Authors : M.L. Benmalek , A. Benouis and A.Bali
Abstract: This study describes a new simple experimental method elaborated for measuring fresh microconcretes workability. To measure systematically this fresh characteristic for fine grained building materials, composed principally of small size aggregates, it is necessary to dispose only of small volumes of mixes, as additional fillers which are similar to powder, are not produced industrially but by means of traditional sieving. The principle of the proposed method consists in measuring, during fresh microconcrete mixing, of the absorbed electrical power of a laboratory mixer�s motor connected to a differential wattmeter. This power increases since the microconcrete is dry; thus, the workability is indirectly measured at any time. The assembly description, its advantages, its specificity in relation to other experimental measurement methods of workability and its calibration are presented and analyzed in this study.
M.L. Benmalek , A. Benouis and A.Bali , 2007. Elaboration of an Experimental Method of Microconcrete Workability Measurements (Case of Dune Sand Concrete) . Journal of Engineering and Applied Sciences, 2: 981-984.