Evaluation of Longer-Life Concrete Pavements for California using

Accelerated Pavement Testing

Paper Number CS2-3

Accelerated Pavement Testing

1999 International Conference
October 18-20, 1999
Reno, Nevada
Jeffery R. Roesler, Ph.D.
University of California at Berkeley
Pavement Research Center
1353 S. 46th St.
Richmond, CA 94804-4603

jroesler@uclink4.berkeley.edu
Tel: (510) 231-5746
Fax: (510) 231-9589

Dave Hung
University of California at Berkeley
Pavement Research Center
1353 S. 46th St.
Richmond, CA 94804-4603
davehung@uclink3.berkeley.edu
Tel: (510) 231-5757

John Harvey, Ph.D., P.E.

University of California at Berkeley
Pavement Research Center
1353 S. 46th St.
Richmond, CA 94804-4603
Jharvey@newton.berkeley.edu
Tel: (510) 231-9513
Louw du Plessis
Council for Scientific and Industrial
Research
Pretoria, South Africa
&
Dave Bush
Dynatest Consulting, In.
Ojai, CA
(805) 646-2230

Evaluation of Longer-Life Concrete Pavements for California using

Accelerated Pavement Testing
ABSTRACT
A major effort is underway to evaluate Caltrans Long Life Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies for rigid
pavements. Several pavement structures have been evaluated by the CAL/APT Contract Team using accelerated
pavement testing to determine if the existing Caltrans thickness design procedure is adequate for 30 years of traffic.
Heavy Vehicle Simulator (HVS) testing was completed on a practice slab at the University of California
Berkeley Pavement Research Center (UCB) on a Type I/II accelerated concrete mix. HVS results from the UCB
laboratory indicated the current Caltrans thickness design for 200 mm slabs was sufficient to resist fatigue loading.
Lessons learned from the instrumentation, loading, and data acquisition of the Berkeley test section helped shape the
testing protocol for accelerated pavement test sections in Palmdale, California.
Caltrans constructed FSHCC test pavements in Palmdale, California, divided into a number of test sections
of varying dimensions and chracteristics. UCB provided instrumentation, data acquisition, and independent material
testing for these sections. HVS testing has been completed on nine test sections with bi-directional wheel loading
and an environmental control box used to maintain the pavement temperature at 20 C. The wheel load was applied
along the edge of the test sections over a distance of 8 m. Preliminary HVS results from the 100 and 150 mm test
sections show the fatigue of FSHCC pavement is similar to the fatigue resistance of portland cement concrete.

Roesler et al.

INTRODUCTION
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) operates more than 78,000 lane-kilometers of
highway pavements. In 1995, about 22,500 lane-kilometers required corrective maintenance or rehabilitation.
Nearly 7,000 lane-kilometers required immediate attention to avoid rapid deterioration or loss of the facility. Rigid
pavements (currently all portland cement concrete pavements [PCCP]) make up 32 percent of the lane-kilometers,
yet make up 48 percent of the rehabilitation needs, and 41 percent of the lane-kilometers requiring immediate
attention. Most Caltrans rigid pavements are on heavy truck routes and/or in urban areas with heavy traffic
volumes. Rigid pavements were used extensively for Californias Interstate Highway system (1). Approximately 90
percent of the rigid pavement highways operated by Caltrans were constructed between 1959 and 1974, and were
designed for 20 year lives based on traffic volumes and loads estimated at the time (2).
Most Caltrans existing rigid pavements are plain jointed concrete with no load transfer devices at the joints
with asphalt concrete shoulders. Joint spacing is either non-uniformly spaced between 3.6 and 5.8 m, or uniformly
at 4.6 m. Most joints are skewed 9.5 degrees, although some are perpendicular. Although design standards and
methods changed from the 1950s to the 1970s, for traffic levels greater 10 million ESALs, concrete slab thicknesses
were mostly 200 or 225 mm with an 100 to 150 mm cement treated base and 150 mm aggregate subbase.
Caltrans Rigid Pavement Long Life Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies (LLPRS)
Current Caltrans rehabilitation strategies for failed PCCP are a 120 to 180 mm asphalt concrete overlay
preceded by cracking and seating of the existing PCC slabs or a 300 mm unbonded PCC overlay. In 1997 Caltrans
formed a Long Life Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies (LLPRS) task force to develop alternative lane replacement
strategies for rigid pavements. The strategies were intended to meet the following objectives (3):
1. provide 30 or more years of service life,
2. require minimal maintenance, and
3. have sufficient production to rehabilitate or reconstruct about 6 lane-kilometers within a weekend
construction window of 55 hours.
The typical proposed LLPRS strategy involves removing the existing concrete slabs from the one or two
outside truck lanes using a saw and lift technique to preserve the integrity of the CTB. Slab thicknesses would be
the same as the removed slabs, typically 200 or 225 mm (Figure 1). New transverse joints would be perpendicular
and joint spacing would match the existing adjacent lanes. Fast setting hydraulic cement concrete (FSHCC) would
be used to reduce curing time needed before opening rehabilitated sections to traffic. To increase pavement
performance, the rehabilitation would include construction of tied concrete shoulders, steel dowels at transverse
joints, and wide truck lanes (4.26 m).
2 0 0 -2 2 5 m m F a s t S e t ti n g
H y d r a u li c C e m e n t C o n c r e t e

E x i s tin g C e m e n t T r e a t e d B a s e
(~ 1 0 0 -1 5 0 m m )

E x i s tin g A g g re g a t e S u b B a s e
(~ 1 5 0 m m )
S u b g ra d e

FIGURE 1 Typical Proposed LLPRS Strategy.

