16

METHODOLOGY

This chapter deals with the materials, equipment, and methods that will

be used in the research design such as the preparation of materials and

molders of the specimens. Method of documentation and gathering of data are

also included in this chapter.

Research Material

The materials that will be used in the study are locally available ordinary

Portland (Holcim excel) cement, sand, aggregates, water and

muscovado/panocha sugar.

Research Instrument

The equipment that will be used for the setting time test is the Vicat

Apparatus and for the compressive strength test and flexural strength test of

concrete is the Universal Testing Machine (UTM). Weighing scale and

measuring device will also be used to measure the amount of

muscovado/panocha sugar to be added.

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Research Tools

For this study, the Researcher will use the following tools: shovel,

pallet, sieve, graduated cylinder, trowel, cylindrical molder, conical ring,

tamping rod, gloves, goggles and laboratory protective suit.

Gathering and Preparation of Materials

The muscovado/panocha sugar will be bought on a producer in

Kabacan, North Cotabato. Portland cement will be bought at any hardware in

Kabacan, North Cotabato. Sand and Gravel will be gathered in Matalam,

North Cotabato.

Seiving of Coarse and Fine Aggeregates

The aggregates that will be used are those passing coarse aggregates

retained in seive no. 4 and fine aggregates passing no. 4 and retained in sieve

no. 200.
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Washing and Drying of Aggeregates

The aggregates will be washed to remove the impurities and other

foreign material that could compromise the strength and performance of

concrete. The aggregates will then be sun dried before the mixing process.

Concrete Mix Design

The mixing proportion of concrete will be based on class A ratio with

1:2:4 (M15 Grade) proportion of cement, sand and gravel. The water-cement

ratio that will be used for the mixture is equal to 0.45 adapted from ACI 318

(2010). T0 will serve as the control which contains 0% amount of

muscovado/panocha sugar, only water, cement, sand and gravel. T1, T2, T3

and T4 contains water, cement, sand, gravel and muscovado/panocha sugar

by 0.05%, 0.10%, 0.15% and 0.20%, respectively by weight of cement as

concrete retarding admixture.

Proportion of cement, sand and gravel 1:2:4 by mass and

muscovado/panocha sugar by mass of cement.

T0: 100% Portland cement; 100% fine aggregates; 100% coarse

aggregates. 0.00% muscovado/panocha sugar.

T1: 100% Portland cement; 100% fine aggregates; 100% coarse

aggregates. 0.05% muscovado/panocha sugar by percent mass of

cement (grams).
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T2: 100% Portland cement, 100% fine aggregates, 100% coarse

aggregates. 0.10% muscovado/panocha sugar by percent mass of

cement (grams).

T3: 100% Portland cement, 100% fine aggregates, 100% coarse

aggregates. 0.15% muscovado/panocha sugar by percent mass of

cement (grams).

T4: 100% Portland cement, 100% fine aggregates, 100% coarse

aggregates. 0.20% muscovado/panocha sugar by percent mass of

cement (grams).

Mixing

The muscovado/panocha sugar will be sieved before mixing to remove

insoluble particles and some impurities. Then it will be dissolved in water to be

homogenous before mixing in fresh concrete mix.The cement, sand and

gravel will be thoroughly mixed until it obtains homogenous mixture. The paste

mixture will be mixed totally until the desired uniformity and consistency is

achieved.

Molder Specifications

The molders that will be used in compressive strength test is 150 mm in

diameter and 300mm in height cylindrical molder as shown in Fig. 2 (ASTM C

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470, Section 3.1.2 & 3.1.3 and ASTM C31, Section 6.1), 150mm x 150mm x

500mm rectangular molder for flexural strength test as shown in Fig. 3 (ASTM

C31 Section 6.2) and conical ring for the setting time test as shown in Fig. 4

(ASTM C191, Section 6.6).

Fig. 2. Cylindrical Molder

Fig. 3. Rectangular Prism Molder

Fig. 4. Conical ring

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Casting

After the fresh concrete is mixed and the desired consistency is

achieved, it will be placed into molders and tamped 25 times before it takes

place to harden. Tamping is helpful to prevent air voids. The casted fresh mix

will be covered to avoid excessive amount of evaporation as prescribed by

ASTM C39, Section 9.2, Table 3 for cylindrical specimens and Section 9.3 for

rectangular specimens.

Curing

The hardened concrete in the molder will be taken after twenty-four

hours and then submerged in water for twenty-eight days before taking the

samples to testing center as prescribed by ASTM C39/C39M, Section 7.3.

