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International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering

Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868

Quality Assessment of Cement based on its dielectric


parameters
1

Dr. S.Arul Mary1, S.Srimathi2, S.Sudarsan Vakul3


Associate Professor,Department of Civil Engineering, Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, INDIA
2,3
UG Students, Department of Civil Engineering, Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, INDIA
Adulteration in cement will lead to improper

Abstract: Cement being the most important material in

mortar formation, variation in setting time of

the construction field, is required to be free from

cement and thereby question the quality of cement

adulterations and conform to the standard quality range.


The conventional test methods yield only the basic

used. There have been few attempts in the past in

properties of cement like fineness, soundness, setting

quantifying the non-cement material present in

time, consistency, specific gravity, etc. The need for an

large quantities of cement; however they were

instant, reliable and economic method to classify cement

defective in some means. The conventional

based on its quality and composition can be served

methods of testing the cement yield only the

through Non-Destructive Evaluation of Cement for its

physical and chemical properties of cement and

Dielectric Parameters, by the application of Microwaves.

hence to determine the quality of cement for

Therefore the determination of dielectric constant

utilization, we need to carry out all of these tests.

through Microwave Non-Destructive Evaluation is

This requires a lot of time and effort and

performed and the results obtained for Ordinary Portland


Cement of Grade 53 are discussed in this paper. This

furthermore is not reliable. This can be overcome

research extends to assessing the quality of cement based

by Non-Destructive Evaluation of Cement using

on the composition of cementitious sample, type of

Microwaves. It has been made possible to

adulteration and the quantity of adulterant(s) in the

determine the dielectric parameters of many

sample.

known,

materials and composites by making use of the

contribution to the Quality Assurance/Quality Control

Material Measurement equipment of the Agilent

With

the

dielectric

parameters

area in identifying even minute deviation of cement from

Technologies. In this paper, this application has

standards by means of a reliable technique is achieved

been extended to cementitious samples. The use of

and the subject shifts from probability to a possibility.

microwaves

for

testing

and

evaluating

the

Keywords : Quality of cement, Cement testing, Non-

performance of cement will be a great value

Destructive Evaluation of Cement

addition to the existing practices of NonDestructive Evaluation of materials. This method

I Introduction

offers greater precision in characterization of


Cement adulteration is basically the addition of

materials by ensuring the quality of any huge

non-cement material to cement. Where cement is

quantity of cement required for construction. It is

supposed to help in bonding to attain strength in

aimed to serve the manufacturers, customers and

structures, adulterated cement will refuse to bind

quality assurance/quality control department so that

when mixed even in proper proportion.

sufficient quality of cement is maintained and


adulteration can be minimized.

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International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering


Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868


of hardened mortar and concrete specimens with

II Adulteration in cement

different water to cement ratios by Non-Destructive


The common adulterants in cement include Fly ash,

Testing of specimens at microwave frequencies

Coal, Carbonate additions, finely powdered slag

Free-Space method. K.Arunachalam et.al.(2006)

and other materials resembling cement. These

identified that the permeability and permittivity

adulterants when present in cement are likely to

were the useful microwave parameter to identify

cause weakening of structures. Concrete made from

the density of the medium. Considering the

adulterated cement may withstand initial loads but

possibilities of the application of microwaves to

is likely to collapse over time and under unusual

characterize cement based samples and their

loads, especially during hurricanes, typhoons,

extension to determine the quality of cement, yet

tsunamis, floods, etc. Ultimately the strength of

unexplored, this research focuses on capitalising on

concrete and in turn the structure is compromised.

potential of microwaves and its usefulness in NonDestructive evaluation of cement and cement

III Microwave application

mixtures for their standard.

Microwave and its precise application becomes one


of the widely used techniques in many areas of

V Equipment for testing of cement under

Engineering, owing to its high range of frequencies

microwaves

(300 MHz to 300 GHz). Microwaves are not


The Material Measurement Software of Agilent

hazardous and scatter less compared to acoustic

Technologies as shown in figure 1, based on a

waves. They have good spatial resolution and good

versatile network analyzer which measures the

penetration power in non-metallic materials. The

materials response to RF or microwave energy is

technique based on application of microwaves is

capable of automating Complex Permittivity

relatively cost effective and reliable compared to

Permeability

radioactive methods. This method can be used to

intrinsic

prepare a data base of signatures that prescribes

and

measurements and determining the

electromagnetic properties

of

many

dielectric and magnetic materials. It is proposed to

standard values of dielectric constants for pure

extend the application of this setup to cement based

cement and its mixtures that are in use in the field

samples to determine the dielectric constants of

and for commonly adulterated cement mixtures.

samples of different composition. The Coaxial


IV Literature Review

airlines as shown in figure 1 are used as sample


holders. The transmission line method works best

Hasar. U.C(2009) [1] devised a simple and

for materials that can be precisely machined to fit

relatively inexpensive microwave set-up, which is


suitable

for

industrial-based

inside the sample holder. It features an algorithm

applications,

that corrects the effects of air gap between the

constructed from discrete microwave components

sample and holder, considerably reducing the

for r measurements of fresh cement-based


materials

largest source of error with the transmission line

by using amplitude-only reection

technique. A vector network analyzer is a test

measurements from an open-ended waveguide

system that enables the performance of radio

probe at dierent frequencies. Kharkovsky. S.N [1]


determined

the

microwave

transmission

frequency (RF) and microwave devices to be

and

characterized in terms of network scattering

reflection properties measured from various sides

29

International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering


Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868

parameters or S parameters. The equipment under

cavity of the coaxial was coated with gold so that

use prescribes a frequency range of 100 MHz to

the readings obtained are only from the sample

325 GHz with an accuracy of 1.0 to 2.0 percentile.

placed inside it.