Roesler et al.

Evaluation of LLPRS Strategies

Caltrans plans to evaluate the LLPRS strategies in three phases, which at this time are progressing in parallel:
Phase I - Confirm whether supplier and contractor can produce a high volume of high early strength
concrete in a short period of time.
Phase II - Confirm if the removal of existing cracked slabs, placement of fast setting hydraulic cement
concrete (FSHCC), and curing of the concrete pavement can be performed within the stated construction
window.
Phase III - Validate pavement performance by means of laboratory testing, pavement analyses, and
accelerated pavement testing.
This paper presents the plan for Phase III testing to be conducted by the Contract Team (UC-Berkeley,
Dynatest Consulting, Inc., CSIR and Symplectic Engineering Corporation) (4), and results of accelerated pavement
testing on portland cement concrete pavement in Richmond, California and fast setting cement concrete pavements
in Palmdale, California.
LLPRS-RIGID TEST PLAN GOAL
The goal of the Phase III work is to develop as much information as possible to evaluate whether the rigid
pavement Long Life Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies (LLPRS) will meet the stated performance requirements.
The test plan is designed to provide Caltrans with information on:
1. the adequacy of LLPRS structural design options being considered by Caltrans at this time, primarily with
respect to joint faulting, fatigue cracking, corner cracking, and longitudinal cracking,
2. the durability of concrete slabs made with hydraulic cements meeting the fast setting strength requirements,
3. the effects of construction and mix design variables on the durability and structural performance of the
LLPRS pavements, and
4. the full-scale performance of LLPRS structural design options through accelerated pavement testing in the
UC-Berkeley laboratory and in the field.
ACCELERATED PAVEMENT TESTING
Objectives
Accelerated pavement testing at UC-Berkeley is done by two separate machines called Heavy Vehicle
Simulators (HVS). Caltrans owns both machines, with one machine testing asphalt concrete pavements and the
other concrete pavements. The objectives of the accelerated pavement testing for longer-life concrete pavements in
California are the following:
Practice construction, instrumentation, HVS loading, and data acquisition on full-scale test sections at the
UC-Berkeley laboratory (Richmond Field Station).
Determine the fatigue resistance of fast setting hydraulic cement concrete pavements in the field under
HVS loading.
Evaluate the performance of concrete pavements with dowels, tied concrete shoulders, and widen traffic
lanes, under HVS wheel loading and environmental stresses, with respect to fatigue cracking, corner
cracking, and joint faulting.
UC-Berkeley Practice Test Section (516CT)
A test section was constructed at the UC-Berkeley Richmond Field Station, prior to the construction of a
field test section, using a Caltrans seven sack mix design with Type II portland cement, accelerated with two percent
calcium chloride. The RFS test section provided an opportunity to practice installing instrumentation during
construction, to test the instrumentation, data acquisition system, and HVS daily operations for concrete pavements.
The 516CT test section (11) at Richmond Field Station was also used to establish a HVS testing protocol for rigid
pavements. This would allow for an easier transition into HVS field testing on newly constructed concrete
pavements.
The layout and cross-section of practice test section 516CT is shown in Figure 2. The instrumentation and
pavement layout was similar to proposed field test sections in Palmdale, California. Thermocouples and dynamic

Roesler et al.

Overhead view

North
3.96 m

3.96 m

5.79 m

0.3 m from edge

and joint

0.6 m

Thermocouple
3.66 m

0.3 m

Thermocouple

1.98 m
1.5 m

2.02 m

1.98 m
Thermocouple

0.5 m

Joint 1

1.83 m

Carlson A-8 strain meter (bottom)

strain

strain

3.96 m

A8 (top)

1.5 m

2.02 m

Slab 2

5.79 m

0.3 m

Slab 3

Joint 2

0.1 m from edge Thermocouple

and joint

Slab 4

Road

* Thermocouple at slab with most sun

* Thermocouples placed every 50mm in depth
in concrete layer.

Side view
PMR-60-6L Strain gage
38mm

200mm

Portland Cement Concrete

Aggregate Base

38mm
Dynatest PAST-2PCC strain gage

150mm

Subgrade

FIGURE 2. Location of gages on Section 516CT.

