What indicates successful hand sieving in terms of total sample weight?

Successful hand sieving is indicated by having less than 0.5% of the total sample weight remaining on each individual sieve. This standard ensures that the sieving process effectively separates materials within the specified size ranges, which is crucial for the accuracy and reliability of aggregate gradation results.

By keeping the residual weight on each sieve below this threshold, it confirms that the majority of the material has been successfully classified according to size, preventing significant amounts of material from being incorrectly categorized. This helps maintain quality control in asphalt mix design and allows for more precise adjustments in mix components to achieve desired performance specifications.

In contrast, the other options present more lenient thresholds that do not sufficiently verify the effectiveness of the sieving process on an individual sieve basis, which is essential for ensuring samples meet industry standards and specifications.