CIVIL ENGINEERING INTERVIEW QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:

1.What is the bending moment (BM) & Shear force (SF) – Explain.

Ans- Shear Forces occurs when two parallel forces act out of alignment with each other.
For example, in a large boiler made from sections of sheet metal plate riveted together,
there is an equal and opposite force exerted on the rivets, owing to the expansion and
contraction of the plates.

Bending Moments are rotational forces within the beam that cause bending. At
any point within a beam, the Bending Moment is the sum of: each external force
multiplied by the distance that is perpendicular to the direction of the force.

2.What are the steps involved in the concreting process, explain?

Ans-1. Batching: The process of measuring different concrete materials such as cement,
coarse aggregate, sand, water for the making of concrete is known as batching.

2. Mixing: In this process, all the materials are thoroughly mixed in required
proportions until the paste shows uniform color and consistency.

3. Transporting: When the mixing is done properly the freshly made concrete is
then transported to the construction site. After that, the concrete is correctly placed
on the formworks.

4. Compaction: Compaction is the process in which the air bubbles are eliminated from
the freshly placed concrete. It is required to enhance ultimate strength of concrete.

5. Curing: Curing is the process in which the concrete keeps its moisture for a certain
time period to complete the hydration process

3.Describe briefly the various methods of concrete curing.

• Shading concrete work
• Covering concrete surfaces with hessian or gunny bags
• Sprinkling of water
• Ponding method
• Membrane curing
• Steam curing

4.What is the minimum curing period?

Ans-After concrete is placed, the concrete increases in strength very quickly for a period of
3-7 days. Concrete which is moist cured for 7 days is about 50% stronger than uncured
concrete. Read about properly curing concrete slabs.

Water curing can be done after the slab pour by building dams with soil around the house
and flooding the slab. The enclosed area is continually flooded with water. Ideally, the slab
could be water cured for 7 days.Some builders on a tight schedule water cure for 3 days as
this achieves approximately 80% of the benefit of water curing for 7 days.

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Consider planning your job to pour at the end of the week, build berms, then flood over the
weekend. You get the benefit of water curing without losing too much time in the schedule.

5. What Do You Understand by M25 Concrete?

Ans-Jatin Chauhan. Re: What is meaning of M25 grade Answer. # 3 M refers Mix and 25
refers the characteristic compressive. strength of concrete cube of 150mm X150mm
X150mm tested at. the end of 28 days should be minimum 25 N/Sq.mm.

6. What is Water-Cement Ratio and How it is related to the strength

of concrete?

Ans-The water–cement ratio is the ratio of the weight of water to the weight of cement used
in a concrete mix. A lower ratio leads to higher strength and durability, but may make the
mix difficult to work with and form. Workability can be resolved with the use of plasticizers
or super-plasticizers.

7. What is a bearing capacity of soil?

Ans-The bearing capacity of soil is the maximum average contact pressure between
the foundation and the soil which should not produce shear failure in the soil.

8. How to increase the bearing capacity of soil?

Ans-The following techniques can be used for improving bearing capacity of soil as per
the site condition.

• Increasing depth of foundation

• Draining the soil
• Compacting the soil
• Confining the soil
• Replacing the poor soil
• Using grouting material
• Stabilizing the soil with chemicals

9. What are the different types of foundation?

Ans-Types of Foundation

Foundations are mainly two types.

1. Shallow Foundation, and

2. Deep Foundation.

1. Shallow Foundation

A shallow foundation is a type of foundation that transfers loads to the very near
the surface. Shallow foundations typically have a depth to width ratio of less than 1.

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The shallow foundation itself can be various types.

Types of Shallow Foundation

Follow are the types of shallow foundation –

• Pad footing or column footing

• Cantilever or strap footings
• Mat/Raft footings
• Wall Footings

Pad Footing or Column Footing

This type of footing can be two types –

1. Isolated footing and

2. Combined footing.

10. Explain moment of inertia and its importance.

Ans-Inertia is the resistance of any physical object to any change in its state of motion; this
includes changes to its speed, direction, or state of rest. It is the tendency of objects to
keep moving in a straight line at constant velocity. The principle of inertia is one of the
fundamental principles of classical physics that are used to describe the motion of objects
and how they are affected by applied forces. Inertia comes from the Latin word, iners,
meaning idle, sluggish. Inertia is one of the primary manifestations of mass, which is a
quantitative property of physical systems. Isaac Newton defined inertia as his first law in his
Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematical.