Roesler et al.

and static strain gages were placed in the concrete slab to test the survivability of the gages during and after
construction. All gages survived construction and HVS testing. The data acquisition system used to monitor the
static instruments was operated successfully throughout the practice test section. The measured properties of
eachpavement layer are shown in Table 1. These pavement layer parameters were used in determining the stresses
applied to the pavement from the HVS.
TABLE 1 Summary of Pavement Properties for Test Section 516CT.
Pavement Layer Property
Concrete Flexural Strength
Concrete Compressive Strength
Concrete Elastic Modulus
Concrete SlabThickness
Base Elastic Modulus
Subgrade Strength
Subgrade Elastic Modulus
Subgrade K-value

Measured Value
5.9 MPa @ 98 days
56.5 MPa @ 90 days
30,000 MPa
228 mm
206 MPa
CBR = 7
100 MPa
44.3 MPa/m

HVS Loading Pattern

Figure 3 shows the HVS dimensions (tire pressure, wheel spacing) and layout used for rigid pavement
APT. The HVS is 22.6 m long and weighs 60 metric tons. The HVS can apply wheel loads from 20 to 200 kN at a
maximum wheel speed of 10 km/hr. Edge loading with dual wheel radial tires is being used for all HVS tests to
accelerate the fatigue damage of the slabs. No transverse wander was used for HVS loading. The rectangular box at
the slab edge in Figure 2 is the limits of the HVS loading area. The HVS loaded area is 8 m long covering one full
slab and part of two slabs. This pattern provides information on the effects of loading on both leading and trailing
slabs with respect to joint distress, and fatigue cracking information from one full slab. The HVS wheel loading was
bi-directional to increase testing productivity. It was assumed bi-directional fatigue loading would be equivalent to
uni-directional loading.
HVS Test Section 516CT Results
The HVS loading of 516CT began in mid-March and ended in section failure in mid-May. The load chosen
for the HVS testing was 60 kN based on an assumed slab thickness of 200 mm. This ultimately produced a bending
stress in the slab of 2.5 MPa based on a final measured thickness of 228 mm at the slabs edge. The stress ratio in
the concrete slab was approximately 0.43 based on 60 kN load and 5.9 MPa concrete strength. The failure of the
concrete test section occurred at approximately 441,000 repetitions. Figure 4a and 4b show slab failure was a result
of a corner crack in the main slab due to loss of support in the base/subgrade layers. During HVS loading, dynamic
deflection and strain data were acquired at regular intervals.
The Road Surface Deflectometer (RSD), shown in Figure 5, was used to measure the deflections along the
slab edge during HVS loading. Figure 6 shows the results of the RSD with HVS repetitions. The measured
deflections showed a general increase with repetitions but deflections between sampling were variable. The
variability of the deflections was a result of the effects of slab temperature curling and erroneous deflection
measurements. It was found later in the HVS testing that the RSD device was influenced by the large deflection
bowl produced by the concrete pavement bending. Based on the RSD results on the practice test section, an
alternative deflection set-up, shown in Figure 7, was proposed for future HVS field tests.
The measured strains near the mid-slab edge and near the joint can be seen in Figure 8. The measured
strains near the mid-slab edge varied by almost 40% during HVS loading. When the average measured strain was
used to calculate the bending stress in the slab, it matched reasonably well with the assumed bending stress from
finite element analysis. This was expected since strain gages have been found to behave linear elastic when the
stress ratio in the concrete slab is less than 0.70 (5).
Every repetition of the HVS 60 kN wheel load was equivalent to 113 ESALs (AASHTO). The
performance of the concrete pavement test section relative to the Caltrans Design Guides expected performance is
presented in Figure 9. Figure 9 shows the corner crack failure of the section was well after the expected design life
of a 260 mm pavement slab. The HVS test results on section 516CT demonstrated Caltrans design thickness were
conservative

Roesler et al.

Overall weight:

59,646 kg (131,500 lbs.)

Load weight of the test wheel

20-100 kN (4,500-22,500 lbs.) with truck tire

20-200 kN (4,500-45,000 lbs.) with aircraft tire

Tire Pressure

690 kPa

Dimensions of tested area of pavement

1.5 m 8 m (4.9 ft 26.2 ft) maximum

Velocity of the test wheel

Maximum trafficking rate
Average trafficking rate
Average daily repetitions
Engines:Hydraulic plant
Electrical plant/hydraulic control
Dimensions:
Length
Width, overall
Height
Wheel base
Number of axles

10 km/h (6.2 mph) maximum

1000 repetitions/hr
750 repetitions/hr
16,000 (including daily maintenance)
10-cylinder diesel
6-cylinder diesel
22.56 m (74 ft
3.73 m (12 ft)
3.7 m (12 ft)
16.7m (55 ft)
3 (1 in rear, 2 in front)

FIGURE 3. Diagram and specifications of HVS.

FIGURE 4a. Crack growth on 516CT at 440,913 repetitions. Crack line has been enhanced for easier
viewing.

