INTRODUCTION TO CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND VII.

STIFFNESS
TESTING

I. DEFINITION OF CIVIL ENGINEERING

I. MATERIAL TESTING
II. CLASSIFICATION OF SOLID MATERIALS
A. DEFINITION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS AND
a. METALS
TESTING
b. CERAMICS
i. MATERIAL TESTING
c. POLYMERS
1. IMPORTANCE OF MATERIAL TESTING
d. COMPOSITE
a. Meeting
e. ADVANCED MATERIALS
b. Selection
III. TYPES AND PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS
c. Evaluation
a. AMORPHOUS
d. Verification
b. CONSTRUCTION
2. TYPES OF MATERIAL TESTING
c. COMPOSITE
a. MECHANICAL TESTING
d. ELASTOMERIC
i. Ductility
e. INSULATION
ii. Toughness
f. METALLIC
iii. Brittleness
g. RAW
iv. Hardness
h. REPAIR
v. Plasticity
i. DUCTILE
vi. Elasticity
j. ELASTIC
vii. Strength
k. BRITTLE
b. NON-DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
IV. CIVIL ENGINEERING MATERIALS
(NDT)
a. WOOD
II. CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL AND TYPES OF TESTS
b. CEMENT & CONCRETE
A. DEFINITION OF CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
c. BITUMENS & BITUMINOUS
i. AGGREGATES
d. STRUCTURAL CLAY & CONCRETE UNITS
1. SIEVE ANALYSIS
e. REINFORCING & STRUCTURAL STEELS
2. WATER ABSORPTION
V. PROPERTIES OF CIVIL ENGINEERING MATERIALS
3. AGGREGATE ABRASION VALUE
a. PHYSICAL
4. AGGREGATE IMPACT VALUE
b. MECHANICAL
5. AGGREGATE CRUSHING VALUE
c. CHEMICAL
ii. BITUMEN
VI. FORCES, LOADS, STRESSES
 1. BITUMEN BINDER CONTENT 4. SHEAR TEST
2. FLASH AND FIRE POINT OF BITUMEN 5. BRINELL HARDNESS TEST
a. FLASH POINT 6. IMPACT TEST
b. FIRE POINT a. Charpy Test
3. PENETRATION OF BITUMEN b. Drop Weight Test
4. SOFTENING POINT OF BITUMEN
TORSION TEST
5. SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF BITUMEN
6. DUCTILITY OF BITUMEN
7. MARSHAL STABILITY OF BITUMEN
iii. CEMENT
1. FINENESS TEST
2. SOUNDNESS TEST
3. CONSISTENCY TEST
4. SETTING TIME TEST
a. Initial Setting Time of Cement
b. Final Setting Time of Cement
iv. CONCRETE
1. TEST OF FRESH CONCRETE
a. SLUMP TEST
b. COMPACTION FACTOR TEST
c. VEE BEE TEST
d. K-SLUMP TEST
2. TEST OF HARDENED CONCRETE
a. COMPRESSION STRENGTH
TEST
b. FLEXURAL STRENGTH TEST
c. REBOUND HAMMER TEST
d. ULTRASONIC PULSE VELOCITY
v. STEEL REINFORCEMENT
1. TENSILE STRENGTH TEST
2. BEND TEST
3. RE-BEND TEST
Civil engineering consists of the design, construction, chemically based on carbon, hydrogen, and other
maintenance, inspection and management of nonmetallic element.
characteristically diverse public works projects, from
4) Composites - engineered combinations of two or more
railroads to high rise buildings to sewage treatment centers.
different materials.
Their construction maybe under or above ground, off shore,
or island. 5) Advanced Materials - used in high technology
applications.

TYPES AND PROPERTIES OF MATERIALS

CLASSIFICATION OF SOLID MATERIALS
AMORPHOUS MATERIALS- materials in which the atoms
1) Metals
are arranged almost randomly, or those that do not have
2) Ceramics crystalline structure. Generally materials are strong and
brittle. these
3) Polymers
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS- materials that are used in
4) Composites
the building industry, such as cement, steel, brick, plastics,
5) Advanced Materials wood, glass, ceramics and concrete.

