Laboratories for construction and building materials

The Faculty of Science and Technology at UiS has several laboratories within the field of construction and building materials. Here is an overview of relevant equipment and facilities.

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Mechanical workshop 

The mechanical workshop has equipment for joining, cutting, folding, bending and removing chips from materials. We can help machine materials used for experiments that require a high degree of accuracy and produce special parts for equipment that cannot be obtained elsewhere. We can make parts in most types of plastics and metals.

Equipment that is produced or adapted for a specific purpose is often refined during the fabrication process and this usually takes place through a continuous dialogue with the orderer. The workshop is available for both research and teaching and for use by both students and staff. 

  • Saw for cutting   
  • Shearing machine, folding machine, bending machine   
  • Okuma CNC lathe   
  • Mazak CNC mill   
  • Conventional lathe   
  • Conventional milling machine  
  • Pillar drill   
  • Belt sander   
  • Sanding roller   
  • Surface grinder  
  • Sandblaster   
  • Painting booth   
  • MIG welding machine   
  • TIG welding machine   
  • MMA welding  
  • Angle grinder 
  • Plasma cutter  
  • Traverse crane   
  • Pallet truck   
  • A range of lifting and moving equipment  
  • Machining  
  • Cutting/folding/bending  
  • Chip removal  
  • Joining  

Kontaktperson: Emil Mannes Surnevik

3D-printing

The 3D printing laboratory has equipment for 3D printing parts in various types of plastic, such as ABS, PLA and TPU, and an FDM metal printer, which are used for laboratory work by students and for research. There are also 3D printers for biomedical research. DLP printing available, Digital light processing for Lumen X printer.

3D printer, med ferdig printet halvkule med NASA logo på

The parts produced vary from prototypes to display models. The facilities are used by both students and staff and are also used in subjects like CAD/CAP and 3D Printing.

  • Markforged metal X  
  • Markforged Wash-1  
  • Markforged Sinter-1  
  • Markforged Mark Two  
  • Stratasys Fortus 450mc  
  • Prusa i3 MK3  
  • Bambu Lab X1
  • Dry-Line VWR  
  • Ultimaker S5  
  • Formlabs Form 3+
  • Formlabs Form 3B+ (Bioprinter)  
  • Formlab Form Wash  
  • Formlab Form Cure  
  • HandySCAN 700 
  • Einscan H
  • Einscan Transcan C
  • Cell ink BioX (Bioprinter) 
  • Cell ink Lumen X (bioresin printer) 
  • Fused deposition modelling 
  • Selective Laser Melting 
  • Bioprinting
  • DLP printing 

Contact persons: Jan-Tore Jakobsen, Andreas Skaare, og Hanne Røland Hagland (bioprinting)

Concrete

The laboratory has equipment for producing concrete and equipment for carrying out tests on concrete in both fresh and hardened states based on NS-EN standards.

Ivar Langens hus, betonglab

  • Concrete mixer (vacuum), volume 0.5-3 litres 
  • Concrete mixer, volume 10-30 litres 
  • Concrete mixer, volume 50-150 litres 
  • Slip form rig for slip forming simulation 
  • Climate cabinet 
  • Hydraulic press (3000 kN, 50 kN, 2 kN) 
  • Bending press (400 kN, 250 kN) 
  • Chloride meter 
  • Rheometer 
  • A fair number of displacement gauges 
  • Quantum X for converting data 
  • Temperature logger 
  • Concrete saw 
  • Analyses of fresh concrete based on NS-EN 
  • Pressure testing of hardened concrete based on NS-EN 
  • E-module testing of hardened concrete based on NS-EN 
  • Split testing of hardened concrete based on NS-EN 
  • Wedge tensile test 
  • Shrinkage test 
  • pH meter 

Contact persons: Jarle Berge og Samdar Kakay

Wood

The faculty has its own wood workshop. The workshop has large benches and some tools that can be used for, for example, building models. It also has machines and equipment that are used by students and staff for project assignments, such as a laser cutter and various saws.

  • Epilog laser fusion M2
  • Styrofoam cutter
  • Belt sander
  • Saws
  • Various hand tools
  • Model building
  • Laser cutting
  • Sawing

Contact person: Andreas Skaare

Roadbuilding

The roadbuilding laboratories can be used for analysing and testing aggregates, bitumen, bituminous masses and asphalt. Asphalt masses can also be produced, with the preparation and compaction of samples. The equipment and facilities are used by students and staff, as well as external companies that order testing and reports on various roadbuilding materials that will be used in Rogaland.

The laboratory has equipment for heating bitumen samples, and it can conduct Fraass breaking point tests (the temperature at which bitumen reaches critical brittleness and cracks), softening point tests (the temperature at which binders, under standardised conditions, achieve a certain viscosity) as well as needle penetration tests (which determine the hardness of bitumen and bituminous binders by measuring the penetration of a needle into the sample). In the laboratory, users can also prepare asphalt samples with an asphalt mixer before testing the asphalt through Marshall impact compaction (the samples are placed in a cylindrical form (90 mm diameter) and compacted with a Marshall compactor to a length of approximately 90 mm. In addition, users can determine the indirect tensile strength and load distribution coefficient of bituminous masses, as well as the sample’s density, and calculate bitumen content.

For aggregates, users can crush and split stone samples and rocks into smaller, representative fractions. The density of aggregates can be determined using water baths and steel pycnometers. Sieve shaker analysis is used for grading aggregate materials and can be used for all aggregates from 0.063 mm to 90 mm, while sedimentation tests use a hydrometer to grade aggregate materials smaller than 0.063 mm. 

  • Fraass breaking point apparatus
  • Softening point device (manual)
  • Penetrometer
  • Heaters (TERMAKS and GEONOR)
  • Heating cabinet (TERMAK)
  • Thermo lyne NCAT ignition furnace for bitumen content
  • Impactors GEONOR
  • Asphalt mixer INFRATEST
  •  Crushing machine
  •  Sieving machine HAVE ML
  •  Sieves with square openings
  •  Bar sieves
  • Equipment for sedimentation test
  • Steel pycnometers
  • Los Angeles machine
  • Micro Deval machine

BITUMEN AND ASPHALT 

  • Heating bitumen samples 
  • Fraass breaking point 
  • Softening point 
  • Needle penetration 
  •  Asphalt production 
  • Marshall impact compaction 
  • Indirect tensile strength 
  • Density, maximum density (theoretical calculation) and air cavity content. 
  • Ignition testing of asphalt samples (calculation of bitumen content). 

AGGREGATES 

  • Reduction of samples with splitting apparatus 
  • Laboratory crushing of stone materials 
  • Density of aggregates (water baths and steel pycnometers) 
  • Sieve shaker analysis (dry sieving washed materials) 
  • Sedimentation test (using hydrometer) 
  •  Los Angeles method: This test simulates the impact an aggregate is subjected to in a road. 
  •  Micro Deval method: This test simulates the wear an aggregate is subjected to in a mechanically stabilised load-bearing and reinforcement layer. 
  • Flakiness index and shape index. 

Contact person: Guzmán Cruz

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