gravity often indicates high quality. The data contained from this test can be used in designing
and controlling the weight of concrete.

At the end of the test, the percentage of water absorption of the coarse aggregates will be
evaluated. The term absorption is defined as the capacity of the coarse aggregate to absorb
water into its permeable pores. Absorption values are used to adjust the proportioning of
materials in a concrete mix.

III. APPARATUS NEEDED

1. Specific gravity test apparatus for coarse aggregate
2. Sieve (10mm opening)
3. Sample pan
4. Oven

IV. PREPARATION

1. Sieve the sample using a 10-mm sieve
2. Take 5kg of aggregate from the sample retained in the 10-mm sieve.
3. Soak the aggregate in water for a period of 24 4 hours.
4. Remove the aggregate from water and roll it in a large absorbent cloth until visible films of
water are removed. This is the saturated surface-dry (SSD) condition.

V. TEST PROCEDURE

1. Take the weight in air of the saturated surface-dry aggregate (W
a
).
2. Assemble the specific gravity test apparatus. Fill the container with water to its capacity.
3. Determine the weight of the wire basket while submerged (W
b
).
4. Take the weight of the aggregate in water (W
w
). Shake the aggregate while it is being placed
into the wire basket. Shake the wire basket before weighing.


VI. CALCULATIONS

Where: SG = specific gravity of aggregate at SSD condition
W
a
= weight of SSD aggregate in air (kg)
W
w
= weight of aggregate in water (kg)
W
b
= weight of wire basket in water (kg)


VII. DETERMINATION OF WATER ABSORPTION OF COARSE AGGREGATE

Remove the coarse aggregate from the wire basket and oven dry it at 100 5
o
C for 24 hours. The
percentage absorption is computed as follows.

()

Where: W
d
= oven-dried weight of aggregate


VIII. DATA AND RESULTS














IX. SAMPLE COMPUTATIONS

()

Weight of SSD aggregate in air, Wa (kg) 5.0278
Weight of aggregate in water, Ww (kg) 3.8720
Weight of Wire Basket in water, Wb (kg) 0.7815
Weight of oven-dried aggregate, Wd (kg) 4.9078
Specific Gravity of aggregate at SSD condition, SG 2.60
Percentage of Absorption of Coarse Aggregate (%) 2.45
X. DISCUSSION AND OBSERVATION

A. Discussion

Another property of an aggregate is specific gravity which is defined as a ration of unit weight
of an aggregate to the unit weight of another substance which is commonly water. In this
experiment, the specific gravity of coarse aggregates will be determined using the principle of
buoyancy.

Buoyancy. Archimedes principle of buoyancy states that a body immersed in a fluid is acted
upon by an upward force equal to the weight of the displaced fluid. This principle is used in
the determination of the specific gravity of the aggregate by using the derived formula shown
earlier. Consider an aggregate submerged in water. Water will exert a buoyant force to the
aggregate which will constitute an apparent loss of weight of the aggregate.

Saturated Surface-Dry (SSD). This condition of the aggregate is attained where an aggregate
is dry in its surface but its porous spaces are filled with water to ensure that the no air is
trapped at each particle of the aggregate and therefore only the weight of the dry aggregate
and water in the aggregate is considered.

Water absorption (water content). Water absorption or simply the water content determines
how much of the weight of the dry aggregates is composed of water during the test or the
weight of water that sips into the tiny pores of the aggregates.


B. Observations

During the experiment, the following was observed:

1. Aggregates use for the test is coarse aggregates with varying sizes and colors of
about 10-20mm and black to gray respectively.
2. Water color turns to light brown when the aggregate was soaked.
3. There is a little increase of the weight of the dry weight of aggregates and weight of
the aggregates at SSD condition.
4. There is an apparent loss of weight of the aggregates when weighed in water.


XI. CONCLUSION

The specific gravity of a coarse aggregate can be determined using the principle of buoyancy. In
this laboratory test, it can be expressed in a formula shown below.

Where: SG = specific gravity of aggregate at SSD condition
W
a
= weight of SSD aggregate in air (kg)
W
w
= weight of aggregate in water (kg)
W
b
= weight of wire basket in water (kg)
The percent absorption or water content of an aggregate is the ratio of the weight for water for
every weight of dry aggregates. It can be expressed in a formula shown below

()

Where: W
a
= weight of SSD aggregate in air (kg)
W
d
= oven-dried weight of aggregate