🧱 Determination of the fineness of cement by three methods — sieving (residue on a woven wire sieve, e.g. 90 µm, from two 25 g portions, with sieve checking by reference material and factor F), air-jet sieving (sieves e.g. 63 and 90 µm) and Blaine air permeability (specific surface area from the time of flow of a fixed volume of air through a compacted cement bed, by comparison with a reference sample), for cements according to EN 197-1, PN-EN 196-6

Construction PN-EN 196-6

Overview

WHAT THE STANDARD COVERS. We read the text of the standard in the iTeh sample of SIST EN 196-6:2019 (text of EN 196-6:2018, English): from the title page through the contents, European foreword and Clauses 1–3 (the sieving method in full) to 4.2.3 (Blaine plunger) with Figure 1 (cell, perforated disc, plunger, manometer) on page 7 inclusive. Outside the sample remain further apparatus and materials of the Blaine method, preparation of the bed with determination of density, calibration, procedure, calculation and precision (4.2.4–4.10), the air-jet sieving method (Clause 5) and the report.

ACCORDING TO THE TEXT OF EN 196-6:2018 (foreword, Clauses 1–4.2.3). The standard was prepared by CEN/TC 51 “Cement and building limes” (secretariat NBN); it superseded EN 196-6:2010; changes: determination of bed volume by mercury was eliminated, and new data for the standard deviation of repeatability and reproducibility were introduced in 4.10. Scope (1): three methods of determining the fineness of cement — the sieving method serves only to demonstrate the presence of coarse particles and is primarily suited to checking and controlling the production process; air-jet sieving measures the retention on sieving for particles substantially passing a 2,0 mm sieve, is suitable for the particle size distribution of agglomerates of very fine particles and can be used with sieves of various apertures, e.g. 63 µm and 90 µm; the air permeability method (Blaine) measures the specific surface area (related to mass) by comparison with a reference material sample, serves primarily to check the consistency of the grinding process of one and the same plant and enables only a limited assessment of the properties of the cement in use; the Blaine method may not give significant results for cements containing ultrafine materials; the methods apply to all cements defined in EN 197-1. Normative references (2): EN 197-1, ISO 383 (conical ground joints), ISO 565 (nominal sizes of sieve openings), ISO 3310-1 (wire cloth sieves), ISO 4803 (borosilicate glass tubing). Sieving method (3): principle — fineness is measured by sieving on standard sieves, determining the mass proportion of particles larger than the mesh, and the sieve is checked with a reference sample of known proportion of coarser material; apparatus — sieve with a firm, non-corrodible cylindrical frame of 150–200 mm nominal diameter and 40–100 mm depth, with cloth of e.g. 90 µm of stainless steel or other abrasion- and corrosion-resistant wire, conforming to ISO 565 and ISO 3310-1 and free of visible irregularities in mesh, with tray and lid to avoid loss, manual or machine sieving, balance ± 0,01 g; reference material of known sieve residue, stored in sealed airtight containers marked with that residue; procedure — the cement sample is shaken for 2 min in a stoppered jar to disperse agglomerates, left for 2 min and stirred gently with a dry rod, (25 ± 0,5) g is weighed to ± 0,01 g onto the sieve with tray, agglomerates dispersed, lid fitted and the sieve agitated by swirling, planetary and linear movements until no more fine material passes; the residue is weighed and expressed as a percentage R1 to the nearest 0,1 %, fines are brushed from the base into the tray, the procedure repeated with a fresh 25 g (R2) and R reported as the mean of R1 and R2 to the nearest 0,1 %; when results differ by more than 1 % absolute — a third determination and the mean of three; manual sieving requires a skilled operator; sieve checking — cleaning and inspection for damage before and after each sieving, and after every 100 sievings a check with (25,0 ± 0,5) g of reference material in the same way, two values P1 and P2 differing for a satisfactory sieve by not more than 0,6 %, their mean P; sieve factor F = R0/P (R0 — known residue of the reference material) to the nearest 0,01, the result R is multiplied by F, which may be 1,00 ± 0,20, and a sieve with F outside this range is discarded; other checks, e.g. optical according to ISO 3310-1, are permitted; all sieves wear slowly and F changes slowly; result — R to the nearest 0,1 % as residue, with sieve mesh and description of the cement; standard deviation of repeatability sr = 0,2 %, of reproducibility sR = 0,3 %; where ISO sieves are hard to obtain, the nearest standard sieve can be used, and the report should state on which sieve the residue was determined. Blaine method (4.1–4.2.3): fineness is measured as specific surface area from the time taken for a fixed quantity of air to flow through a compacted cement bed of specified dimensions and porosity; under standardized conditions the specific surface area is proportional to √t; the number and size of pores depend on the particle size distribution of the cement; the method is comparative rather than absolute, so a reference sample of known specific surface area is required for calibration; permeability cell — rigid cylinder of austenitic stainless steel or other abrasion- and corrosion-resistant material, with flat faces normal to the axis, externally tapered for an airtight fit with the 19/34 joint of the manometer according to ISO 383; perforated disc of non-corrodible metal with 30–40 holes of 1 mm diameter; plunger sliding freely in the cell so that when its cap rests on the cell (15 ± 1) mm remains between the disc and the piston, with a flat for air escape; Figure 1 shows the cell, perforated disc, plunger and manometer with dimensions and tolerances, and its key lists among others the compacted cement disc, filter paper disc, etched lines on the manometer, stopcock, rubber tube and aspirator bulb.