COMPOSITE MATERIALS- materials wherein two or more

different types of materials are combined in macroscopic
CLASSIFICATION OF SOLID MATERIAL
structural units. Many materials that have two or more
based primarily on chemical make up and atomic structure. constituents, such are metallic alloys and polymer bonds.
1.) Metals are composed of one or more metallic elements ELASTOMERIC MATERIALS- a polymer having elastic
(eg. iron, aluminum) and often also nonmetallic elements property which means it can be stretched by large amounts
(eg. Carbon, nitrogen and oxygen) in relatively small and that will return to its original form.
amount.
INSULATING MATERIALS- materials that are provided for
2) Ceramics are compounds between metallic and sound, thermal and electrical insulation. It is best used by
nonmetallic elements; they are most frequently oxides, the C.E. in constructing the roof, applying the insulating
nitrides and carbides. material between the truss and the roof it decreases the
thermal capacity beneath the subjected area.
3) Polymers - include the familiar plastic and rubber
materials, many of them are organic compounds that are
METALLIC MATERIALS - generally classified as ferrous and CONCRETE is one of the most common construction
nonferrous, metals are used in construction and materials in which Portland cement is the essential
manufacturing. ingredient.

RAW MATERIALS - natural products or materials that are BITUMEN which comes in a variety of forms is mixed with
transformed through manufacturing processes. other raw materials for the construction of pavements, roof
shingles, water proofing and many other materials.
REPAIR MATERIALS - these are materials used to repair a
deteriorating structure of concrete or steel. They may PROPERTIES OF CIVIL ENGINEERING MATERIALS
include several classes of materials such as fillers, water
Materials for engineering application are selected so as to
proofing compound and materials for general sealants.
perform satisfactory during service. The material for a
DUCTILE is the property that makes it possible for a highway bridge should posses adequate strength rough
material to be drawn out or stretched to a considerable surface and sufficient rigidity. • physical properties •
extent, from a significant sustained load, before rupture. mechanical properties • chemical properties

ELASTIC is the ability of a material to deform under a load, PHYSICAL PROPERTIES are those derived from the
without a permanent set or deformation upon the release of properties of matter or attributed to the physical structure.
the load. A perfectly elastic material should recover They include density, porosity, void content, moisture
completely it's original shape and dimensions when loads content, sp. gravity, permeability and structure.
are removed.
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES measure the resistance of a
BRITTLE denotes relatively little or no elongation or material to applied loads or forces. Some reflect the
increase in length at fracture. wood cement and concrete strength of the material whereas others measure the
bitumen’s and bituminous structural clay and concrete units deformations, capacity or stiffness.
reinforcing and structural steels These are sometimes called
CHEMICAL PROPERTIES - are those pertaining to the
structural materials. Added to these are plastics, soils and
composition and potential reaction of a material. The
aluminum. All these are employed in variety of civil
compounds composition, such as oxides and carbonates,
engineering structures such as dams bridges, roads,
describe the chemical nature of the material and the way it
foundations and liquid retaining structures, waterfront
would behave in a certain environment.
construction, buildings and retaining walls.
FORCES, LOADS AND STRESSES When a body is pulled or
CIVIL ENGINEERING MATERIALS:
pushed it is said to be acted upon by a force. If a chair is
WOOD is derived from trees and can be put to use directly push downwards by sitting on it, it does not move for the
as pieces of lumber cut from a log. solid floor pushes upward against it with an equal force or so
called the equilibrium. When a solid body is subjected to TOPIC 1. MATERIAL TESTING
external forces called loads, the body is deformed and
Construction Materials and Testing is an
internal forces are produced. The internal forces or internal
important course in civil engineering as it discusses the
stresses that act between consecutive particles are said to
reliability and suitability if materials used in the construction
be proportional to the external loads.
process. It defines the safety and longevity of the
Stiffness is relative measure of the deformability of a construction materials used in the structures.
material under load. A material that develops a high level of
Material Testing is the measurement of the
strain at a given is less stiff that a material showing less
characteristics and behavior of materials such as metals,
strain under the same stress. The stiffness of a material is
concrete, ceramics or plastics under various conditions. The
measured in terms of its modulus of elasticity. Elasticity is
information obtained as the result of testis specifies the
that property of a material that enables to change its length,
suitability of materials for various applications (eg. building
volume, or form in direct response to an applied force and to
or aircraft construction, machinery and packaging etc.).
recover its original size or form when the load is completely
Generally, materials testing is performed to certify material
removed.
for a given specification or to verify that it meets a certain
STIFFNESS criterion. The testing may evaluate mechanical properties
such as strength, hardness and elasticity or determine the
The elastic limit is the maximum stress below which a
composition or elemental content of the material. The
material will fully recover its original form upon the removal
regulatory criterion or standards are defined by National and
of the applied force.
International Bodies like International Organization
The proportional limit is the maximum stress below which Standardization (ISO) and the American Society for Testing
the ratio between the stress and the strain is constant. Materials (ASTM).

