c 125- e8

Desisnation:
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StandardTerminologyRelatingto T
Concreteand ConcreteAggregatesl 1
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This standardis issued under the fixed designationC 125; úe number imrnediately following the designationindicates úe year of
original adoptionor, in the caseof revision, úe year of last revision. A number in parenúesesindicatesúe year of last reapproval.A
superscriptepsilon (e) indicates al editorial change since the last revision or reapproval. I

This terminology has been approvedfor use by agenciesof the Department of Defense.
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1. Scope setting and early strength development of concrete. (C 494)
1.1 The following definitions apply to hydraulic cement air-entraining admixture, n-admixture that causes the
concrete,although some of úem may have wider application.2 development of a system of microscopic air bubbles in t,
conçrete or mortar during mixing. ble
2. Referenced Documents retarding admixture, n-admixture that retards the setting il
2.1 ASTM Standards: of concrete. (C 494) b
C 109/C l09M Test Meüod for Compressive Strength of water-reducing admixture, n-admixture that either in-
Hydraulic Cement Mortars (Jsing 2-in. or 50-mm Cube creases the slump of freshly mixed mortar or concrete bul
Specimens)3 without increasing the water content or that maintains the b
C 143/C 143M Test Method for Slump of Hydraulic Ce- slump with a reduced amount of water due to factors oúer
ment Concrete4 than air entrainment.
C 403 Test Method for Time of Setting of Concrete Mix- aggregate, n-granuÌar material, such as sand, gravel, crushed
tures by PenetrationResistancea stone, or iron blast-furnace slag, used with a cementing al
C 494 Specification for Chemical Admixtures for Concretea medium to form hydraulic-cement concrete or mortar.
coarse aggregate, n-(1) aggregate predominantly re- bull
C 939 Test Method for Flow of Grout for Preplaced-
tainedon the 4.75-mm (No. 4) sieve;or (2) that portion of an a
Aggregate Concrete (Flow Cone Meúod)a
aggregateretained on úe 4.15-mm (No. 4) sieve. ir
C lO74 Practice for Estimating Concrete Strensth bv the
ú
Maturity Methoda DrscussroN-The definitions are alternatives to be appÌied under v(
differing circumstances.Definition (1) is appüedto an entire.aggr.egare
3. Terminology buil
-;
eitìer in a naturaÌ condition or after processing.Definition (2) is
applied to a portion of an aggregate.Reqúrementsfor properriesand m
absorption, n-the processby which a liquid is drawn into and w
grading should be statedin the specification.
tendsto fill permeableporesin a porous solid body; also,the VC
increasein mass of a porous solid body resulting from the fine aggregate,n-(l) aggregatepassingthe %-in. (9.5- of
penetration of a liquid into its permeable pores. mm) sieve and almost entirely passingthe 4.75-mm (No. 4) cellu
sieve and predominantly retained on the 15-prm (Ì.{o. 200) ha
thecaseof concreteandconcrete
DrscussroN-In aggregates,
unÌess
otherwisestated,the liquid involved is water, the increasein mass is
sieve; or (2) that portion of an aggregate passing the ga
that which doesnot include water adheringto úe outside surface,the 4.15-mm (No. 4) sieve and retained on the 75-trr,mQ.,lo.200) ceml
increasein mass is expressedas a percentageof úe dry mass of the sieve. or
"dry" when it has
body and the body is consideredto be been treated
DrscussroN-The definitionsare alternatives to be appliedunder str
by an appropriateprocessto removeuncombinedwater, such as drying
differingcircumstances.Definition(1) is appiiedto anentireaggegate hy
to constantmassat a temperatwebetween100 ald 110"C.
either in a naturalconditionor after processing. Definition (2) is cem(
admixture, n-a maÍenal other than water, aggregates, hy- appliedto a portionof an aggregate.Reqúrements for propertiesand gr(
draulic cemenq and fiber reinforcement used as an ingredi-
gradingshouldbe statedin the specifications.
concl
ent of concrete or mortar and added to úe batch immediately heavyweight aggregate, n-aggregate of high density; a t
before or during its mixing. such as barite, magnetite, limonite, ilmenite, iron, or steel. fra
ac c ele ratin g admixture, /r-admixture úat accelerates the lightweíght aggregate, n-aggregate of low density used bin
to. produce lightweight concrete, including: pumice, scoria, wa
'This terminology is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Comrnittee C-9 on volçanic çinders, tuff, and diatomite; expanded or sintered consi
Concreteand ConcreteAggregatesand is the direct responsibilityof Subcommittee clay, shale,slate,diatomaceousshale,perlite, vermiculite,or reli
C09.91 on Editorial and Terminology. slag; and end products of coal or coke combustion.