Roesler et al.

FIGURE 4b. Crack growth on 516CT at 492,270 repetitions. Crack line has been enhanced for easier
viewing.

FIGURE 5. Road Surface Deflectometer (RSD).

Roesler et al.

1600
1500
1400
1300

Surface Deflection (mm x 10^-3)

1200
1100
1000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
200
100
0
0

50,000

100,000

150,000

200,000

250,000

300,000

350,000

400,000

450,000

Repetitions
Pt 2

Joint 1

Mid
Pt slab
3 edge

Joint 2

Pt 4

FIGURE 6. RSD results from 60kN wheel load at all five RSD measurement locations.

FIGURE 7. Positioning of displacement measuring devices.

500,000

Roesler et al.

50

25

45
40
35

20

25
20

15

15
10
5

10

Air Temp C

Strain (mm/mm x 10^ -6)

30

0
-5
-10

-15
-20
-25

50000

100000

150000

200000

250000

300000

350000

400000

450000

500000

550000

Repetitions

max tensile strain

max compression strain

Air Temp C

FIGURE 8. Dynamic strain data from Section 516CT under 60kN load. Dynatest PAST-2PCC strain gage
located at the bottom of the pavement near the middle slab edge oriented parallel to slab edge.
60,000,000

50,000,000

Dual Wheel Config.

Edge Loading
Wheel Load = 60 kN
Tire Pressure = 690 kPa

Corner Crack
1st Visual
Crack

40,000,000

ESALs

516CT
30,000,000

20,000,000

10,000,000

150 mm PCCP
Design

260 mm PCCP
Design
215 mm PCCP
Design

0
3/6/1998 3/16/199 3/26/199 4/5/1998 4/15/199 4/25/199 5/5/1998 5/15/199 5/25/199
8
8
8
8
8
8

Time (Date)
FIGURE 9. Richmond Field Station Concrete Test Section 516CT, ESALs versus Time

Roesler et al.

10

with respect to traffic. This test also reinforced previous finding that high traffic volume pavements need to consist
of a stabilized base layer under the concrete surface to prevent erosion and pumping.
HVS Concrete Testing Lessons Learned from Section 516CT
Prior to rigid accelerated pavement testing at UC-Berkeley, researchers had 3 years of experience with
HVS testing and instrumentation of asphalt concrete test sections. The experience from APT of asphalt concrete
sections was transferred to APT of concrete pavement sections. The results of the first HVS test on a concrete test
section in California has shown that not all techniques and instrumentation learned and utilized in HVS testing of
asphalt concrete pavement can be used successfully in concrete pavement testing.
Due to the sensitivity of deflection measurements to temperature (time of day), it was determined the
majority of HVS tests should be completed under a controlled temperature environment. Thermocouple analysis
found the HVS shaded certain areas of the pavement during the day. This was another possible source of error in
the deflection measurement. Since the temperature control box was going to be used on the majority of all future
tests, HVS shading of the pavement would not be a future problem. A final source of error could be introduced in
the analyses and results if the HVS load is increased incremental. Since Miners Law or cumulative damage theory
does not work well for sequenced loading conditions in concrete (12), changing the load in the middle of an HVS
test can make quantifying the fatigue results difficult.
The HVS testing on practice section 516CT at Richmond Field Station helped to eliminate and develop
several data collection methods. The deflection results from the Road Surface Deflectometer (RSD) were found to
be unreliable due to the large deflection basin produced by the slabs bending. An alternative deflection measuring
scheme using linear variable differential transformers (LVDT) was developed to measure maximum deflections at
the slabs joints and mid-slab edge. As shown in Figure 7, these devices are called edge displacement measuring
device (EDMD) and joint displacement measuring device (JDMD) and they will replace the RSD as the primary
deflection measuring device. With the set-up of the JDMDs across the transverse joints, the change in load transfer
efficiency across joints can be monitored with increasing HVS repetitions. The laser profilometer, which is
typically used to measure rutting in HVS trafficked asphalt concrete pavement sections, was found to be unreliable
in determining the change in longitudinal roughness of the concrete surface. The laser profilometer could only
measure roughness over a 2 m section and daily curling of the slab would make it impossible to keep the
profilometers legs at the same elevation. Strain gages were useful in validating strains in non-critical areas of the
slab. However, due to construction and placement constraints, strain gages could not be placed in the location of
maximum strain, e.g. the mid-slab edge.
The CR10X data acquisition system, used to monitor static gages like thermocouples and length change
gages, worked well. One downfall of the data collection scheme was the initial readings of all the gages during and
directly after construction were not recorded. This made it impossible to determine the residual stress state in the
slab due to early age warping (shrinkage) and curling (temperature). This experience made sure data collection of
all gages on future test sections began approximately 15 minutes prior to concrete placement. Noise in some sensors
was discovered during the practice HVS testing. The discovery of noise in several sensors avoided collection of
erroneous data in the field. It was also found that burying the data acquisition system underground increased the
likelihood of infiltrated water damaging the unit.
The complete background and HVS test results for practice test 516CT can be found in reference 11.
Overall, the practice test 516CT helped the pavement research team avoid time consuming and costly
instrumentation and data acquisition problems in the field. The following sections briefly describe the construction,
instrumentation, and preliminary loading of the field HVS test sections in Palmdale, California.
Palmdale Concrete Test Sections
Caltrans built six concrete pavement test sections on State Route 14 just south of Palmdale, California in
northeast Los Angeles County. The test sections are located in a high desert environment at an elevation of just over
800 m. The Palmdale area has a mean annual low air temperature of -8 C with snowfall common in the winter, and
summer high temperatures that can exceed 45 C. Diurnal temperature changes of more than 25 C are not
uncommon (6).
The first 3 sections (South Tangent) are being used to develop a fatigue relation for full-scale plain jointed
concrete slabs. The second 3 test sections (North Tangent) include 200 mm thick slabs on CTB, with dowels, tied
shoulders, and widen truck lane (4.3 m). All 200 mm thick sections are being continuously monitored for
environmental responses. The north and south tangents are 210 m long each with each test section having a total

