Aggregate toughness and abrasion test evaluation

Acceptance and rejection of aggregate for use in construction are based on comparison of test results to criteria that are associated with acceptable performance of the materials in service. Toughness and abrasion are one set of characteristics and are measured in standard tests designated as AASHTO T 96 and ASTM C131, Standard Test Method for Resistance To Degradation of Small-sized Coarse Aggregate by Abrasion and Impact in the Los Angeles Machine. Because of the time required to perform this test a more adaptable test for routine field evaluation and quality control is desired. A literature review was conducted to identify promising test methods. As a result the British Standard 812:Part 110, Methods for Determination of Aggregate Crushing Value (ACV) was investigated by conducting comparison testing on a wide variety of aggregate types from New Mexico sources. These data were compared to other previously published data found in the literature. A good correlation was found between these two tests, but some consideration is necessary to account for soft materials that perform well in the T 96 test but do not perform as well in the ACV test.