STATUS (as of 03.10.2026). The PKN search (term “PN-EN 196-6”, 03.10.2026) shows PN-EN 196-6:2019-01 in the Polish and English version (both “Introduces: EN 196-6:2018 [IDT]”) without a withdrawal note and the withdrawn PN-EN 196-6:2011 (Polish version), PN-EN 196-6:2010 (English and German versions) and PN-EN 196-6:1997 (Polish version). In the iTeh catalogue (read on 03.10.2026) EN 196-6:2018 has the status “Published”, stage 90.93 (decision to confirm) since 04.06.2024. Cement strength is described in a separate entry on PN-EN 196-1.

HOW MANY LABORATORIES AND IN WHAT FORM (copy of the accreditation scope database, load up to 17.09.2026, read on 03.10.2026). The number 196-6 appears in 22 records at 4 laboratories: AB 054 (14), AB 1344 (3), AB 1706 (3), AB 687 (2). In the current PCA documents (read on 03.10.2026, issues from 12.12.2023 to 21.07.2026) the number appears in 20 cells of the reference column of the same laboratories (AB 054 — 14, AB 1706 — 3, AB 1344 — 2, AB 687 — 1) — at AB 687 and AB 1344 one cell covers two characteristics (specific surface area and particle density), hence 22 records in the database; In addition the PCA document of AB 023 (issue no. 31 of 16.07.2025, flexible scope “E”) has “PN-EN 196-6” without year in 3 rows that are not in the database copy — AB 023 is thus only in PCA: 23 cells at 5 laboratories in total; one row has the addition “z wykorzystaniem normy 1097-7” (using standard 1097-7). In each of the five documents the number of page markers equals the number of PDF pages, without repetitions. The form “PN-EN 196-6:2019-01” (AB 687, AB 1344, AB 1706) and “PN-EN 196-6” without year (AB 054, flexible scope “E”); at AB 054 PN ISO 2591-1 stands alongside for the sieving method, and for particular products also PN-EN 413-1, PN-EN 459-2, PN-EN 15167-1, PN-EN 13282-1 and PN-EN 13282-2. None of these items is suspended; the AB 054 document has a footnote on suspension of part of the scope marked in bold italics, but the rows with PN-EN 196-6 are not so marked. The “Laboratories” tab (term “PN-EN 196-6”) shows the 4 laboratories of the database copy, without AB 023 — checked with a tab query on the production server labcoda.pl on 03.10.2026.

