A S T M
ASTM STANDARDS THAT ARE MODIFIED
Prognostication Precisely Proven
By Jim Hojnacki, CSI, CCS, ASTM
Member Grand Rapids, MI Chapter, CSI
Last April I wrote that 21 ASTM soap standards had been submitted for withdrawal and were awaiting results of the voting by ASTM committee members. Although the article was written slightly with tongue in cheek (since it was my April Fools column), there was a certain amount of validity to my madness. Voting is complete, results are in, and all 21 standards were deleted. Gone! Kaput! No Chads! Now the toilet accessory manufacturers across the US will have to recheck their dispenser check valves to see if the newer soap products being manufactured will flow freely, too freely, or not at all. Seems to me, I remember a nursery rhyme (and for me that takes a lot of remembering) about some porridge that was either too hot, too cold, or just right - and no standards were involved with that decision. I can just see all those Bobrick, ASI, and McKinney technicians scurrying around their laboratories with lab coattails aflyin' trying to see what new chemicals their valves will now have to withstand. To them I say, "Don't cry over spilt milk-bath solutions; I warned you nine months ago." Look for revisions shortly to all their soap dispenser specifications.
Electrical Conductor Committee B-01 has added two new standards - ASTM B901, Specification for Compressed Round Stranded Aluminum Conductors Using Single Input Wire Construction; and ASTM B902, Specification for Compressed Round Stranded Copper Conductors, Hard, Medium-Hard, and Soft Using Single Input Wire Construction. Copper and Copper Alloy Committee B-05 has added one new standard and has deleted one other. Added was ASTM B903, Specification for Seamless Copper Heat Exchanger Tubes with Internal Enhancement; and deleted was ASTM B124M, Specification for Copper and Copper Alloy Forging Road, Bar, and Shapes (Metric only). The inch-pound standard remains. Committee B-08 on Metallic and Inorganic Coatings added one new standard, ASTM B904, Specification for Autocratic Nickel over Autocratic Copper for Electromagnetic Interference Shielding.
Concrete and Concrete Aggregate Committee C-09 has deleted ASTM C1151, Test Method for Measuring Absorptivity of Mortar Specimens to Evaluate the Extent of Cement Hydration as a Function of Curing. Glass and Glass Products Committee C-14 has added ASTM C1464, Specification for Bent Glass. To CSI member Bill Coddington CCPR in Toledo, "That last one's for you, man." Building Seals and Sealants Committee C-24 has added two standards, both for use by plumbing engineers, ASTM C1460, Specification for Shielded Transition Couplings for Use with Dissimilar DWV Pipe and Fittings Above Ground; and ASTM C1461 Specification for Mechanical Couplings Using Thermoplastic Elastomeric Type Gaskets for Joining Drain, Waste, and Vent DWV, Sewer, Sanitary, and Storm Plumbing Systems for Above and Below Ground Use. Whew! One more comma, and I think they could have added the kitchen sink to the standard. I've got to talk with C-24 Committee chair, David Nicastro PE, and a CSI member from Austin, TX, (frequent contributor to The Construction Specifier magazine) about using shorter titles.
Paint and Related Coatings Committee D-01 added one new standard and deleted one other. Added was ASTM D6532, Test Method for Evaluation of the Effect of Clear Water Repellent Treatments on Water Absorption of Hydraulic Cement Mortar Specimens; and deleted was ASTM D4518, Test Method for Measuring Static Friction of Coating Surfaces. Road and Paving Materials Committee D-04 deleted two standards - ASTM D290, Practice for Bituminous Mixing Plant Inspection; and ASTM D3205, Test Method for Viscosity of Asphalt with Cone and Plate Viscometer.
Soil and Rock Committee D-18 added three new standards that will impact the testing of soil and fill material for you civil engineers. Added were ASTM D6519, Practice for Sampling of Soil Using the Hydraulically Operated Stationary Piston Sampler; ASTM D6528, Test Method for Consolidated Undrained Direct Simple Shear Testing of Cohesive Soils; and ASTM D6539, Test Method for Measurement of Pneumatic Permeability of Partially Saturated Porous Materials by Flowing Air.
Water Committee D-19 has added four new standards that will affect you engineers involved with testing water quality. Added were ASTM D6512, Practice for Inter-laboratory Quantitation Estimate; ASTM D6520, Practice for the Solid Phase Micro Extraction (SPME) of Water and Its Headspace for the Analysis of Volatile and Semi-Volatile Organic Compounds; ASTM D6529, Test Method for Operating Performance of Continuous Electro-deionization Systems on Feeds from 50 - 1000 Micro-Siemens (µS/cm); and ASTM D6530, Test Method for Total Active Biomass in Cooling Tower Waters (Kool Kount Assay, KKA).
Fire Standards Committee E-05 added ASTM E2074, Test Method for Fire Tests of Door Assemblies, Including Positive Pressure Testing of Side Hinged and Pivoted Swinging Door Assemblies. Thermal Measurement Committee E-37 has added two new standards - ASTM E2069, Test Method for Temperature Calibration on Cooling of Differential Scanning Calorimeters; and ASTM E2070, Test Method for Kinetic Parameters by Differential Scanning Calorimetry Using Isothermal Methods. Committee E-50 on Environmental Assessment has deleted ASTM E1430, Guide for Using Release Detection Devices with Underground Storage Tanks.
As always, if you feel any of these standards affect your work or your products, please request copies of the referenced standards by contacting ASTM at 100 Barr Harbour Dr., West Conshohocken, PA 19428-2959, or by calling ASTM at 610/832-9500, FAX at 610/832-9555, or by sending an email to service@astm.org.
Editor's Note: James Hojnacki writes this column monthly to keep members of the
construction team informed about ASTM Standards that have been changed, deleted, or added.
Contact Jim at jhojnack@ftch.com or by
telephone at (616) 676-5991.