Aggregate Los Angeles Abrasion

In the Los Angeles test, aggregate of a specific particle size class is rotated with steel balls in a rotating drum for a defined number of revolutions. At the end of the test, the proportion of material that has fragmented and fallen below a defined sieve is given as the Los Angeles coefficient.

The purpose is to determine how resistant the aggregate is to fragmentation under transport, spreading, compaction and traffic load. This resistance directly affects service life in uses such as road pavement and ballast.

• Road base and subbase aggregates
• Asphalt mix aggregates
• Railway ballast
• Concrete aggregate
• Crushed stone production quality control

• EN 1097-2 (mechanical and physical properties of aggregates — resistance to fragmentation)
• EN 1097-1 (micro-Deval abrasion resistance — supplementary)
• EN 13043 (aggregates for bituminous mixtures)
• EN 13450 (aggregates for railway ballast)

Grain class

Test grain class defined in the standard

Number and mass of balls

From standard according to the selected degree

Devir

Revolution number and rotation speed defined in the standard

evaluation sieve

Fragmentation rate over the sieve defined in the standard

• Los Angeles abrasion drum and steel balls
• Test sieves and sieve shaker
• Oven
• Precision balance

• The sample must be taken so as to represent the batch and in accordance with the sampling rules of the relevant standard.
• The sampling date, location and the person who took the sample must be recorded.
• Samples requiring curing or conditioning must be stored under the defined conditions.
• The number of samples must meet the minimum required by the standard.
• The sample must not be damaged during transport.

The test is completed within one to two working days, including drying and sieving steps.

1. 1The sample is sieved to the desired particle size class and washed.
2. 2The sample is dried to constant mass and weighed.
3. 3The sample and balls are placed in the drum.
4. 4The drum is rotated for the defined number of revolutions.
5. 5The material is emptied and sieved through the assessment sieve.
6. 6The material retained on the sieve is washed, dried and weighed.
7. 7The Los Angeles coefficient is calculated.

The acceptance class does not come from the test method but from the product standard and the project: concrete class, reinforcement class, aggregate category, or fire performance class is defined in the specification. The report gives the measured value; the conformity decision is made against the relevant product standard.

The result is compared against the category limits in the product standard. A low coefficient means high resistance to fragmentation. The required category varies with the application; expectations for road surfacing are stricter than for subbase.

• Sample description, sampling location and date
• Sampling method and witness sample information, if any
• Standard and test conditions applied
• Sample dimensions, curing conditions and age information
• Measured values and calculated results
• Failure mode or damage description (where applicable)
• A statement that the result applies only to the specimen submitted for testing

EUROLAB holds internationally recognised accreditation obtained from accreditation bodies party to the IAF and ILAC multilateral recognition arrangements, under ISO/IEC 17025 for laboratory testing, ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection and surveillance, and ISO/IEC 17021-1 and ISO/IEC 17065 for system and product certification. This chain ensures the reports and certificates issued are accepted worldwide.

Whether this test can be offered within accredited scope depends on your product and the standard applied; since accreditation is method-based, the scope is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.

• EU 305/2011 Construction Products Regulation (CPR)
• Construction Products Regulation (Turkey)
• TS 500 / Requirements for Design and Construction of Reinforced Concrete Structures
• Turkish Building Earthquake Code

The section below describes the field that the Aggregate Los Angeles Abrasion test belongs to; the conditions and acceptance criteria of this particular test are given in the sections above. The scope specific to your product is confirmed in writing at the quotation stage.

• Concrete Compressive Strength
• Concrete Tensile Strength
• Aggregate Sieve Analysis
• Reinforcing Steel Tensile Test
• Brick Compressive Strength
• Ceramic Flexural Strength
• Glass Impact Test
• Wind Load
• Façade Watertightness
• Fire Resistance
• Reaction to Fire
• Cement