Roesler et al.

11

length of 70 m. The pavement structures for all six test sections are shown in Figure 10. Each test section has
approximately 15 concrete slabs and can support approximately four heavy vehicle simulator (HVS) load tests.
The subgrade material consists of uplifted alluvial deposits of sand and gravel. Falling Weight
Deflectometer (FWD) deflections were taken on the sections before and after construction. All test sections, except
one, have asphalt concrete shoulders. All slabs have sawed, perpendicular transverse joints that match the 3.7, 4.0,
5.5, 5.8 m spacings of the existing adjacent slabs. All slab widths are 3.7 m wide except for section 11 which is 4.3
m wide.
Summary of Palmdale, California Construction
Construction at Palmdale was completed on 18 June, 1998. Fast-setting hydraulic cement concrete
(FSHCC) was hand placed by a contractor between forms using ready-mix trucks and a dry mix batch plant. A slipforming paver was not used because there was concern about loss of instrumentation during construction.
UC-Berkeley sampled FSHCC during construction to test beams and cylinders at 8 hours, 7 days, and 90
days. A total of 72 beams and 72 cylinders were sampled and tested. Caltrans FSHCC specifications required
center-point beams to reach 2.8 MPa at 8 hours and 4.1 MPa at 7 days. The results of the third-point modulus of
rupture testing (152 x 152 x 533 mm) and cylinder testing (152 x 305 mm) are summarized in Table 2. A complete
presentation of the FSHCC mix design and actual batch weights, fresh concrete properties, concrete strength and
thickness data, results of the non-destructive evaluation of the pavement with the falling weight deflectometer can be
reviewed in reference 13.
TABLE 2 Summary of Beam and Cylinder Strengths from Palmdale Test Sections.

Specimen
type
Beam
Beam
Beam
Cylinder
Cylinder
Cylinder

Section
All
All
All
All
All
All

Specimen
Age
8 Hours
7 Days
90 Days
8 Hours
7 Days
90 Days

Modulus of Rupture
(Mpa) (Beams)
Compressive Strength
(MPa) (Cylinders)
2.09
4.03
5.20
13.6
28.7
45.5

Standard
Deviation
(Mpa)
0.32
0.54
1.17
2.66
5.15
12.2

Coefficient of
Variation %
15
13
23
20
18
28

Test Section Instrumentation

Instrumentation selection and placement was based primarily on the experience of the Ohio Road, Denver
Airport, and Mn/ROAD test sections.
Instrumentation includes:
static instruments, which measure response to environmental conditions and are automatically
monitored every two hours by the Campbell Scientific CR10X data acquisition system, and
dynamic instruments, which are monitored using the HVS data acquisition system.
Typical instrument locations are shown in Figure 11. Sixty sets of thermocouples were installed to measure
the vertical temperature gradient at 50 mm increments in the concrete slabs. Two types of dynamic strain gages
were installed in the wheel path to help quantify the applied bending stresses in the concrete. A total 54 dynamic
strain gages were place in the six test sections. Multi-depth deflectometers (MDD) were used to measure vertical
deflections under dynamic loading at several depths in the pavement structure. A Crack Activity Meter (CAM) will
be utilized to measure horizontal and vertical displacements at joints and cracks on the pavement surface during
dynamic loading. Data from all the dynamic gages are collected at specified load repetition intervals while the HVS
wheel load is moving across the slab.
Environmental strain gages (Carlson A-8) were placed in the concrete slabs at critical locations to measure
strains caused by length changes (temperature, shrinkage, creep). Twenty-four of these gages are monitored
continuously by the CR10X system and placed 38 mm from the top or bottom of the slab.

Roesler et al.