11. How do we determine the specific gravity of a cement?

Specific Gravity = (W2-W1)/(W2-W1)-W3-W4)*.79

When: W1= weight of empty flask

W2= weight of flask+cement

W3= weight of flask +cement+kerosene

W4= weight of flask+kerosene

0.079=b specific gravity of kerosene

Specific Gravity Of cement= 3.15 g/cc

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12. Density Of 1 Bag cement?

Ans-I believe the standard density of 1 cement bag is equal to 1440 kg/m3. Density = mass/volume
(ρ=m/V) So, V=m/ρ 50 kg ÷ 1440 kg/m3 = 0.0347 m3 = 1.23

13. What are the causes of the building collapse?

Ans-
1. Bad Design.
2. Faulty Construction.
3. Foundation Failure.
4. Extraordinary loads.
5. Unexpected Failure Modes.
6. Combination of Causes.

14. What is bar bending schedule (BBS) & how to prepare it?
Ans-

SL. Mem No Bar N Shape Cutt Spac Total Dia Unit wei Total Rem
NO ber of Ma o of Bar ing ing Lengt of Wei ght Weigh ark
Elem rks Len h(M) Bar ght (kg) t(kg)
ent gth (m (kg)
(M) m)

15. Why is concrete cube test carried out?

Ans-Concrete cube test is carried out for finding out the Characteristic

Compressive strength of Concrete.

The load at which the concrete block will fail in Compression Testing Machine. It will
give ultimate Load as well as compressive strength of concrete.

16. Why is concrete slump test carried out?

Ans-The concrete slump test measures the consistency of fresh concrete before it sets. It is
performed to check the workability of freshly made concrete, and therefore the ease with
which concrete flows. It can also be used as an indicator of an improperly mixed batch.

17. What is bleeding, segregation, honeycombing of concrete?

bleeding - when cement and watar come on the top and aggregate is settle down is
called bleeding this is due to specific gravity of material and improper placing.

segregation - it means separation of ingredients of concrete

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honey combing - after removal of formwork from column beam there is hole Is
called honeycombing. it due to improper compaction of concrete.

18. a.What is pre-stressed concrete?

Ans-The principle behind prestressed concrete is that compressive stresses induced by

high-strength steel tendons in a concrete member before loads are applied will balance
the tensile stresses imposed in the member during service.

b. Which reinforcement is used in prestressed concrete?

(i) Spalling reinforcement
Spalling stresses are established behind the loaded area of anchor blocks and this causes
breaking away of surface concrete. These stresses are induced by strain incompatibility
with Poisson’s effects or by the shape of stress trajectories.

(ii) Equilibrium reinforcement

Equilibrium reinforcement is required where there are several anchorages in
which prestressing loads are applied sequentially.

(iii) Bursting Reinforcement

Tensile stresses are induced during prestressing operation and the maximum bursting
stress occurs where the stress trajectories are concave towards the line of action of the
load. Reinforcement is needed to resist these lateral tensile forces.

19. What is the ratio of steel and concrete to use in slabs, beams, columns?

For Slab-arround 75 kgs/Cum steel will consume.

ie Vol=Mass/Density
=75/7850
= .0095
For one Cum includes (Concrete and Steel)
ie =1-.0095
=.99 (Concrete)
Then ratio=.0095/.99
=.00955 X 100
=.95 (Ratio between concrete and steel)

For Beam-arround 130 kgs/Cum steel will consume.

ie Vol=Mass/Density
=130/7850
= .0165
For one Cum includes (Concrete and Steel)
ie =1-.0165
=.983 (Concrete)
Then ratio=.0165/.983
=.0167 X 100
=1.67 (Ratio between concrete and steel)

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For Beam-arround 150 kgs/Cum steel will consume.

ie Vol=Mass/Density
=150/7850
= .0191
For one Cum includes (Concrete and Steel)
ie =1-.0165
=.98 (Concrete)
Then ratio=.0191/.98
=.0194 X 100
=1.94 (Ratio between concrete and steel)

20. Difference between pre-tensioning and post-tensioning?

Pre tensioning :

1. In this method the concrete is prestressed with tendons before it is placing in position.
2. This method is developed due to bonding between the concrete and steel tendons .
3. Pre tensioning is preferred when the structural element is small and easy
to transported.
4. In this method similar prestressed members are prepared .

