Chapter 2 Aggregates Preview Aggregate is relatively inexpensive and does not enter into complex chemical reactions with

water; it has been customary, therefore, to treat it as inert filler in concrete. However, due to increasing awareness of the role played by aggregates in determining many important properties of concrete, the traditional view of the aggregates as inert filler is being seriously questioned. Aggregate characteristics that are significant to concrete technology include porosity, grading or size distribution, moisture absorption, shape and surface texture, crushing strength, elastic modulus and type of deleterious substances present. These characteristics are derived from mineralogical composition of the parent rock formation, classification and description of rocks and minerals and industrial processing factors that influence aggregate characteristics are briefly described. Natural mineral aggregates, which comprise over 90% of the total aggregates used for making concrete, are described in more detail. Due to their great potential use, the aggregates from industrial by-products such as blast-furnace slag, fly ash, municipal waste and recycled concrete are also described. Finally, the principal aggregate characteristics that are important to concrete technology will be covered in detail. Significance Cements consist of chemical compounds that enter into chemical reactions with water to produce complex hydration products with adhesive property. Unlike cement, although the aggregate in concrete occupies 60 to 80% of the volume, it is frequently looked upon as an inert filler and therefore not worthy of much attention in regard to its possible influence on the properties of concrete. The considerable influence that the aggregate can exercise on strength, dimensional stability and durability of concrete can be discussed in this chapter. Classification and Nomenclature Classifications of aggregates according to particle size, bulk density or source have given rise to a special nomenclature which should be clearly understood. For instance, the term coarse aggregate is used to describe particles larger than 4.75mm (retained in N0.4 sieve) and the term fine aggregate is used for particles smaller than 4.75mm; typically, fine aggregates contain particles in the size range 75 m(No.200 sieve) to 4.75 mm and coarse aggregates from 4.75 to about 50mm, except for mass concrete, which may contain up to 150mm coarse aggregate. Most natural mineral aggregates such as sand and gravel have bulk density of up to 95 to 105pcf(1520 to 1680 kg/m3) and produce normal-weight concrete with approximately 150 lb/ft3(2,400kg/m3) unit weight. For special needs, aggregates with lighter or heavier density can be used to make correspondingly lightweight and heavyweight concretes. Generally, concrete with bulk densities less than 70 lb/ft3(1120 kg/m3) are called lightweight and those weighing more than 130lbs/ft3(2,080 kg/m3) are called heavyweight. For most part, concrete aggregates are comprised of sand, gravel and crushed rock derived from natural sources and is therefore referred to as natural mineral aggregates. On the other hand, thermally processed materials such as expanded clay and shale, which are used for making lightweight concretes, are called synthetic aggregates. Aggregates made from industrial byproducts, for instance, blast furnace slag and fly ash, also belong to this category. Municipal wastes and recycled concrete from demolished buildings and pavements have also been investigated for use as aggregates. Classification of Aggregates According to the Geologic Origin 1. Natural Mineral Aggregates

Natural mineral aggregates form the most important class of aggregates for making Portland cement concrete. These aggregates are generally obtained from natural deposits of sand and gravel or from quarries by cutting rocks. Cheapest among them are the natural sand and gravel which have been reduced to their present size by natural agents such as water, wind and snow, etc. The river deposits are the most common and have good quality. The second most commonly used source of aggregates is the quarried rock which is reduced to size by crushing. Crushed aggregates are made by breaking rocks into requisite graded particles by blasting, crushing and screening, etc. From the petrological standpoint, the natural aggregates whether crushed or naturally reduced in size, can be divided into several groups of rocks having common characteristics. Natural rocks can be classified according to their geological mode of formation, i.e. igneous, sedimentary or metamorphic in origin and each group may be further divided into categories having certain petrological characteristics in common. Approximately half of the total coarse aggregate consumed by the concrete industry consist of gravels; most of the remainder is crushed rock. Carbonate rocks comprise about two-thirds of the crushed aggregate; sandstone, granite, diorite, gabbro and basalt make up the rest. Natural silica sand is predominantly used as fine aggregate, even with most lightweight concretes. Natural mineral aggregates are derived from rocks of several types; most rocks are themselves composed of several minerals. A mineral is defined as a naturally occurring inorganic substance of more or less definite chemical composition and usually of a specific crystalline structure. An elementary review of aspects of rock formation and the classification of rocks and minerals is essential for understanding not only why some materials are more abundantly used as aggregates than others, but also the microstructure-property relations in aggregate. 2. Artificial Aggregates