12

North Tangent (overhead)

3.7 m
0.6 m

Section 11
no tie bars, dowels, 4.3m wide lane

Section 9
tie bars, dowels

70 m

Section 7
no tie bars, no dowels

70 m

70 m

Section 9

Section 7

North Tangent (pavement structure)

Section 11
200 mm Fast setting Hydraulic
Cement Concrete

200 mm Fast setting Hydraulic

Cement Concrete

200 mm Fast setting Hydraulic

Cement Concrete

100 mm Cement Treated Base

100 mm Cement Treated Base

100 mm Cement Treated Base

150 mm Aggregate Sub Base

150 mm Aggregate Sub Base

150 mm Aggregate Sub Base

Subgrade

Subgrade

Subgrade

South Tangent (overhead)

3.7 m

Section 1
no tie bars, no dowels

Section 3
no tie bars, no dowels

70 m

Section 5
no tie bars, no dowels

70 m

70 m

South Tangent (pavement structure)

Section 5
Section 1

Section 3

100 mm Fast setting Hydraulic

Cement Concrete

150 mm Fast setting Hydraulic

Cement Concrete

150 mm Aggregate Base

150 mm Aggregate Base

Subgrade

Subgrade

200 mm Fast setting Hydraulic

Cement Concrete
150 mm Aggregate Base

Subgrade

FIGURE 10 Palmdale Pavement Structures, North and South Tangents.

Roesler et al.
Joint Displacement Measuring Devices (JDMD), measure vertical displacement of joints under HVS traffic
(dynamic), the static curling of the slabs corner, and the slabs daily joint opening. The JDMDs consist of two
LVDTs, which can be configured to measure vertical displacements of the two slabs at a joint, or one LVDT
measuring slab vertical movement and one LVDT measuring the relative horizontal displacement between two
slabs. Edge Displacement Measuring Devices (EDMD) measure the maximum edge deflection during HVS
trafficking at the mid-slab edge. This allows for backcalculation of the maximum bending stress in the slab due to
HVS loading.
Three dowel bars in both Sections 9 and 11 are fitted with strain gages. The purpose of the dowel bar strain
gages is to determine the effect temperature curling has on the strains in the dowels. Each dowel has two axial strain
gages to measure bending strain and one strain gage rosette to measure bending and shear strain.
The CR10X data collection systems were started several hours prior to placement of the concrete to
monitor temperatures and strains generated within the slabs during cement hydration. Weather data, including air
temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and rainfall are being collected continuously using an on-site weather
station. A comprehensive report on the Palmdale FSHCC pavement instrumentation can be found in reference 13.
Failure Definitions
The failure definition for the South Tangent FSHCC sections is the presence of traffic-induced fatigue
cracks on the main slab. Failure on the North Tangent sections is defined as the presence of transverse, longitudinal,
or corner cracking on the main slab tested and/or significant faulting.
HVS Loading Pattern
The HVS used in Palmdale is the same one that was used during the practice test section 516CT at the UCBerkeley laboratory (see Figure 3). As shown in Figure 11, edge loading with dual wheel radial tires is being used
for all HVS tests except Section 11 (widen truck lane) where the wheel will be placed 0.6 m from the pavement
edge. No transverse wander will be used for the HVS testing at Palmdale. Bi-directional trafficking will be
combined with dry environmental conditions on tests intended to provide fatigue cracking information. Several
sections will have uni-directional trafficking with wet environmental conditions to provide information on joint
faulting and cracking caused by erosion. The test parameters for each HVS test location are summarized in Table 3.
Loads will be adjusted based on measured concrete strength and core thickness at each test location.
Environmental Control
The HVS is fitted with a temperature control box equipped with cooling devices to maintain the slab at 20
C (67 F) 5 C (9 F) throughout the entire test. This ensures a slab temperature gradient of approximately zero
will be maintained during load testing. Ambient temperatures will be permitted on some test sections (Table 3) to
check assumptions regarding temperature and load stress effects on the total slab stresses.
Entry of water into the pavement sections will also be controlled to maintain uniform conditions between
the different pavement structures. Each section on the North Tangent will be tested in both the dry and wet
conditions to measure the slab responses to infiltrated water (Table 3).
Initial HVS Results from Palmdale
HVS testing was begun on 15 July, 1998. Channelization of HVS wheel loads along the edge of the slabs
and overloading are expected to accelerate pavement damage rates. Estimating the time required to test each of the
HVS test sections in Palmdale is difficult because of the large number of variables included in the experiments.
Curently the operational performance of the HVS on concrete test sections at UC-Berkeley and Palmdale is the
following:
HVS Repetitions 16,000 per day bi-directional
HVS downtime - 10 percent
Time to move between test slabs and set-up 48 hours
Dynamic data collection - two hours per data collection.

13

Roesler et al.