Post - tensioning

1. In this method prestressing is done after the concrete attains it's strength
2. This method is developed due to bearing
3. Post tensioning is preferred when the structural element is heavy
4. In this method products are changed according to structure

21. What are the weights of 16mm, 12mm, 20mm, 25mm, 8mm Dia. Bars
Ans- D^2/162 kg

(D- Dia of Bar)

22. What is the minimum Propping Period of Beams and Slabs of

various Spans?
In the normal condition, formwork shall be removed
1) For slab props left under 3 days, it is usually removed after 12 to 24 hours.
2) For sides of beam formwork shall be removed after 24 hours.
3) For verticak member, it shall be removed 24 to 48 hours as may be decided by
the engineer in charge.
4) Bam soffits (props left under)7 days
5) Removal of props to slabs (Spanning upto 4.5 m)-7 days
6) Removal of props to slabs (Spanning over 4.5 m)-14 days
7) Removal of props to beams and arches (Spanning upto 6 m)-14 days
8) Removal of props to beams and arches (Spanning over 6 m)21 days

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23. What are the advantages of Prestressed Concrete over R.C.C?

Longevity of prestressed structure is greater than rcc structure because the reinforcement
stays unaffected from outer agencies. High compressive strength of concrete and high
tensile strength of steel are used for prestressing that makes it more economical.

24. Quantity of materials required for different works.

Depend on materials

25. Which is stronger solid steel rod or hollow steel pipe?

Believe it or not, a hollow steel pipe is generally stronger than a solid steel rod, at least for
two shafts of the same length and the same an equal weight of steel. Variations in length
and type of steel will of course have an impact on the strength of the rod/pipe.

This is primarily due to the fact that most of the strength of a cylinder comes from its outer
portion; hence even though it is hollow in the center it still has its strength. This results in a
better strength to weight ratio for a hollow pipe than a solid rod. It also make the hollow
pipe better apt to take more weight and is less likely to bend under that weight. A hollow
steep pipe is also less likely to buckle in axial compression.

26. Initial & final setting time of concrete?

Initial setting time of cement is not less than 30 minitues—minimum.
Final setting time of cement is not to be more than of 600 minutes-maximum.

27. why we use steel reinforcement in concrete for construction?

Steel, which has high tensile strength, is used with concrete in order to counteract the
concrete's low tensile strength and ductility. The main purpose of inclusion of steel is
resist tensile stress in particular regions of the concrete that may cause structural failure or
cracking.

28. Is brick strength more or concrete block?

Room on dairy

29. How to Calculate Number of Bricks Per Square Foot?

4.5 bricks per square foot

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30. 28 days compressive strength of concrete in PSI?

A typical concrete compressive strength specification requires 4,000 to 5,000 psi at 28 days

31. How to calculate the unit weight of steel bars?

Ans- 21 Qns

32. What is Plinth Level and Sill Level?

Sill levels are raised from few centimeters upto one meter above the floor levels or even
more. Plinth is the level of your lowest slab or floor. Sill is the bottom of window
level. Plinth level is the carpet level of ground floor of the building

33. What is Brest Wall?

a wall that is built to resist lateral pressure (especially a wall built to prevent the advance of
a mass of earth)

34. What is Brick crushing strength(PSI)?

Crushing strength of the brick depends on the design requirements. But minimum strength
is abut 3.5N/mm2 for non bearing walls or partition walls but for bearing walls or walls
which receives loads may tall even from 10N/mm2 to 14N/mm2

35. How many Types of Joints are in Concrete Pavement?

Ans-

36. How can cracks in concrete be avoided?

1. One of the primary cause of cracks in concrete is bleeding of water from concrete
mix means the excess water in the fresh mix. When the excess water evaporates,
the concrete will shrink, and you found the surface cracks in concrete.
2. After finishing of concrete, cement starts to react internally. If you do not
provide the moisture (Starting of curing) at the time of drying of concrete, the heat
of hydration accelerates the process of drying of concrete which ultimately leads to
the cracks in concrete.
3. At last, faulty construction practice and use of bad quality materials also lead
to the cracks in concrete.
37. How many types Of Damp proofing in construction?+
1. Intergral damp proofing.
2. Cavity wall Construction..
3. Gunting.
4. Membrane damp proofing.

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5.Surface treatment of damp proofing.

38.. 28 Days Strength of Concrete (1:2:4)?
The compressive strength for concrete cylinder (300mm x 150 mm) after 28 days for
the ratio of 1:2:4. It is evident that the compressive strength is gradually decrease as
the quantity of powder sand is increased from 1: (2+0) :4 to 1: (0.5) :4 from a value of
22.04 MPa to 19.4 MPa and then increase for 1: (0+2) :4 is 21.05 MPa.

39. How many types of slabs are there & how to design it?
The slab may be supported by walls, by reinforced concrete beams usually cast
monolithically with the slab, by structural steel beams, by columns, or by the ground.
Slabs are classified into 16 types. There are 16 different types of Slabs in
Construction.

