American Association State

Designation: C 185 – 08 Highway and Transportation Officials Standard

AASHTO No.: T137

Standard Test Method for

Air Content of Hydraulic Cement Mortar1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation C 185; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.
This standard has been approved for use by agencies of the Department of Defense.

1. Scope* C 305 Practice for Mechanical Mixing of Hydraulic Cement

1.1 This test method covers the determination of the air Pastes and Mortars of Plastic Consistency
content of hydraulic cement mortar under the conditions C 511 Specification for Mixing Rooms, Moist Cabinets,
hereinafter specified. Moist Rooms, and Water Storage Tanks Used in the
1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as Testing of Hydraulic Cements and Concretes
standard. No other units of measurement are included in this C 595 Specification for Blended Hydraulic Cements
standard. C 778 Specification for Standard Sand
1.3 Values in SI shall be obtained by measurement in SI C 1005 Specification for Reference Masses and Devices for
units or by appropriate conversion, using the Rules for Con- Determining Mass and Volume for Use in the Physical
version and Rounding in IEEE/ASTM SI 10, of measurements Testing of Hydraulic Cements
made in other units. C 1157 Performance Specification for Hydraulic Cement
1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the C 1328 Specification for Plastic (Stucco) Cement
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the C 1329 Specification for Mortar Cement
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro- E 438 Specification for Glasses in Laboratory Apparatus
priate safety and health practices and determine the applica- E 694 Specification for Laboratory Glass Volumetric Appa-
bility of regulatory limitations prior to use. ratus
1.5 Warning— Fresh hydraulic cementitious mixtures are IEEE/ASTM SI 10 Standard for Use of the International
caustic and may cause chemical burns to skin and tissue upon System of Units (SI): The Modern Metric System
prolonged exposure.2 3. Summary of Test Method
2. Referenced Documents 3.1 Prepare a mortar with standard sand and the cement to
2.1 ASTM Standards: 3 be tested, using a water content sufficient to give a required
C 91 Specification for Masonry Cement flow. Compact the mortar into a measure of known volume and
C 109/C 109M Test Method for Compressive Strength of determine mass. Calculate the air content from the measured
Hydraulic Cement Mortars (Using 2-in. or [50-mm] Cube density of the mortar, the known densities of the constituents,
Specimens) and the mixture proportions.
C 150 Specification for Portland Cement
4. Significance and Use
C 183 Practice for Sampling and the Amount of Testing of
Hydraulic Cement 4.1 The purpose of this test method is to determine whether
C 230/C 230M Specification for Flow Table for Use in Tests or not the hydraulic cement under test meets the air-entraining
of Hydraulic Cement or non-air-entraining requirements of the applicable hydraulic
cement specification for which the test is being made. The air
content of concrete is influenced by many factors other than the
1
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee C01 on Cement potential of the cement for air entrainment.
and is the direct responsibility of Subcommittee C01.21 on Air Entrainment.
Current edition approved July 1, 2008. Published August 2008. Originally 5. Apparatus
approved in 1944. Last previous edition approved in 2002 as C 185 – 02.
2
Refer to the section on Safety Precautions, “Manual of Cement Testing,” 5.1 Flow Table, Flow Mold, and Caliper, shall conform to
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 04.01.
3
Specification C 230/C 230M.
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or
contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM
5.2 Measure—A cylindrical measure having an inside di-
Standards volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on ameter of 76 6 2 mm and a depth (approximately 88 mm)
the ASTM website. adjusted by standardization with water to contain 400 6 1 mL

*A Summary of Changes section appears at the end of this standard.

Copyright © ASTM International, 100 Barr Harbor Drive, PO Box C700, West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, United States.