a. Blast Furnace Slag Aggregates

The blast furnace slag is the by-product obtained simultaneously with pig iron in the blast furnace, which is cooled slowly in air. Carefully selected slag produces concrete having properties comparable to that produced by using gravel aggregate. However, the corrosion of steel is more due to the sulfur content of slag, but the concrete made with blast-furnace slag aggregate has good fire resisting qualities. The other examples of artificial slag are the expanded shale, expanded slag, cinder, etc. b. Aggregate from Fly Ash Fly ash consists essentially of small spherical particles of aluminosilicate glass which is produced on combustion of pulverized coal in thermal power plants. Since large quantities of the ash remain unutilized in many industrialized parts of the world, attempts have been made to use the ash for making lightweight aggregates. In a typical manufacturing process, fly ash is palletized and then sintered in a rotary kiln, shaft kiln, or a traveling grate at temperatures in the range 1,000 to 1,2000C. Variations in fineness and carbon content of the fly ash are a major problem in controlling the quality of sintered fly-ash aggregate. Aggregate from fly ash is being commercially produced in the United Kingdom. Aggregates from Recycled Concrete and Municipal Wastes Rubble from demolished concrete buildings yields fragments in which the aggregate is contaminated with hydrated cement paste, gypsum and minor quantities of other substances. The size fraction that corresponds to fine aggregate contains mostly hydrated cement paste and gypsum, and it is unsuitable for making fresh concrete mixtures. However, the size fraction that corresponds to coarse aggregate, although coated with cement paste, has been used successfully in several laboratory and field studies. A review of several studies indicate that compared with concrete containing a natural aggregate, the recycled-aggregate concrete would have at least twothirds of the compressive strength and the modulus of elasticity and satisfactory workability and durability.

Some studies used broken bricks of good quality provide a satisfactory aggregate for the mass concrete and are not suitable for reinforced concrete work if the crushing strength of brick is less than 30 to 35 MPa. The bricks should be free from lime mortar and lime sulphate plaster. The brick aggregate is not suitable for waterproof construction. It has a poor resistance to wear and hence, is not used in concrete for the road work. A major obstacle in the way of using rubble as aggregate for concrete is the cost of crushing, grading, dust control and separation of undesirable constituents. Recycled concrete or waste concrete that has been crushed can be economically feasible source of aggregate where good aggregates are scarce and when the cost of waste disposal is included in the economic analysis. From the largest concrete pavement recycling job ever undertaken in Michigan Department of Transportation that recycling rubble from crushing an existing pavement was cheaper than using all new materials. Investigations have also been made to evaluate municipal wastes and incinerator residues as possible sources for concrete aggregates. Glass, paper, metals and organic materials are major constituents of municipal wastes. The presence of crushed glass in aggregates tends to produce unworkable concrete mixtures and due to high alkali content, affects the long-term durability and strength. Metals such as aluminum react with alkali solutions and causes excessive expansion. Paper and organic wastes, with or without incineration, cause setting and hardening problems in portland cement concrete. In general, therefore, municipal wastes are not suitable for making aggregates for use in structural concrete. Classification of Aggregates based on their Unit Weight: 1. Normal Weight Concrete The commonly used aggregates, i.e. sand and gravels; crushed rocks such as granite, basalt, quartz, sandstone and limestone; and brick ballast, etc which have specific gravities between 2.5 and 2.7 produce concrete with unit weight ranging from 23 to 26 KN?m 3 and crushing strength at 28 days between 15 to 40 MPa are termed normal-weight concrete. 2. Lightweight Aggregates Aggregates that weigh less than 70 lb/ft3(1,120 kg/m3 12 KN/m3) are generally considered lightweight and find application in the production of various types of lightweight concretes. The lightweight is due to the cellular or highly porous microstructure. Lightweight aggregates are used to manufacture the structural concrete and masonry blocks for reduction of the self-weight of the structure. These aggregates could be either natural, such as diatomite, pumice, volcanic cinder, etc. or manufactured such as bloated clay, sintered fly ash or foamed blast furnace slag. In addition to reduction of weight, the concrete produced by using light weight aggregates provides better thermal insulation and improved fire resistance. Natural lightweight aggregates are also made by processing igneous volcanic rocks such as pumice, scoria or tuff. Synthetic lightweight aggregates can be manufactured by thermal treatment from a variety of materials, for instance, clays, shale, slate, diatomite, perlite, vermiculite, blastfurnace slag and fly ash. 3. Heavyweight aggregates Compared to normal-weight aggregate concrete, which typically has a unit weight of 150lb/ft3(2,400 kg/m3), heavy weight concretes weigh from 180 to 380 lb/ft3(28 to 29 KN/m3) and find application for nuclear radiation shields. Heavyweight aggregates whose unit weight ranging from (30, 36 and 57 KN/m3). Such materials under these specifications include magnetite, barite and scrap iron respectively. The compressive strength of these concretes is one of the order of 20 to 21 MPa. The cement-aggregate ratio varies from 1:5 to 1:9 with a water-cement ratio from 0.50 to 0.65. They produce dense and crack-free concrete. The main drawback with these aggregates is

