Following is a simple method used by engineers to calculate cement, sand and aggregate to produce

different grade of concrete like M5, M7.5, M10, M15 and M20. if you don’t want to learn the math
involved in the design, you can use the table given at the end of the article to produce different
grade of concrete.

There are two ways to design the concrete mix. They are Design mix method and nominal mix
method. Once you know the math behind the design you can easily design any grade of concrete for
different purposes in different units.

Unloading of Cement bags in our site

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NOMINAL MIX CONCRETE AND DESIGN MIX CONCRETE

In the design mix method, materials are proportioned based on the procedure and rules given in
IS456(2000) and IS10262(2009) codebooks. In this method, cement, sand and aggregates are always
batched in terms of weight, and concrete can be designed for different environmental conditions
and different needs. Hence, if you prepare concrete using design mix method you can save cost and
get good quality of concrete.

In nominal mix method, materials are proportioned based on prescribed approximation and
experience to attain the different grade of concrete. Cement, sand and aggregates are usually
batched in terms of volume using pans, batching boxes etc.., Nominal mix method is easier to follow
in site and they are easier to design and measure hence they are often used in site to produce
concrete up to M20 grade.
UNDERSTANDING CONCRETE GRADE AND CONCRETE MIX RATIOS

Concrete is classified into different grades like M5, M7.5, M10, M15 etc., where M stands for Mix
and the following number stands for characteristic compressive strength(fck) of concrete in 28 days
in the Direct Compression test. So, if you produce M20 grade concrete then you will get the
compressive strength of 20 N/mm2 in 28 days after mixing and casting.

The strength of concrete is based on the ratio of cement, sand, aggregate used to prepare concrete.
Hence it is important to determine the mix ratio through previous experience and Guidelines.
Concrete mix ratios are usually in the form of cement : Sand: Aggregate. For example, if the concrete
mix ratio of M20 concrete is 1:1.5:3 then 1 part of cement, 1.5 part of sand and 3 part of aggregate
in volume should be taken to produce concrete.

Prescribed concrete Mix ratios for all grades of concrete are given below

GRADE MIX RATIO

M5 1 : 5 : 10

M 7.5 1:4:8

M 10 1:3:6

M 15 1:2:4

M 20 1 : 1.5 : 3

Above concrete mix ratios are not strictly practised in the site. You will often notice that the
contractors increase the quantity of sand and reduce the quantity of cement to reduce the cost.
Increasing the sand content will increase the workability of concrete which is good for mixing and
placing but increasing the sand content will decrease the percentage of cement in concrete hence
the strength and durability of the concrete will be affected. It is advisable not to increase the sand
content more than 30 per cent than the above-prescribed ratio.

DESIGN OF NOMINAL MIX CONCRETE FOR ONE CUBIC METER OF M20 CONCRETE

Though you want to prepare 1 cubic meter of concrete, the total volume of cement sand and
aggregate required will be more than 1 cu.m. Because, while mixing, cement and sand has to fill the
gaps between the aggregate(crushed stone) before taking their own place. Hence if you want to
produce concrete with 20 mm aggregate then the total volume of cement sand and aggregate you
require will be 1.55 cubic meters, and if you want to produce concrete with 40 mm aggregate then
the total volume of cement sand and aggregate you require will be 1.52 cubic meters.

Let’s calculate material required for M20 grade to prepare one cubic meter concrete.

Cement sand and aggregate ratio for M20 grade concrete is 1:1.5:3

Cement = 1 Part
Sand = 1.5 Part

Aggregate = 3 Part

Total Parts = 1 + 1.5 + 3 = 5.5

Total Material Required per cubic meter of concrete= 1.55

Volume of 1 part = (1 / 5.5) x 1.55

= 0.282 cu.m

Volume of cement = Ratio x1 part

= 1 x 0.282

= 0.282 cu.m

Volume of sand = Ratio x 1 part

= 1.5 x 0.282

= 0.423 cu.m

Volume of aggregate = Ratio x 1 part

= 3 x 0.282

= 0.846 cu.m

Conversion of Units of the Material for site conditions

Cement is often bought in 50kg bags hence we must convert our calculated quantity to bags.

Weight of cement = volume x density

= 0.282x 1440

= 406kg

No of cement bags required to prepare 1 cubic meter = 400 / 50 = 8 bags

Hence we require nearly 8 bags to prepare one cubic meter of M20 grade concrete.