40. How much is the cover for the slab?

Clear cover for slab varies with the exposure condition of the slab. Generally clear coverof 15
mm is provided in normal situation. Originally Answered: How much is the cover of a slab?
Hi, The minimum cover for slab will be 25mm and it will go up to 30mm .

41.Maximum % of Steel in columns and beams?

In columns, maximum percentage of steel is 6%( without lapping) and 4%( with
lapping).In doubly reinforced beams it is 4% for both the steel in tension and
compression side and a total of 8% gross area. In beams,slabs maximum
percentage steel is 4% of gross area

42. What is fineness modulus?

The Fineness modulus (FM) is an empirical figure obtained by adding the total
percentage of the sample of an aggregate retained on each of a specified series
of sieves, and dividing the sum by 100.

43. What is Packing Factor?

In crystallography, atomic packing factor (APF),packing efficiency
or packing fraction is the fraction of volume in a crystal structure that is occupied
by constituent particles. It is a dimensionless quantity and always less than unity.

44. Difference between one-way slab & two-way slab?

In one way slab the slabs are supported by the beams on the two opposite sides.
In two way slabthe slabs are supported on all the four sides. ... Inone way slab the
ratio of Longer span to shorter span is equal or greater than 2. (i.e l/b ≥ 2).

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45Difference between QA & QC?

Quality Assurance Is Not Quality Control. ... The difference is that QA is process
oriented and QC is product oriented. Testing, therefore is product oriented and thus
is in the QC domain. Testing for quality isn't assuring quality, it's controlling it.

46. What do you mean by Fe415?

This Reinforced steels are made of Cold worked High Yield Strength Deformed i.e
Cold Twisted and Deformed (CTD) to reach High Strength. The common Steels are
Fe415 and Fe 500. Fe means Iron. 415 means Minimum yield stress of 415 in MPa

47. What are the functions of a column in a building?

A column is used to support the weight of the roof and also in the upper floors. Now
a days, many columns are used for decorative purposes

48. How many feet are in 4 square yards?

4*12=36 sqfeet

49. What is the average density of soil?

Bulk density is dependent on soil organic matter, soil texture, the density of soil
mineral (sand, silt, and clay) and their packing arrangement. As a rule of thumb,
most rocks have a density of 2.65 g/cm3 so ideally, a silt loam soil has 50% pore
space and a bulk density of 1.33 g/cm3

50. What is the ratio of Grades M5, M7.5, M10, M15, M20, M25,
M30, M35, M40?
M5 - 1:5:10. M7.5 - 1:4:8. M10 - 1:3:6. M15 - 1:2:4. M20 - 1:1.5:3. M25 -
1:1:2. M30,M35,M40 - Design Mix Followed ...

51. Why foundation is provided?

The second purpose of a foundation is to tie the different parts of the building
together so that it does not sink unevenly and crack. Finally, foundations anchor the
building to prevent its moving sideways when, for example, it is built on sloping
ground

52. The concrete slump recommended for beams and slabs;

The concrete slump recommended for beams and slabs is 30-125mm

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53. What is the meaning of soil reinforcement?

Two common examples are:1) Mixing a soil amendment such as lime into weak
clayey soil and recompacting to improve soil bearing capacity (often done under the
road base in highway construction)2) Installing plastic or composite webbing layers
(called geogrid material) alternating with compacted soil to produce a

54. . What is the different type of slump test indications?

Slump tests are performed to empirically measure the workability of fresh concrete.
... They are as follows: > True Slump > Shear Slump >
Collapse SlumpTrue Slump: This type of slump is characterized by the general
drop of the concrete mass evenly without visible signs of deterioration or
disintegration

55. What is buckling or crippling load?

Crippling is just like buckling, but it happens in the web of a beam when it is
being compressed. It often occurs at the supports of a beam, where the bottom
flange is resting on a support, and the top flange is holding up the load, such as on
a bridge abutment.

56..Define slenderness ratio. What is its effect on the design of compression member?
Slenderness ratio is the ratio of the length of a column and the least radius of gyration of its
cross section. ... It is used extensively for finding out the design load as well as in classifying
various columns in short/intermediate/long.

57.Shear force and BM diagrams for different types of loadings on beams.

Shear force and bending moment diagrams for different beamssubjected to
concentrated loads, uniformly distributed load, (UDL) uniformly varying load (UVL) and
couple for different types ofbeams

58.Difference between mild steel and HYSD bars?

