Asphalt / HMAC

 Asphalt batch plant and pavement construction inspection

 Mix design
 Laboratory and field density
 Extraction and gradation
 Coring

Reinforcing Steel

 Post-tensioning and reinforcing steel inspection

 Indirect tensile strength

Structural Steel

 Radiographic nondestructive testing (NDT)

 Reinforcing steel inspections and testing
 Structural steel assembly inspections

Concrete and Steel Testing

We provide, in conformance with applicable listed standards, testing of existing building components and
materials, including:

We provide, in conformance with applicable listed standards, testing of existing building components and
materials, including:
Reinforced Concrete Construction

Load-Carrying Capacity Parameters of concrete slab with reinforcing bar:

 Depth/Thickness of slab using impact-echo (ASTM C1383).

 Compressive Strength of concrete using rebound hammer (ASTM C805).
 Reinforcing Bar Size/Spacing/Location & Depth of Cover using covermeter (BS 1881-204).
 Reinforcing Bar Spacing/Location using ground penetrating radar (ASTM D6432).
 Delamination/Void Detection in concrete using rotary percussion (ASTM D4580) for near-surface voids or impact-
echo (ASTM C1383) for deep voids.

Core Clearance prior to drilling/coring/boring in concrete:

 Rebar/Conduit Detection using ground penetrating radar (ASTM D6432).

Materials testing of samples:

 Petrographic Analysis of hardened concrete (ASTM C856, ASTM C457).

 Acid-soluble Chlorides in mortar and concrete (ASTM C1152).
 Carbonation Average/Peak Depth testing of concrete (as per PCA PL911).
 Identification and Quantification of salts.

Steel Frame Construction

Materials testing of samples:

 Original Surface Finish Determination.

 Chemical Spot Testing and Microscopic Techniques to diagnose deterioration of metals.
 Acid-soluble Chlorides in concrete (ASTM C1152).
 Carbonation Average/Peak Depth testing (as per PCA PL911).

ONSTRUCTION MATERIALS TESTING

Construction Materials Testing (CMT) describes several different types of services, but it primarily involves testing
structural materials used to build a new project from the ground up, materials and components used to construct
a new addition, or new components being added to an existing facility. These include earthwork, shallow and deep
foundations, destructive and non-destructive concrete testing, wood construction observations, structural
masonry, structural steel, sprayed-on fireproofing, exterior insulation and finishing systems (EIFs), roofing
evaluation and testing, and asphalt pavement evaluation and testing.

Wood Standards
ASTM's wood standards are instrumental in the evaluation and testing of the physical and chemical properties of a
wide range of wood and wood-based products. Wooden materials covered here include timber, lumber, wood-
base fibers, commercial softwoods and hardwoods, wood preservatives, laminated timber, and composite lumber
to name a few. These materials are notably used in the fabrication of construction materials such as structural
panels and members, construction poles, and log buildings. These wood standards are helpful in guiding wooden
material and product manufacturers and end-users in their proper testing and fabrication procedures to ensure
acceptable quality towards safe and satisfactory use.

Testing the strength of wood and timber while constructing roofing timbers, door frames, windows and furniture is
highly significant for assessing the capability of final designs in order to handle stress and strain during routine use.
Testing at different stages of production not only ensures product safety, but also allows customers to address
quality assurance issues and comply with internationally agreed standards.
Road Standards and Paving Standards

ASTM's road and paving standards provide the specifications and test methods pertinent to the material, physical,
mechanical, performance, and application requirements of road surfaces and pavements. These geotechnical
surfaces are laid down on specified areas intended to sustain either or both foot and vehicular traffic. The types of
paving covered by these standards are typically made of asphalt, concrete, and bituminous materials. These road
and paving standards allow geotechnical engineering firms and construction companies to examine and evaluate
paving materials to ensure strength and durability towards safe application and use.

Low cost, availability, ease of use, and renewable

· Wood is natural, renewable product from trees. There are more than 600 species of trees in the U.S alone
· Trees are classified into 2 types based on growth
– Exogenous (most widely used in the U.S.)
==> Growth from center out by adding concentric layer of wood
– Softwoods – (conifers-evergreens)
Less dense, grow faster, have uniform stem (20 species)
– Hardwood – (deciduous)
Not used for construction
– Endogenous
==> Growth with intertwined fibers, such as bamboo. Not used widely in U.S.

