STRUCTURES ASSIGNMENT

Gautam Manan Sethi Lunavath Akhil Raj

2A 2A 2A
8512046140 8287616641 9390056309

Q 1)
How is cement manufactured? What are raw materials used in manufacturing
cement? Draw flow chart for manufacture of cement.

A-

1. Mining the raw material

Limestone and clay are blasted from rock quarries by boring the rock and setting
off explosives with a negligible impact of the environment, due to the modern
technology employed.

2. Transporting the raw material

Once the huge rocks have been fragmented, they are transported to the plant in
dump trucks or by conveyor belt.

3. Crushing
The quarry stone is delivered through chutes to the crushers, where it is reduced
by crushing or pounding to chunks approximately 1 ½ inches in size.

4. Prehomogenization
Prehomogenization is the proportional mix of the different types of clay,
limestones, or any other required material.

5. Raw material storage

Each of the raw materials is transported separately to silos, where it later will be
added in specific amounts according to the particular type of cement being
produced.
6. Raw material mill
This takes places in vertical steel mill, which grinds the material through the
pressure exerted by three conical rollers. Which roll over a turning milling table.
Horizontal mills, inside which the material is pulverized by means of steel balls,
are also used in this phase.
7. Raw meal homogenization
This process takes place in silos equipped for obtaining a homogenous mix of the
material.

8. Calcination
Calcination is the core portion of the process, in which huge rotary kilns come
into play. Inside, at 1400 degrees C, the raw material is transformed into clinker:
small, dark gray nodules 3-4 centimetres in diameter.

9. Cement milling
The clinker is ground by different-size steel balls while it works its way through
the mill’s two chambers, with gypsum being added to extend cement setting
times.

10. Cement packaging and shipping

The cement is then housed in storage silos, from where it is hydraulically or
mechanically extracted and transported to facilities where it will be packaged in
sacks or supplied in bulk. In either case, it can be shipped by rail car, freighter
truck or ship.

RAW MATERIAL
The most common raw rock types used in cement production are:
• Limestone (supplies the bulk of the lime)

• Clay, marl or shale (supplies the bulk of the silica, alumina and ferric oxide)
• Other supplementary materials such as sand, fly ash/pulverised fuel ash (PFA),
or ironstone to achieve the desired bulk...
Q 2)
Cement is the mixture of 4 compounds. List these compounds. What is the role
of each of these compounds in the cement?
A-

4 PRIMARY CEMENT COMPOUNDS & THEIR ROLES

1 Tricalcium Silicate (C3S)
C3S is the most abundant mineral in portland cement, occupying 40–70 wt% of
the cement, and it is also the most important. The hydration of C3S gives
cement paste most of its strength, particularly at early times.
Pure C3S can form with three different crystal structures. At temperatures
below 980˚C the equilibrium structure is triclinic. At temperatures between
980˚C – 1070˚C the structure is monoclinic, and above 1070˚C it is
rhombohedral.

2 Dicalcium Silicate (C2S)

As with C3S, C2S can form with a variety of different structures. There is a high
temperature α structure with three polymorphs, a β structure in that is in
equilibrium at intermediate temperatures, and a low temperature γ structure.
An important aspect of C2S is that g-C2S has a very stable crystal structure that
is completely unreactive in water.

3 Tricalcium Aluminate (C3A)

Tricalcium aluminate (C3A) comprises anywhere from 0 to 14% of a portland
cement. Like C3S, it is highly reactive, releasing a significant amount of
exothermic heat during the early hydration period. Unfortunately, the
hydration products of formed from C3A contribute little to the strength or other
engineering properties of cement paste. In certain environmental conditions
(i.e., the presence of sulfate ions), C3A and its products can actually harm the
concrete by participating in expansive reactions that lead to stress and
cracking.

4 Tetracalcium Aluminoferrite (C4AF)

A stable compound with any composition between C2A and C2F can be
formed, and the cement mineral termed C4AF is an approximation that simply
the represents the midpoint of this compositional series. The crystal structure is
complex, and is believed to be related to that of the mineral perovskite.

