Unit 2: Science and Materials for Construction and the Built Environment

Task-1: describe the properties of construction material.

Several materials are required for construction. The materials
used in the construction of Engineering Structures such as
buildings, bridges and roads are called Engineering Materials or
Building Materials. They include Bricks, Timber, Cement, Steel and
Plastics etc. t is necessary for an engineer to be conversant with
the properties of engineering materials. Right selection of
materials can be made for a construction activity only when
material properties are fully understood.
Properties of Engineering Materials
Material property is the identity of material, which describes its
state (physical, chemical) and behavior under different conditions.
The material properties can be broadly categorized as physical,
chemical, mechanical and thermal.
The physical properties define the physical state of material and
are independent of its chemical nature. The physical properties of
engineering materials include appearance, texture, mass, density,
Melting point, boiling point, viscosity, etc. The chemical properties
describe the reactivity of a material and are always mentioned in
terms of the rate at which the material changes its chemical
identity, e.g. corrosion rate, oxidation rate, etc. The mechanical
properties describe the resistance against deformation, in
particular, under static and dynamic mechanical loading
condition. The mechanical properties include elastic modulus,
Poissons ratio, yield strength and ultimate tensile strength,
hardness and toughness, etc. The thermal properties describe
material behavior under thermal loading and include thermal
conductivity, specific heat, thermal diffusivity, coefficient of
thermal expansion, etc.

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Physical Properties
Physical properties describe the state of material, which is
observable or measurable. Color, texture, density, melting point,
boiling point, etc. are some of the commonly known physical
properties.
Color: Represents reflective properties of substance
Density: Amount of mass contained by unit volume of
material. The higher the density the heavier is the
substance. (SI unit: kg/m3)
Melting point: Melting point is the temperature at which
material changes its state from solid to liquid. (SI units: K)
Boiling point: Boiling point is the temperature at which
material changes its state from liquid to gaseous. (SI units:
K)
Chemical Properties
Chemical properties are the measure of reactivity of a material in
the presence of another substance or environment which imposes
change in the material composition. These properties are always
mentioned in term of the rate of change in its composition.
Corrosion rate, oxidation rate, etc. are some of the chemical
properties of material.
Corrosion rate: Corrosion rate is measured in terms of
corrosion penetration for given period of time at specific
surrounding condition. Corrosion rate is given by length of
penetration per unit time. (Units: mm/year)
Oxidation rate: Oxidation rate is measured in terms of
amount of material consumed forming oxide or amount of
oxide scale formed for given period of time at specific
surrounding temperature. Oxidation rate is given by amount
of mass of material lost or thickness of scale formed during
oxidation per unit time. (Units: gms/min or m/min).
Mechanical Properties
Mechanical properties describe the behavior of material in terms
of deformation
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and resistance to deformation under specific mechanical loading

condition. These properties are significant as they describe the
load bearing capacity of structure. Elastic modulus , strength,
hardness, toughness, ductility, malleability are some of the
common mechanical properties of engineering materials .

Task-2: evaluate the properties and uses of construction

material.

Cement
Physical properties of cement
Setting Time
Soundness
Fineness
Strength
Setting Time
Cement paste setting time is affected by a number of items
including: cement
fineness, water-cement ratio, chemical content (especially
gypsum content) and
admixtures. Setting tests are used to characterize how a
particular cement paste
sets.
For construction purposes, the initial set must not be too soon
and the final set
must not be too late. Normally, two setting times are defined:
Initial set. Occurs when the paste begins to stiffen considerably.
Final set. Occurs when the cement has hardened to the point at
which it can
sustain some load.
Setting is mainly caused by C3A and C3S and results in
temperature rise in the
cement paste.
False set :No heat is evolved in a false set and the concrete can
be re-mixed
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without adding water

Occurs due to the conversion of anhydrous/semi hydrous
gypsum to hydrous
gypsum(CaSO4.2H2O)
Flash Set: is due to absence of Gypsum. Specifically used for
under water repair.
Soundness
When referring to Portland cement, "soundness" refers to the
ability of a hardened
cement paste to retain its volume after setting without delayed
expansion. This
expansion is caused by excessive amounts of free lime (CaO) or
magnesia
(MgO). Most Portland cement specifications limit magnesia
content and
expansion.
The cement paste should not undergo large changes in volume
after it has set.
However, when excessive amounts of free CaO or MgO are
present in the cement,
these oxides can slowly hydrate and cause expansion of the
hardened cement
paste.
Soundness is defined as the volume stability of the cement
paste.
Fineness
Fineness, or particle size of Portland cement affects Hydration
rate and thus
the rate of strength gain. The smaller the particle size, the greater
the surface
area-to-volume ratio, and thus, the more area available for watercement
interaction per unit volume. The effects of greater fineness on
strength are
generally seen during the first seven days.
When the cement particles are coarser, hydration starts on the
surface of the
particles. So the coarser particles may not be completely
hydrated. This causes
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low strength and low durability.

Strength
Cement paste strength is typically defined in three ways:
compressive, tensile and flexural. These strengths can be affected
by a number of items including: water cement ratio, cement-fine
aggregate ratio, type and grading of fine aggregate, curing
conditions, size and shape of specimen, loading conditions and
age.

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Unit 2: Science and Materials for Construction and the Built Environment

For a rapid development of strength a high fineness is necessary.

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