Faulting development in concrete pavements and overlays: Fid-Bau Portal

Faulting development in concrete pavements and overlays

DeSantis, John W. / Sachs, Steven G. / Vandenbossche, Julie M.

The faulting model currently adopted in the Pavement ME design procedure accounts for the pavement response, climatic conditions, traffic, and erodibility of the base. The same faulting model is applied to all jointed concrete pavements regardless of the pavement structure (conventional concrete pavement, unbonded concrete overlay, bonded concrete overlay, etc.). This implies the pumping mechanism is the same for all pavement structures. It also assumes that the rate of the development of faulting and the maximum faulting that will occur is the same regardless of the pavement structure. The focus of this study is to investigate the mechanisms contributing to the development of voids beneath the slabs and faulting for a range of pavement structures. The results are used to determine the suitability of applying one faulting model to all pavement structures. The focus is directed toward undoweled structures since dowelled joints significantly reduce the potential for the development of faulting. It was found that the development of faulting is delayed, develops at a slower rate, and the magnitude of the faulting tends to be higher in overlays as compared to that in jointed plain concrete pavements. In conclusion, a single faulting model is not suitable for application for all pavement structures.