Importance of Material Testing:

1. Meeting the regulatory requirements like National

Building Code, National Structural Code of the Philippines,
international organization and others.

2. Selection of the appropriate materials and treatments for

application

3. Evaluation of the product design and improvement of

specifications
4. Verification of the production process and discontinuities without causing damage to the original
part.

Types of Material Testing

TOPIC 2: Construction Material and Types of Test
1. Mechanical Testing
Construction Materials are items, material or
Mechanical testing aims to find out the properties of
supply, fixtures or equipment consumed or used in
the materials such as the yield strength or hardness,
construction process. In general, there are five (5) types of
toughness where the materials are physically tested to
construction materials: aggregates, steel reinforcement,
destruction
cement, concrete and bitumen. Each material has its distinct
■Ductility- ability to be stretched into a wire characteristics that must conform to the standards and
specifications for specific structural components.
■ Toughness - ability to absorb energy and plastically
deform without fracturing Test carried out on construction materials

■ Brittleness - break easily or suddenly without any plastic 1. AGGREGATES

deformation first
Aggregate is a collective term for the mineral
■ Hardness - measure of how easily a material can be materials such as sand, gravel and crushed stone that are
scratched or indented used with a binding medium (such as water, bitumen,
Portland cement, lime, etc.) to form compound materials
■ Plasticity
(such as asphalt concrete and Portland cement concrete).
■ Elasticity - ability of a material to return to its original
Sieve Analysis
form
A sieve analysis (or gradation test) is an analytical
■ Strength- Compressive and tensile strength
technique used to determine the particle size distribution a
granular material by allowing the material to pass through a
sense of sieves of progressively smaller mesh size and
II. Non-Destructive Testing (NDT)
weighing the amount of material collected in each sieve
It is a kind of testing and analysis technique used to
Water Absorption
evaluate the properties of materials, component, structure
or system for characteristic differences or welding defects Water absorption test is used to measure the amount of
water that an aggregate can absorb It is the increase in the
mass of the aggregate due to the penetration of water into applied compressive load. Aggregate crushing value is
the pores of the particles dung a prescribed period of time. defined as the percentage by weight of the crushed (or
The term absorption does not include the amount of water finer) maternal obtained when the test aggregates are
adhering to the surface of the particles. Water absorption is subjected to a specified load under standardized conditions,
expressed as percentage of the dry mass and the strength of the aggregate used in road construction
is expressed by numerical index. Aggregates with lower
Aggregate Abrasion Value
crushing value shows a lower crushed fraction under load
Abrasion Test measures the toughness and resistance like and would give a longer service life to the road and hence a
degradation, crushing and disintegration. The test is more economical performance If we used a weaker it would
suggested by AASHTO T96 or ASTM C131 called as the get crushed under traffic loads, would produce smaller
"Resistance to degradation of small coarse aggregate by pieces not coated with binder and these would be easily
Abrasion" and impact on the Los Angles Abrasion Test displaced or loosened out resulting in loss of the
Machine. The test ensures that aggregates used for the surface/layer Due to this reason the aggregates used in road
surface course of road pavements can resist wear and tear construction must be strong enough to withstand crushing
of traffic movement and traffic loads. under roller and traffic

Aggregate Impact Value II. BITUMEN

The aggregate impact value gives a relative measure Bitumen or asphalt are any of various mixtures of
of the resistance of an aggregate to sudden shock or hydrocarbons (such as tar) often together with their non-
impact, which in some aggregates differs from its resistance metallic derivatives that occur naturally or are obtained as
to a slow compressive load. The aggregate impact value is a residues after heat-refining natural substances (such as
measure of resistance to sudden impact or shock, which petroleum). Bitumen is also defined as substance produced
may differ from its resistance to gradually applied through the distillation of crude oil that is known for its
compressive load. Due to movement of vehicle on the road waterproofing and adhesive properties. Bitumen production
the aggregates are subjected to impact resulting in their through distillation removes lighter crude oil components,
breaking down into smaller pieces. The aggregates should such as gasoline and diesel, leaving the "heavier" bitumen
therefore have sufficient toughness to resist their behind. The producer often refines it several times to
disintegration on due to impact. improve its grade