High Yield strength deformed bars is the steel used in reinforcements. It has higher carbon
content .Higher tensile strength. ... HYSD is a special quality steel with much higher tensile
strength than the mild steel (30 to 40% stronger than mild steel) . It is costlier , more strong
& more hard than mild steel.

59.What is meant by 80/100 grade bitumen?

Bitumen Penetration Grade 80/100 is a standard penetration grade Bitumen usually used as
a PavingGrade Bitumen suitable for road construction and for the production of asphalt
pavements with superior properties. ... Penetration Grade bitumens are specified by the
penetration and softening point test

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60.What is differential settlement?

Differential or uneven settlement occurs when the soil beneath a structure can not bear the
weights imposed. The settlement of a structure is the amount that the structure will “sink”
during and after construction. Differential settlements become a big problem when the
foundation settles unevenly

61.What does 33,43 and 53-grades of cement mean?

33 43 53 are the three grades of cement very widely used in the Construction industry. The
characteristic compressive strength of the three grades of cementafter careful curing for
28days should not be less than 33MPa 43 MPa and 53 MPa

62.How do you construct a 25 storey building with no columns?

No

63.Types of loads on structure?

Types of loads acting on a structure are:
Dead loads.
Imposed loads.
Wind loads.
Snow loads.
Earthquake loads.
Special loads.
64.Difference between pre-tensioning and post-tensioning?
In pre-tensioning the stressing wires or tendons are stressed prior to placing concrete as
shown below. Inpost-tensioning the wires or tendons are stressed and each end is anchored
to concrete section after has been cast and has attained sufficient strength to safely withstand
the prestressing force, as shown below.

65.What is the L/D ratio of a cantilever beam?

In case of limit state of serviceability, excessive deflection of structural elements are
contained by limiting the “l/d” ratio. That is the ratio of effective length to effective depth of the
member. IS 456: 2000 prescribed a limiting value of 'l/d'=7, for can
tilever beams for spans up to 10m.

66.What is camber?
Camber is the angle between vertical wheel allignment and the angle perpendicular to the surface

67.What is batching?
the quantity of material prepared or required for one operation

68.Difference between volume and weight batching?

Weigh Batching vs Volume Batching. Once mix design is established, the first task is to
batch materials.Batching is the process of measuring and combining required ingredients of
concrete by either by weight or by volume as per the mix design and introducing them into a
mixture to produce a uniform quality of concrete

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69.How is a theodolite leveled?

A theodolite works by combining optical plummets (or plumb bobs), a spirit (bubble level), and
graduated circles to find vertical and horizontal angles in surveying. An optical plummet
ensures the theodolite is placed as close to exactly vertical
above the survey point.

70.What is a benchmark? Name the different types.

There are four primary types of benchmarking: internal, competitive, functional, and generic.
Internal benchmarking is a comparison of a business process to a similar process inside the
organization. Competitive benchmarking is a direct competitor-to-competitor comparison of
a product, service, process, or method.

71.Types of admixtures?
Following are the types of concrete admixtures:
Air entraining concrete admixture.
Water reducing admixture.
Retarding concrete admixture.
Accelerating concrete admixture.
Calcium chloride.

72.What are the CAD softwares you have used?

CAD (computer-aided design) software is used by architects, engineers, drafters, artists,
and others to create precision drawings or technical illustrations. CAD software can be used
to create two-dimensional (2-D) drawings or three-dimensional (3-D) models.
Interpret a strss vs strain curve.
Low carbon steel generally exhibits a very linear stress–strain relationship up to a well
defined yield point (Fig.2). The linear portion of the curve is the elastic region and the slope is
the modulus of elasticity or Young's Modulus ( Young's Modulus is the ratio of the compressive
stress to the longitudinal strain).

73.Define modulus of elasticity.

the ratio of the stress in a body to the corresponding strain (as in bulk modulus, shear modulus,
and Young's modulus) — called also coefficient of elasticity, elastic modulus.

74.What are the chemical compositions of cement?

Portland cement consists essentially of compounds of lime (calcium oxide, CaO) mixed with
silica (silicon dioxide, SiO2) and alumina (aluminum oxide, Al2O3). The lime is obtained from a
calcareous (lime-containing) raw material, and the other oxides are derived from an
argillaceous (clayey) material.
75.What is creep & shrinkage of concrete?
Creep and shrinkage of concrete are two physical properties of concrete. The creep of
concrete, which originates from the calcium silicate hydrates (C-S-H) in the hardened Portland
cement paste (which is the binder of mineral aggregates), is fundamentally different from the
creep of metals and polymers

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