Course Name: FPM1151-Farm Mechanics

Building Materials
Sand

Department of Farm Power and Machinery

Bangladesh Agricultural University
2 What will cover this topic?
 What is sand?

 Classification of sand:
- Source
- Size

 Properties of good sand

 Test of sand

 Use of sand
3 What is sand?
 Sand is the weathered and worn out particle of rocks
(mainly quartzite) and are of various grades or sizes
depending upon the intensity of weathering.

 Sand may be of argillaceous siliceous or calcareous

according to its composition.

 In concrete work, it is usually termed as fine

aggregate.
4 Classification of sand: based on source
 Pit Sand
- sharp angular in shape, porous and free from salts.
- might contain clay and other impurities which should be
screened and washed before use.
- light brown or yellowish in color. Suitable for mortar work.

 River Sand
- fine, round and polished.
- contains earthy impurities like gravels, pebbles etc. These
impurities should be screened and washed before used.
- whiter in color, globular and smaller in size than pit sand
and hence most suited for plastering works.
5 Classification of sand: based on source
 Sea Sand
- fine, round and polished.
- it is the worst of the three varieties because it contains sea
salts which absorb moisture from the atmosphere causing
permanent dampness and efflorescence and thereby the
work gradually disintegrates.
- it also contains shells and organic matter which decompose
in the body of mortar; plaster and concrete also reduce
their life and strength.
6 Classification of sand: based on size
 Fine Sand
- All the sand particles should pass through No.16 {(American
Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM)} sieve (size 1/16
inch). This is usually used in plastering works.

 Moderately coarse sand

- All the sand particles should pass through No.8 (ASTM) sieve
(size 1/8 inch). This type of sand is generally used for mortar in
masonry works.

 Coarse sand
- All the particles should pass through No.4 (ASTM) sieve (size
3/16 inch). This type of sand is very suited for concrete work.
7 Size of sieve
8 Properties of good sand
 should be of pure silica (SiO2).

 should have sharp, angular and hard grain.

 should be free from clay, silt, organic matter, shells

and salts.

It is preferable that sand should be washed before use

in all engineering construction.
9 Test of Sand: Silt & Clay
 The presence of silt and clay in sand is determined
by the percentage loss in weight of a sample after
washing the same with clean water.
10 Test of Sand: Organic matter
 The presence of organic matter is determined by
stirring a sample of sand with 3% solution of sodium
hydroxide or caustic soda in a closed bottle. The
sample is left for 24 hours.

 The color of the solution turns brown if any organic

matter is present. The amount of organic matter is
determined from the intensity of darkness of the
solution.

 Such impurities can be removed by washing the

sand.
11 Availability of sand in BD
 Very good variety of river sand is available in the
districts of Dhaka (Savar, Kaliakair), Mymensingh
(Durgapur) and Sylhet (Sunamganj).

 Both sea sand and river sand of good quality are

found in coastal districts like: Khulna, Noakhali and
Chittagong.

 A good variety of coarse sand is abundantly found in

Cox's Bazar. Sands are also available in northern
districts of Bangladesh but not good quality.
12 Use of sand

 Sand is mainly used in making:

 Mortar
 Plaster
 Concrete
 Fill up gaps in between bricks in road construction
 Manufacturing sheet glasses.
13 Fineness modulus
• Fineness Modulus is an empirical formula obtained by taking
the sum of the cumulative percentages of sand retained on
the following standard sieves, 3″, 1½″, ¾″, ⅜″, No.4, No.8,
No.16, No.30, No.50 and No.100 and dividing the sum by
100. It is generally denoted by F. The fineness modulus of
sand should be between 2 to 3. A smaller value of fineness
modulus indicates the presence of larger proportions of finer
particles and vice-versa.
• If two or more different variety of sand is mixed together the
combined fineness modulus of the mixed sample can be
determined as follows:
• m1 F1  m2 F2        mn Fn
Fcom 
m1  m2        mn
14 Fineness modulus
• In which Fcom = combined fineness modulus.
• F1 and F2 = fineness modulus of sample 1 and 2
respectively.
• m1 and m2 = Amount of samples 1 and 2 respectively.
• If R is the ratio of one variety of sand to be mixed with one of
the other variety, then

F1  Fcom
R
Fcom  F2