Aggregates are often bought in Units through lorries and tippers. One cubic meter is 35.32 Cubic
feet. One unit is equal to 100 cubic feet.

Sand in cft = Volume x 35.32

= 0.423 x 35.32

= 15 cft

=0.15 unit

Hence we require 15 cft of aggregate to prepare one cubic meter of M20 grade

Aggregate in cft = Volume of sand x 2

=15 cft x 2

= 302 cft

= 0.30 unit

Hence we require 30 cft of aggregate to prepare one cubic meter of M20 grade concrete.

M20 GRADE – MATERIAL CALCULATION USING GAUGE BOX AND PAN

Gauge boxes, pans are used for Volume batching in site. Volume of a gauge box is 0.35 cu.m(1cft)
which is a volume of 1 bag of cement. For M20 grade, use 1 bag of cement, 1.5 boxes of sand and 3
boxes of aggregate. These are our results….

QUANTITY CEMENT SAND AGG.

1cu.m 0.28cu.m 0.42cu.m 0.85cu.m

1cu.m 400kg 15 cft 30cft

1bag 1 1.5cft 3cft

Likewise, cement, sand and aggregate for different concrete grades with 20mm aggregate (Total dry
material = 1.55)….
 GRADE CEMENT SAND AGG.

M20 0.28cu.m 0.42cu.m 0.85cu.m

400kg 15cft 30 cft

M15 0.22cu.m 0.44cu.m 0.89cu.m

320kg 15.5cft 31cft

M10 0.16cu.m 0.47cu.m 0.93cu.m

225kg 16.5cft 33cft

with 20mm aggregate (Total dry material = 1.55)….

GRADE CEMENT SAND AGG.

M10 0.15cu.m 0.46cu.m 0.91cu.m

220kg 16.5 cft 32 cft

M7.5 0.18cu.m 0.47cu.m 0.94cu.m

170kg 16.5cft 33cft

M5 0.1cu.m 0.475cu.m 1 cu.m

140kg 17 cft 33.5cft

DESIGN OF NOMINAL MIX CONCRETE BY WEIGHT AS PER IS CODE

QUANTITY OF CEMENT SAND AND AGGREGATE IN WEIGHT PER BAG (50KG) OF CEMENT

IS456 Code book recommends the following quantities of total aggregate per 50kg of cement to
produce nominal mix concrete.
 GRADE TOTAL ( FINE + COARSE )

M5 800 kg

M 7.5 625 kg

M 10 480 kg

M 15 330 kg

M 20 250 kg

Note: General ratio of fine aggregate to coarse aggregate is 1:2, but it can be adjusted between 1:1.5
to 1:2.5 based on the grading of fine aggregate and size of coarse aggregate.

Let’s find out the quantity needed to produce M20 grade by the codal procedure. Sand is confirmed
to Zone II – average grading. The ratio of fine to coarse aggregate is chosen as usual as 1:2. From the
above table we know we need 250kg of total dry aggregate for our concrete.

sand per bag of cement = (1 / (1+2)) x 250 kg

=83 kg ~ 85 kg

aggregate per bag of cement = (2 / (1+2)) x 250 kg

= 166 kg ~ 165 kg

Likewise, the weight of cement, sand and aggregate per bag of cement for different concrete grades
…

GRADE CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

M20 1bag 85 kg 165 kg

M15 1bag 110 kg 220 kg

M10 1bag 160 kg 320 kg

M7.5 1bag 210 kg 415 kg

 GRADE CEMENT SAND AGGREGATE

M5 1bag 265 kg 535 kg

WATER REQUIREMENT FOR NOMINAL MIX CONCRETE

Water is taken based on the weight of cement and the required workability. For design mix concrete
codebook suggests to use suitable Water/Cement ratio based on different factors but for nominal
mix concrete codebook suggests the following quantities per bag of cement.

GRADE WATER PER 50KG OF CEMENT IN LITERS

M5 60

M7.5 45

M10 34

M15 32

M20 30

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76 thoughts on “Calculate Cement Sand and Aggregate for Nominal mix concrete in Volume and in
Weight”

Nirav Patel says:

September 9, 2015 at 6:38 pm

how can i calculate sand and aggregate per cum in kilogram

Reply

vajid ali says:

September 10, 2015 at 2:39 am

How can weight calaculate sand and aggregate per cum

Reply

Prakash Kumar says:

September 10, 2015 at 6:34 pm

Since many readers are asking the same question I have updated the post. Read the post again or
click here

any more questions?