Data Gathering Procedure

A. Setting Time Test: The procedure that will be used in this study is

the Method A of ASTM C191, Section 11 & 12, the Vicat initial time

of setting is calculated as the time elapsed between the initial

contact of cement and water and the time when the penetration is at

25 mm. The Vicat final time of setting is calculated as the time when

the needle does not sink visibly into the paste.

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B. Compressive Strength Test: In accordance ASTM C39/C39M,

Section 7 is the procedure of testing and section 8 for calculation,

cast the cylindrical prism molder. Place the specimen vertically on

the platform of compression testing machine. Apply the load

continuously and uniformly without a shock, not to cause an impact

load and continue the application loading until the failure of the

specimen is observed. Record the data from a maximum load that

the specimen resisted during failure. The compressive strength for

each specimen will be evaluated using the following formula.

fc=P/ A
Where:

fc=¿ Compressive strength (Newton per square millimeter, N/mm 2

or MPa)

P=¿ Maximum applied load from UTM (KiloNewton,KN)

A=¿ Cross sectional area (Square millimeter, mm2 )

C. Flexural Strength Test: In accordance to ASTM 293, Section 6, 7

& 8, the samples will be gathered and tested to determine the

ultimate strength in flexural strength test of each specimen. The

data will be gathered using UTM (Universal testing machine) as a

set-up of the center-point loading on the flexural test shown Figure

5. The modulus of rupture for each specimen will be evaluated using

the following equation.

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3 PL
R=
2 b d2

Where:

R=¿ Flexural strength (Newton per square millimeter,N/mm 2 or

MPa)

P=¿ Maximum applied load from UTM (KiloNewton,KN)

L=¿ Length of the span, (millimeter, mm)

b=¿ average width of the specimen, at fracture (millimeter, mm)

d=¿ average depth of the specimen, at fracture (millimeter, mm)

Fig. 5. Schematic of a Suitable Apparatus for Flexure Test of Concrete by

Center-Point Loading Method
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Research Design and Statistical Analysis

The experimental design that will be used is Randomized Complete

Block Design to determine if there will be a significant difference among the

treatment means. Five (5) treatments with three (3) replications will be carried

out. The data that will be gathered shall be analyzed using analysis of

variance (ANOVA) and comparison of means shall be tested using Scheffe’s

test.

Research Treatments

Five treatments with three replications for a total of fifteen (15) samples

will be carried out. Each sample contains water, cement, coarse and fine

aggregates and muscovado/panocha sugar.

Experimental Layout

The Muscovado/Panocha Sugar to be added to the fresh concrete

mixture are 0.0%, 0.05%, 0.1% 0.15% and 0.20% by weight of cement in

reference to Kawade et al., (2017). Muscovado/Panocha Sugar will be mixed

with water to obtain homogenous mixture in all parts of every sample.

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The following is an example of mix proportions of treatments by mass in

grams.

T0: Control of concrete mix with 2000 grams of Portland cement, 4000

grams fine aggregates, 8000 grams coarse aggregates, 0 grams of

muscovado/panocha sugar (0% by mass of cement).

T1: Treatment of concrete mix with 2000 grams of Portland cement,

4000 grams fine aggregates, 8000 grams coarse aggregates, 1

gram of muscovado/panocha sugar (0.05% by mass of cement).

T2: Treatment of concrete mix with 2000 grams of Portland cement,

4000 grams fine aggregates, 8000 grams coarse aggregates, 2

grams of muscovado/panocha sugar (0.10% by mass of cement).

T3: Treatment of concrete mix with 2000 grams of Portland cement,

4000 grams fine aggregates, 8000 grams coarse aggregates, 3

grams of muscovado/panocha sugar (0.15% by mass of cement).

T4: Treatment of concrete mix with 2000 grams of Portland cement,

4000 grams fine aggregates, 8000 grams coarse aggregates, 4

grams of muscovado/panocha sugar (0.20% by mass of cement).

The following dummy tables will be used in analyzing and interpreting

the data gathered from every samples of replication of treatments. Table 1

shows the dummy table for initial setting time test. The same format will be

used for the setting time test, compressive strength test and flexural strength

test.
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Table 1. Dummy Table for Initial Setting Time, Final Setting Time,
Compressive Strength Test and Flexural Strength test.
REPLICATION
TREATMENT TOTAL MEAN
I II III
0.00% M/P Sugar
0.05% M/P Sugar
0.10% M/P Sugar
0.15% M/P Sugar
0.20% M/P Sugar
TOTAL
MEAN

TREATMENT PROBABILITY
DF SS MS Fc
5% 1%
REPLICATION
TREATMENT
ERROR
MEAN