Roller-Compacted Concrete Pavement:

Design and Construction

Pavement Thickness Design and

RCC-Pave Software
Gregory E. Halsted, P.E.
Pavements Engineer
Portland Cement Association

November 3, 2005
Atlanta, Georgia

Cement-Based Pavement
Materials
Cement Content

Roller-Compacted
Concrete

Conventional
Concrete

No Wea
ring Co
u

Soil-Cement
CementTreated
Base

Wearin
g

Course

Flowable Fill
Full-Depth
Reclamation

Cement-Modified
Soil

Cast

Rolled

Water Content

rse

Definition
Roller-Compacted Concrete (RCC) is a no-slump
concrete that is compacted by vibratory rollers.
Zero slump (consistency of damp gravel)
No forms
No reinforcing steel
No finishing
Consolidated with
vibratory rollers
Concrete pavement placed in a different way!

Pavement Thickness Design

Engineering Properties
Compressive strength
4,000 to 10,000 psi

Flexural strength
500 to 1,000 psi
fr = C(fc)1/2

Modulus of Elasticity
3,000,000 to 5,500,000 psi
E = CE(fc)1/2

Engineering Properties
RCC can provide
higher flexural
strength than
conventional
concrete

Mixture Design
Conventional concrete mixture procedures
are not appropriate!
Not air-entrained
Lower water content
Lower paste content
Larger fine aggregate content
Nominal maximum size aggregate (NMSA)
= 1/2 or 5/8

Important!
Dry enough
to support a
vibratory
roller
Wet enough
to permit
adequate
distribution
of paste

Aggregate Selection
Aggregate
selection very
important
Responsible for
mix workability,
segregation,
ease of
consolidation
Pre-blended or
stored
separately

Aggregate Selection
Highway base course, asphalt, or concrete
aggregates can be used
1/2 or 5/8 NMSA
For smooth surface, lower segregation
Higher fine aggregate content than
conventional concrete mixes
For adequate stability under vibratory
roller
2% to 8% passing #200 sieve
Provides paste to fill voids and maintain
tight surface

Pe rc e nt Pa s s ing

Aggregate Gradation for RCC

#200

#40

.075
0.1

.425

#10

#4

1/2" 1"

2"

2.0

4.75 12.5 25 50
10
100

100
80
60
40
20
0
0.01

Sieve Opening (mm)

Cementitious Materials
Select materials based upon availability,
economics, and design requirements:
Portland cement: Type I or II
Fly ash
Slag or silica fume
Normally 400-600 lb/cy cementitious
(12% to 17% of dry weight)
If used, fly ash proportions are typically
15% to 25%

Admixtures
Retarders or water reducers can be
used to increase working time
Superplasticizers not used
Air entrainment not yet technologically
possible
But RCC is very freeze/thaw resistant
Fibers seldom used, benefits have not
been demonstrated
Newest trend in RCC mix production

Soil Compaction Method

1. Determine moisture content

Construct moisture/density curve

Modified Proctor ASTM D1557
Assume a median cement content
for example: 15 percent

Moisture-Density Relationship
Dry Density (lb/cf)

144
143
142
141
140
2%

3%

4%

5%

6%

Moisture Content

7%

8%

Soil Compaction Method

2. Determine cementitious materials
content

Use optimum moisture content

Run cement series
e.g., 11%, 13%, 15%, 17%
Select cement content which yields
appropriate strength

View Of Casting First Lift Of

Cylinder Using ASTM C1435

Completed Test Cylinders

Strength vs. Cement Content

28-Day Compressive
Strength (psi)

6,500
6,000
5,500
5,000
4,500
4,000
10%

12%

14%

Cement Content

16%

18%

Sample RCC Mix Designs

Coarse Aggregate
Fine Aggregate
Maximum Size
Aggregate
% Finer Than #200
Cement
Fly Ash
Water
Unit Weight
Compressive: 3 day
Compressive: 28 day
Flexural: 3 day
Flexural: 28 day

Units
lb/cy
lb/cy

Port of Tacoma
Intermodal Yard
1,700
1,700

Brownsville, TX
Border Station
1,287 (#67 river gravel)
1,762 (concrete sand)

in

5/8

3/4

%
lb/cy
lb/cy
lb/cy
lb/cf
psi
psi
psi
psi

3-7
450
100
257
154.3
1,810
6,050
525
770

2
504
0
185
147.2
3,046
4,946
493
638

Thickness Design of RCC

Pavements
Design methods based on CTL and
COE Research
Follows rigid pavement design
strategies
Plain, un-doweled, un-reinforced
concrete pavement

RCC - Unique Loadings

Highway loadings just the start
Industrial pavements present design
challenge
Container and log sort yard loadings
can greatly exceed highway loadings
18,000 vs 220,000+ lb. axle loads

Slab Tensile Stress is Critical

Stress is affected by:

load
tire pressure and spacing
slab thickness
subbase support
concrete stiffness

Design for Stress Ratio

Stress Ratio = critical applied tensile stress
Modulus of Rupture (flexural strength)
where:
critical applied stress is the maximum tensile stress at the
bottom of the concrete pavement slab
and the
Modulus of Rupture is the tensile strength of a concrete beam
tested using third-point loading at 28 days
Flexural (tensile) strength controls for RCC pavements

Thickness Design Procedure

RCC pavement thickness is increased
until the desired stress ratio is
reached
or
the strength of the concrete is
increased

Design Assumptions
Interior loading
Monolithic slab action for multi-layer
construction
Load transfer across joints/cracks
Conservatism:
Design curve below fatigue tests
Strength gain with age

Thickness Design Procedure

1. Support strength of subgrade (k value)
2. Vehicle characteristics
Wheel loads
Wheel spacing
Tire characteristics
Load repetitions during design life
3. Flexural strength
4. Modulus of Elasticity

Thickness Design Procedure

Subgrade Support
k value
Use plate load test, or estimated
relationships
Vehicle Loads
Normally, heaviest wheel load controls
Contact area: wheel load/tire pressure
Wheel spacing: per manufacturer

Software Demonstration

Single Axle Single Wheel

Design Example

Passenger Car, Single Axle - Single Wheel

Axle load: 2k - Wheel load: 1k
Subgrade k value: 210 pci
Tire pressure: 35 psi
Tire contact area 1,000/35 = 29 sq in
RCC flexural strength: 600 psi
RCC modulus of elasticity: 3,500,000 psi
Load repetitions/day = 35; therefore,
20 years: 35 x 365 x 20 = 255,500

Tandem Axle Dual Wheel

Design Example

Truck, Tandem Axle - Dual Wheel

Axle load: 34k - Wheel load: 17k
Subgrade k value: 210 pci
Tire pressure: 100 psi
Tire contact area 17,000/100/4 = 43 sq in
RCC flexural strength: 650 psi
RCC modulus of elasticity: 3,000,000 psi
Load repetitions/day = 50; therefore,
20 years: 50 x 365 x 20 = 365,000

Single Wheel

Design Example

Straddle Carrier, Single Wheel

Total load: 104k - Wheel load: 26k
Subgrade is fine-grained with no subbase
Tire pressure: 100 psi
Tire contact area 26,000/100 = 260 sq in
RCC design strength = 7,000 psi
Load repetitions/day = 20; therefore,
20 years: 20 x 365 x 20 = 146,000

for additional information, please visit our website at

www.cement.org/pavements

Thank You!

ghalsted@cement.org