Aggregate Crushing Value Bitumen binder content

The crushing value test gives a relative measure of The determination of binder content of bituminous
the resistance of an aggregate to crushing under a gradually mixtures is one of the major properties that affect pavement
performance. The binder content affects the pavement's Penetration test of Bitumen determines the hardness
tendency to permanent deformation, fatigue cracking and or softness of bitumen by measuring the depth in millimeter
moisture damage. The binder content can be determined by to which a standard loaded needle will penetrate vertically
ignition method and hot/cold extraction. Centrifuge in five seconds while the temperature of the bitumen
Extractor is the machine used to determine the amount of sample is maintained at 25. Also, the Penetration test of
bitumen. bitumen is used to measure the consistency of bitumen. A
penetrometer consisting of a needle assembly with a total
Flash and Fire point of bitumen
weight of 100 grams and a device for releasing and locking
The flash point is an important concept in fire needle is mainly used in the determination of the
investigation and fire protection because it is the lowest penetration of the bitumen.
temperature at which a risk of fire exists with a given liquid.
Softening point of bitumen
It is crucial in many circumstances to establish the presence
of some liquids and to know their flash point during the Bitumen are viscoelastic materials without sharply
investigation process. The high density of bitumen will show defined melting points, they gradually become softer and
the higher value of fire & flashpoint. When the bitumen less viscous as the temperature rises. The softening point of
sample is mixed with other particles, then it shows different bitumen can be determined through the use of a ring-and-
values while testing the sample. Improper specimen heating ball apparatus immersed in distilled water (30 to 80°C) or
will affect the result of the test. The Pensky-Martens USP glycerin (above 80 to 157°C) The softening point is
apparatus is used in determine the flash point and fire point reported as the mean of the temperatures at which the two
of the bitumen disks soften enough to allow each ball, enveloped in
bitumen, to fall a distance of 25 mm (10 in).
Flash Point - The flash point of a material is the
lowest temperature at which the application of test flame The softening point is useful in the classification of
causes the vapours from the material to momentarily catch bitumen, as one element in establishing the uniformity of
fire in the form of a flash under specified conditions of the shipments or sources of supply, and is indicative of the
test tendency of the material to flow at elevated temperatures
encountered in service
Fire Point-The fire point is the lowest temperature at
which the application of test flame causes the material to Specific gravity of bitumen
ignite and burn at least for 5 seconds under specified
Specific gravity of a bitumen binder is a fundamental
conditions of the test
property frequently required as an aid in classing binders for
Penetration of bitumen use in paving jobs. Bitumen weights sometimes have to be
converted into volumes for asphalt concrete mix design
calculations for which a knowledge of specific gravity is Cement is a fine gray powder that is mixed with water
essential Specific gravity is also used in identifying the and other substances to make mortar or concrete. It is a key
source of bitumen binder Bitumen binder has specific building maternal in both residential and commercial
gravity in the range of 0.97 to 1.02 The specific gravity is construction work. Cement is manufactured through a
the ratio of mass of a given volume of bitumen to the mass closely controlled chemical combination of calcium, silicon,
of an equal volume of water, both taken at a aluminum, iron and other ingredients. Common materials
recorded/specified temperature. used to manufacture cement include limestone, shells, and
chalk or marl combined with shale, clay, slate, blast furnace
Ductility of bitumen
slag, silica sand, and iron ore These ingredients, when
Ductility of a material is the ability of that material to heated at high temperatures form a rock-like substance that
undergo plastic deformation (permanent deformation) is ground into the fine powder that we commonly think of as
before the rupturing (breaking) of that material. The ductility cement.
of a bituminous material is measured by the distance in cm
Fineness Test
to which it will elongate before breaking when a standard