that they are not suitably graded and hence it is difficult to have adequate workability without segregation. A synthetic product called ferrophosphorus can also be used as heavyweight aggregate. ASTM C 632 and C 637, which cover Standard Specifications and Descriptive Nomenclature, respectively, of aggregates for radiation-shielding concrete warn that ferrophosphorus aggregate when used in portland cement concrete will generate flammable and possibly toxic gases which can develop high pressures if confined. Hydrous iron ores and boron minerals and frits are at times included in the aggregates for making heavyweight concretes because boron and hydrogen are very effective neutron attenuation (capture). Steel punching, sheared iron bars, and iron shots have also been investigated as heavyweight aggregates, but generally the tendency of aggregate to segregate in concrete increases with the density of the aggregate. Classification of Aggregates According to their Size The size of aggregates used in concrete range from few centimeters or more, down to a few microns. The maximum size of aggregate may vary, but in each case, it is to be so graded that the particles of different size fractions are incorporated in the mix in appropriate proportions. The particle size distribution is called the grading of the aggregates. According to size, the aggregate is classified as; fine, coarse and all-in aggregate. 1. Fine aggregate is the most of which passes through a 4.75 mm IS sieve and contains only so much coarser material as is permitted by the specification. Sand is generally considered to have a lower size limit of about 0.07 mm. Materials between 0.06mm and 0.002 mm is classified as silt, and still smaller particles are called clay. Fine aggregate may be one of the following types: a. b. c. natural sand, i.e. the fine aggregate resulting from natural disintegration of rock and or that which has been deposited by stream and glacial agencies, Crushed stone sand, i.e. the fine aggregate produced by crushing hard stone, Crushed gravel sand, i.e. the fine aggregate produced by crushing natural gravel.

According to size, the fine aggregate may be described as coarse, medium and fine sands. 2. Coarse aggregate The aggregate most of which are retained on the 4.75mm IS sieve and contain only so much of fine material as is permitted by the specifications are termed coarse aggregates. The coarse aggregate may be one of the following types: a) Crushed gravel or stone obtained by the crushing of gravel or hard stone b) Uncrushed gravel or stone resulting from the natural disintegration of rock c) Partially crushed gravel or stone obtained as a product of the blending of the two above types. The graded coarse aggregate is described by its nominal size, i.e.40mm, 20mm, 16mm and 12.5mm, etc. Since the aggregates are formed due to natural disintegration of rocks or by the artificial crushing of rock or gravel, they derive many of their properties from the parent rocks. These properties are chemical and mineral composition, petrographic description, specific gravity, hardness, strength, physical and chemical stability, pore structure and color. Some properties of the aggregate not possessed by the parent rocks are particle shape and size, surface texture, absorption, etc. All these properties have considerable effect on the quality concrete in fresh and hardened states. 3. All-in aggregate Sometimes, combined aggregates are available in nature comprising different fractions of fine and coarse aggregates which are known as all-in aggregate. In such cases adjustments often become necessary to supplement the grading by addition of respective size fraction which may be

