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7.10 Rigid Pavement Construction - General Procedure and Considerations

10RIGIDGENERALPROCEDURE
Thegeneralrigidpavementconstructionprocedure MajorTopicsonthisPage involvesplacement,consolidation,finishing,curingand jointinginrapidsuccession."Placement"involvesany 10.1 Placement equipmentorproceduresusedtoplacethedelivered 10.2 Screeding(Strikeoff) PCConthedesiredsurfaceatthedesiredthickness 10.3 Consolidation "consolidation"involvesanymeansusedtoeliminate undesirablevoids"finishing"involvesanyequipmentor 10.4 Finishing proceduresusedtoimpartdesirablesurface 10.5 Curing characteristics"curing"isthemaintenanceof satisfactorymoistureandtemperatureinPCCasitsets 10.6 Joints andhardenssuchthatthedesiredpropertiescan 10.7 Summary developand"jointing"involvesallthoseactionsused toinsertpurposefuldiscontinuitiesinthepavementandsealthemappropriately.Thissection providesagenericdescriptionofthesesixstepsandanyassociatedconsiderations.Specificsof howtheyareaccomplishedinfixedformandslipformpavingareshowninthenexttwosections. Moredetailedinformationcanbefoundin: AmericanConcretePavementAssociation(ACPA).(1995). ConstructionofPortland CementConcretePavements.NationalHighwayInstituteCourseNo.13133. AASHTO/FHWA/Industryjointtraining.FederalHighwayAdministration,Departmentof Transportation.Washington,D.C.

10.1Placement
PCCcanbeplaceddirectlyinthedesiredlocationbytruckortruckattachments(seeFigures7.95 and7.96),orcanbefedintoaplacementmachineformoreaccurateandevenplacement.PCC thatismovedexcessivelyonceithasbeenunloadedfromthetransporttruckwilltendto segregate(becomelesshomogeneous).

Figure7.95:PlacementOverDowelBarsin anIntersection

Figure7.96:PlacementinFrontofa RollingScreed

10.2Screeding(Strikeoff)
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Duringthescreeding(orstrikeoff)process,excessportionsoftheroughlyplacedPCCarecutoff inordertobringtheslabtotherequiredelevation.Thisisusuallydonebydragginga straightedgeacrosstheslabattherequiredelevation.

10.3Consolidation
ConsolidationistheprocessofmakingthefreshlyplacedPCCintoamoreuniformandcompact massbyeliminatingundesirableairvoidsandcausingittomovearoundpotentialobstructions (suchasreinforcingsteel).Consolidationisusuallyaccomplishedusinglong,slendervibration rodscalledvibrators.Vibratorsworkbyrotatinganeccentricweightwhichcausestheentire vibratortomovebackandforth.ThismovementexcitesparticleswithinthePCCmass,causing themtomoveclosertogetherandbetterflowaroundobstructions. VibratorscanbedefinedbytheamountofenergytheimparttothesurroundingPCCmass.This energytransmissionisdefinedbytwoprocesses.First,theamountofenergygeneratedbythe vibratorisproportionaltothesizeandspeedoftherotatingweight.Usually,thesizeisfixedand thespeedisvariable.Second,theenergytransmittedfromthevibratortothesurroundingPCC massisrelatedtopaverspeed(thefasterthepaverruns,thelesstimethevibratorhasina particularvolumeofPCC)andvibratorlocationwithinthePCCmass.Allofthesefactorstogether compriseandcontrolthesizeandshapeofan"influencezone"thevolumeofPCCmassaround avibratorthatreceivesitsenergy(seeFigure7.97).Thisinfluencezoneisusuallyconicalin shapeandvariesinsizedependingonthepreviouslymentionedfactors.

