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Roller-Compacted Concrete Pavements for Highways and Streets

Abstract

Roller-compacted concrete (RCC) consists of an engineered mixture of dense-graded aggregates, portland cement and water. This zero slump concrete mixture, when placed with an asphalt paver and compacted to high density, provides a high-strength, durable pavement structure. RCC uses no forms, requires no conventional finishing, and needs no dowels or reinforcing steel, making it an economical choice. Since its first use in Canada in the 1970’s, RCC has been used on pavement projects throughout North America. RCC provides superior performance under conditions of heavy wheel loads, extreme climates, and difficult operating conditions. Typically, the construction of heavy-duty pavements with RCC has been focused in log handling yards, intermodal terminals, freight depots, and other heavy duty applications. But the past ten years has seen an increase in using RCC to create cost-effective pavements for many conventional highway and street applications. Innovative engineers and contractors have found new ways to put RCC to use to combat the problems often encountered with flexible asphalt pavements. RCC provides a rigid pavement structure that does not rut and can stand up to the abuse of heavy vehicle traffic. Excellent smoothness can be achieved with RCC pavements through the use of high-density paving equipment, surface grinding, and/or the application of thin concrete or asphalt overlays. RCC construction is fast and is competitive on an initial cost basis with asphalt pavements. Over its lifetime, RCC will exhibit significantly lower maintenance costs.

Conference Paper Details

Session title:
ADVANCES IN PAVEMENT DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION
Author(s):
Gregory E. Halsted
Topics:
Pavements
Year:
2009