Chemical Composition
· Cellulose
50% by weight, HMW linear polymer
· Lignin
23-33% in softwoods, 16-26% in hardwoods
It is the glue for the cells. It controls the shear strength.
· Hemicellulose
15-20% of softwood and 20-30% of hardwood.
Polymeric units made from sugar molecules. Xylone in hardwoods, mannose in softwood.
· Extractives
5-30% of the wood substance
Include poly-phenolics, coloring material, oils and fats, resins, waxes, gums, starches. Soluble in water, alcohol,
acetone, and benzene
· Ash-forming material
0.1 to 3.0% of the wood material.
Include calcium, potassium, phosphate, and silica

Moisture Content
· Weight of water as a percentage of the oven-dry weight of the wood
· Oven-dried is attained in an oven at 100 C to 150 C until the wood attains a constant weight
· Physical properties, such as weight, shrinkage and strength depend on the moisture content of wood

Types of water in wood:

· Bound water
Held within the cell wall by absorption forces
· Free water exists as either condensed water or water vapor

Fiber Saturation Point (FSP)

· The level at which the cell walls are completely saturated, but no free water exists in the cell cavities
· FSP varies among species, typically range in 21-32%
· Physical and mechanical properties are dependent on the FSP

Physically, wood is strong and stiff but, compared to a material like steel, it's also light and flexible. It has another
interesting property too. Metals, plastics, and ceramics tend to have a fairly uniform inner structure and that
makes them isotropic: they behave exactly the same way in all directions. Wood is different due to its annual-ring-
and-grain structure. You can usually bend and snap a small, dead, tree branch with your bare hands, but you'll find
it almost impossible to stretch or compress the same branch if you try pulling or pushing it in the opposite
direction. The same holds when you're cutting wood. If you've ever chopped wood with an ax, you'll know it splits
really easily if you slice with the blade along the grain, but it's much harder to chop the opposite way (through the
grain). We say wood is anisotropic, which means a lump of wood has different properties in different directions.

Durability

One of the best things about wood is how long it lasts. Browsing through the daily news, you'll often read that
archeologists have unearthed the buried remains of some ancient wooden article—a wooden tool, perhaps, or a
simple rowboat or the remnants of a huge building—that are hundreds or even thousands of years old. Providing a
wooden object is properly preserved (something else we discuss later), it will easily outlast the person who made
it. But just like that person, a wooden object was once a living thing—and it's a natural material. Like other natural
materials, it's subject to the natural forces of decay through a process known as rotting, in which organisms such
as fungi and insects such as termites and beetles gradually nibble away the cellulose and lignin and reduce wood to
dust and memories.

 Exceptionally strong relative to its weight

 A good heat and electrical insulator;
 of increasing importance
 It is a renewable and biodegradable resource.
 Penetration test
 Ductility test
 Softening point test
 Specific gravity test
 Viscosity test
 Flash and Fire point test
 Float test
 Water content test
 Loss on heating test

1.PENETRATION TEST

It measures the hardness or softness of bitumen by measuring the depth in tenths of a millimeter to which a
standard loaded needle will penetrate vertically in 5 seconds. BIS had standardized the equipment and test
procedure.

The penetrometer consists of a needle assembly with a total weight of 100g and a device for releasing and locking
in any position. The bitumen is softened to a pouring consistency, stirred thoroughly and poured into containers at
a depth at least 15 mm in excess of the expected penetration. The test should be conducted at a specified
temperature of 250C.

It may be noted that penetration value is largely influenced by any inaccuracy with regards to pouring
temperature, size of the needle, weight placed on the needle and the test temperature.

In hot climates, a lower penetration grade is preferred.

