ASSIGNMENT #01

Comsats university
manufacturing is a complex process that begins with mining and then grinding
Cement

raw materials that include limestone and clay, to a fine powder, called raw meal, which is then
heated to a sintering temperature as high as 1450 °C in a cement kiln

Islamabad Abbottabad
campus

Subject: SOIL MATERIAL

Submitted to: SIR FURQAN FAROOQ
Submitted by: HASHIM ALI
Registration no: FA19-CVE-025
Date: 19 MARCH 2020
Q1) Describe the manufacturing of cement process in detail (CLO: 1-C1-PLO-1)

Cement manufacturing is a complex process that begins with mining and then grinding raw
materials that include limestone and clay, to a fine powder, called raw meal, which is then heated
to a sintering temperature as high as 1450 °C in a cement kiln.

Manufacturing of cement process:

Portland cement is the basic ingredient of concrete. Concrete is formed when Portland cement
creates a paste with water that binds with sand and rock to harden.

 Cement is manufactured through a closely controlled chemical combination of

 Calcium

 silicon,

 aluminum,

 iron

 and other ingredients.

Common materials used to manufacture cement include limestone, shells, and chalk or marl
combined with shale, clay, slate, blast furnace slag, silica sand, and iron ore.

Heating process

These ingredients, when heated at high temperatures form a rock-like substance that is ground
into the fine powder that we commonly think of as cement.

Bricklayer Joseph Aspdin of Leeds, England first made Portland cement early in the 19th century
by burning powdered limestone and clay in his kitchen stove. With this crude method, he laid the
foundation for an industry that annually processes literally mountains of limestone, clay, cement
rock, and other materials into a powder so fine it will pass through a sieve capable of holding
water. 

Cement plant laboratories check each step in the manufacture of Portland cement by frequent
chemical and physical tests. The labs also analyze and test the finished product to ensure that it
complies with all industry specifications.
The most common way to manufacture Portland cement is through a dry method. The first step is
to quarry the principal raw materials, mainly limestone, clay, and other materials. After
quarrying the rock is crushed. This involves several stages. The first crushing reduces the rock to
a maximum size of about 6 inches. The rock then goes to secondary crushers or hammer mills for
reduction to about 3 inches or smaller.

The crushed rock is combined with other ingredients such as iron ore or fly ash and ground,
mixed, and fed to a cement kiln.

The cement kiln heats all the ingredients to about 2,700 degrees Fahrenheit in huge cylindrical
steel rotary kilns lined with special firebrick. Kilns are frequently as much as 12 feet in diameter
—large enough to accommodate an automobile and longer in many instances than the height of a
40-story building. The large kilns are mounted with the axis inclined slightly from the horizontal.

The finely ground raw material or the slurry is fed into the higher end. At the lower end is a
roaring blast of flame, produced by precisely controlled burning of powdered coal, oil,
alternative fuels, or gas under forced draft.

As the material moves through the kiln, certain elements are driven off in the form of gases. The
remaining elements unite to form a new substance called clinker. Clinker comes out of the kiln
as grey balls, about the size of marbles.

Clinker is discharged red-hot from the lower end of the kiln and generally is brought down to
handling temperature in various types of coolers. The heated air from the coolers is returned to
the kilns, a process that saves fuel and increases burning efficiency.

After the clinker is cooled, cement plants grind it and mix it with small amounts of gypsum and
limestone. Cement is so fine that 1 pound of cement contains 150 billion grains.  The cement is
now ready for transport to ready-mix concrete companies to be used in a variety of construction
projects.

Although the dry process is the most modern and popular way to manufacture cement, some
kilns in the United States use a wet process. The two processes are essentially alike except in the
wet process, the raw materials are ground with water before fed into the kiln.
Q2) Relate the effect of water content on cement properties, strength, water absorption and durability.
(CLO: 1-C1-PLO-1).

1. Effect on strength

The most important factor that affects the strength of cement concrete is the water
to cement (W/C) ratio. The lower the W/C ratio means the higher would be the
strength of cement concrete. For complete hydration of Portland cement, the W/C
ratio shall be 0.18 (minimum) whereas the extra water (beyond 0.18 ratio) provides
workability to the mix. As the W/C ratio increases, the strength of cement concrete
would reduce and so the durability performance. The W/C ratio can be lowered by
utilizing water reducing admixtures such as plasticizers (Ps) up to 20% reduction
in water demand and super plasticizers (SPs) 20 to 30% reduction in water demand

2. Effect on Durability

Durability of concrete plays a critical role in controlling its

serviceability. Furthermore, durability of concrete is mainly dependent
 on the capacity of a fluid to penetrate the concrete’s microstructure,
which was called permeability. High permeability led to the introduction
of molecules that react and destroy its chemical stability Moreover, low
permeability of concrete can improve resistance to the penetration of
water, sulphate ions, chloride ions, alkali ions, and other harmful
substances which caused chemical attack]. Concrete permeability had a
close relationship with the characteristics of its pore structure in the
cement paste and the intensity of micro cracks at the aggregate-cement
paste interface as well as within the paste itself]. Here, pore structure
mainly involved volume and size of the interconnected capillary pores.
As we know, the hydration reaction of cement results in a product
consisting of solid and pore systems. The pore network of a cement
paste matrix provides passage for the transport of fluid into concrete and
its development depends on a number of factors including the properties
and composition of the concrete constituent materials, the initial curing
condition and its duration, the age at testing, and the climatic exposure
during drying and conditioning of the concrete The temperature of
curing and the duration of moist curing are the key factors for proper
pore structure. The effectiveness of initial curing becomes more
important when mineral admixtures like fly ash are used as partial
substitution for cement in concrete. Numerous workers have reported
that mineral admixtures require a relatively long curing period for the
favourable pozzolanic effect on the performance of concrete to be
realized 
3. EFFECT OF WATER CONTENT ON ABSORPTION OF WATER:-

After being cured for 28 days, compressive strength was measured, and
Figure presents results of compressive strength. Samples cured in air
condition show highest strength, while those cured in air condition have
lowest strength. Effects of sorptivity on compressive strength are seen in
Figure. Figures show that both of surface sorptivity and internal
sorptivity have no clear relationship with compressive strength.
Although the specimens differ in surface water absorption, there is little
difference in internal water absorption. Furthermore, the high surface
water absorption only decreased compressive strength of cover
concrete.so it does not effect cement after casting.

Q3) State practical examples of different water to cement ratio in different structures. (CLO: 1-
C1-PLO-1.

Calculated practical examples;