BUILDING TECH 1 - The remaining product is Plaster of Paris if

DIV 03 CONCRETE pure gypsum is used, or hard wall plaster if 39.5

% impurities are present or added to retard the
I. CEMENTING MATERIALS set and improve the setting qualities. Hard wall
A. LIME plaster is harder than lime plaster, and sets
- One of the oldest manufactured more quickly and thoroughly.
building materials used as a - Gypsum plaster is rendered more plastic by
mortar and plaster by all the early the addition of hydrated lime.
civilizations: - Fiber or hair is also sometimes added for
● Egyptians used lime plaster before 2600 greater cohesiveness. The fiber may be hemp,
B.C. sisal or jute; the hair is generally cleaned goat
● Greeks used it extensively for mortars or cattle hair.
and plasters
● Romans developed a mixture of lime C. CEMENT
putty and volcanic ash for the first real - First developed by the Romans by mixing
cement. slaked lime with pozzolana (volcanic ash)
- Manufactured by the calcination of which hardened under water.
limestone (carbonates of calcium and - With the fall of the Roman Empire the art of
magnesium). cement-making was lost and for several
- The carbonates decompose into carbon centuries.
dioxide, which is expelled, and calcium oxide - In 1756, Smeaton, an Englishman,
(CaO) called quicklime. rediscovered hydraulic cement but it was not
- Before quicklime can be used, it must first be until 1824 that Aspdin, an English bricklayer and
mixed with water in the process called slaking mason, invented and patented Portland
or hydration. cement.
- The lime has now become calcium hydroxide - Today, the word “cement” generally refers to
(Ca(OH)2), known as slaked lime or hydrated Portland cement which is the principal type of
lime. cement in use.
- Hydrated lime mixed with water to make lime - Portland cement is obtained by finely
putty, is used as an ingredient of hard-finish pulverizing clinker produced by calcining a
coat for two-and three-coat Portland cement proportioned mixture of argillaceous (silica,
plasters. It is also used for mixing with cement alumina) and calcareous (lime) materials with
mortar or concrete to: iron oxide and small amounts of other
● increase its workability ingredients.
● decrease its permeability to water Types of Portland cement:
● reduce cracking due to shrinkage •slow-setting cement
- A type of lime which will set under water •quick-setting high early strength cement
is hydraulic lime, used only where slow •sulfate-resisting cement for applications
underwater setting is required. where alkaline water and soils occur
•white cement (or stainless cement which is
B. GYPSUM
free of iron impurities).
- was used as a plaster by the Egyptians,
Greeks and Romans.
II. STORAGE OF CEMENT
-“Plaster” from the Greek word for both the raw
- Cement should be protected at the
material and calcined product. In architectural
building site from injury through contact
terminology the words “Plaster” and “gypsum”
with dampness.
are often used interchangeably.
- They should be stored in a shed with a
- Gypsum rock is ground fine and heated
wood floor raised about 300mm (12”)
(calcined) to between 325 °F. to 340 °F. when it
from the ground.
loses about three-fourths of its combined
- Cement is soft and silky to the touch. If it
water.
has lumps that do not readily break, the
 cement has already absorbed a 3.03 MATERIALS OF CONCRETE
damaging amount of moisture. A. CEMENT
- Cement should be used as soon as - reinforced-concrete construction should
possible after delivery. be high-grade Type 1 Portland cement
- Piles should be limited to twelve sacks in type C-150 conforming to the “Standard
height. Specifications and Test for Portland
- Warehouse set - when the cement is Cement” of the American Society for
stored in high piles for long periods, Testing Materials (ASTM).
there is a tendency for the lower layers - The kind of tests usually made are:
to harden caused by the pressure ● soundness, or constancy of volume
above. ● time of setting
● fineness
III. CONCRETE ● tensile strength
CONCRETE - Each bag of cement is equivalent to
- a proportioned mixture of cement, approximately 1 cu. ft. and weighs 94
aggregate and water. lbs
- a plastic mass which can be cast, B. AGGREGATES
molded or formed into predetermined - inert mineral fillers used with cement and
size or shape water in making concrete, should be
particles that are durable strong, clean, hard
- upon hydration, it becomes stone-like in
and uncoated, and which are free from
strength, hardness and durability. The injurious amount of dusts, lumps, soft and
hardening of concrete is called setting. flaky particles, shale, alkali, organic matter
- when mixed with water and a fine loam or other deleterious substances.
aggregate of less than 6mm (¼“) is • Fine aggregates
known as mortar, stucco or cement - (aggregates smaller than 6mm
plaster. (¼”) in size) consist of sand, stone
- when mixed with water, fine aggregate screenings or other inert materials
and a large aggregate of more than of similar characteristics.