Figure7.97:VibratorInfluenceZone Properconsolidationbyvibrationiscriticaltorigidpavementperformance.Inparticular: Toomuchvibration,eitherbyallowingvibratorstooperatetoolonginoneareaorby usingtohighavibrationrate,canresultin(1)nonuniformdistributionofcoarse aggregateparticles,(2)lossofentrainedair,and(3)bleeding(wateraccumulationon thesurface).AlloftheseresultscangreatlyreducePCCdurability. Toolittlevibration,eitherbynotallowingvibratorsenoughtimetooperateinonearea orbyusingtolowavibrationrate,canresultin(1)nonuniformdistributionofcoarse aggregateparticles,and/or(2)largeairvoidswithinthePCCmass.Again,eitherresult cangreatlyreducePCCdurability. Vibratorstatichead(amountofPCCabovethevibrator)influencesefficiency.Higher staticheadswillhelppushcoarseaggregateparticlestogetherbehindthevibratorasit travelsalong.
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10.4Finishing
Finishinginvolvesallprocessesandequipmentusedtocreatethefinalsurfacefinishandtexture offreshPCC.Generally,finishingcanbedividedintofloatingandtexturing: Floating.AflatsurfaceisrunacrossthePCCinordertoeliminatehighandlowspots, embedlargeraggregateparticlesbeneaththesurface,removeslightimperfectionsand tocompactthemortaratthesurfaceinpreparationfortexturing(PCA,1988).Floating caninvolveanumberofdifferenttoolsandmayinvolvemultiplepassesoverthesame surface. Texturing.Afterfloating,freshPCCisusuallyquitesmooth.Inordertocreateaslip resistantsurfacefortraffic,aroughpatternisusuallyimpartedbydraggingabroom, roughtextureditem,ortinedinstrumentacrossthesurface.Typically,texturingis dividedintothefollowingtwocategories(FHWA,1999): Microtexture(Figure7.98).Thisisachievedbydraggingasectionofburlapor artificialturfbehindthepaver.Microtextureenhancesfrictionbetweenvehicle tiresandthepavementsurface,andenhancessafetyatlowspeeds. Macrotexture(Figure7.99).Thisisgenerallyachievedbytiningthepavement surface.Macrotexturepermitswatertoescapefrombetweentiresandthe pavementsurfaceandenhancessafetyathighspeeds.Typically,anaverage texturedepthof0.7mm(0.03in)willsubstantiallyreducebothtotalandwet weatheraccidentrates.Tiningpracticesvarybyagency,butmanystates requiretransversegroovesontheorderof35mm(0.120.20inches)deep, 3mm(0.12inches)wideandspaced1220mm(0.470.79inches)apart (ACPA,1995).Sometimestheareaoverthefuturejointlocationsisnot texturedinordertoprovideagoodsawingandsealingsurface.Some agenciesconsidermicrotexturingsufficientanddonotmacrotexturetheirrigid pavements. WSDOTMacrotexturing WSDOTtypicallyusestransversetiningforrigidpavement macrotexturing.

Figure7.98(top):TexturingUsingaPieceof ArtificialTurf
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Figure7:99(right):TineTexturing

10.5Curing
CuringreferstothemaintenanceofsatisfactorymoistureandtemperaturewithinaPCCmassas itsetsandhardenssuchthatthedesiredpropertiesofstrength,durabilityanddensitycandevelop (PCA,1988).Thedesiredpropertiesofstrength,durabilityanddensityarerelatedtotheextent ofhydrationwithinthePCCmassthemorecompletethehydration,thebetteraPCC's properties.Theextentandrateofhydrationdependontwocriticalconstructioncontrolled parameters:moistureandtemperature.Thissubsectioncovers: Moistureconsiderationsforcuring Temperatureconsiderationsforcuring Curingmethods WSDOTCuringMethods WSDOTallowscuringby: 1. Curingcompound 2. Whitepolyethylenesheeting 3. Wetcuring

10.5.1Moisture
Hydrationrequiresportlandcementandwater.Theextentofhydrationiscontrolledbythe limitingingredient,whichisusuallyportlandcement.However,ifanysubstantialportionofwater islosttoevaporation,hydrationmaybelimitedbyalackofwater,causingittosloworvirtually stop.Thus,inadequatemoisturewillinhibithydration,whichresultsinaweaker,lessdurable PCC.Rapidmoisturelosswillalsocauseexcessiveshrinkingandcracking.Therefore,ahigh
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relativehumidityaroundahydratingPCCmasswillensureanadequatewatersupplyforhydration andlimitshrinkagecracking.Generally,somemethodofcuringisspecifiedinordertomaintain therelativehumiditywithinthehydratingPCCatanadequatelevel.