9 TEST TO CHECK QUALITY OF BITUMEN FOR USE IN ROAD WORK

Suryakanta | September 11, 2015 | Bitumen, Construction, Materials, Road Construction, Tests On
Bitumen, Transportation | 3 Comments

LAB TESTS ON BITUMEN TO CHECK QUALITY

Various tests are conducted on bitumen to assess its consistency, gradation, viscosity, temperature susceptibility,
and safety.
There are a number of tests to assess the properties of bituminous materials. The following tests are usually
conducted to evaluate different properties of bituminous materials.

1. Penetration test
2. Ductility test
3. Softening point test
4. Specific gravity test
5. Viscosity test
6. Flash and Fire point test
7. Float test
8. Water content test
9. Loss on heating test

1.PENETRATION TEST

It measures the hardness or softness of bitumen by measuring the depth in tenths of a millimeter to which a
standard loaded needle will penetrate vertically in 5 seconds. BIS had standardized the equipment and test
procedure.

The penetrometer consists of a needle assembly with a total weight of 100g and a device for releasing and locking
in any position. The bitumen is softened to a pouring consistency, stirred thoroughly and poured into containers at
a depth at least 15 mm in excess of the expected penetration. The test should be conducted at a specified
temperature of 250C.

It may be noted that penetration value is largely influenced by any inaccuracy with regards to pouring
temperature, size of the needle, weight placed on the needle and the test temperature.

In hot climates, a lower penetration grade is preferred. The Fig-1 shows a schematic Penetration Test setup.

2.DUCTILITY TEST

Ductility is the property of bitumen that permits it to undergo great deformation or elongation. Ductility is defined
as the distance in cm, to which a standard sample or briquette of the material will be elongated without breaking.
Dimension of the briquette thus formed is exactly 1 cm square. The bitumen sample is heated and poured in the
mould assembly placed on a plate. These samples with moulds are cooled in the air and then in water bath at 27 0C
temperature. The excess bitumen is cut and the surface is leveled using a hot knife. Then the mould with assembly
containing sample is kept in water bath of the ductility machine for about 90 minutes. The sides of the moulds are
removed, the clips are hooked on the machine and the machine is operated. The distance up to the point of
breaking of thread is the ductility value which is reported in cm.

The ductility value gets affected by factors such as pouring temperature, test temperature, rate of pulling etc.
A minimum ductility value of 75 cm has been specified by the BIS. Fig-2 shows ductility Test Process.

3.SOFTENING POINT TEST

Softening point denotes the temperature at which the bitumen attains a particular degree of softening under the
specified condition of test.

The test is conducted by using Ring and Ball apparatus. A brass ring containing test sample of bitumen is
suspended in liquid like water or glycerin at a given temperature. A steel ball is placed upon the bitumen sample
and the liquid medium is heated at a rate of 50C per minute. Temperature is noted when the softened bitumen
touches the metal plate which is at a specified distance below.

Generally, higher softening point indicates lower temperature susceptibility and is preferred in hot climates.

4.SPECIFIC GRAVITY TEST

The specific gravity of bitumen is defined as the ratio of mass of given volume of bitumen of known content to the
mass of equal volume of water at 270C. The specific gravity can be measured using either pycnometer or preparing
a cube specimen of bitumen in semi solid or solid state.

In paving jobs, to classify a binder, density property is of great use. In most cases bitumen is weighed, but when
used with aggregates, the bitumen is converted to volume using density values.

The density of bitumen is greatly influenced by its chemical composition. Increase in aromatic type mineral
impurities cause an increase in specific gravity.

The specific gravity of bitumen varies from 0.97 to 1.02.

5.VISCOSITY TEST

Viscosity denotes the fluid property of bituminous material and it is a measure of resistance to flow. At the
application temperature, this characteristic greatly influences the strength of resulting paving mixes.

Low or high viscosity during compaction or mixing has been observed to result in lower stability values. At high
viscosity, it resists the compactive effort and thereby resulting mix is heterogeneous, hence low stability values.
And at low viscosity instead of providing a uniform film over aggregates, it will lubricate the aggregate particles.

Orifice type viscometers are used to indirectly find the viscosity of liquid binders like cutbacks and emulsions.

