Experiment No:1 Date:

SPECIFIC GRAVITY TEST FOR BITUMEN

AIM

To determine the specific gravity of given bitumen.

APPARATUS

Balance, Thermometer, Balance Straddle, Thread - A length of fine, waxed, silk thread,Brass mould-
Cubical and distilled water.

PROCEDURE

Prepare the specimen by melting a small sample of the material by gentle application of heat and
pouring the material when sufficiently fluid into a 20 mm brass cubical mould that has been
treated with a 1 : 1 mixture of glycerine and dextrin and placed on a brass plate previously so
treated.
The hot material should be slightly more than that required to fill the mould, and when cool, the
excess may be cut off with a hot spatula.
Remove the specimen from the mould when cooled to room temperature.
Take weight of sample in air and noted as (A)
Tare the balance first with a piece of fine waxed silk thread sufficiently long to reach from the
hook on one of the pan.Attach the test specimen to the thread. so as to be suspended about 25 mm
above the straddle from the hook on the pan support, and weigh to the nearest 0.1 mg. Weigh the
specimen. still suspended by thread, and completely immersed in water and noted as (B)

Analytic Balance equipped with pan straddle

OBSERVATION AND CALCULATION

The specific gravity of bituminous material is given by formula =

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RESULT

The specific gravity of given bituminous binder is ________________

IS: 1202-1978 Determination of Specific Gravity and refer Annexure-I

INFERENCE

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Experiment No:2 Date:

DETERMINATION OF PENETRATION VALUE OF BITUMEN

AIM

To determine the consistency of given Bitumen sample

APPARATUS

Penetration apparatus, thermometer, stopwatch, transfer dish, water bath needle, container.

PROCEDURE

Soften the material to a pouring consistency at a temperature not more than 60 oC for Tar and
90oC for bitumen above the approximate softening point and stir it thoroughly until it is
homogenous and is free from air bubbles and water. Pour the melt into the container to a depth at
least 10mm in excess of the expected penetration. Protect the sample from dust and allow it to
cool in an atmosphere at a temperature between 15o to 30oC for one hour. Then place it along with
the transfer dish in the water bath at 25.0o 0.1oC and allow it to remain for 1 to 1.5 hour. The test
is carried out at 25.0o 0.1oC, unless otherwise stated.
Fill the transfer dish water from the water bath to depth sufficient to cover the container
completely. Place the sample in it and put it upon the stand of the penetration apparatus.
Clean the needle with benzene, dry it and load with weight. The total moving load required is
1000.25gms, including the weight of the needle, carrier and superimposed weights.
Adjust the needle to make contact with the surface of the sample. This may be done by placing
the needle point with its image reflected by the surface of the bituminous material.
Make the pointer of the dial to read zero or note the initial dial reading
Release the needle for exactly five seconds
Adjust the penetration machine to measure the distance penetrated.
Make at least 3 reading at points on the surface of the sample not less than 10mm apart and not
less than 10mm from the side of the dish. After each test return the sample and transfer dish to the
water bath and wash the needle clean with benzene and dry it.
In case of material of penetration greater than 225, three determinations on each of the two
identical tests specimens using a separate needle for each determination should be made, leaving
the needle in the sample on completion of each determinations to avoid disturbance of the
specimen.

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 Penetration test setup

RESULT

The Penetration value of given bitumen is ________________

IS: 1203-1978 Determination of Penetration and refer Annexure-I

INFERENCE

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Experiment No:3 Date:

DETERMINATION OF SOFTENING POINT OF BITUMEN

AIM

To determine the softening point of given bitumen sample.

APPARATUS

Ring and Ball apparatus, Water bath with stirrer, Thermometer, Glycerin, Steel balls each of 9.5mm
diameter and weight of 2.50.08g.

PROCEDURE

Heat the material to a temperature between 75-100C above its softening point, stir until, it is
completely fluid and free from air bubbles and water. If necessary filter it through IS sieve 30.
Place the rings, previously heated to a temperature approximating to that of the molten material
on a metal plate which has been coated with a mixture of equal parts of glycerin and dextrin.
After cooling for 30 minutes in the air, level the material in the ring by removing the excess with
a warmed, sharp knife.

Assemble the apparatus with the rings, thermometer and ball guides in position.

Fill the bath with distilled water to a height of 50mm above the upper surface of the rings. The
starting temperature should be 5C

Apply heat to the bath and stir the liquid so that the temperature rises at a uniform rate of 50.5C
per minute

Note down the temperature when any of the steel ball with bituminous coating touches the bottom
plate.

Softening point test setup

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RECORD AND OBSERVATION

Temperature when the ball touches bottom, C.

Average Softening point of bitumen

RESULT

The Softening value of given bitumen is ________________

IS : 1205-1978 Determination of Softening Point and refer Annexure-I

INFERENCE

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Experiment No:4 Date:

DETERMINATION OF DUCTILITY OF THE BITUMEN

AIM

To measure the ductility of a given sample of bitumen.

APPARATUS

Briquette mould, (length 75mm, distance between clips 30mm, width at mouth of clips 20mm, cross
section at minimum width 10mm x10mm), Ductility machine with water bath and a pulling device at a
precaliberated rate, a putty knife, thermometer.