deficient in the aggregate. Like coarse aggregate, the all-in aggregate is also described by its nominal size. The all-in aggregates are not generally used for making quality concrete. Single Size Aggregate Aggregates comprising particles falling within a narrow limit of size fractions are called single-size-aggregates. For example, a 20mm single-size-aggregate means an aggregate most of which passes through a 20mm IS sieve and the major portion of which is retained in a 10mm IS sieve.

Classification of Aggregates According to Shape The particle shapes of aggregates influence the properties of fresh concrete more than those hardened concrete. Depending upon the particle shape, the aggregate may be classified as rounded, irregular or partly rounded, angular or flaky. a) Rounded Aggregate The aggregate with rounded particles (river or seashore gravel) has minimum voids ranging from 32 to 33%. It gives minimum ratio of surface area to the volume, thus requiring minimum cement paste to make good concrete. The only disadvantage is that the interlocking between its particles isles and hence the development of the bond is poor making it unsuitable for high strength concrete and pavements. b) Irregular Aggregate The aggregate having partly rounded particles (pit sand and gravel) have higher percentage of voids ranging from 35 to 38. It requires more cement paste for a given workability. The interlocking between particles, though better than that obtained with rounded aggregate, is adequate for high strength concrete. c) Angular aggregate The aggregate with sharp, angular and rough particles (crushed rock) has a minimum percentage of voids ranging from 38 to 40. The interlocking between the particles is good, thereby providing a good bond. The aggregate requires more cement paste to make workable concrete of high strength than the required by rounded particles. The angular aggregate is suitable for high strength concrete and pavements subjected to tension. d) Flaky and Elongated Aggregates An aggregate is termed flaky when its least dimension (thickness) is less than 3/5 th of its dimension. The mean dimension of the aggregate is the average of the sieve sizes through which the particles pass and retained, respectively. The particle is said to be elongated when its greatest dimension (length) is greater than nine-fifths its mean dimension. The angularity of aggregate affects the workability or stability of the mix which depends on the interlocking of particles. The elongated and flaky particles also adversely affect the durability of concrete as they tend to be oriented in one plane with water and air voids forming underneath. The presence of these particles should be restricted to 10 to 15 %. This requirement is particularly important for crushedfine aggregate, since the material made in this way contains more flat and elongated particles. The angularity of the aggregate can be estimated from the proportion of voids in a sample compacted as prescribed in IS; 2386 (Part I)-1963. The higher the angularity number, the more angular is the aggregate. The elongation index of an aggregate is defined as the percentage by weight of particles present in it whose greatest dimension length) is greater than nine-fifths their mean dimension. Whereas the flakiness index is the percentage by weight of particles having at least dimension (i.e. thickness) less than three-fifths their mean dimension.

The surface texture of the aggregate depends on the hardness, grain size and pore characteristics of the parent rocks, as well as the type and magnitude of the disintegrating forces. Based on the surface characteristics, IS; 383-1963 classifies the aggregates as glassy, smooth, granular, crystalline, honeycombed, porous, etc. The shape and surface texture of aggregate influence the workability of fresh concrete and the compressive strength of hardened concrete, particularly in high strength concrete. The strength of concrete, especially the flexural strength, depends upon the bond between the aggregate and the cement paste. The bond is partly due to the interlocking of aggregate and cement paste. A rough surface results in a better bond. The bond is also affected by the physical and chemical properties, mineralogical and chemical composition and the electrostatic condition of the particle surface, e.g. a chemical bond may exist in the case of limestone aggregate.