Cunent edition approvedSept. 10, 1998. PublishedDecember 1998. Originally Ì
published as C I 25 - 36 T. Last previous edition C 125- 97.
air-cooled blast-furnace slag, n-the material resulting from diff
'C 219, Terminology Relating to Hydraulic Cement contains dehnitions of a solidification of molten blast-furnace slag under atmospheric Pro'
number of items in use in staldards under the jurisdiction of Committee C-9. conditions; subsequentcooling may be acceleratedby appli- scri
Definitions of additionaltems may be found in Cementand ConcreteTenninology, cation of water to úe solidified surface. met
116RAmericanConcreteInstitute.P. O. Box 19150.Detroit.MI 48219. flov
3Annual Book ofASTM Standards,Vol 04.01. air content, n-the volume of air voids in cement paste,
a Annual Book of ASTM Standards,Vol 04.02. mortar, or concrete, exclusive of pore space in aggregate

60
 (fll}lc res
particles,usually expressedas a percentage of totaì volume
of the paste, mortaÍ, or concrete.
air void, r?-a spacein cement paste, mortar, or concrete filled
with air; an entrapped air void is characteristically I rìm or
morein width and irregular in shape;an entrained air void is
typically between 10 and 1000 irm in diameter and spherical
or nearly so.
DrscussroN-The
contentof the voidsmay includeatmospheric air
incorporated into the concreteduring mixing of air or other gases
released by chemicaÌor otherprocesses within the freshconcrete.
blast-furnaceslag, n-the nonmetallic product. consisting
essentiallyof silicates and aluminosilicatesof calcium and
otherbases,that is developedin a molten condition simul-
taneouslywith iron in a blast furnace.
bfeeding,n-the autogenous flow of mixing water within, or
its emergencefrom, newly placed concrete or mortar caused
by the settlement of the solid materials within úe mass, also
calledwater gain.
bulk density, n-of aggregate, the mass of a unit volume of
bulk aggregate material (the unit volume includes the
volume of the individual particles and the volume of the
voidsbetween the particles).
Drscussror-This termreplaces thedeprecated termunit weight----o/ expanded blast-furnace slag, n-the lightweight çellular
agSreSate.
bulkspecifïc gravity, n-the ratio of the mass of a volume of
a material (including the permeable and impermeable voids
in the material, but exçluding the voids between particles of
thematerial) at a stated temperature of the mass of an equal
volumeof distilled water at a stated temperature.
bufk specific gravity (saturated swface dry), n-the ratio of
the mass of a volume of a material including the mass of
water within the voids in the material (but excluding the
voidsbetween particles) at a stated temperature,to the mass
of an equal volume of distilled water at a statedtemperature.
cellularconcrete, n-a lightweight hydraulic-cement concrete
havinga homogeneous void or cell structure attained using
gas-formingchemicals or foaming agents.
cementitiousmaterial (hydraulic), n-an inorganic material
or a mixture of inorganic materials úat sets and develops
strengthby chemical reaction wiú water by formation of
hydratesand is capableof doing so under water.
cementitious mixture, n-a mixture (mortar, concrete, or
grout)containing hydraulic cement.
concrete,/?-a composite material that consists essentially of
a binding medium within which are embedded particles or
fragmentsof aggregate; in hydraulic-cement concrete, úe
binder is formed from a mixture of hydraulic cement and
water.
consistency,n-of fresh concrete, nlortar, or grout, the
relativemobility or ability to flow.
DrscussroN-This characteristic
of fresh cementitious mixturesis
difficult to quantify and empirical test methodshave been adoptedto
provideindicators of consistency.For example, the slump test de-
scribedin Test Meúod C 143 is used for concrete. the flow tabie
methoddescribedin Test Meúod C 109 is used for mortar, and the
flow cone method describedin Test Meúod C 939 is used for grout.
