CHAPTER 6 Technical Considerations: Support Conditions General Requirements For new construction, as well as for repair application, pave- ‘ment supports critical to the long-term performance of PCP systems. The proper seating of the panels on the base isa crti- cal design and construction element. The support under the panels needs to be both firm (strong) and uniform, All PCP applications require an interlayer of material between the base and the bottom of the precast panels because these two surfaces will not match each other perfectly. The choice of the interlayer material should be carefully considered because it is affected by the manner in which the panels are installed. In the case of repair applications, in which the new panels are placed directly on the existing base surface, flowable cementi- tious grout may be injected to fill the voids between the panel bottom and the base. In most cases, the existing base surface will not be accurate enough to provide the necessary grade control for the new panels To compensate for this, a bedding layer (interlayer) as discussed below, must be used to serve as a grade control and void filler to ensure the panels are fully supported. After the panels are placed, a void- filling grout is injected directly beneath the panels to fill any voids. For most PCP repair or rehabilitation (reconstruction) applications, the following support alternatives may need to be considered: 1, Existing base use a. Granular base may be reworked, graded, and compacted; the panel is placed on the compacted granular base. 'b, Granular base may be reworked, trimmed, graded, and compacted; additional bedding material is used to make up the difference in the base grade needed. The bedding material may be + Athin layer of cemented granular material orcemented sand; + Fast-setting flowable cementitious grout or flowable fill; or + Polyurethane foam material, applied after the panel, is placed or set in position. For repair application, a foam thickness of up to 1 in, (25 mm) may be used, . Stabilized base (cement-treated base [CTB] or LCB) if not damaged in the existing slab removal process, may be used asis. A thin ayer of rapid-setting cementitious material may be used to provide a level surface for setting the panels. a. Stabilized base (CTB or LCB) may be trimmed, as neces- sary, to accommodate the panel thickness. thin layer of rapid: setting cementitious material will provide a level surface for setting the panels. 2. New ase use a Anewbase may be used if tis determined thatthe exist- ing base will not serve the long-term needs of the new PCP Because of time constraints itis necessary that the new base material be of good quality and can be placed, graded, and compacted, if granular, fairly quickly within the same nighttime lane closure as the panel installation. This option iscommon when PCP is used to rehabilitate existing AC pavernents, The new base type may include the following + Dense-graded, free-draining granular base + Rapid-setting LCB (RSLCB). b. Cement-treated or asphalt-treated bases are not con- sidered viable options for PCP installed during night- time lane closures, but may be considered if full-lane closure is available and duration of lane closure is not For both repair and continuous applications, the granular bedding material should be cemented and kept as thin as pos- sible (not greater than 0.25 in. [6 mm]). If thicker bedding is necessary, then the use of fast-setting cementitious fill material should be considered. In addition, forlane replacement applica- tions, the use of new base should not resultina “bathtub” detail If adjacent lanes incorporate a free-draining granular base, use‘of an LOB in the repair lane may affect the subsurface drainage condition, possibly resulting in early failure of adjacent lanes ‘The current practice when using an existing or anew gran- ular base is to rework the granular material and compact it as is, No attempts made to optimize the compaction process by cesuring that the granular material is at an optimum mois- ture content to allow for maximum compaction density. This {sa serious limitation that can result in nonuniform settle- ‘ment under traffic. The requirements for the panel's support condition should be no less than the requirements for a CIP concrete pavement's support condition, The best-constructed panels cannot perform well if they are placed on a poor sup- port condition, Bedding for Repair Application TThe bedding and base system must be well designed and well, installed and constructed for repair applications. If there is any consolidation of the bedding or base material, the panel will exhibit the bridge syndrome and will be held in place only by the joint load transfer mechanism. Such a repair will not last long. Neither the bedding nor base provision should lead to a “bathtub” detail; otherwise, the potential for pump- ing will be high. For repair applications, the use of certain bedding