PROCEDURE

Melt the bituminous test material completely at a temperature of 75oC to 100oC above the
approximate softening point until it becomes thoroughly fluid
Strain the fluid through IS sieve 30.
After stirring the fluid, pour it in the mould assembly and place it on a brass plate
In order to prevent the material under test from sticking, coat the surface of the plate and interior
surface of the sides of the mould with mercury or by a mixture of equal parts of glycerin and
dextrin
After about 30-40 minutes, keep the plate assembly along with the sample in a water bath.
Maintain the temperature of the water bath at 27oC for half an hour.
Remove the sample and mould assembly from the water bath and trim the specimen by leveling
the surface using a hot knife.
Replace the mould assembly in water bath maintained at 27oC for 80 to 90 minutes
Remove the sides of the moulds
Hook the clips carefully on the machine without causing any initial strain
Adjust the pointer to read zero
Start the machine and pull two clips horizontally at a speed of 50mm per minute
Note the distance at which the bitumen thread of specimen breaks.
Record the observations in the proforma and compute the ductility value report the mean of two
observations, rounded to nearest whole number as the Ductility Value

Ductility test setup

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RECORD AND OBSERVATIONS

I. Bitumen grade =
II. Pouring temperature C =
III. Test temperature C =
IV. Periods of cooling, minutes =

a) In air =

b) In water bath before trimming =

c) In water bath after trimming =

A) Initial reading

B) Final reading

Ductility Value = (B - A)

= (cm)

RESULT

The Ductility value of given bitumen is ________________

IS: 1208-1978 Determination of Ductility and refer Annexure-I

INFERENCE

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Experiment No:5 Date:

DETERMINATION OF FLASH AND FIRE POINT TEST

AIM

To determine the flash and fire point of a given Binder Sample.

APPARATUS

Pensky-martens closed cup tester, thermometer, heating source, flame exposure.

PROCEDURE

All parts of the cup are cleaned and dried thoroughly before the test is started.
The material is filled in the cup up to a mark. The lid is placed to close the cup in a closed system.
All accessories including thermometer of the specified range are suitably fixed.
The bitumen sample is then heated. The test flame is lit and adjusted in such a way that the size of
a bed is of 4mm diameter. The heating of sample is done at a rate of 5 oC to 6 oC per minute.
During heating the sample the stirring is done at a rate of approximately 60 revolutions per
minute.
The test flame is applied at intervals depending upon the expected flash and fire points and
corresponding temperatures at which the material shows the sign of flash and fire are noted.

Pensky-martens closed cup tester

OBSERVATION AND CALCULATION

Trials
Test Trial 1 Trial 2 Trial 3 Mean Value
o
C
Flash Point oC

Fire Point oC

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RESULT

The temperature at which the flame application that causes a bright flash____________oC and the
temperature at which the sample catches fire ______________oC.

IS: 1209-1978 Determination of Flash Point and Fire Point.

INFERENCE

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Experiment No:6 Date:

DETERMINATION OF VISCOSITY OF BITUMEN BY ROTATIONAL VISCOMETER

AIM

To measure viscosity by measuring the force required to rotate a spindle in a fluid.

APPARATUS

ROATIONAL VISCOMETER, capable of measuring torque required to rotate the selected apparatus-
measuring geometry at a selected constant speed while submerged in asphalt at constant desired test
temperature, and with capability to convert the torque measurement to viscosity in pascal second,
millipascal second second or centipoise.

THERMOSOL, for maintaining the sample of asphalt at the test temperature.

TEMPERATURE CONTROLLER, capable of maintaining the specimen temperature .

BALANCE, readable to 0.1g, for determining the mass of asphalt sample.

PROCEDURE

Allow the instrument electronics to warm up for at least five minutes before conducting
calibration or analyses.
Set temperature controller to desired test temperature.
Preheat the sample chamber until temperature equilibrium has been obtained for at least 15 min
for filled asphalt.
Add the volume of sample specified by the manufacturer for the apparatus-measuring geometry
to be used to the sample chamber.
Take 8 gm of sample for spindle No: SC4-21 in a sample chamber.
Bring the asphalt sample to the desired temperature within 30 min and allow it to equilibrate at
the desired test temperature for a minimum of 10 min before beginning the measurement.
Start the motor rotation of the viscometer at speed that will develop a resisting torque between 10
and 98% of the full-scale instrument capacity.
Maintain this speed and allow the sample to equilibrate for an additional 5 min.
Using Rheocalc T 1.0.6 software the Brookfield viscometer is controlled and the test was done to
obtain the viscosity value for given bitumen sample.
Then turn the motor and power off.
Clean spindle and place in spindle holder.

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 Brookfield Viscometer

OBSERVATION AND CALUCALATION :

The following equation apply to cylindrical spindle for Brookfield viscometer.

Shear rate (see-1)

Shear stress (dynes/cm2):

Viscosity (poise):

where ,

= angular velocity of spindle (rad/sec)

Rc = radius of container (cm)

Rb = radius of spindle (cm)

X =Radius at which shear rate is being calculated (cm)

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 M = torque input by instrument (dyne-cm)

L = effective length of spindle (cm)

Shear Shear
Data Speed Torque Temperature Time Viscosity
stress rate
point (rpm) (%) (C) (min) (cp)
(dyn/cm) (sec-1)

Average

RESULT

The viscosity of given sample of bitumen is__________ cP

ASTM D4402 / D4402M - 15 -Standard Test Method for Viscosity Determination of Asphalt at Elevated
Temperatures Using a Rotational Viscometer and refer annexure-I

INFERENCE

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 Annexure-I

Source: Indian Standard Paving Bitumen Specification(IS 73 : 2013)

Source: Indian Standard Polymer and Rubber Modified Binder Specification (IS15462: 2004)

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Source: Indian Standard Polymer and Rubber Modified Binder Specification (IS15462: 2004)

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