61
crushed gravel, n-the product resulting from the artificial
crushing of gravel with substantially all fragments having at
least one face resulting from fracfure.
crushed stone, n-the product resulting from the artificial
crushing of rocks, boulders,or large cobblestones,substan-
tially all faces of which have resulted from the crushing
operation.
curing, n-the maintenance of moisture and temperature
conditions in a çementitious mixture to allow its properties
to develop.
curing compound, n-a liquid that, when applied as a coating
to the surface of newly-placed concrete, forms a membrane
that retards the evaporation of water and, in the caseof white
pigmented compounds, reflects heat (see also curing).
D-cracking, n-in concrele, a series of cracks near to and
roughly parallel to features such as joints, edges, and
structural cracks.
elongated piece (of aggregate), n-a parÍicle of aggiegate for
which the ratio of úe length to widú of its circumscribing
rectangular prism is greater than a specified value (see also
flat piece (of aggregate)).
entrained air-see air void.
entrapped air-see air void.
material obtained by controlled processing of molten blast-
furnace slag with water or water and other agents, such as
steam or compressed air or both.
Íïneness modulus, n-v fsç1syobtained by adding the percent-
agesof material in the sample that is coarserthan each of the
following sieves (cumulative percentages retained), and
dividing the sum by 100: 150-pm (No. 100), 300-pm (No.
50), 600-pm (No. 30), 1.1S-mm(No. 16), 2.36-mm(No. 8),
4.15-mm (No. 4), 9.5-mm (3/z-in.), 19.0-mm (3/+-in.),
37.5-mm (lVz-in.), 75-mm (3-in.), 150-mm (6-in.).
flat piece (of aggregate), n-a particle of aggregatefor which
the ratio of the width to thickness of its circumscribing
rectangular prism is greater than a specified value (see also
elongated píece (of aggregate)).
fly ash, n-the fìnely divided residue that results from úe
combustion of ground or powdered coal and úat is Íans-
ported by flue gases.
fresh concrete, n-concrete which possessesenough of its
original workability so that it can be placed and consolidated
by the intended methods.
granulated blast-furnace slag, n-the glassy, granular mate-
rial formed when molten blast-furnace slag is rapidly chilled,
as by immersion in water.
grayel, /?-coaÍse aggÍegateresulting from natural disintegra-
tion anC abrasion of.rock or processingof weakly bound
corÍglomerate.
hydraulic cement, n-a cement úat sets and hardens by
chemical reaction with water and is capable of doing so
under water.
laitance, n-a layer of weak material derived from cementi-
tious material and aggregate fines either: 1) carried by
bleeding to the surface or to internal cavities of freshÌy
placed concrete, or 2) separated from the concrete and
 fill,c 1 2 5
deposited on úe concrete surface or in internal cavities
during placement of concrete under water.
manufactured sand, n-fine aggregateproduced by crushing
rock, gravel, iron blast-furnace slag, or hydraulic-cement
concrete.
maturity, n-the extent of úe development of a property of a
cementitious mixture.
DrscussroN-This term is usuallyusedto describeúe extentof
relativestrengúdevelopment of concrete.
However,thetermcanalso
be appÌiedto theevolutionof otherpropeÍieswhicharedependent on
the chernicalreactionswhich occurin úe cementitiousmaterials.At
anyage,maturityis dependent on the curinghistory.
maturity function, n-a mathematical expression which uses
the measuredtemperature history of a cementitious mixture
during úe curing period to calculate an index that is
indicative of the maturity at the end of that period.
mâturity index, n-an indicator of maturity which is calcu-
lated from the temperature history of úe cementitious
mixture by using a maturity function.
Drscussrow-The indexis indicativeof maturityprovided
calculated
úere hasbeena sufficientsupplyof waterfor hydrationor pozzolanic
materialsduringthetime intervalusedin
reactionof thecementitious
Two widelyusedmaturityindexesareúe temperature-
thecalculation.
time factorandtheequivalentage.SeePracticeC 1074.
maximum size (of aggregate), n-in specifications for, or
description of aggregate,the smallest sieve opening through
which úe entiÍe amount of aggregate is required to pass.
nominal maximum size (of aggregate), n-in specifications
for, or description of aggregate, the smallest sieve opening
through which the entire amount of úe aggregateis permit-
ted to pass.