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 C 185 – 08
at 23.0 6 2.0 °C (Note 1). For the purposes of this test, the 9. Procedure
capacity of the measure in millilitres is the mass of the water 9.1 Batch—Proportion the standard mortar using 350 g
content of the measure, in grams, divided by 0.9976, no cement to 1400 g 20–30 standard sand and sufficient water to
correction in mass being made for the buoyant effect of air. The give a flow of 871⁄2 6 71⁄2 % when determined in accordance
measure shall have a uniform wall thickness. The thickness of with 9.3.
the wall and bottom shall not be less than 2.9 mm. The total
mass of the empty measure shall not be more than 900 g. The NOTE 3—Test Method C 185 refers to hydraulic cements that comply
measure shall be made of a metal not attacked by the cement under Specification C 150, Specification C 595, and Performance Speci-
fication C 1157. Masonry cements (see Specification C 91), mortar ce-
mortar.
ments (see Specification C 1329), and plastic cements (see Specification
NOTE 1—Calibrate the 400-mL measure by filling with distilled water C 1328) require different sand, mass, and flow. Refer to the applicable
at 23.06 2.0 °C to a point where the meniscus extends appreciably above specification.
the top of the measure, placing a clean piece of plate glass on the top of 9.2 Mixing of Mortar—Mix the mortar in accordance with
the measure, and allowing the excess water to be squeezed out. The
Practice C 305.
absence of air bubbles as seen through the glass ensures that the measure
is completely full. Care shall be taken that the excess water is wiped from 9.3 Flow Determination—Carefully wipe dry the flow-table
the sides of the container before weighing. top and place the flow mold at the center of it. Using the spoon,
place a layer of mortar about 25 mm in thickness in the mold
5.3 Mixer, Bowl, and Paddle, shall conform to the apparatus and tamp 20 times with the tamper. The tamping pressure shall
section of Practice C 305. be just sufficient to ensure uniform filling of the mold. Overfill
5.4 Straightedge—A steel straightedge not less than 200 the top of the mold approximately 20 mm with mortar and
mm long and not less than 1.5 mm nor more than 3.5 mm in tamp as specified for the first layer. Then cut off the mortar to
thickness. a plane surface, flush with the top of the mold, by drawing the
5.5 Weights and Weighing Devices, shall conform to Speci- straightedge with a sawing motion across the top of the mold.
fication C 1005. Evaluate the weighing device for precision Wipe the flow table top clean and dry, being especially careful
and accuracy at a total load of 2 kg. to remove any water from around the edge of the mold. Lift the
5.6 Glass Graduates—Glass graduates of 250-mL capacity, mold away from the mortar 1 min after completing the mixing
conforming to the requirements of Specifications E 438 and operation. Immediately drop the table 10 times in accordance
E 694. with Specification C 230/C 230M. The flow is the resulting
increase in average diameter of the mortar mass, as determined
5.7 Tamper, conforming to the requirements of Test Method
with the calipers, measured on at least four diameters at
C 109/C 109M. The tamping face of the tamper shall be flat
approximately equispaced intervals, expressed as a percentage
and at right angles to the length of the tamper. of the original diameter. Make trial mortars with varying
5.8 Tapping Stick, a piece of hard wood having a diameter percentages of water until the specified flow is obtained. Make
of approximately 16 mm and a length of approximately 152 each trial with fresh mortar.
mm. 9.4 Mass per 400 mL of Mortar—When the quantity of
5.9 Spoon—A metal restaurant-type serving spoon not less mixing water has been found that produces a flow of 871⁄2 6
than 230 mm in length and with a bowl approximately 100 mm 71⁄2 %, immediately determine the mass per 400 mL of mortar,
in length. using the mortar remaining in the mixing bowl after the flow
has been determined. In the determination of the mass per 400
6. Temperature and Humidity mL, do not use the portion of the mortar used in the flow
6.1 Maintain the temperature of the room and dry materials determination. Using the spoon, place the mortar gently into
at 23.0 6 4.0 °C. the 400–ml measure in three equal layers. Tamp each layer 20
times around the inner surface of the measure. For the final
6.2 Condition the mixing water and the measure, if it is
layer of mortar, overfill the 400–ml measure approximately 20
being calibrated at 23 6 2 °C. mm. The position of the tamper shall be that: the broad side of
6.3 Maintain the relative humidity of the laboratory at not the tamper is parallel to the radius and is perpendicular to the
less than 50 %. inner surface of the measure. Each layer is tamped in one
complete revolution (rotation) with only sufficient pressure to
7. Standard Sand adequately fill the measure and eliminate voids within the
7.1 Use sand conforming to the requirements of Specifica- mortar. After the measure has been filled and tamped in the
tion C 778 for 20–30 sand. above prescribed manner, tap the sides of the measure lightly
with the side of the tapping stick, one each at five different
8. Sampling points at approximately equal spacing around the outside of the
measure, in order to preclude entrapment of extraneous air
8.1 Sample the cement in accordance with Practice C 183. (Note 4). No obvious space shall be left between the mortar
NOTE 2—Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) sample containers, upon occasion,
and the inner surface of the measure as a result of the tamping
have been found to affect the air-entraining potential of a cement sample. operation. Then cut the mortar off to a plane surface, flush with
The same problem might be experienced with containers made from other the top of the measure, by drawing the straightedge with a
plastics. sawing motion across the top of the measure, making two