10.5.2Temperature
Hydrationrateisalsodependentupontemperature.Highertemperaturesspeeduphydration's chemicalreactions,whilelowertemperaturesslowthemdown.Therefore,temperaturewillaffect PCCstrengthgain.Often,minimumambienttemperaturesforPCCconstructionarespecifiedto ensureanadequatehydrationrateandthus,strengthgain. Maturity Sincehydrationprogressesovertime,andtherateofthisprogressionisdependenton temperature,itshouldbepossibletoestimatetheextentofhydrationbytrackingtimeand temperature."Maturity"isthetermusedtodescribethisconcept.Mostmaturitymeasuresare expressedasafunctionoftheproductofcuringtimeandtemperature(seeFigure7.100).For example,the NurseSaulexpressionis:

where:

M t t T

= = = =

maturity(usuallyinChoursorCdays) timeintervalbeingconsidered timeinterval averagetemperatureofthePCCduringthe timeinterval,t,beingconsidered datumtemperaturethetemperaturebelow whichPCCshowsnostrengthgainwithtime (10Cismostcommonlyused)

T0

Figure7.100:CompressiveStrengthvs.Maturity Often,maturityiscorrelatedtoPCCstrengthgainbylaboratorytestingpriortoPCCplacement.A nondestructivematuritymeasurementcanthenbeusedtoestimatestrengthandavoid destructivestrengthtestsduringconstruction.ASTMC1074definesthematuritymethodas"...a

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techniqueforestimatingconcretestrengththatisbasedontheassumptionthatsamplesofa givenconcretemixtureattainequalstrengthsiftheyattainequalvaluesofmaturityindex."The maturitymethodisusefulbecauseitcanprovidestrengthestimatesofinplacePCCsubjectto actualenvironmentaltemperaturesratherthanrelyingsolelyoncontrolledenvironment laboratorytests.Therearealsoanumberofsignificantlimitationswhenusingmaturityto estimatestrength(MindessandYoung,1981): Thematuritymethodrequiresestablishmentofstrengthmaturityrelationshipinthe laboratorypriortoanyfieldmeasurements.BecausedifferentPCCmixesmatureat differentrates,maturitymetersaretypicallycalibratedtoactualcompressivestrength usinglaboratorytestcylinders.Thus,anychangeinmixproportionsfromthelaboratory designusedforcalibrationwillrequireanewcalibration. OthercharacteristicsaffectingPCCstrength.Itemssuchasmoisturecontent,portland cementchemicalcompositionandfineness,andconstructionpractices(e.g., consolidation,finishing,aircontent)arenotaccountedfor. Maturityonlyaccountsforambienttemperature.Inlargeconcretevolumes,theheatof hydrationcontributessignificantlytothePCCmasstemperature,andthus,strength gain.IntypicalPCCpavements,whicharerelativelythin,thisheatisquicklylosttothe environmentandcanbeignored. Maturityfunctionsarenotaccurateatlowmaturities.Thisisprobablybecausethepoint atwhichtimeshouldbemeasuredfromispoorlydefined.Probably,thebesttimeisnot thetimeofmixingorcasting,butratherthetimethatthePCCactuallybeginstogain strength. Maturitydoescorrelatewellwithstrengthwhentherearelargetemperaturevariations duringcuring.Typically,alowinitialcuringtemperaturefollowedbyahightemperature willleadtohigherstrengths,whiletheopposite(highfollowedbylow)leadstolower strengths. Insum,thematuritymethodisnotaphysicallaw,butratheraconvenientwaytoestimate strengthgain.InPCCpavementapplications,maturitymeters(seeFigures7.101and7.102)can beusedtoestimatetheappropriatetimeforformremoval,jointcuttingoropeningapavementto traffic,butshouldnotbeentirelysubstitutedforbasiclaboratorystrengthtests.

Figure7.101:MaturityMeter

Figure7.102:MeasuringMaturity

10.5.3CuringMethods
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Generally,curingisaccomplishedbyoneoftwomethods(MindessandYoung,1981): 1. Watercuring.Methodsthatpreventmoisturelossandsupplyadditionalwatertothe PCCsurface.Thesemethodsusuallyinvolvepondingwaterontopofaslab, continuouslysprayingaslabwithafinemistorcoveringaslabwithawaterretaining materialsuchasburlap.Thesemethodsarelaborintensiveandaregenerallynotused onPCCpavementsanymore. 2. Sealedcuring.Methodsthatpreventmoisturelossbutdonotsupplyanyadditional water.Thesemethodsusuallyinvolveplacingawaterproofcoveringoveraslab(such asplastic)orusingaliquidmembraneformingchemicalcompound.Curingcompounds aretypicallyformedusingresins,waxesorsyntheticrubberswithadissolvedvolatile solvent.Oncethesolventevaporates,thecuringcompoundformsanearimpermeable membraneoverthePCC.Pigmentsareoftenaddedtocuringcompoundsinorderto reduce(whitepigment)orincrease(darkpigment)heatabsorption.Additionally, pigmentsallowworkerstoseewherethecuringcompoundhasbeenapplied,which helpstoensurecompletecoverage.