briquette specimen of the material is pulled apart at a The Fineness test of cement is done by sieving cement
specified speed and a specified temperature sample through standard IS sieve The weight cement
particle whose size greater than 90 microns is determined
Marshal stability of bitumen
and the percentage of retained cement particle are
Marshall Stability is the resistance to plastic flow of calculated. In general, finer cement particle are considered
cylindrical specimens of a bituminous mixture loaded on the best. Fineness of the cement decreases bleeding while it
lateral surface. It is the load carrying capacity of the mix at increases the final strength and increases the strength
60°C and is measured in kg Marshall stability measures the development during its first seven days Fineness also affects
maximum load sustained by the bituminous material at a the workability and indirectly measures the surface area of
loading rate of 50.8 mm/minute. The test load is increased the particles of cement per unit mass Fineness also
until it reaches a maximum. Beyond that, when the load just increases the rate of hydration, the finer the cement
starts to decrease, the loading is ended and the maximum particles the higher the rate of hydration can be produced.
load (i.e. Marshall stability) is recorded. During the loading
Soundness Test
test, dial gauge is attached which measures the specimen's
plastic flow owing to the applied load. The flow value refers Soundness of cement is the property at which the
to the vertical deformation when the maximum load is cement resists or withstand the expansion due to slow or
reached. delayed hydration of free lime, magnesia and calcium
sulphate It is simply defined as the ability of cement to
III. CEMENT
retain its volume after it gets hardened The soundness of losing its plasticity and set harden. This complete cycle is
cement describes that the cement should be at minimum called Setting time of cement.
volume change after it gets hardened Soundness test of
Initial Setting time of Cement:
cement is done to ensure that cement doesn't show any
expansion after hardening and to find out the uncombined The time to which cement can be molded in any
lime in cement (excess lime). In simple words, this test is desired shape without losing it strength is called Initial
conducted to check "unsoundness of cement". Unsoundness setting time of cement. It is also defined as the time at
of cement makes the work saggy Soundness directly affects which cement starts hardens and completely loses its
the durability of the structure. The soundness test of the plasticity or the time available for mixing the cement and
cement is mostly conducted by Le-Chatlier's Method. placing it in position. For Ordinary Portland Cement, the
initial Setting Time is 30 minutes
Consistency Test
Final setting time of Cement
Consistency of cement refers to the minimum quantity
of water required to initiate the chemical reaction between The time at which cement completely loses its
water and cement to form a paste The Consistency of plasticity and became hard is a final setting time of cement
cement test is performed to determine the amount of water or the time taken by cement to gain its entire strength For
content that is to be added in cement to attain Standard Ordinary Portland Cement, The Final Setting Time is 600
consistency or normal consistency of cement. The Standard minutes (10hrs).
or Normal consistency for Ordinary Portland cement varies
IV. CONCRETE
between 25-35% When water is mixed with cement, it starts
hydration Excessive addition of water in cement results in Concrete is a construction material composed of
an increase in Water cement ratio & ultimately cement loses cement, fine aggregates (sand) and coarse aggregates
its strength when it hardens If less water is added than mixed with water which hardens with time. Concrete is a
required. Cement isn't properly hydrated and results in loss mixture of paste and aggregates, or rocks. The paste,
of strength. composed of Portland cement and water, coats the surface
of the fine (small) and coarse (larger) aggregates. Through a
Setting Time Test
chemical reaction called hydration, the paste hardens and
When cement is mixed with water, it hydrates and gains strength to form the rock-like mass known as
makes cement paste. This paste can be moulded into any concrete. In a building construction, concrete is used for the
desired shape due to its plasticity. Within this time cement construction of foundations, columns, beams, slabs and
continues with reacting water and slowly cement starts other load bearing elements

