Pycnometer shaker

A mechanical shaker, to provide a standard shake for the pycnometer test for asphalt cement content of an asphalt concrete mix was built and tested. Test results with mechanical shaker indicate slightly higher specific gravities as compared to the manual shake. This indicated that more of the entrained air is removed with the mechanical shake. The shaker dramatically improved consistency of the pycnometer test results and eliminates the need for calibration of each individual tester.