materials may meet short-term needs, but these bed~ ding types will not perform adequately over the long term under traffic loading if the base support is not adequate. For existing concrete pavements with a granular base, itis impor- tant that damage to the base be minimized when the exist- ing pavement is removed. Use ofthe slab lift-out method is stcongly recommended for repair applications. If the granu- lar base is damaged, itis dificult to achieve proper compac- tion of the disturbed base using plate compactors within the small repair area ‘When a granular bedding material is used over an existing granular base, the thickness of the bedding should be limited {0 0.50 in, (13 mm), There is no benefit in providing thicker granular bedding material for repair applications, and the use of thicker, noncompactible granular material may be detri- ‘mental to long-term pavement performance. Recently, use of a cement-treated concrete-sand bedding material has been proposed by FMC, Under this approach, the dry sand-cement mixtures placed and graded. Itis expected that over a period of time the sand~cement mixture will harden inthe presence of moisture and provide a stable, nonerodible bedding layer. Various methods of providing thicker (up to 1 in. (25 mm] thick) nongranular bedding may be considered for repair applications. These methods include the following: 1. A cementitious grout is pumped beneath the slab while steel strongbacks bolted to the top of the slab span the repair area, holding the panel at the proper elevation, 2. Threaded setting bolts are used to hold the slab at the ‘oper elevation, and a cementitious grout is pumped beneath the slab. 3. flowable grout is placed in the repair area ands screeded to the desired elevation before the panel is installed. The slab is installed while the grout is still in a plastic state, allowing it to conform to the shape of the bottom of pane, thus providing full support to the panel. 4. A high-density polyurethane foam is injected under the panel placed in the prepared repair area, about an inch below the final pane! elevation. The foam expansion raises the panel tothe desired clevation. The polyurethane foam becomes the permanent bedding for the panel. For both subsealing and cementitious bedding materials, the compressive strength requirement is about 500 Ibffin.” (3.4 MPa) at the time of opening to traffic. These materials also need to be nonerodible. Polyurethane Material ‘The polyurethane material consists of polymer resin com- ponents that are injected through small drilled holes (4 in, [16 mm] in diameter) directly through the concrete. As the resin mixture expands, voids are filled, and a controlled mold pressure is exerted on a limited area of the slab (panel) to both stabilize and, when required, lift it back to profile. The composite polymer material quickly cures into a strong and stable high-density bedding layer. Base and Bedding Support for Continuous Application ‘The support requirements for JPrCP, ICPCP, and PPCP sys- tems are similar For long-term performance, a good support condition is necessary. The level of attention paid to ensuring a good support should be similar to that paid for panel fabri- cation, For most continuous applications, the following base support may be considered: 1. Existing base 4. Asis or with shallow trimming to allow the use of pan- cls having about the same thickness as the existing pavement b. ‘Trimmed to allow a thicker PCP system to be installed; and 2. New base a. Granular base b. RSLCB. Existing granular base that is damaged during the removal of the existing pavement or is trimmed needs to be reworked,regraded, and recompacted. A Y-in, (6-mm) thick bedding material may be used to provide a uniform grade for panel placement. Placement of new granular base should follow agency requirements, including the requirements for com- paction equipment, granular material moisture control, and compaction testing, RSLCB has not been widely used to date for PCP applica- tions. Its use is allowed in California if an existing base is determined to be inadequate because of constructability issues or pavement performance requirements. The strength and durability requirements for RSLCB should be the same as {for CTB or conventional LCB, except that RSLCB needs to be ‘workable for manual placement. The strength requirements for RSLCB are as follows: 1, Aminimum compressive strength of 100 Iblin. (0.7 MPa) within 2 hours of placement to allow installation of panels; 2, Aminimum compressive strength of 500 Ibffin? (3.4 MPa) at the time of opening to traffic; and 3. A minimum 750 Ibffin2 (5.2 MPa) compressive strength at 7 days, but not to exceed 1,200 Ibffin.? (8.3 MPa). For PPCP systems, the quality of the base should not be sacrificed for construction expediency. The design of PPCP requires the use of a stiff, strong base that ensures lower deflec- tions at the wider expansion joints under trafic loading, The