WHAT IS VOLUME BATCHING OF CONCRETE?

Batching of concrete means measuring different ingredients of concrete such

as cement, sand, coarse aggregate and water before mixing it. When this
measurement is done on the basis of volume, we call it Volume Batching.
Below are mentioned some of important points to remember before adopting
volume batching method in field.

 Volume batching is not a good method for measuring concrete

materials.

 It is not applicable in case of reinforced concrete structure.

 This method of concrete batching may not be economical.

 It can be only used for unimportant concrete or for small concrete

works.

HOW IT IS DONE IN FIELD?

Before batching concrete ingredients in term of volume,we need to know two

things.

1. What is the relative proportions of concrete ingredients in field?

2. What is the water-cement ratio?

The table shown below can be use as a reference to find out relative of
proportions of different ingredients for different grades of concrete.

Relative Proportion of Ingredients by

Volume
Grade of In General We
Concrete Specify It As
Fine Coarse
Cement
Aggregate Aggregate

M 10 1 3 6 1:3:6

M 15 1 2 4 1:2:4

M 20 1 1.5 3 1:1.5:3

M 25 1 1 2 1:1:2

STEP 1:BATCHING OF CEMENT

STEP 2:BATCHING OF AGGREGATE(BY VOLUME)

STEP 3:BATCHNG OF WATER

 WHAT IS WEIGHT BATCHING?

Weigh batching is the correct and preferred method of measuring concrete

ingredients which leads to more uniform proportioning. Weigh batching
system facilitates simplicity, flexibility and accuracy. Different types of weigh
batchers available in the market and it depends upon the type of job.

1. Manual weigh batching

In manual batching weighing of all concrete ingredients is done manually. This

system may be used for small jobs.

2. Semi-automatic weigh batching

In this system the aggregate bin gates are opened by manually operated
switches and gates are closed automatically when the material has been
delivered.

3. Fully automatic weigh batching

These systems have automatic microprocessor controlled batching

arrangements. Not only the aggregates are batched in correct proportion but
also their moisture content is automatically determined and necessary
corrective action taken so that mix has desired consistency.

Weigh batching has a great advantage as it gives good quality of concrete

and providing more accurate and consistent mixture.
 DIFFERENT BETWEEN VOLUME BATCHING AND WEIGHT BATCHING
VOLUME BATCHING
1). The concrete ingredients are batched or
proportion based on weight.
2). Achieved by using a constructed gauge
boxes ( Farmas )
3). When batching by volume is used, possible
sources of error could lead to variation in the
amount of aggregate in a specific volume and
errors in measured volume. These errors often
leads to variations in the fresh and hardened
properties of concrete as against specified
characteristics properties.
4). Variations in quantity are very much likely for
materials. Ultimately affect strength of concrete.
5) The volume of water required for mixing is not
often specified. Sometime extra water is added
to make concrete workable. This make concrete
non uniform and reduce the strength.
6) Difficult to detect overruns or incorrect
dosages.
7) Slump varies from low to high.
8) For same mix proportion, the compressive
strength of concrete batched by volume is lower
WEIGHT BATCHING
1). The concrete ingredients are batched or
proportion based on volume.
2). Batching by mass is achieved by using
weight batching machine.
3) Nominal is mass by using regularly
maintained and well-calibrated equipment,
therefore high degree of uniformity
proportion of the fresh and hardened state
concrete can be achieved.
4). Materials batched by mass are exact in
measurement taking cognizance of the
differences in the material properties.
5). Water for mixing is weighed precisely as
a function of the cement used for each mix
proportion.
6) Each batch is weight which make it easy
to detect overruns or incorrect dosages.
7) The slump of concrete batched by mass
is higher than batched by volume for same
mix proportion and water cement ratios.
8) The compressive strength of concrete
batched by mass is higher than batched by
than batched by mass at all water cement ratios
and curing ages 7 to 28 days.
9) Admixtures are batched directly into correct
mix, which could slow batching cycle.
10) Admixtures are difficult to batch at certain
stages of the batching sequence.
11) The quality of concrete may differ because
of bulkage of fine aggregates.
12) Less precise method.
13) No need to required skilled labors.
14) Easy to operate.
15) Speed of construction is slower.
16) The maintenance cost is practically nil.
17) The method is cheaper and economical.
REFERENCE SOURCE:
volume.
9) Admixtures are pre-weighed then held in
the hoppers ensuring rapid discharge with
no impact on batch cycle.
10) Admixtures can be dosed at any stages
of batching and in multiple dumps.
11) Concrete is of uniform and consistent
quality.
12) More precise method.
13) Need skilled labors.
14) Operation difficult.
15) Speed of construction is high.
16) Maintenance cost is high.
17) This method is expensive.
 https://ind-eng-design.blogspot.com/2017/08/what-is-batching-and-what-
is-difference.htm

 https://www.quora.com/What-is-volume-batching

 https://gharpedia.com/weigh-batching-vs-volume-batching/