A. Test of Fresh Concrete

Slump Test Bee Consistometer Test', 'Vebe Test etc. The name 'vee bee
or vebe' is derived from the initials of V Bahrner from
Concrete Slump Test is a measurement of concrete's
Sweden, who developed this test In the vee bee test,
workability, or fluidity. It's an indirect measurement of
workability is measured with the aspect of mobility and
concrete consistency or stiffness A slump test is a method
compactibility. As you know, the workability of fresh
used to determine the consistency of concrete. The
concrete is defined as the amount of useful internal work
consistency, or stiffness, indicates how much water has
necessary to produce 100% compaction. Vee bee test gives
been used in the mix The stiffness of the concrete mix
the time required to achieve compaction, which is related to
should be matched to the requirements for the finished
the total work done, hence vebe test is a good test to
product quality. The concrete slump test is used for the
measure the workability of concrete indirectly.
measurement of a property of fresh concrete The test is an
empirical test that measures the workability of fresh In the vee bee consistometer test, the shape of
concrete More specifically, it measures concrete consistency concrete is changed from the slump cone shape to the
between batches The test is popular due to the simplicity of cylindrical shape through the vibration process, this is called
apparatus used and simple procedure remolding effect. This remolding effect is measured in
seconds which is called vee bee degree or vee bee seconds.
Compaction Factor test
K-Slump Test
The compaction factor test is used for concrete which
have low workability for which slump test is not suitable. K Slump test is first covered by ASTM C 1362 and used
The compacting factor test is performed to ascertain the to determine the workability of concrete and degree of
workability of the concrete. The slump test does not give compaction of fresh concrete. K slump test is an instant &
accurate results for low workability of concrete when slump direct test where slump value is evaluated in one minute It
is<50mm. The compaction factor test is a workability test has a tester which is inserted in fresh concrete to measure
for concrete conducted in the laboratory, developed by the the slump value of concrete K slump test is also useful for
Road Research Laboratory in the United Kingdom to finding the relative workability of concrete
determine the workability of concrete. The compaction
B. Test of Hardened Concrete
factor is defined as the ratio of the weight of partially
compacted concrete to the weight of fully compacted Compression Strength Test
concrete
Compression Strength Test is considered as the most
Vee Bee Test popular test performed on concrete in construction as it
gives a general idea on the all the characteristics of
Vee bee test is the pure laboratory test to measure
concrete. Based on this test, one can either accept or reject
workability of fresh concrete Vee bee test is also called 'Vee
a concrete work. Compressive strength as a concrete output of the rebound hammer IS rebound number and are
property depends on several factors related to quality of with surface hardness of referred to as correlated concrete
used materials, mix design and quality control during
Ultrasonic Pulse velocity
concrete production. Compressive strength is the ability of
material or structure to carry the loads on its surface This test is done to assess the quality of concrete by
without any crack or deflection. A material under ultrasonic pulse velocity method as per IS 13311 (Part 1)
compression tends to reduce the size, while in tension, size 1992 The method consists of measuring the time of travel of
elongates. an ultrasonic pulse passing through the concrete being
tested Comparatively higher velocity is obtained when
Flexural Strength Test
concrete quality is good in terms of density, uniformity,
Flexural strength is one measure of the tensile homogeneity etc.
strength of concrete. It is a measure of an unreinforced
V. STEEL REINFORCEMENT
concrete beam or slab to resist failure in bending. The
flexural strength is expressed as Modulus of Rupture (MR) in Rebar, also known as reinforcement steel and
psi (MPa) and is determined by the standard test methods reinforcing steel, is a steel bar or mesh of steel wires used in
ASTM C78 (third-point loading) or ASTM C 293 (center-point reinforced concrete and masonry structures to strengthen
loading). and hold the concrete in tension. Steel reinforcement bars
or rebars are used to improve the tensile strength of the
Rebound Hammer Test
concrete, since concrete is very weak in tension, but is
In-Place Test methods to estimate concrete strength strong in compression. Steel is only used as rebar because
has been extremely popular among engineers and elongation of steel due to high temperatures (thermal
inspectors involved in the field of structure inspection, expansion coefficient) nearly equals to that of concrete. By
evaluation and condition assessment. Various non- casting rebar into concrete, it is able to carry tensile loads
destructive methods have been developed by different and so increase overall strength.
researchers over the past few decades to assess in-place
Tensile Strength Test
strength of concrete. The rebound hammer, developed by
Ernst Schmidt, provides an inexpensive and quick method The term tensile strength refers to the amount of
for non-destructive testing and evaluation of the hardness of tensile (stretching) stress a material can withstand before
concrete. The rebound hammer is a non-destructive testing breaking or failing. The ultimate tensile strength of a
apparatus, whereby the rebound of the spring driven mass material is calculated by dividing the area of the material
is measured after its impact with concrete surface. The tested (the cross section) by the stress placed on the
