Department Of Civil Engineering

Construction Materials

Report

Topic: - Aggregate

Made By: -

1.) DivyarajSinh Solanki - 41

2.) Prabhav Vakharia - 40
3.) Shubham Bhandari - 64
4.) Prateek Jadhav - 60
5.) Neel Suryawanshi - 13
Index

1. What is aggregate?

2. Classification of Aggregates as per Size and Shape.

3. Manufacturing of Aggregates.

4. Properties of Aggregates.

5. Important Tests on Aggregates.

6.Applications of Aggregates in Construction.

What Is Aggregate?
i. Construction aggregate, or simply "aggregate", is a broad category of
coarse to medium grained particulate material used in construction,
including sand, gravel, crushed stone, slag, recycled concrete and
geosynthetic aggregates.
ii. Aggregates are the most mined materials in the world.
iii. Aggregates are a component of composite materials such
as concrete and asphalt concrete; the aggregate serves as reinforcement
to add strength to the overall composite material.

10 mm graded crushed basalt rock or aggregate,

For use in concrete

20 mm graded aggregate.
 Classification of Aggregates as
per Size and Shape
Aggregates are classified based on so many considerations, but here we are
going to discuss about their shape and size classifications in detail.

Aggregates are classified according to shape into the following types

 Rounded aggregates
The rounded aggregates are completely shaped by attrition and
available in the form of seashore gravel.
Rounded aggregates result the minimum percentage of voids (32 – 33%)
hence gives more workability.
They require lesser amount of water-cement ratio.
They are not considered for high strength concrete because of poor
interlocking behaviour and weak bond strength.

 Irregular or partly rounded aggregates

 The irregular or partly rounded aggregates are partly shaped by attrition
and these are available in the form of pit sands and gravel.
Irregular aggregates may result 35- 37% of voids.
These will give lesser workability when compared to rounded
aggregates.
The bond strength is slightly higher than rounded aggregates but not as
required for high strength concrete.

 Angular aggregates
The angular aggregates consist well defined edges formed at the intersection
of roughly planar surfaces and these are obtained by crushing the rocks.
Angular aggregates result maximum percentage of voids (38-45%) hence gives
less workability.

They give 10-20% more compressive strength due to development of stronger

aggregate-mortar bond.

So, these are useful in high strength concrete manufacturing.

 Flaky aggregates
 When the aggregate thickness is small when compared with width and length
of that aggregate it is said to be flaky aggregate. Or,

In the other, when the least dimension of aggregate is less than the 60% of its
mean dimension then it is said to be flaky aggregate.

 Elongated aggregates
When the length of aggregate is larger than the other two dimensions then it
is called elongated aggregate or the length of aggregate is greater than 180%
of its mean dimension.
  Flaky and elongated aggregates
When the aggregate length is larger than its width and width is larger than its
thickness then it is said to be flaky and elongated aggregates.

The above 3 types of aggregates are not suitable for concrete mixing. These
are generally obtained from the poorly crushed rocks.
Classification of Aggregates Based on
Size
Aggregates are available in nature in different sizes. The size of aggregate used
may be related to the mix proportions, type of work etc.

The size distribution of aggregates is called grading of aggregates.

Aggregates are classified into 2 types according to size

Fine Aggregate

Coarse Aggregate

Fine aggregate
When the aggregate is sieved through 4.75mm sieve, the aggregate passed
through it called as fine aggregate.

Natural sand is generally used as fine aggregate, silt and clay are also come
under this category.

The purpose of the fine aggregate is to fill the voids in the coarse aggregate
and to act as a workability agent.

Coarse aggregate
When the aggregate is sieved through 4.75mm sieve, the aggregate retained
is called coarse aggregate.

Gravel, cobble and boulders come under this category.

The maximum size aggregate used may be dependent upon some conditions.

In general, 40mm size aggregate used for normal strengths and 20mm size is
used for high strength concrete.

Manufacturing of Aggregates
Aggregates are inert granular materials such as sand, gravel, or crushed stone
that, along with water and Portland cement, are an essential ingredient in
concrete.

Natural gravel and sand are usually dug or dredged from a pit, river, lake, or
seabed. Crushed aggregate is produced by crushing quarry rock, boulders,
cobbles, or large-size gravel.

Recycled concrete is a viable source of aggregate and has been satisfactorily

used in granular subbases, soil-cement, and in new concrete.

After harvesting, aggregate is processed: crushed, screened, and washed to

obtain proper cleanliness and gradation.

If necessary, a benefaction process such as jigging or heavy media separation

can be used to upgrade the quality.

Once processed, the aggregates are handled and stored to minimize

segregation and degradation and prevent contamination.

Properties of Aggregates
 1. Strength of Aggregate

The coarse aggregates to be used in construction should be sufficiently strong to

withstand the loads because; it is the prime construction material in the building as
well as pavement.

The strength and elasticity of aggregate depend on its composition, density, texture
and structure.