Fig. 1 Experimental Setup


VI Experimental Evaluation
In order to obtain accurate values of dielectric
constants, samples were cast in specific dimensions
to suit the cavity that is compatible with the
equipment. The sample for testing is required to be
a hollow cylinder with an outer diameter of 7mm,
inner diameter of 3mm and a minimum height of
15mm. A die as shown in figure 3 made of mild
steel and coated with arch chromium was designed
to prepare cement samples with handling strength.
Ordinary Portland Cement of grade 53 was taken as
the initial material and three samples were prepared
to carry out the test since the IS code specifies the
use of three specimens for experimental evaluations
on cementitious material. A water to cement ratio
of 0.35 was observed prior to casting and the
samples were demoulded after the samples attained
Fig. 2 Die and sample

final setting time. Precision was observed in


obtaining proper inner and outer surface in the

VII Results

samples as shown in figure 2. These samples were


tested for dielectric parameters. The scope of this

The material measurement software gave the

research is to estimate the quality of cement based

pattern of dielectric constant value for the samples

specimens, in terms of scattering parameters (S

over the frequency range of 100 MHz to 6 GHz. It

parameters) permittivity and permeability that are

can be seen from the graph in figure 3 that the

unique for different compositions of samples. The

dielectric constant value ranges from 6.00 to 7.00

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International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering


Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868

and forms a constant pattern over the frequency


range 0.56 GHz to 6GHz. It can also be seen from
figure 4, 5, 6 and 7 that the reflection constant
values (S11r, S11i, S22r and S22i) are very close to
zero. This confirms that the frequency range used is
optimum. A comparative study on the values of S12r
and S21r was performed and is represented in figure
8. It can be observed that the graphical pattern of
both these values over the frequency range matches
and

thus

ensure

the

reliability

in

testing
Fig. 5 Pattern of S11i value for OPC Grade 53

methodology and the accuracy in the frequency

Cement

range used.

Fig. 6 Pattern of S22r value for OPC Grade 53


Cement

Fig. 3 Dielectric Constant of OPC Grade 53


Cement

Fig.7 Pattern of S22i value for OPC Grade 53


Fig. 4 Pattern of S11r value for OPC Grade 53

Cement

Cement

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International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering


Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868

IX Conclusion
A reference has been set to test Ordinary Portland
Cement of Grade 53 based on its dielectric
parameters by the application of microwaves
through coaxial cavities. The research is the
extension of the application of microwaves to
cement based samples in characterizing them to
different grades, compositions and adulteration
Fig. 8 Comparison of S12r and S21r values for OPC

levels. A minimum of three samples for each

Grade 53 Cement

composition is mandatory in determining the S


parameters which in turn provides signature and

VIII Discussions

values of dielectric constants. Eventually a


The application of microwaves in order to

database of dielectric parameters shall specify to

determine the dielectric parameters of cement has

which grade or composition an unknown sample

given way to standardize a reliable testing

conforms to, by testing under microwaves. This

mechanism to estimate the quality of cementitious

shall be prescribed as a reliable ad economic

materials. The observations made in this research

method of quantifying adulterants and ensuring the

yield the following methods of comparative testing

quality standards of cement based materials.

of unknown samples:
Reference
1.

2.

The dielectric constant of OPC 53 Grade


Cement represents a signature pattern over

[1] Hasar. U.C(2009), Permittivity Determination

the frequency range of 100 MHz to 6 GHz

of Fresh Cement-based Materials by an Open-

and is used to compare with the pattern

Ended Wave Guide Probe using Amplitude-only

represented by any unknown material.

Measurements,

A set of frequencies at regular intervals is

Research, PIER 97, 2743, 2009.

chosen and the corresponding dielectric

based

material samples.
frequency range at

Electromagnetics

Dover. S, Electromagnetic Properties of Cement-

similar readings obtained from unknown

The

In

[2] Kharkovsky. S.N, Hasar. U.C, Atis. C.D and

constant values are used to compare

3.

Progress

materials

over

time

at

Microwave

Frequencies.
which the

dielectric constant value is nearly same

[3] Lawluvi. H, Kpeglo. D.O, Fammu. A,

and forms a horizontal pattern is used to

Deatanyah. P and Wotorchi. S.G,Arwui. C.C,

compare with the pattern or dielectric

Darko.

constant value obtained at that frequency

Multivariate Statistical Approach to Detecting

range for unknown material samples.

Adulteration

D.O,

Emi-Reynolds.

of

Cement

G(2011),

using

Gamma

Spectroscopy, International Journal of Science and


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32

International Journal of Mechanical Civil and Control Engineering


Vol. 1, Issue. 2, April, 2015
[4]

SanjivK.Dhanjal(FCT),

Lloyd

ISSN (Online): 2394-8868


Young(Ash

And Cementitious Additions, International Centre

Grove Cement)and Peter Storer (FCT), Automatic

for Diffraction Data 2004, Advances in X-ray

Control of Cement Quality using On-Line XRD.

Analysis, Volume 47.

[5] Walenta. G andFllmann.T(2006), Advances In


Quantitative XRD Analysis For Clinker, Cements

33

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