Reply

Kathavarayan says:

October 9, 2017 at 4:49 pm

sir I’m kathavarayan BE civil Engineer Steels calucaled I need sie

Reply

Prakash Kumar Sekar says:

October 15, 2017 at 4:06 pm

I will publish about steel calculation soon. In the meantime You can refer “Estimation and quantity
surveying” book by Dutta

Reply

Prakash Kumar says:

September 10, 2015 at 6:38 pm

I have updated the post. In the end of the post you will find what you are looking for.

Reply

sudharsan reddy says:

May 11, 2016 at 5:58 am

volume of aggregate × density of aggregate

Reply

prakashkumarsekar says:

March 20, 2016 at 3:28 am

Ah, Thanks for your input.

Reply

diwakar saxena says:

March 23, 2016 at 8:15 am

Is this method also applicable for designing nominal mixture of M15 grade

Reply

Prakash Kumar says:

April 18, 2016 at 5:49 am

Yes of course but instead of multiply 1.5 in the volume required formula, you should multiply 1.55.

Reply

Anonymous says:

May 2, 2016 at 8:27 am

NIRANJAN DASH

Reply

Anonymous says:

May 5, 2016 at 5:16 am

multiply by 1.57 instead of 1.5

Reply

veerababu says:

May 5, 2016 at 6:08 am

i want 1 : 3 : 6 how much sand qty

Reply

Anonymous says:
May 11, 2016 at 9:42 am

for what grade

Reply

prakashkumarsekar says:

July 2, 2016 at 11:35 am

1:3:6 is a M10 grade concrete. As per IS456, for 50kg bag of cement you will need 480 kg of total
aggregate i.e., 160kg of sand and 320kg of coarse aggregate.

Reply

Anonymous says:

August 2, 2016 at 1:24 pm

i think its 450kg for total aggregate , so 150kg sand and 300kg CA

Reply

Prakash Kumar says:

August 24, 2016 at 11:37 am

Yes that’s what code book suggests If you are looking for weigh batching

Anonymous says:

August 5, 2016 at 12:59 pm

M 35

Reply

Ramesh.P. Manguppam says:

May 18, 2016 at 11:57 am

The ratio is same for river sand and Robo sand( M-Sand).

Reply

Sathish says:

October 15, 2017 at 4:10 pm

Yes

Reply
 desta says:

November 12, 2017 at 4:37 pm

how can we apply this for different dimensions(cross section)?¡.e in my case i do have
1.7m*1.7m*0.5 footing pad which is prepared to be filled.

Reply

Prakash Kumar Sekar says:

December 12, 2017 at 1:19 pm

Calculate the concrete quantity required in cubic meter and then multiply the quantity with the
cement sand and aggregate for 1 cubic meter of concrete.

In your case
Volume of concrete = 1.7 x 1.7 x 0.5 = 1.4 cu.m
It looks like you are using m20 grade mix with extra sand. If you follow that mix proportion then to
calculate use this following method.
Total ratio = 1 + 2 + 3 = 6
Cement required = (1/6) x 1.5 = 0.25 cu.m (refer the post to change cu.m to bags)
Sand = 0.25 x 2 = 0.5 cu.m
Aggregate = 0.25 x 3 = 0.75 cu.m

Reply

Akram says:

August 27, 2018 at 7:28 am

Sir int his case we did calculate sand and aggregate in cubic feet but how we cn use it at site in
execution plz tell me quickly

Reply

Prakash Kumar Sekar says:

September 7, 2018 at 1:37 am

You can calculate by counting head Pan. If you are using M15 grade concrete then for every 1 pan of
cement use 2 pan of fine aggregate and 4 pan of coarse aggregate.

Reply

Anonymous says:

June 1, 2016 at 10:24 am

very nice imfo. in that site

Reply
 Anonymous says:

June 13, 2016 at 4:40 am

how to calculate for M40 grade ?

Reply

Prakash Kumar says:

June 19, 2016 at 7:22 am

You can design M40 Grade using code book

Reply