Q 3)
What are various grades of cement? Explain the differences in the nature of these
grades of cement w.r.t to strength of concrete.
A-

There are so many types of cement as per their use and types of
construction.

Mainly two types of cement

1. Ordinary Portland cement

o OPC grade 33 o OPC grade
43 o OPC grade 53
1. Portland pozzolana cement
o PPC grade 43 o
PPC grade 53
But, according to various types of use and as per structure Demand, we have to
use other type of cement.
 1. Rapid hardening cement : when we need rapid hard structure, quantity
of water is less.
2. Law heat cement : mostly used in mass concrete construction.
3. Waterproof Portland cement : as name says this cement is used for water
proofing.
4. Expansive cement : This type of cement is mainly used for grouting
anchor bolts and prestressed concrete ducts.
5. White cement : this cement, now a days we are using in plumbing work
and touch work after construction.
6. Sulfate resisting cement : This type of cement is used in the construction
of foundation and also where subsoil contains very high proportions of
sulfate .
7. Portland Pozzolana cement : mainly used for construction in sea water,
hydraulic works and for mass concrete works.

Q 4)
What are various constituents of cement? What is the role of each constituent?

A-

Composition of Cement
There are eight major ingredients of cement. The following image is showing
the ingredients of cement:
The general percentage of these ingredients in cement is given below:
Ingredient
Percentage in
cement
Lime 60-65
Silica 17-25
Alumina 3-8
Magnesia 1-3

Iron oxide 0.5-6

Calcium Sulfate 0.1-0.5
Sulfur Trioxide 1-3
Alkaline 0-1

1. Lime: Lime is calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide.

o The presence of lime in a sufficient quantity is required to form

silicates and aluminates of calcium.
o Deficiency in lime reduces the strength of property of the cement. o
Deficiency in lime causes the cement to set quickly.
o Excess lime makes cement unsound. o The excessive presence of
lime causes the cement to expand and disintegrate.

2. Silica: Silicon dioxide is known as silica, chemical formula SiO2.

• The sufficient quantity of silica should be present in cement to dicalcium

and tricalcium silicate.
• Silica imparts strength to cement.
• Silica usually presents to the extent of about 30 percent cement.

3. Alumina: Alumina is Aluminium oxide. The chemical formula is Al2O3.

o Alumina imparts quick setting property to the cement.
 o Clinkering temperature is lowered by the presence of the requisite
quantity of alumina. o Excess alumina weakens the cement.

4. Magnesia: Magnesium Oxide. The chemical formula is MgO. o Magnesia

should not be present more than 2% in cement.
o Excess magnesia will reduce the strength of the cement.

5. Iron oxide: Chemical formula is Fe2O3.

o Iron oxide imparts color to cement.
o It acts as a flux. o At a very high temperature, it imparts into the
chemical reaction with calcium and aluminium to form tricalcium
alumino-ferrite.
o Tricalcium alumino-ferrite imparts hardness and strength to
cement.

6. Calcium Sulfate: Chemical formula is CaSO4 o This is present in cement

in the form of gypsum(CaSO4.2H2O) o It slows down or retards the
setting action of cement.

7. Sulfur Trioxide: Chemical formula is SO3 o It should not be present for

more than 2%. o Excess Sulfur Trioxide causes the cement to unsound.

8. Alkaline:

o It should not be present more than 1%. o Excess Alkaline matter

causes efflorescence.

Q 5)
How is the strength of concrete specified? How is it tested at site?
 A- Concrete gains strength by ageing over time .
Strength of concrete is the crushing strength of concrete at 28 days age
expressed in N/mm2
How to determine at site –
By cube test
We take a 150mm by 150mm by 150mm concrete cube , put it between 2 steel caps
and increase the pressure gradually till the cube fails in crushing .

