What is the initial setting time of cement?

Cement is the most integral part of the construction. Cement is required for binding aggregates when mixed with water. It creates cement mortar and concrete. By mixing water, the paste of the cement concrete becomes hard within a short period of time. Therefore, it is very important to understand the initial setting time of cement.

What is the initial setting time of cement?

Cement has important properties and by mixing water it forms a paste in a few minutes. This paste can be moulded in any shape due to its plasticity. But within this time water and cement reacts and hardens and that is why the paste loses its plasticity. And afterwards, it is very hard to give the hardened paste any desired shape. This early time of hardening is known as ‘Setting time of cement’. So, before understanding what is initial setting time of cement let us learn about the meaning of the setting time of cement.

Setting time means the amount of time required for concrete or mortar to change from liquid state to plastic state and from plastic state to solid state. The setting time of cement depends on various factors like the quality of cement, chemical composition, sand, temperatures, presence of salt, the amount of water used, etc. For example, the setting time of cement is less during the winter or lower temperature.

There are two types of setting time:

• Initial setting time

• Final setting time

The time when paste made with cement and water starts losing plasticity is known as the initial setting time. So, if the initial setting time of cement is 30 minutes then the cement mortar, and water should be placed in position and mixed properly in the correct ratio within 30 minutes. The concrete will weaken if the timing is delayed. In case you delay the process you may need to reject the cement or add more cement to fix the concrete.

I hope you know the initial setting time of cement now.

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