10.6Joints
AllPCCpavementtypesusealltypesofjoints,however,CRCPuseslongitudinalreinforcingsteel inordertolimitthenumberoftransversecontractionjoints.Thissubsectiondiscussesthebasics oftransversecontractionjointconstructionincluding: Jointlocation Sawcuttingtiming Sawcuttingdepth Jointsealing

10.6.1Location
TypicaljointlocationsarecoveredinModule2,Section6: RigidPavementTypes,andarenot repeatedhere.However,itisimportanttonotethatjointlocationsshouldbeindicatedonthe constructionplansandplannedinadvance(seeFigure7.103).Intersectionjointlocationscanbe quitecomplexandshouldbemarkedoutonthebaseinadvance(seeFigure7.104).

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Figure7.103:JointLayoutonBaseMaterial

Figure7.104:JointLayoutinanIntersection

10.6.2SawCuttingTiming
Thetimingofcontractionjointsawingdependsupontwokeyfactors: Shrinkagecracking.Sincecontractionjointsareusedtocontrolshrinkagecracking,they shouldbesawedbeforeslabshrinkagestressesbecomegreatenoughtocause uncontrolledcracking.Seefigure7.105. PCCsupportstrengthandjointraveling.SawingmustbedelayeduntilthePCCisstrong enoughtobothsupportthesawingequipmentandtopreventravelingduringthesawing operations.SeeFigure7.106.

Figure7.105:ShrinkageCrackPossiblyDue toLateSawing

Figure7.106:JointRavelingdueto EarlySawing

Thus,asthePCChydratesandstrengthens,thereisashortwindowoftimeinwhichsawingcan occurasillustratedbyFigure7.107.

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Figure7.107:SawCuttingWindow

10.6.3SawCuttingDepth
Transversecontractionjointsareusuallycuttoadepthof1/41/3ofthetotalslabdepthto ensurecrackingoccursatthejoint(seeFigure7.108).Forexample,a250mm(10in.)thickslab wouldrequireajointdepthbetween63and83mm(2.5and3.3inches).Innocaseshouldthe sawcutbelessthan1/4oftheslabdepth.TheFHWA(1990)recommendsthattransversejoints becutinsuccessionratherthanskipsawed(e.g.,initiallycuttingonlyoneoutofevery5or6 jointsthengoingbacklaterandcuttingtherest)becauseskipsawingcanresultinawiderangeof crackwidthsthatformbeneaththesawedjoints.Thesevariedcrackwidthsmaycauseexcessive sealantstressesintheinitiallysawedjointsinitially.

Figure7.108:ContractionJointShowingSawcutDepth

10.6.4JointSealing
Onceajointiscutorotherwisemade,itneedstobesealedtominimizewaterandincompressible materialentry.Sealantsmayalsoreducedowelbarcorrosionbyreducingentranceofdeicing chemicals(ACPA,2001a).Jointsealantsusedtodayaretypicallyoneofthreetypes(ACPA,
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2001a): Hotpourliquidsealants.Thesesealantsareheateduptodecreasetheirviscosityand thenpoured.Jointsarereadyfortrafficassoonasthesealanthascooled.About25 percentofroadwayagenciesusehotpoursealantsintransversecontractionjoints. MosthotpoursealantsareusedinlongitudinaljointsandlowtrafficPCCpavements. Figure7.109showsjointsfilledwithhotpoursealant. Compressionseals.Thesearepreformedrubbercompoundsplacedintoajointunder compression.Aftertheyareplaced,theyformasealbypushingagainsteachsideof thejointandareimmediatelyreadyfortraffic.Compressionseals,commonlycalled neoprenesealsaftertheirprimaryconstituent,areusedbyabout21percentofroadway agenciesintransversecontractionjoints. Siliconesealants.Thesesealantsaresiliconepolymercompoundsthatarepouredinto jointsatambienttemperatures.Itgenerallytakesabout30minutesforthemtoharden andmakethejointreadyfortraffic.About52percentofroadwayagenciesusesilicone sealantsintransversecontractionjoints.

Figure7.109:JointsSealedwithHotPourLiquidSealantonaFreewayOnRamp (normally,jointsshouldcoincidewithlanedivisionsastheydonearthehorizonofthis photograph)

10.7Summary
Thissectionhasprovidedanoverviewofthebasicelementsofrigidpavementsurfacecourse construction:placement,consolidation,finishing,curingandjointing.Thesebasicelementsare commontobothfixedformandslipformpavingthedifferencesareintheequipmentand methods.

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