The Cement and Concrete Reference Laboratory has available Calibration Standards for use with X-ray Fluorescence equipment in the chemical analysis of hydraulic cement. There are a total of twelve portland cement samples available. The standards are vacuum sealed to prevent moisture uptake. These same cements were used in the Portland Cement Proficiency Sample Program and the data collected during this program was used in establishing certificate values for these standards.
Each standard consists of a 30 gram sample placed in a glass vial sealed in a plastic pouch. It is anticipated that the shelf life for an unopened sample is approximately five years. As with other cement samples open vials should be placed in a desiccator. Please see the current price list for the cost of these standards.
In selecting these cements as calibration standards, CCRL identified cements that would supplement the current existing standards. The component percentages of these cements were specially selected for their uniqueness from other cements currently being used in calibrating XRF. For your convenience the certificate values for the most common components for both cements are listed below.
| SiO2 | Al2O3 | Fe2O3 | CaO | MgO | SO3 | LOI | Na2O | K2O | TiO2 | P2O5 | |
| Calibration Standard 217 | 18.84 | 4.59 | 3.22 | 62.83 | 2.54 | 3.03 | 3.99 | 0.164 | 0.566 | 0.33 | 0.062 |
| Calibration Standard 218 | 20.24 | 4.87 | 3.35 | 63.85 | 1.21 | 2.89 | 2.47 | 0.128 | 0.566 | 0.26 | 0.167 |
| Calibration Standard 219 | 18.95 | 5.81 | 2.56 | 60.45 | 2.91 | 4.21 | 2.97 | 0.407 | 1.104 | 0.274 | 0.25 |
| Calibration Standard 220 | 19.91 | 4.76 | 2.65 | 61.70 | 3.38 | 4.27 | 0.93 | 0.283 | 1.074 | 0.272 | 0.21 |
| Calibration Standard 225 | 19.90 | 4.14 | 3.12 | 61.45 | 4.30 | 3.40 | 1.74 | 0.261 | 1.143 | 0.19 | 0.059 |
| Calibration Standard 226 | 20.91 | 4.34 | 3.00 | 63.92 | 2.02 | 2.83 | 2.13 | 0.091 | 0.634 | 0.24 | 0.065 |
| Calibration Standard 227 | 21.86 | 5.58 | 3.02 | 61.11 | 2.65 | 2.63 | 2.31 | 0.113 | 0.600 | 0.30 | 0.069 |
| Calibration Standard 228 | 19.42 | 5.34 | 2.44 | 62.52 | 2.24 | 4.03 | 1.99 | 0.354 | 1.003 | 0.27 | 0.167 |
| Calibration Standard 229 | 20.68 | 4.55 | 3.23 | 64.34 | 0.69 | 3.19 | 2.67 | 0.066 | 0.303 | 0.24 | 0.080 |
| Calibration Standard 230 | 19.84 | 4.52 | 3.31 | 62.73 | 3.67 | 3.41 | 1.19 | 0.261 | 0.611 | 0.52 | 0.052 |
| Calibration Standard 231 | 20.38 | 4.94 | 3.17 | 62.36 | 3.30 | 2.62 | 2.07 | 0.182 | 0.771 | 0.25 | 0.069 |
| Calibration Standard 232 | 19.19 | 6.01 | 2.54 | 61.49 | 2.74 | 3.86 | 1.72 | 0.373 | 1.141 | 0.29 | 0.283 |
Currently many laboratories are using the SRMs for both calibration and qualification standards. Purchase of these standards for calibration needs will help to extend the life of the NIST SRM cement standards, which are only required for use in the qualification testing of operators and XRF test methods in ASTM C114.
To purchase these calibration standards or for additional information about the standards please contact CCRL at (240) 436-4800 or e-mail ccrl@astm.org.
The complete certificate of analysis may be found at: