8 Integrated Materials and Construction Practices for Concrete Pavement

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Integrated Pavement Design
Key Points
The objective of pavement design is to
select pavement features, such as slab
thickness, joint dimensions, and
reinforcement and load transfer
requirements, that will economically
meet the needs and conditions of a
specic paving project.
Traditionally, concrete pavement design
has focused on slab thickness. A more
integrated approach to pavement design
considers all components of the pavement
system that affect performance.

The Guide for Mechanistic-Empirical Design of

New and Rehabilitated Pavements (M-E PDG)
(NCHRP 2004) incorporates an integrated
approach to slab thickness determination.
Most concrete pavements constructed today are
plain (unreinforced) and jointed. These designs
are generally cost-effective and reliable.
Unjointed, reinforced concrete pavement
designs, although more expensive to construct,
may be warranted for certain high-trafc routes,
such as some urban routes.
Pavement design is the development and selection
of slab thickness, joint dimensions, reinforcement
and load transfer requirements, and other pavement
features. A pavement designers objective is to select
pavement features that will economically meet the
specic needs and conditions of a particular project.
Figure 2-1 shows the variety of basic features that
must be determined when designing a concrete pavement.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________
Figure 2-1. Pavement features (ACPA)
Integrated Pavement Design
Integrated Materials and Construction Practices for Concrete Pavement 9



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2004 Design Guide
During the design process, broad assumptions are
often made about materials and construction issues
that have a profound impact on the ultimate perfor-
mance of a specic pavement design, but that are
never veried or achieved in the as-built project. It
is therefore critical to characterize materials properly
through eld tests during mix design and verication
and through appropriate subgrade and base construc-
tion activities. Such tests are important not only to
ensure the quality of each material, but also to ensure
that the actual concrete and base materials reect the
assumptions made when the pavement was designed.
The focus of concrete pavement design has
generally been on determining how thick the slab
should be. Today, agencies are adopting a more
integrated approach to pavement design. Such an
approach simultaneously considers key pavement
features as well as durable concrete mixtures,
constructability issues, etc. Such an integrated
approach is reected in the long-life pavement
concepts that have been adopted by many highway
agencies. This integrated approach can also be
observed in the thickness determination concepts
incorporated into the Guide for Mechanistic-Empirical
Design of New and Rehabilitated Pavements (M-E PDG)
(NCHRP 2004).
More detailed information on concrete pavement
design may be found in several sources (Yoder and
Witzak 1975; PCA 1984; AASHTO 1993; AASHTO
1998; Smith and Hall 2001; ACI 2002; NCHRP
2004).
Basic Concrete Pavement Types
In pavement construction, three different concrete
pavement design types are commonly used: jointed
plain concrete pavements (JPCP), jointed reinforced
concrete pavements (JRCP), and continuously rein-
forced concrete pavements (CRCP) (gure 2-2).
Each of these design types can provide long-lasting
pavements that meet or exceed specic project
requirements. Each type is suitable for new construc-
tion, reconstruction, and overlays (resurfacing) of
existing roads (see more on overlays later in this
chapter, Concrete Overlays, page 23).
________________________________________________
Figure 2-2. Concrete pavement types (ACPA)
JPCP
Because of their cost-effectiveness and reliability,
the vast majority of concrete pavements constructed
today are JPCP designs. They do not contain
reinforcement. They have transverse joints generally
Integrated Materials and Construction Practices for Concrete Pavement
Integrated Pavement Design
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spaced less than 5 to 6.5 m (15 to 20 ft) apart.
They may contain dowel bars across the transverse
joints to transfer trafc loads across slabs and may
contain tiebars across longitudinal joints to promote
aggregate interlock between slabs.
JRCP
JRCP designs contain both joints and reinforcement
(e.g., welded wire fabric, deformed steel bars). Joint
spacings are longer (typically about 9 to 12 m [30 to
40 ft]), and dowel bars and tiebars are used at all
transverse and longitudinal joints, respectively.
The reinforcement, distributed throughout the slab,
composes about 0.15 to 0.25 percent of the cross-
sectional area and is designed to hold tightly together
any transverse cracks that develop in the slab. It is
difcult to ensure that joints are cut where the rein-
forcement has been discontinued. This pavement type is
not as common as it once was on State highways, but it
is used to some extent by municipalities.
CRCP
CRCP designs have no transverse joints, but
contain a signicant amount of longitudinal rein-
forcement, typically 0.6 to 0.8 percent of the
cross-sectional area. Transverse reinforcement is
often used. The high content of reinforcement both
inuences the development of transverse cracks
within an acceptable spacing (about 0.9 to 2.5 m [3 to
8 ft] apart) and serves to hold cracks tightly together.
Some agencies use CRCP designs for high-trafc, urban
routes because of their suitability for high-trafc loads.