LimsPulse
Construction materials testing

Los Angeles Abrasion Machine

A rotating steel drum in which coarse aggregate is tumbled with steel balls for a fixed number of revolutions. The percentage worn down to fines (the LA abrasion value) measures resistance to abrasion and impact.

  • Construction materials testing
  • Road and highway construction
  • Railways
  • Quarries
  • Academic labs
Photo of a Los Angeles Abrasion Machine
Photo: Tanvir Anjum Adib, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped), via Wikimedia Commons
Follow your site SOP
This is a typical operating sequence for learning. Your instrument model and approved SOP take precedence.
STAGE 1

Before you start

  1. 1Check the drum speed and abrasive charge check is in date.
  2. 2Prepare, wash and oven-dry the sample to the chosen grading; weigh it.
  3. 3Count and weigh the abrasive charge for that grading.
  • Check the shelf is firmly fixed; a loose shelf is dangerous and changes results.
STAGE 2

Loading

  1. 1Rotate the drum so the opening faces up, and lock it.
  2. 2Place the sample and the abrasive charge in the drum.
  3. 3Fit and clamp the cover so it is dust-tight.
  4. 4Set the counter to the required number of revolutions (e.g. 500).
  • Isolate power before putting hands into the drum.
STAGE 3

Running

  1. 1Close the enclosure and start the drum.
  2. 2Check it runs smoothly at uniform speed.
  3. 3Let the counter stop it at the set revolutions.
  • Wear hearing protection if there is no enclosure.
STAGE 4

Unloading and calculating

  1. 1Position the drum over the tray, open the cover and empty the contents, then remove the spheres.
  2. 2Sieve on a coarser sieve first, then on the 1.70 mm sieve.
  3. 3Wash, oven-dry and weigh the material retained on 1.70 mm.
  4. 4Calculate the abrasion value and report it with the grading and revolutions.
In LimsPulse · Calibration Management

Keep every LA abrasion machine in control: usage logs, calibration and maintenance schedules, and automatic blocking of overdue instruments.

See how