For a high-quality pavement, the aggregate should possess high resistance to crushing,
and to withstand the stresses due to traffic load.

2. Hardness of Aggregate

When the aggregates are used in the surface course, they are subjected to constant
rubbing or abrasion due to the constant movements of traffic on the pavement.

Hence, they must be hard enough to resist the wear and tear occurring due to the
abrasive action of traffic load.

3. Toughness of Aggregate

Toughness is the resistance of the aggregates to impact.

Aggregates used in the construction of buildings and pavements are also subjected to
impact due to sudden load in buildings and moving wheel loads on pavements.

Hence, the resistance to impact is the desirable property of aggregates.

4. Durability of Aggregate

The aggregate used in the construction of buildings and pavements should be durable
i.e. it should have long life and should resist disintegration due to the weather action.
The aggregates are subjected to various physical and chemical reactions of rain water,
soil, water percolated in ground and many other impurities.

Hence, aggregate must be sound enough to withstand such reactions as well as the
weathering action.

5. Shape of Aggregate

Shape of aggregate affects the workability of fresh concrete. Because the differences
in the surface area caused by different shapes, will determine cement paste required to
coat the aggregate, to provide lubrication and increase work ability.

Apart from workability of concrete, shape of aggregate is also an essential property of

aggregate because it also plays a significant role in the strengthen, grading and
interlocking of aggregate with each other, which is ultimately responsible for
toughness and firmness.

6. Alkali-Aggregate Reaction

The alkali-aggregate reaction is the chemical reaction that occurs in the concrete
which can produce the premature distress and loss in serviceability thereby, affecting
concrete structures.

In other words, alkali-aggregate reaction is the expansive reaction that takes place
between alkali and elements within an aggregate which can result in pattern cracking,
surface pop outs and break off into fragments if it is severe enough.

7. Specific Gravity of Aggregate

The specific gravity and water absorption of aggregates are important properties for
designing concrete and bituminous mixes.

Specific gravity of an aggregate is the ratio of the weight of a given volume

of aggregate to the weight of an equal volume of water.
It is a quality measure and determines the strength of aggregate.
 8. Adhesion with Bitumen

The aggregates used in bituminous pavements must have less affection for water as
compared with bituminous material, otherwise the bituminous coating of the
aggregates will get stripped off in presence of water. In absence of water or moisture,
there is no problem in bituminous construction.

Important Tests on Aggregates

1. Crushing Test on
Aggregates
The crushing test on aggregate gives a relative measure of the resistance of an
aggregate crushing under gradually applied compressive load.

 If the aggregate crushing value is less than 10, it signifies an

exceptionally strong aggregate.
 Whereas, if the crushing value is 35 or above, it would normally be considered
as weak aggregates.

Use of Crushing Test: -

The strength of coarse aggregates is assessed by aggregates crushing test.

The aggregate crushing value provides a relative measure of resistance to crushing

under a gradually applied compressive load.

For achieving high quality of pavement, aggregate of low crushing value should
be preferred.

Therefore, lower crushing value means higher strength as it indicates a lower

crushed fraction under load. This gives a longer service life and a more
economical performance.

2. Abrasion Test on Aggregates

This test is carried out to determine the abrasion value of the coarse aggregate.

The principle of abrasion test is to find the percentage wear due to relative rubbing
action between the aggregate and steel balls used as an abrasive charge.

It shows the ability of aggregate to resist the wear and tear.

 3. Specific Gravity and Water Absorption Test on
Aggregates

Specific gravity test shows the strength of aggregate.

Aggregates having low specific gravity are generally weaker than those with having
high specific gravity.

Water absorption of aggregate gives an idea about the internal structure of aggregate.

If aggregates have more absorption capacity, they are called porous in nature. Such
aggregates are unsuitable and generally not preferred for the construction.

Applications of Aggregates in Construction.

1. In roads and railway ballast the aggregates are used to resist the overall (static as well
as dynamic) load, to distribute the load properly to the supporting ground and to drain
the water off the surface.

2. In concrete the aggregate is used for economy, reduce shrinkage and cracks and
to strengthen the structure.

3. Aggregate is an essential ingredient of concrete. The purpose of aggregates in concrete

is:

 To provide a rigid structure

  To reduce the shrinkage and cracking
 Concrete aggregate is used in many structures and substructures e.g. different
elements of a Building, bridges, and foundations
 The smaller the aggregate size the greater it’s surface area and the more binding
material (cement) will be required.

4. To avoid damage to the rails, ground and other nearby structures a very tough aggregate
is needed not only to support this high weight but also to distribute and transfer it
properly to the ground.

Railway ballast generally consists of a tough igneous rock (crushed), such as

granite, with a larger diameter varying between 30mm to 50mm. Particles finer than this
diameter in higher proportion will reduce its drainage properties.

5. Coarse aggregates are the most obvious part of the mix in concrete. They are used in
the preparation of the moisture break under the slab and vapour barrier.

6. Aggregates are also used to backfill retaining walls.