base needs to be smooth for PPCP systems. A smooth base, together with a friction-reducing treatment, will minimize prestress loss at the panel-base interface. A rougher base will make it difficult to interconnect the adjacent panels tightly, resulting in less residual prestress and possible misalignment of adjacent panels at the intermediate transverse joints. Base Grading Base gradingis another critical operation fora well-performing PCP system, Proper base grading ensures uniform support under the panel. Currently, base grading for granular bases is performed using an auger-based trimming device moved ‘manually alonga railing system placed on the adjacentlanes, as shown in Figure 6.1. This isa slow operation and may require several passes of the trimmer to achieve the desired grade. This operation cannot be easily performed on granular bases with aggregates larger than about ¥ in. (13 mm), and therefore a finer-grained bedding material must be used to achieve the desired grade. A thin bedding layer may be used, but a thicker, noncompactable bedding material should not be allowed as it ‘may result in a nonuniform support condition and premature panel settlement. ‘An RSLCB used as a base can be finished to the desired sgrade using a conventional concrete screed operated along a railing system placed on the adjacent anes. However, since no 87 Figure 6.1. Auger-based granular base grading system. formwork is used to place the RSLCB, the edge grade must be achieved manually using floats, requiring care to ensure that high or low spots are not built into the edges of the RSLCB. ‘Regardless of the base type used, the base surface should be smooth and not exceed a roughness of “in. (3.2 mm) over 10 ft (3 m) in any direction, as measured with a straightedge. Panel Underseali If panels are not seated well, or if voids or point loading exist at the panel underside, there is a fairly good possibility that there will be early failure of the panels due to cracking or excessive faulting, Although sufficient precautions are taken during the base preparation to ensure a smooth and firm base, the base surface cannot precisely match the underside surface of the precast panels. Thus, itis necessary to use panel bedding or seating material and to carry out undersealing after the pre- cast panels ae installed to ensure uniform and firm seating of the panels on the base. The use of thin bedding layers and thin ‘undersealing layers will perform adequately over the long term only if the underlying base support is adequate. Subsealingis performed to fill voids that may exist under the slab panels. The subsealing does not strengthen the base or change any other characteristies of the base material Ifthe base is porous, such as a permeable bas, the use of subsealing may not be effective and may be potentially detrimental to the per- formance ofthe base. The subsealing materials are fiee flowing and are introduced through uniformly spaced grout holes at the panel surface. To ensure uniform distribution under the panel, grout channels may be used in the slab bottom. Certain aspects of the grout channel design are For both undersealing and cementitious bedding materi- als, the compressive strength requirement is about 500 fin?(3-4 MPa) at the time of opening to traffic. These materials also need to be nonerodible. Interface Treatment for PPCP Systems ‘An interface treatment is necessary for PPCP systems to ensure a very low level of friction between the PPCP panels and the base. Typically, a friction-reducing membrane is used over the finished base. This practice is based on the use of polyethylene membrane for CIP-PCPs. The membrane rec- ‘ommended for PPCP systems is a 6-mil-thick polyethylene sheet that comes in rolls and can be placed the full width of the lane. Alternatively, a nonwoven geotextile fabric, as used at the Virginia 1-66 PPCP project, can be used. The geotextile fabric should be atleast 0.1 in, (3 mm) thick, ‘The panel-base interface for PCP is much smoother than the pane!-base interface that develops in CIP-PCP, a illus- trated in Figure 6.2. The CIP-PCP slab bottom incorporates the undulations (roughness) that may exist in the finished base surface. In contrast, the PPCP panel bottom is fabricated smooth and does not incorporate the undulations that may be present in the finished base. As a result, the PCP panel- base interface friction can be expected to be less that the slab— base interface friction of the CIP-PCP, ‘The PPCP panel-base interface friction factor (coefficient of panel-base friction}, incorporating the interface treat- ‘ment, may range from 0.5 to 1.5; conservatively, this factor may be assumed to be about 1.0. The friction factor is an important property of the PPCP system in that it affects the level of effective prestress that develops in the PTSection and also affects the seasonal expansion joint width changes. AEN ay aT na (atin) Bement) (Resstpatiesiod | Beanionit I