Section 9-B, North Tangent

Plan View of Test Area showing Instrument Locations (1:100 scale)
JDMD

wheelpath
1.87

0.33

3.29

TC-14

A8-7 (bottom)

1.85

1.85

3.93 m

2.36

0.30 0.30

3.36

TC-13

TC-15

3.76 m

21

A8-8 (top) 1.42

TC-16

3.66 m

1.99

Slab 21
0.51

SG

1.89

20
MDD-6 MDD-7

0.16

Slab 20

2.32

1.83

wheelpath

19

3.36

Slab 19

0.30

18

5.52 m

Cross-section View of Test Area (1:300 scale)

MDD-6

Slab 20
HCC (200 mm)
CTB (100 mm)
ASB (150 mm)

40 mm
40 mm

P-18
D-18

20

MDD-7

Slab 21

200 mm

200 mm

225 mm

225 mm

225 mm

225 mm

250 mm

250 mm

Anchored at 3.3 m

Anchored at 3.3 m

Subgrade

Figure 11 Typical Instrumentation for North Tangent Test Sections.

14

Roesler et al.

15
TABLE 3 Test Section Numbers and Test Parameters.

Study
Practice
Develop FSHCC
Fatigue Curve

Temporary
Test
Number
516CT

Concrete
Thickness
(mm)
200

Base
Type
AB

1A
1B
1C
1D
3A
3B
3C
3D
5A
5B
5C
5D

100
100
100
100
150
150
150
150
200
200
200
200

AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB
AB

Design
Featuresa
none

Wheel
Load
(kN)
60

Wheel
Load
Direction
bi

Water
Condition/
Temperature
Conditionsb
dry/A

none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none
none

25
35
30
20
80
60
60
40
100
90
90
80

bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi
bi

dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/A
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C
dry/C

bi
uni
bi
uni
bi
uni
bi
uni
bi
uni
bi
uni

dry/C
wet/C
dry/A
wet/A
dry/C
wet/C
dry/A
wet/A
dry/C
wet/C
dry/A
wet/A

Evaluation of
Design Features

7A
200
CTB
none
60
7B
200
CTB
none
60
7C
200
CTB
none
80
7D
200
CTB
none
80
9A
200
CTB
D/T
60
9B
200
CTB
D/T
60
9C
200
CTB
D/T
80
9D
200
CTB
D/T
80
11A
200
CTB
D/W
60
11B
200
CTB
D/W
60
11C
200
CTB
D/W
80
11D
200
CTB
D/W
80
a
design feature notes: D dowels; T - tied concrete shoulder; W - widen lane
b
temperature conditions: A- ambient; C - controlled at ~20 o C
The HVS is operated at Palmdale on a 24 hours per day, 7 days per week basis.
Preliminary Fatigue results of 100 and 150 mm Test Sections

As of the end of January 1999, HVS testing had been completed on nine test locations on the south tangent.
The layout of each of these test locations is similar to the layout in Figure 11. The nine tests include 3 dynamic tests
on the 100 mm section, 1 static test on a 100 mm slab, and 5 dynamic test on the 150 mm section. Failure of each
test location was defined when there was a visual crack on the surface of the main slab. Test locations have failed
with longitudinal, transverse, or corner cracks.
A typical deflection versus HVS repetitions is shown in Figure 12 for test section 3-B. The measured
deflections can be rationalized by looking at the development of cracking in Figure 12. The deflections at the joint
are much more sensitive to slab cracking than at the edge for this test section. Figure 13 shows the change in
dynamic strain at the mid-slab edge versus HVS repetitions for test section 3-B. The strain output of the gages
appears to be stable until the cracking approaches the vicinity of the gage. For the nine tests completed to date, the
measured deflection and strain magnitudes have been dependent on the location of the cracking relative to the
measuring device.
In order to evaluate the fatigue resistance of the FSHCC pavement in Palmdale versus conventional fatigue
curves for portland cement concrete, bending stresses in the slab were backcalculated from measured edge

Roesler et al.

16

deflections. These backcalculated stresses were then divided by the 90-day flexural strength of the concrete to
determine what the applied stress ratio was in the slab during HVS testing. The applied stress ratio versus HVS
repetitions to failure for all nine test locations were then plotted. Figure 14 shows the results of the HVS fatigue
tests on FSHCC pavements relative to the Portland Cement Association (PCA) fatigue curve (14), beam fatigue
curve based on 50 percent probability of fatigue failure (8), PCC slab fatigue curve taken from laboratory tests (5),
and field fatigue curve by Vesic (15) based on AASHO Road Test. This preliminary field fatigue curve for FSHCC
pavements is similar to the fatigue resistance of PCC slabs in the laboratory. HVS testing of the FSHCC pavements
in Palmdale will continue until the latter part of 2000 with most future tests focusing on the performance of the
different pavement design features.

4500

4000

Measured Deflection (mmx10 -3)

3500

LVDT 1

23

3000

LVDT 1

2500

LVDT 2
LVDT 3
2000

1500

b
c

1000

Test Section 3-B

Wheel Load = 45 kN
Controlled Temperature

500

0
0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

HVS Repetitions

FIGURE 12. Measured Deflections at Slab Edge and Joint for HVS Test Section 3-B.