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 C 185 – 08
passes over the entire surface, the second pass being made at = ~5 1 0.01P!
right angles to the first. If, in the striking-off operation, loose , and
~1.827 1 0.01P!
sand grains cause the straightedge to ride above the top surface P = percentage of mixing water, based on mass of ce-
of the measure, these grains shall be removed, and the ment.
operation repeated. Complete the entire operation of filling and Substituting for Wa and Wc we have:
striking off the measure within 11⁄2 min. Wipe off all mortar and
water adhering to the outside of the measure. Determine the
mass of the measure and its contents. Subtract the mass of the
S W 1.827 1 0.01P
Air content, volume % 5 100 1 2 400 3 5 1 0.01P D
container, and record the mass of the mortar in grams. W ~1.827 1 0.01P!
Air content, volume % 5 100 2 4 3
~5 1 0.01P!
NOTE 4—This operation may be facilitated by placing the measure on
a steady flat-surfaced support of lesser diameter than the measure while ~182.7 1 P!
Air content, volume % 5 100 2 2.5W
filling and wiping. ~5000 1 10P!
~182.7 1 P!
10. Calculation Air content, volume % 5 100 2 W
~2000 1 4P!
10.1 Calculate the air content of the mortar from the
10.2 Make only one determination of air content on a batch.
following formula which is based on the batch proportions
given in 9.1, taking the specific gravity of portland cement as NOTE 6—Difficulty has occasionally been experienced with this test
3.15 and of 20–30 standard sand as 2.65. When the hydraulic method by some persons. These difficulties usually have taken the form of
cement is other than portland, the appropriate value for its values for air content that are abnormally high and that may be greater
specific gravity shall be substituted for the value of 3.15 and than the specified maxima in specifications for hydraulic cement. The
air-entraining potential of the sand may be reduced by washing in the
the formula rederived accordingly: laboratory with potable water by decantation until a clear, colorless
Air content, volume % 5 100 2 W[~182.7 1 P!/~2000 1 4P!# (1) supernatant liquid is obtained. In case of dispute, such freshly washed
sand shall be used.

where: 11. Report

W = mass of 400 mL of mortar, g, and
P = percentage of mixing water, based on mass of cement 11.1 When this test method is used for specific action in
used. compliance testing, report the value for the air content to the
nearest 1 %.
NOTE 5—This formula is derived as follows:
Air content, volume % 5 100[1 2 ~Wa /Wc!# (2) 12. Precision and Bias
12.1 The single-operator, within-laboratory, standard devia-
where: tion has been found to be 0.56 % air content throughout the
Wa = actual mass per unit of volume as determined by this range of 8 to 19 % air. Therefore, results of two properly
test method. conducted tests by the same operator on similar batches should
= W/400 g/mL, where W is the mass in grams of the not differ by more than 1.6 % air.
specified 400 mL of mortar (9.4), 12.2 The multilaboratory standard deviation has been found
Wc = theoretical mass per unit of volume, calculated on an to be 1.0 % air content throughout the range from 8 to 19 % air.
air-free basis as follows and using the values for Therefore, results of two different laboratories on similar
quantities of materials and specific gravities as given batches should not differ from each other by more than 2.8 %
in 9.1 and 10.1, air.
= 350 1 1400 1 350 3 P 3 0.01
350 1400 350 3 P 3 0.01 13. Keywords
3.15 1 2.65 1 1 13.1 air content; hydraulic cement mortar

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 C 185 – 08
For additional useful information on details of cement tests methods, references may be made to the “Manual of
Cement Testing,” which appears in the Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol 04.01.

SUMMARY OF CHANGES

Committee C01 has identified the location of selected changes to this test method since the last issue,
C 185 – 02, that may impact the use of this test method. (Approved July 1, 2008)

(1) Added new Note 2 and renumbered subsequent notes.

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