te ‘Teter oe] Figure 6.2. Slab-base interface conditions for top) CIP-PCP and foottom) PCR. A range of friction factors, from 0.5 to over 10, has been ‘measured for slab-base friction for CIP concrete pavements, Friction factors over 5.0 are considered to be fully “bonded” conditions, based on the consideration that such a level of restraint would result in slab cracking as a result of slab con- traction caused by temperature changes. Litle testing has ‘been performed to determine the friction factors forslabbase (panclbase) interfaces that incorporate a friction-reducing ‘membrane and a smooth panel bottom. The conservative value of 1.0 typically used for CIP-PCP is considered appli- cable for PPCP systems, especially considering the smooth base of the PPCP panels. Overestimating or underestimating the friction factor value fora specific PCP system has specific implications. Overesti- ‘mating the friction factor would result in a lower computed effective prestress level, which may require use of a higher level of prestress application or use of shorter lengths of PTSections, Overestimating the friction factor would also result in less change in the expansion joint width caused by seasonal temperature changes and may result in underdesign- ing the joint width. Tn contrast tothe effects of overestimating the friction factor, underestimating the friction factor would result in a higher computed effective prestress level. This may result in use of @ lover level of prestress application or use of longer lengths of PTSections. Underestimating the friction factor would also result in more change in the expansion joint width caused by seasonal temperature changes and may result in overdesigning the joint width, Granular Base Compaction Testing ‘Very litle testing i performed on site to ensure that the gran- ular base used for PCP applications (repair or continuous) is adequately compacted. Poor compaction of the granular base or the fine-grained bedding layer can lead to excessive non- uniform settlement and early distress developmentin the PCP, ‘The support condition requirements for PCP systems should bbe as good or better than those for CIP concrete pavements, An example of poor support condition is shown in Figure 6.3. At this project, a0.5-to I-in, (13-to 25-mm)-thick manufac- ‘tured sand was used over a trimmed existing CTB. As the foot- prints in Figure 6.3 show, the bedding material is not stable and will most likely not provide good uniform support under the precast panels. The use of thicker, noncompactible fine- grained bedding material is not a good practice. Its recommended that agencies specify QC/QA testing of the granular bases using the lightweight deflectometer (WD) ‘to monitor the level of compaction. The LWD was introduced in the United States during the 1990s, and several agencies use it for acceptance testing of granular paving material (base,Figure 6.3. Footprints indicate a poorly compacted fine-grained bedding layer. subbase, and subgrade) (Minnesota DOT 2008, 2011). The device, shown in Figure 6.4 is light weight, fairly simple to ‘use, and performs the testing rapidly and nondestructive. WD testing assesses the stiffness of the unbound granular ‘material by measuring the deflection of the compacted material toa repeatedly dropped weight. The test significantly reduces inspection time for determining the compaction of granular materials. LWD testing involves the following steps: 1, Measure the deflection caused by the dropped weight. 2. Estimate the stifiness modulus, #, based on the applied force and the measured deflection. 3, Repeat the test three times at a given location, Calculate the average estimated stiffness modulus, Ey. Courtesy of Minesota DOT. Figure 6.4, Lightweight deflectometer. 4, Compare By, to the target sifiness modulus, Eas Which is based on previous testing on a trial section that was com- pacted at maximum dry density and optimum moisture content, or by using historical data 5. If, isless than Eye, additional compaction of the tested area should be considered. ‘When working with an existing granular base, there may not be data available to establish Ey In such a case, suffi- cient testing should be conducted during the first few lane closures to establish Fyag for a specific project. In any case, WD testing should be required for PCP projects to monitor the uniformity of compaction, especially when fine-grained bedding material is used, Compaction of granular material is dependent on the ‘moisture content, and maximum compaction is achieved only ‘when the material is at optimum moisture content, as deter- ‘mined using « maximum density test method (e.g. the Proctor method). A comprehensive procedure developed by the Minnesota DOT (2011) for using the LWD for granular ‘material compaction control is recommended for PCP instal- lations if the in-place density of compacted restored or new base material cannot be reliably determined. Base and