6mm (¼”) in size produces concrete. Specs: 80 to 95% shall pass a No. 4 wire
- when strengthened by embedded cloth sieve and not more than 30% nor
steel, is called reinforced concrete. less than 10% shall pass a No. 50 sieve.
- when without reinforcement, it is called • Coarse aggregates
plain or mass concrete. - (aggregate larger than ¼” in size)
consists of crushed stones, gravel
3.02 QUALITIES OF GOOD CONCRETE
or other inert materials of similar
characteristics.
Concrete should be:
- should be well graded in size to a
• Strong
size which will readily pass
•Durable
between all reinforcing bars and
•of uniform quality, and
between reinforcement and
•thoroughly sound.
forms but not exceed 25mm (1”)
in size for reinforced beams, floor
These are obtained through:
slabs, & thin walls.
•careful selection of materials
- may range up to 50mm (2”) for
•correct proportioning
less highly reinforced parts of the
•thorough mixing
structures such as footings, thick
•careful transporting and placing
walls, and massive work.
•proper curing or protection of the concrete
after it is placed
• Special aggregates - In making the test, the slump tester is
- such as cinders, blast furnace slag, placed on a flat, smooth surface and is
expanded shale or clay, perlite, filled with newly mixed concrete from
vermiculite, and sawdust, may produce: the mixer. In filling the mold with
- lightweight, nailable concrete concrete, the latter is tamped in with a
- thermal insulating concrete 12mm (½”) rod pointed at one end and
the top of the concrete is smoothed off
C. WATER exactly level. The mold is then slowly
- should be free from oil, acid, alkali, raised vertically and the height
vegetable matter, or other deleterious deducted from the original height of
substances 300mm (12”) represents the slump.
- should be reasonably clear and clean.
- The use of sea or brackish water is not
allowed.
- Water combines with the cement to
form a paste which coats and surrounds
the inert particles of aggregates.
- Upon hardening, it binds the entire mass - A harsh mix is efficient for slabs,
together. pavements, or mass concrete where the
- The strength of the mixture therefore lowest possible water-cement ratio is
depends directly upon the strength of desirable.
the paste. If there is an excess of water - The following table gives the permissible
the paste becomes thin and weak and slump for various types of concrete in
its holding power is reduced. relation to their uses:
- The water-cement ratio is the amount of
water used per bag of cement.
- This usually varies from 5 to 7 gallons,
with 6.5 gallons as average for ordinary
job conditions. The less water used in
mixing, the better the quality of
concrete.
- The ideal mix is one that is plastic and 3.05 PROPORTIONING OF CONCRETE
workable. It should not be too dry that it Principles of proper proportioning are as
becomes too difficult to place in the follows:
forms, nor too wet that separation of the a. Use good quality materials: Portland
ingredients result. cement, water, and aggregate.
b. Determine the strength of the concrete using
the water-cement ratio. (The strength increases
as the water-cement ratio decreases).
c.Determine the consistency of the mix using
the slump test using as dry a mix as
practicable.
3.04 SLUMP TEST
d. Add correct proportions of aggregates to
SLUMP TEST
the cement and water as will give a mix of the
- used for measuring the consistency of a
desired consistency.
concrete mix.
e. Make a mix that’s workable, not harsh.
- Consistency may be defined as the
“state of fluidity of the mix”, and it
includes the entire range of fluidity from
the wettest to the driest possible
mixtures.
- The strength of a workable concrete mix c. Proportioning by water-ratio, slump and
depends upon the water-cement ratio. fineness modulus
- The economy of the mix depends upon the - same as the second except that the
proper proportioning of the fine and coarse proportions of the fine and coarse
aggregates. aggregate are determined by the
fineness modulus method.
There are several methods of proportioning
concrete:
a. Proportioning by arbitrary proportions
- the oldest, the most commonly used,
the most convenient and the least

scientific method.
- aggregates are measured by loose
volume
- its volume as it is thrown into a
measuring box
- Each ‘part’ is equivalent to one cubic
foot which is the measure of the box
constructed to be 1 foot (12 inches) on
each of the three sides.

- Each bag of cement is equivalent to

approximately one cubic foot.
b. Proportioning by the water-ratio and slump
test
- There are two steps to be observed:
1. Select the amount of water to be
added to the cement to give the
desired strength (see Table)
2. Add just enough mixed
aggregate to the water and
cement to give a concrete mix
the desired consistency
- It is customary to specify
1. the cement in sacks
2. the water in gallons per sack of
cement and
3. the mixed aggregate in cu. ft.
per sack of cement.
- Proportions of cement to fine
aggregate to coarse aggregate may
be given if desired.