The procedure for the test is – 8

1) Cast 6 cubes of size 160mm * 160mm * 160mm for every sample of concrete.
2) Test 3 cubes at 7 days age and accept if strength is >= 0.67 of the required
strength at 28 days . No further testing needed .
3) Otherwise test the remaining 3 cubes at 28 days . Accept if average strength
is >= Required strength of concrete , otherwise reject .

In the above procedure we assume that the concrete at 7 days has 67% the
strength at 28 days and will gain it in the future . Hence 7 days is the
acceptance and 28 days is the rejection criterion.

Q 6)
What is the relation between age of concrete and its strength? At what age of
concrete is the standard strength of concrete specified? Explain the term ‘age
factor’.
 A- Concrete gains strength by ageing over time . The strength of concrete
increases the longer the mixture is kept after being mixed with water .
The concrete mix will gain strength even till a year
Though the rate of Gaining strength will continue decreasing .

As a standard practice , it is generally assumed that the standard strength of

concrete has to be at 28 Days. This is because concrete gains 99% of it’s
strength by 28 days
Also the increase in strength of concrete is generally ignored in design .

Age factor of concrete determines the strength of concrete over different

periods of time .

AGE (AFTER MIXING WATER) STRENGTH OF CONCRETE

1 0.20 fck
3 0.33 fck
7 0.67 fck
28 1.00 fck
3 1.10 fck
6 1.15 fck
1 1.20 fck

Q 7)
What is the meaning of M20 concrete mix? What does symbol M and number
20 mean? In which grade you would place a concrete mix whose strength at site
is found to be 24 N/mm2?
A- M20- M stands for Design Mix And 20 stands compressive strength of
concrete after 28 days curing.
It denotes a certain grade of concrete . It's ratio should be 1:1.5:3 (cement :
fine aggregate : course aggregate ) and the compressive strength will be
 20N/MM^2 after 28days of casting when we test the cube by applying load
over it.

24 N/mm2 at 7 days – M35

24 N/mm2 at 28 days – Not a standard mix – closest to M25

Q 8)
What are advantages and disadvantages of concrete as building material? what
are the roles of individual constituents ?
A- Advantages and disadvantages of concrete –

ADVANTAGES –
Concrete has several advantages due to which it has become the chief
building material on the planet.

1) unparalleled strength, durability, longevity and resilience

2) durability in any environment
3) a building material that doesn’t burn, rust or rot 4) safety and security and cheap.
5) excellent vibration and sound insulating
6) low maintenance costs
7) 100 % recyclability, plus the materials needed to make concrete are abundant in
just about every locale on the planet
8) the lowest carbon footprint for a structure or pavement over its lifecycle

DISADVANTAGES –
Concrete has several disadvantages too.

1) Concrete has a very low tensile strength and requires the use of reinforcing
bars in concrete tensile zone.
2) Expensive formwork is required for casting and molding and to hold the
concrete in place until it hardens sufficiently.
3) The low strength per unit of weight of concrete leads to heavy members
4) Compared to steel, the concrete has significantly low toughness. Toughness
of concrete is only 1-2% of steel.
5) The properties of concrete vary widely due to variations in its proportioning
and mix-ing.
6) Concrete is bulkier that steel or wood, increasing dead load of structure.

The basic constituents of concrete are cement, water and aggregate. Other
constituents such as admixtures, pigments, fibres, polymers and
reinforcement, can be incorporated to modify the properties of the plastic or
hardened concrete.
A cement is a binder, a substance used for construction that sets, hardens,
and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement mixed with fine
aggregate produces mortar for masonry, or with sand and gravel, produces
concrete.

Bonding: water in the ingredient in the concrete that mixes with cement to
form what is called a binder. It establishes/increases the bond between the
cement, the aggregate and the admixture. The role of water is to reduce
external friction between the concrete and whichever equipment being used
to mix it. It will also reduce internal friction between the aggregate and the
cement.

The aggregates contribute to the overall strength of the concrete. The

gradation, or quantity of aggregate at specific and varying sizes is important,
as is the type of aggregate used. It helps in locking together the structure of
concrete.