DETERMINATION OF CEMENT IN CONCRETE BY ACTIVATION ANALYSIS WITH CALIFORNIA M-252

Results from neutron activation analysis of in-place and plastic concrete samples are presented. Data were obtained by equipment suitable for and operated under field conditions. The system described for determination of cement content of in-place concrete includes a 35-microgram Cf-252 source, portable activation/shield assembly with remote operating cable, and commercially available detector and electronics. An analysis of in-place concrete is accomplished in 22 minutes. Results for plastic concrete were obtained with a system designed for soil-cement mixtures. Using a 140-microgram Cf-252 source, an analysis could be completed in 9 minutes with an accuracy of plus or minus 5 percent of the amount of cement for normal cement contents. A system for analysis of samples of plastic concrete, cores, and soil-cement is described that can be moved to field sites in a trailer. Most existing methods for determination of cement content of concrete suffer because they are too slow, use too small a sample to be representative, and must be done in a laboratory. The other field measurement technique being studied utilizes low-energy photon scatter. This technique uses only a thin layer of the available sample and fails to achieve necessary accuracy when aggregate varies in size distribution or heavy element content. Neutron activation analysis offers a rapid, simple, field-operational procedure for measurement of cement content. Besides these advantages, activation analysis allows the use of large, representative samples and offers considerable freedom from interferences.

• Record URL:
  • http://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/trr/1975/539/539-003.pdf
• Summary URL:
  • https://scholar.google.com/scholar_lookup?title=DETERMINATION+OF+CEMENT+IN+CONCRETE+BY+ACTIVATION+ANALYSIS+WITH+CALIFORNIA+M-252&author=F.+Iddings&author=A.+Arman&author=C.+Pepper&author=W.+Aubert&author=J.+Landry&publication_year=1975
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• Supplemental Notes:
  • Publication of this paper sponsored by Committee on Instrumentation Principles and Applications. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Iddings, Frank A
  • Arman, A
  • Pepper, C E
  • Aubert, W G
  • Landry, J R
• Conference:
  • 54th Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board
  • Location: Washington District of Columbia
  • Date: 1975-1-13 to 1975-1-17
• Publication Date: 1975

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 20-26
• Monograph Title: Corrosion, Concrete, Quality Control, and Paint Beads
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 539
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Accuracy; Cement content; Concrete; Field tests; Measuring instruments; Neutron activation analysis; Polymer concrete; Soil cement; Testing equipment
• Uncontrolled Terms: Field measurements; Rapid methods
• Old TRIS Terms: Determination
• Subject Areas: Highways; Materials;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00126829
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309023904
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Dec 16 1975 12:00AM