140,000

Roesler et al.

80

60

Dynamic Bending Strain (microstrain)

40

20

c
0
0

20,000

40,000

60,000

80,000

100,000

120,000

140,000

-20

Max strain Bottom

-40

Min strain Top

gages
-60

-80

Test Section 3-B

Wheel Load = 45 kN
Controlled Temperature

-100
HVS Repetitions

FIGURE 13. Measured Bending Strains at the Slab Edge for Test Section 3-B.
17

Beam
PCA Curve
Slab Curve
FSHCC
AASHO Rd. Test

1.40

Stress Ratio

1.20

Roesler et al.

1.60

1.00
0.80
0.60
0.40
0.20
0.00
1.E+00

1.E+01

1.E+02

1.E+03

1.E+04

1.E+05

1.E+06

1.E+07

1.E+08

Number of Repetitions to Fatigue Failure

18

FIGURE 14. Comparison of FSHCC and PCC Fatigue Resistance

Roesler et al,

19

SUMMARY
A major effort is underway to evaluate Caltrans Long Life Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies for rigid
pavements. The ability of the proposed pavement structures to provide the desired service life will be
comprehensively evaluated by the CAL/APT Contract Team using accelerated pavement testing, laboratory testing,
modeling and analysis.
HVS testing was completed on a practice slab at UC-Berkeley laboratory. Lessons learned from the
instrumentation, loading, and data acquisition of the Berkeley test section helped shape the testing protocol for the
Palmdale, California accelerated pavement test sections. Preliminary HVS results from the 100 and 150 mm test
sections at Palmdale show the fatigue of FSHCC pavement is similar to the fatigue resistance of portland cement
concrete.
REFERENCES
1. Caltrans Maintenance Program, Pavement Management Information Branch, 1995 State of the Pavement,
Sacramento, California, November, 1996.
2. Presentations by James Roberts, Robert Marsh and Kevin Herritt of Caltrans, Concrete Pavement Rehabilitation
Workshop/Seminar, Ontario, California, 16-18 July, 1997.
2. Invitation to PCCP Lane Replacement Team Meeting from Caltrans Office of Roadway Maintenance, 1 April,
1997.
3. CAL/APT Contract Team, Test Plan for CAL/APT Goal LLPRSRigid Phase III, Institute of Transportation
Studies, Pavement Research Center, University of California, Berkeley, April, 1998.
5. Roesler, J., Fatigue of Concrete Beams and Slabs, Ph.D. Thesis, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign,
IL, 1998.
6. PCS/Law, Inc., SHRPBIND software, Version 2.0, Federal Highway Administration, HNR-30, McLean,
Virginia, May, 1995.
7. Mehta, P.K. Evaluation of Sulfate-Resisting Cements by a New Test Method, ACI Journal, October 1975, pp.
573-575.
7. Darter, M. I. and Barenberg, E. J. (1977), Design of Zero-Maintenance Plain Jointed Concrete Pavement,
Volume 1: Development of Design Procedures, Federal Highway Administration Report No. FHWA-RD-77III.
8. Kim, J. R., Glover-Titus, L., and Darter, M. I., Axle Load Distribution Characterization for Mechanistic
Pavement Design Purposes, Transportation Research Board, Paper No. 981411, 1998.
9. Harvey, J., Roesler, J., Farver, J., and Liang, L., Preliminary Evaluation of Proposed LLPRS Rigid Pavement
Structures and Design Inputs, Institute of Transportation Studies, Pavement Research Center, University of
California, Berkeley, Draft Report to Caltrans, Septermber, 1998.
10. Roesler, J., Plessis, L. d., Hung, D., Bush, D., Harvey, J., CAL/APT Goal LLPRS Rigid Phase III: Concrete
Test Section 516CT Report, Institute of Transportation Studies, Pavement Research Center, University of
California, Berkeley, Draft Report to Caltrans, Septermber, 1998.
11. Hilsdorf, H. and Kesler, C. E. (1966), Fatigue Strength of Concrete Under Varying Flexural Stresses,
Proceedings, American Concrete Institute, Vol. 63, pp. 1059-1075.
12. Roesler, J., Scheffy, C., Ali, A., and Bush, D., Construction, Instrumentation, and Material Testing of FastSetting Hydraulic Cement Concrete Pavement in Palmdale, California, Institute of Transportation Studies,
Pavement Research Center, University of California, Berkeley, Draft Report to Caltrans, March 1999.
13. Packard, R. G. and Tayabji, S. D. (1985), New PCA Thickness Design Procedure for Concrete Highway and
Street Pavements, Proceedings, 3rd International Conference on Concrete Pavement Design, Purdue
University, West Lafayette, Ind., pp. 225-236.
14. Vesic, A. S. and Saxena, S. K. (1969), Analysis of Structural Behavior of Road Test Rigid Pavements,
Highway Research Record No. 291, 1969, pp. 156-58.