Drscussrou-Specifications
on aggregates usuallystipuÌatea sieve
openingthroughwhichall of úe aggregate may,but neednot,passso
úat a statedmaximumproportionof theaggregate maybe retainedon
thatsieve.A sieveopeningsodesignated is Íhenomínalmaxímum size
of the aggregate.
pozzola;n,n-a siliceous or siliceous and aluminous material,
which in itself possesseslittle or no cementitiousvalue but
will, in finely divided form and in úe presenceof moisture,
chemically react wiú calcium hydroúde at ordinary tempera-
tures to form compoundspossessingcementitiousproperties.
roller-compacted concrete (RCC), n-concrete compacted
while fresh by a roller, often a vibratory roller.
sand, n-fine aggregate resulting from natural disintegration
and abrasion of rock or processing of completely friable
sandstone.
segregation, n-the unintentional separation of the constitu-
ents of concrete or particles of an aggregate,causing a lack
of uniformity in úeir distribution.
setting, n-the process, due to chemical reactions, occurring
after the addition of mixins water. that results in a sradual
62
development of rigidity of a cementitious mixture.
specific gravity, n-the ratio of úe mass of a volume of a
material at a stated temperature to úe mass of úe same
volume of distilled water at a stated temperafure.
time of setting, n-the elapsed time from úe addition of
mixing water to a cementitious mixture until the mixture
reaches a specified degree of rigidity as measured by a
specific procedure.
DscussroN-Development of rigidityduringsettingis a gradualand
continuousprocess,and the time of settingis definedarbitrarilyin
termsof a giventestmethod.Forcementitious mixtures,timeof setting
is usuallydefiled as úe elapsedtime to attaina specifiedlevel of
resistance to penetration
by a probe.For example,the time of initial
settingof concreteis determined by TestMethodC 403andis defined
as the elapsedtime,afterinitial contactof cementandwater,for the
mortarsievedfromtheconcrete to reacha penetration
resistanceof 500
psi (3.5MPa).
time of final setting (of concrete), n-Íhe elapsed time,
after initial contact of cement and water, required for the
mortar sieved from the concrete to reach a penetration
resistanceof 4000 psi (27.6 MPa). (C 403)
time of initial setting (of concrete), n-the elapsed time,
after initial contact of cement and water, required for the
mortar sieved from úe concrete to reach a penetration
resistanceof 500 psi (3.5 MPa). (C a03)
unit weight, n----of aggregate, mass per unit volume. @epre-
cated terÍn-use preferred term bulk density.)
water-cement ratio, n-the ratio of the mass of water,
exclusive only of úat absorbed by úe aggregates, to úe
mass of portland cement in concrete, mortar, or grout, stated
as a decimal.
Drscussrou-Thisterm, abbreviated as w/c, is applicableonly to
cementitiousmixturesin which the only cementiüousmaterialis
portlandcement. Forcementitious mixturescontainingblendedhydrau-
lic cement,or a combilationof portlandcementandsepÍuate addition
of anothercementitious material(suchas a pozzolan),use the term
water-cementitious material ratio.
water-cementitious material ratio, r?-the ratio of the mass
of water, exclusive only of úat absorbedby the aggregates,
to the mass of cementitious material (hydraulic) in concrete,
mortar, or grout, stated as a decimal (seealso water-cement
ratio).
DscussroN-Thisterm,abbreviated asw/(ctm),is applicable
onÌyto
cementitiousmixtureswhichcontaincemenütious materialotherthan
just portlandcement,such as a blendedhydrauliccement,or a
combinationof portlandcementand sepaÍateaddiüonof anoúer
cementitiousmaterial(suchas a pozzolan).Whenportlandcementis
the only cementitious
materialcontainedin thecemenútious mixture,
usethe termwater-cementratio.
workability of concrete, n-that property determining úe
effort required to manipulate a freshly mixed quantity of
concretewith minimum loss of homogeneity.
 fil}lc rzs
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