The viscosity expressed in seconds is the time taken by the 50 ml bitumen material to pass through the orifice of a
cup, under standard test conditions and specified temperature. Viscosity of a cutback can be measured with either
4.0 mm orifice at 250C or 10 mm orifice at 25 or 400C.

Also Read: Viscosity Test of Bitumen Emulsion by Saybolt Furol Viscometer

6.FLASH AND FIRE POINT TEST

At high temperatures depending upon the grades of bitumen materials leave out volatiles. And these volatiles
catch fire which is very hazardous and therefore it is essential to qualify this temperature for each bitumen grade.
BIS defined the ash point as the temperature at which the vapour of bitumen momentarily catches fire in the form
of ash under specified test conditions. The fire point is defined as the lowest temperature under specified test
conditions at which the bituminous material gets ignited and burns.

7.FLOAT TEST

Normally the consistency of bituminous material can be measured either by penetration test or viscosity test. But
for certain range of consistencies, these tests are not applicable and Float test is used.

The apparatus consists of an aluminum oat and a brass collar filled with bitumen to be tested. The specimen in the
mould is cooled to a temperature of 50C and screwed in to oat. The total test assembly is floated in the water bath
at 500C and the time required for water to pass its way through the specimen plug is noted in seconds and is
expressed as the oat value.

8.WATER CONTENT TEST

It is desirable that the bitumen contains minimum water content to prevent foaming of the bitumen when it is
heated above the boiling point of water.

The water in bitumen is determined by mixing known weight of specimen in a pure petroleum distillate free from
water, heating and distilling of the water. The weight of the water condensed and collected is expressed as
percentage by weight of the original sample.

The allowable maximum water content should not be more than 0.2% by weight.

9.LOSS ON HEATING TEST

When the bitumen is heated it loses the volatility and gets hardened. About 50gm of the sample is weighed and
heated to a temperature of 1630C for 5 hours in a specified oven designed for this test. The sample specimen is
weighed again after the heating period and loss in weight is expressed as percentage by weight of the original
sample.

Bitumen used in pavement mixes should not indicate more than 1% loss in weight, but for bitumen having
penetration values 150-200 up to 2% loss in weight is allowed.

In destructive testing, or (Destructive Physical Analysis DPA) tests are carried out to the specimens failure, in order
to understand a specimens performance or material behaviour under different loads. These tests are generally
much easier to carry out, yield more information, and are easier to interpret than nondestructive
testing. [1] Destructive testing is most suitable, and economic, for objects which will be mass-produced, as the cost
of destroying a small number of specimens is negligible. It is usually not economical to do destructive testing
where only one or very few items are to be produced (for example, in the case of a building). Analyzing and
documenting the destructive failure mode is often accomplished using ahigh-speed camera recording continuously
(movie-loop) until the failure is detected. Detecting the failure can be accomplished using a sound detector or
stress gauge which produces a signal to trigger the high-speed camera. These high-speed cameras have advanced
recording modes to capture almost any type of destructive failure. [2] After the failure the high-speed camera will
stop recording. The capture images can be played back in slow motion showing precisely what happen before,
during and after the destructive event, image by image.

Some types of destructive testing:

 Stress tests
 Crash tests
 Hardness tests
 Metallographic tests

Nondestructive testing or Non-destructive testing (NDT) is a wide group of analysis techniques used in
science and industry to evaluate the properties of a material, component or system without causing
damage.[1] The termsNondestructive examination (NDE), Nondestructive inspection (NDI),
and Nondestructive evaluation (NDE) are also commonly used to describe this technology.[2] Because NDT
does not permanently alter the article being inspected, it is a highly valuable technique that can save both
money and time in product evaluation, troubleshooting, and research. Common NDT methods
include ultrasonic, magnetic-particle, liquid penetrant, radiographic, remote visual inspection (RVI),eddy-
current testing,[1] and low coherence interferometry.[3][4] NDT is commonly used in forensic
engineering, mechanical engineering, petroleum engineering, electrical engineering, civil engineering, systems
engineering, aeronautical engineering, medicine, and art.[1] Innovations in the field of nondestructive testing
have had a profound impact on medical imaging, including on echocardiography, medical ultrasonography,
and digital radiography.