Cement Sand and Aggregate for Nominal

Mix Concrete Grades

Following is a simple method to calculate cement, sand and aggregate for nominal mix concrete otherwise known as
prescribed concrete mix.

Difference between Nominal mix concrete and Design mix concrete

Nominal mix concrete is prepared by approximate proportioning of cement sand and aggregate to obtain target compressive
strength. It is followed for easy volume batching in the site. Concrete grade up to M20 can be mixed using nominal mix
method for ordinary construction purposes. Design mix concrete is prepared by proportioning materials based on codal
procedure (in India it is IS 456 & IS 10262).

Based on strength, concrete is classified into different grades like M5, M7.5, M10, M15 etc., M stands for Mix and the
number stands for characteristic compressive strength(fck) of the concrete in 28 days in direct compression test. If the ratio
for M20 concrete is 1:1.5:3 then 1 part cement, 1.5 part sand and 3 part aggregate (crushed stone) in volume is batched for
mixing.

Nominal Concrete Mix Ratio Table

GRADE MIX RATIO

M5 1 : 5 : 10

M 7.5 1:4:8

M 10 1:3:6

M 15 1:2:4

M 20 1 : 1.5 : 3

Nominal mix concrete design for one cubic meter of M20 concrete
It takes 1.52 cubic meter of total material to prepare one cubic meter of concrete because cement and sand fills the gaps
between aggregate (coarse aggregate).

If 40mm aggregate is used, total material required will be 1.57 cubic meter.

Lets design M20 grade concrete for 20mm aggregate. Ratio for M20 concrete is 1 : 1.5 : 3
 Volume of = (cement / (cement + sand + aggregate)) x total
cement material

= (1 / (1+1.5+3)) x 1.52

= 0.277 cu.m

Volume of sand = Volume of cement * Ratio of sand

= 0.277 x 1.5

= 0.415 cu.m

Aggregate
= Volume of cement * Ratio of aggregate
(20mm)

= 0.277 x 3

= 0.830 cu.m

Corrections and Conversions

1. Cement is often bought in 50kg bags. Volume of a cement bag is 0.0347 cum. Bulk density of cement is 1440 kg/m3.

No. of Cement Bags needed = 0.277/0.0347

= 7.98 bags

~ 8 bags or 400kg

OR
 Weight of Cement = 0.277 x1440

= 398.88 kg

~ 400kg or 8 bags

Hence we require 7.98 bags of cement to prepare one cubic meter of M20 concrete.

2. In volume batching, presence of moisture in sand will increase the volume of sand( bulking of sand) hence, we may end-
up with less sand than calculated. Hence, always use dry sand or include the effect of bulking of sand in calculation.

3. Conversion of sand and aggregate to units may be necessary because sand and aggregate is often bought in units. 1
unit = 100 cubic feet, 1 cubic meter is 35.32 cubic feet.

Volume of Sand = Volume of sand x 35.32

= 0.415 x 35.32

= 14.66 cft or 0.1466 unit of sand

Hence we need 14.66 cubic feet or .1466 unit of sand to prepare one cubic meter of M20 grade

Volume of aggregate = Volume of aggregate x 35.32

=0.830 x 35.32

= 29.32 cft = 0.2932 unit of aggregate

Hence we need 29.32 cubic feet or .2932 unit of aggregate to prepare one cubic meter of M20 grade concrete

QUANTITY CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

1 cu.m of M20 0.277 cu.m (400kg) 0.415 cu.m 0.830 cu.m

 QUANTITY CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

7.98 Bags 14.66 cft 29.32cft

7.98 Bags 0.1466 unit 0.2932 unit

10cu.m of M20 79.8 Bags 1.466 unit 2.932 unit

Cement Sand and Aggregate required for M15, M10, M7.5, M5, M3 grade
Using above procedure, materials required for different proportions are calculated and presented below.

For 20mm aggregate

GRADE CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

M15 0.217 cu.m 0.434 cu.m 0.869 cu.m

6.25 Bags 15.34 cft 30.68 cft

M10 0.152 cu.m 0.456 cu.m 0.912 cu.m

4.38 Bags 16.11 cft 32.21 cft

M7.5 0.117 cu.m 0.468 cu.m 0.935 cu.m

3.37 Bags 16.52 cft 33.04cft

For 40mm aggregate

GRADE CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

 GRADE CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

M15 0.224 cu.m 0.449 cu.m 0.897 cu.m

6.46 Bags 15.84 cft 31.68 cft

M10 0.157 cu.m 0.471 cu.m 0.942 cu.m

4.52 Bags 16.64 cft 33.27 cft

M7.5 0.121 cu.m 0.483 cu.m 0.966 cu.m

3.48 Bags 17.06 cft 34.12cft

M5 0.098 cu.m .490 cu.m 0.981 cu.m

2.83 Bags 17.33 cft 34.66 cft

Amount of water needed for mixing concrete

Water/Cement ratio is a ratio of weight of water to weight cement. It changes based on the desired workability.

Quantity of water needed per 50kg bag of cement in litres. (IS 456)

GRADE WATER (L)

M5 60

M 7.5 45

M 10 34
 GRADE WATER (L)

M 15 32

M 20 30

Calculation of weight of sand and aggregate per bag of cement

IS456 Code book recommends the following quantities of total aggregate per 50kg of cement to produce nominal mix
concrete.

GRADE TOTAL(F.A + C.A)

M5 800 kg

M 7.5 625 kg

M 10 480 kg

M 15 330 kg

M 20 250 kg

Note: General ratio of fine aggregate to coarse aggregate is 1:2. Ratio can be adjusted between 1:1.5 to 1:2.5 based on the
grading of fine aggregate and size of coarse aggregate. Choose water from above table.

For M20 Grade Concrete

Sand is confirmed to Zone II(average grading). From the above table we know 250kg of total dry aggregate is needed.

Sand per 50 kg bag = (1 / (1+2)) x 250 kg

=83 kg ~ 85 kg
 Aggregateper 50 kg bag = (2 / (1+2)) x 250 kg

= 166 kg ~ 165 kg

Note: Always use dry river sand because moisture in sand may increase its weight, mess up the water-cement ratio and
causes bulking of sand.

CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

per bag(50kg) 85 kg 165 kg

Sand and Aggregate per bag of cement M5, M7.5, M10, M15, M20
Quantities are calculated according to above procedure with fine to coarse aggregate ratio as 1:2.

Grade Total Agg. Cement Sand Gravel

M5 800kg 1 bag 270kg 530kg

M7.5 625kg 1 bag 210kg 415kg

M10 480kg 1 bag 160kg 320kg

M15 330kg 1 bag 110kg 220kg

M20 250kg 1 bag 85kg 165kg

Quantities derived through nominal mix method and design mix method is different from each other. From experimentation,
we find out that M15 grade concrete, batched through nominal mix method, has equivalent quantities of materials as M20
grade concrete batched by design mix method.