WHAT THE LABORATORIES TEST (items in PCA). Cements (all four; at AB 054 common, special, calcium aluminate and masonry cements), filler (AB 1344), raw meal and clinker (AB 1706), and at AB 054 also building lime, slags, hydraulic binders, hydraulic road binders and ground limestone. Characteristics: specific surface area by the Blaine air permeability method (all four; at AB 1706 range (2400–4800) cm²/g), fineness by sieving (AB 054 — range (0,063–1,00) mm, for masonry cements fraction above 0,09 mm; AB 1706 — residue on 45 µm, 90 µm and 200 µm sieves), particle density by pycnometer (AB 687 — (1,00–5,00) g/cm³, AB 1344, AB 1706). AB 023 (only in PCA): cementitious binders — specific gravity (2,0–3,5) g/cm³ by pycnometer and fineness by sieving on 90 µm and 315 µm sieves, fly ash — specific gravity (1,0–3,0) g/cm³ by pycnometer. No scope lists the air-jet sieving method. According to the contents, determination of cement density is part of the Blaine method (4.5.3 “Determination of density” in the bed preparation, 4.9.4 “Effect of density of cement” in the calculation) — we did not read the text of these points.

WHERE A SEEMINGLY CORRECT RESULT IS EASY TO GET. With preparation: 2 min shaking in a stoppered jar and 2 min waiting before weighing, to disperse agglomerates (3.4.1). With the determination: two 25 g portions; at a difference above 1 % absolute — a third (3.4.1). With the sieve: checking every 100 sievings, F = R0/P; a sieve with F outside 1,00 ± 0,20 is discarded, and the result is multiplied by F (3.4.2). With the reference material: airtight storage, to avoid changes in its characteristics due to absorption or deposition from the atmosphere (3.3). With Blaine: the method is comparative — without calibration with a sample of known surface area the result has no reference (4.1); for cements with ultrafine materials the result may not be significant (1). With the plunger distance: (15 ± 1) mm between disc and piston sets the bed height (4.2.3). With interpretation: Blaine surface area assesses consistency of grinding in the plant, and only to a limited extent the properties of the cement (1).

WHAT WE DO NOT GIVE. We did not read the bed porosity, the determination of cement density, the mass of the Blaine portion, the determination of bed volume, the calibration of the apparatus, the formula for specific surface area, temperature corrections, the precision of the Blaine method or the air-jet sieving procedure (4.2.4–4.10, Clause 5). We do not give fineness requirements for particular cements from product standards.

Method principle

In the sieving method a 25 g portion of cement is sieved on a woven wire sieve (e.g. 90 µm) until fine material stops passing, the residue is expressed as a percentage as the mean of two determinations and corrected by the sieve factor F = R0/P determined with a reference material. In the Blaine method the time taken for a fixed volume of air to flow through a compacted cement bed of specified dimensions and porosity is measured; the specific surface area is proportional to √t, and the apparatus is calibrated with a sample of known specific surface area.

Applications

• All cements according to EN 197-1 (1)
• Production process control (sieving) and consistency of grinding in the plant (Blaine) (1)
• Cements, fillers, raw meal, clinker, slags, lime and binders — fineness, specific surface area and density in the accreditation scopes of 5 laboratories in PCA (AB 023 only in PCA)

Key parameters

Standard

Standard number

PN-EN 196-6:2019-01

Title (PL)

Metody badania cementu — Część 6: Oznaczanie stopnia zmielenia

Title (EN)

Methods of testing cement — Part 6: Determination of fineness

Step-by-step procedure

1. Sample preparation

   Shaking 2 min in a stoppered jar, 2 min waiting, gentle stirring with a dry rod (3.4.1). PN-EN 196-6:2019-01 without a withdrawal note (03.10.2026).

2. Sieving

   (25 ± 0,5) g on the sieve with tray and lid, swirling, planetary and linear movements until nothing passes; residue R1, repeat R2, mean R (3.4.1).

3. Sieve check

   Every 100 sievings with reference material: P1, P2 (≤ 0,6 % difference), F = R0/P, result × F; discard sieve with F outside 1,00 ± 0,20 (3.4.2).

4. Blaine — preparation

   Cell, perforated disc, filter paper, cement bed compacted with the plunger to (15 ± 1) mm; calibration with reference sample (4.1, 4.2; further steps not read).

5. Blaine — measurement and result

   Flow time t of a fixed volume of air; specific surface area ∝ √t; calculation according to 4.x (not read).

Required equipment and apparatus

Reagents, media and consumables

Health and safety (OHS)

• Cement dust — irritates eyes and respiratory tract; protection during sieving
• Cement with water is alkaline — avoid skin contact

Frequently asked questions