material, generally expressed in terms of pounds or tons per
square inch of material. Tensile strength is an important Also, the radius of bending the reinforcement, smaller
measure of a material's ability to perform in an application, radius of bending will have a greater adverse effect on
and the measurement is widely used when describing the reinforcement steel.
properties of metals and alloys. Tension test is performed on
The low temperature playing an important role in
mild steel, tor steel and high tensile steel to determine the
reducing the steel bar's toughness, and this may result in
properties like Young's modulus, ultimate strength, and the
bars cracking or fracture if bent
percentage elongation. In the tension test, a steel rod is
subjected to tension load by the means of a Universal Re-bend Test
testing machine (UTM).
The purpose of re-bend test is to measure the effect of
Bend Test strain ageing on steel. Strain ageing has embrittlement
effect which takes place after cold deformation by diffusion
Bend testing a material allows for the determination of
of nitrogen in steel. Hence, there is limitation stated in some
that materials ductility, bend strength, fracture strength and
design codes to restrict the nitrogen content of steel to
resistance to fracture. These characteristics can be used to
0.012%.
determine whether a material will fail under pressure and
are especially important in any construction process Shear Test
involving ductile materials loaded with bending forces. If a
A shear test is designed to apply stress to a test
material begins to fracture or completely fractures during a
sample so that it experiences a sliding failure along a plane
three- or four-point bend test it is valid to assume that the
that is parallel to the forces applied. Generally, shear forces
material will fail under a similar in any application, which
cause one surface of a material to move in one direction and
may lead to catastrophic failure.
the other surface to move in the opposite direction so that
The bending test of reinforcement steel performed to the material is stressed in a sliding motion. Shear tests differ
verify that steel ductility and to ensure that no fracture or from tension and compression tests in that the forces
cracks will occur during the bending. The reinforcing steel applied are parallel to the two-contact surface, whereas, in
may fracture or crack due to the following reasons: tension and compression they are perpendicular to the
contact surfaces. The most common use of a shear test is to
The ribs of steel are a location of concentrated stress,
determine the shear strength, which is the maximum shear
and it is considered as a weak point, these locations may
stress that the maternal can withstand before failure occurs,
fracture if steel bends.
of a material. For example, when a bolt is used to secure
The steel possesses high strength. Therefore, a larger two plates together it will experience a shear force if the
force is required to bend steel, and this could cause steel to plates themselves experience any forces parallel to their
crack. plane that attempt to separate them. If the small fastener
fails in shear it may lead to a chain of failures that could The Charpy Test method determines the toughness or
lead to the entire destruction of a much larger structure impact strength of the material in the presence of a flaw or
notch and fast loading conditions. This destructive test
Brinell Hardness Test
involves fracturing notched impact test specimens at a
The Brinell hardness test is commonly used to series of temperatures with a swinging pendulum. The
determine the hardness of materials like metals and alloys. amount of energy absorbed by the material during fracture
The test is achieved by applying a known load to the surface is measured. Charpy V notch or U notch test specimens are
of the tested material through a hardened steel ball of used
known diameter. The diameter of the resulting permanent
The Drop Weight Test determines the temperature at
impression in the tested metal is measured and the Brinell
which the fracture mode of steel changes from ductile to
Hardness Number calculated as
brittle using a free-falling weight or striker.
Impact Test
Torsion Test
Impact testing of metals is performed to determine
Torsion testing is a type of mechanical testing that
the impact resistance or toughness of materials by
evaluates the properties of materials or devices while under
calculating the amount of energy absorbed during fracture.
stress from angular displacement. Torsion testing can be
The impact test is performed at various temperatures to
split into two distinct categories: testing raw materials like
uncover any effects on impact energy. These services
metal wires or plastic tubing to determine properties such as
provide test results that can be very useful in assessing the
shear strength and modulus, or functional testing of finished
suitability of a material for a specific application and in
products subjected to torsion, such as screws,
predicting its expected service life. Impact tests are used in
pharmaceutical bottles, and sheathed cables. The most
studying the toughness of material. A material's toughness
common mechanical properties measured by torsion testing
is a factor of its ability to absorb energy during plastic
are:
deformation. Brittle materials have low toughness as a
result of the small amount of plastic deformation that they Modulus of elasticity in shear
can endure. The impact value of a material can also change
Yield shear strength
with temperature. Generally, at lower temperatures, the
impact energy of a material is decreased. The size of the Ultimate shear strength
specimen may also affect the value of the Izod impact test
Modulus of rupture in shear
because it may allow a different number of imperfections in
the material, which can act as stress risers and lower the Ductility
impact energy.