Bedding Issues Several issues have been noted with respect to PCP base and ‘bedding in both intermittent repair applications and jointed continuous PCP systems. The condition survey of an inter- mittent repair project along a section of 1-295 in New Jersey indicated that the repair panels are exhibiting settlement. The settlement is noticeable when the panel surface profile is com- pared with the surface profiles of adjacent lanes along the common longitudinal joints. The settlement was about ¥ in, (13 mm) for the many panels inspected. The field survey was conducted about 2 years after pane! installation. ITE at the panel transverse joints was good, and there was no joint cleva- tion difference at these joints. The panel settlement is consid- cred to be due to inadequate compaction of the regraded and recompacted existing granular base that exists at this project. In jointed continuous PCP systems, extensive cracking developed within a few months of opening to traffic at the following projects that used FMC’s Super-Slab system: 1. 1-66 ramp, Fairfax, Virginia: granular bedding used over existing granular base; 2. F15, Ontario, California: manufactured sand bedding used over existing milled CTB; and 3. US-395 to 1-80 ramp, Reno, Nevada: granular bedding used over existing granular base. At the Virginia I-66 ramp project, 50 of 215 panels exhib- ited cracking soon after the panel installation was completed.About 64% of the cracking (32 of the 50 panels) was consid- cred to be related to the tie-in with the adjacent inside lane, a JRCP with 60-ft(18.3-m) joint spacing, as these cracks devel- oped at or adjacent to an expansion joint or a crack in the adjacent JRCP. The outside lane PCP had a joint spacing of about 15 ft (4.6 m). The remaining cracking is considered to be caused by nonuniform base or bedding support. tthe California I-15 project, the existing 8%-in.(213-mm)- thick concrete pavement with variable joint spacing on a CTB was replaced with an 8-in, (203-mm)-thick JPrCP with vari- able oint spacing and placed on a manufactured sand bedding layer with a minimum thickness of 0.40 in, (10 mm).In certain areas, the existing CTB had to be milled to allow for a mini- ‘mum bedding thickness of 0.40 in, (10 mm), Soon after open- ing to traffic, 170 panels ofa total of 730 panels were found to exhibit cracking. The cracking at this project is considered to be caused by poor control during the placement and compac- tion of the manufactured sand bedding material. An investi- gation by Caltrans to determine the specific causes of the premature cracking was in progress as of June 2011 ‘The Nevada ramp project was a small demonstration project in the Reno area that involved replacing an existing AC pave- ‘ment with about 227 ft (70m) of 8-in.(203-mm)-thick JPrCP. ‘The panel lengths averaged about 6 ft (1.8 m) to allow every second or third joint in the JPrCP to match the transverse joints in the adjacent concrete pavement. The panels, which incorporated three dowels per wheelpath, were placed on a new granular base. Soon after opening to traffic, ll 52 panels exhibited cracking. The cracking at the Nevada project is sur- prising because of the short panel lengths used. All panels were nonplanar panels. The cracking is attributed to poor support condition, inadequate load transfer at joints, and poor quality of conerete. The cracking is under investigation by the Nevada DOT, Summary ‘The support condition under the precast panels is 2 key requirement for successful performance of PCP systems. The quality of base and bedding materials must be controlled to ensure that these materials provide the desired support and that the supportis uniform along the length of each panel. To date, no serious attempts have been made to control the com- paction of granular base or bedding materials by controlling the moisture content of these materials. I is important that testing of the granular base or bedding, or both, be performed to monitor the compaction level ‘Abedding layer is routinely used with PCP systems to ensure uniform support under the panels. Ifa fine-grained granular bedding material is used, its thickness should be limited to ¥ in, (6 mm), If a thicker bedding layer is necessary, then rapid-setting cementitious grout or flowable fill may be con- sidered. As a general rule, any base or bedding material that would not be allowed during the construction of CIP concrete should not be used with a PCP system, Finally, if the opportunity docs not exist to improve the base or bedding system and the subgrade is of marginal qual- ity, more attention should be paid to the design of the JCP system. The load transfer system at transverse joints must be adequate, and the panels may need to be prestressed if thicker nominally reinforced panels cannot be accommodated. Pan- els of only one size (thickness) cannot be expected to meet all design needs, especially when marginal support conditions are encountered.