A single weighed briquette was submerged in a
beaker of cold tap water and inspected for disintegration by
applying finger pressure at intervals of about ten minutes.
If
the briquette remained intact after 30 minutes, the surface
water was wiped off with a cloth and the briquette was
weighed again.
To obtain a quantitative comparison, a water
resistance index (WRI) was calculated as follows:
obtainable after 30 minutes
When binder B briquettes were submerged in water, they
immediately disintegrated. It was clear that these briquettes did
not have any water resistance.
Binder A was expected to impart water-resistant properties
to the briquettes, but these also disintegrated when submerged
in water. Even after 15 days of curing the binder was not able
to establish water-resistant bonds between the particles.
disintegration