Construction of Short Paneled

Concrete Pavement on a road

with poor road side drainage

Rajib Chattaraj
Superintending Engineer,
National Highway Wing,
Public Works(Roads) Dirct.
IIEST, Shibpur, 7th.
April,2016,RC Govt. Of West Bengal
 Types of pavement and their applicability
• In the sphere of road
or pavement,
bituminous road
which is technically
called as flexible
pavement, is
predominant.
• In fact, in the
perspective of whole
world, more than
90% highways are
bituminous pavement
and more than 80%
airfields are
bituminous.
 Types of pavement and their applicability
• Conventionally, the other
variety of pavement is
concrete pavement which is
technically termed a rigid
pavement.
• Both the types of the
pavement have pros and cons.
As a Civil Engineer with
judicious mind, one should
take the advantage of both the
varieties as per the demand of
the situation without being
biased for any one school of
opinion.
 Types of pavement and their applicability
• In India, like rest of the world,
most of the highways and
pavements are bituminous but
concrete roads of international
standard have also been
constructed and are being
constructed.
• The third variety about which
not much was thought or done
in India except since
sometimes past, is composite
pavement which means
bituminous topping on
concrete or rigid or semi-rigid
base or concrete surfacing on
flexible or bituminous base.
A relatively new option of composite pavement
• This presentation covers a type
of composite pavement called –
short paneled concrete
pavement which is a cost
effective as well as easy to
construct solution with long
durability and can be a very
good alternative solution
specially in urban roads with
poor drainage in place of the
conventional bituminous roads
which generally have the
problem of durability and in Short Paneled Concrete
place of conventional rigid
pavement which have high Pavement
initial costing and relatively
complex construction
operations.
 What is short paneled concrete pavement?
• A course of pavement quality concrete (PQC) of low to
medium thickness (100 – 150 mm) laid over non-
erodible unbound bases (like WMM) or bound base
course (like Cement treated base, DLC or lean concrete
or even bituminous road) with small sizes of panels
(from 0.5 m x 0.5 mt to 1.5 mt. x 1.5 mt) made by 1/3
or 1/4 depth of groove cutting (3 mm wide) without
any type of reinforcements or dowel bars is called
short paneled concrete pavement.
• It is similar to white topping which is done as PQC
overlaying essentially over bituminous pavement.
• While some white topping projects have been done in
Cities like, Nagpur, Pune, Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi,
short paneled concrete pavement with more options of
bases has not been explored that much in India.
 Details of the existing road
• A 650 mt long stretch of
road was there near
Mankar as a part of
Bolgona – Guskara –
Mankar Road in Burdwan
District.
• The stretch was narrow,
very congested with
continuous road side
structures blocking the
drainage.
• The obvious consequence
was a dilapidated, heavily
damaged road top.
 The challenge
• For this problematic
stretch of road, there
was a lot of hue and
cry and news of
sowing paddy or
fishing on the road
every rainy season was
being published.

• Thus, it was a
challenge to repair this
stretch of road with a
sustainable solution.
 Possible options with pros and cons:
• Repairing the ditches with WBM at WMM, then putting a layer
of bituminous Macadam or DBM of 100 mm to 125 mm and over
that laying 25 mm Mastic Asphalt as an impervious wearing
course.

• Because of poor drainage on both the sides of the road, even

mastic asphalt at the top probably could not resist the damage
due to ingress of water to the lower bituminous layer. So, the
durability of this solution was doubtful.

• The other alternative would have been total removal of the

existing stone-set pavements and developing the road from sub-
grade and finally on the top, either bituminous layers or
conventional rigid pavement.

• Initial cost of conventional rigid pavement would have been very

high. Even bituminous layer of 75 mm DBM and 30 mm BC over
re-built sub-grade and sub-base was also not less costly.
 Durable and cost-effective solution
• So some innovative solution which is durable on
such a problematic road but at the same time
cost-effective, was needed.
• The problem was discussed with Prof. B.B.
Pandey, Professor of IIT, Kharagpur and the idea
of an innovative solution just matching the
requirement of this critical problem came up.
• The challenge of execution of “short paneled
concrete pavement” as the first instance in West
Bengal probably in Eastern India was taken up on
this problematic stretch of the road.
 Construction details
• The big depressions of
the stone-set pavement
was first repaired and
leveled with WBM.
• Because of the doubt of
the stability of the stone
set pavements and also
for leveling the
undulations and camber
correction, a 100 mm
thick M-10 grade lean
concrete was laid.
• The other alternatives of
the base layer were
putting Dry Lean
Concrete (DLC) or
Cement Treated Base
(CTB).
 Construction details
• As M-10 grade of concrete
was done by Ready Mix
Concrete where assurance
of quality control was
expected to be much
higher, lean concrete
option was adopted.
• In fact, the RMC
production of M-10 grade
of lean concrete had
average 28 days cube
strength in the range of
around 23 MPa.
• Due quality assurance
measures were taken both
in RMC Plant site and the
construction site.
 Construction details
• All possible measures
were taken to lay the
PQC (M-40) grade of
concrete over M-10
grade lean concrete
on the very next day
of casting of M-10.
• The thickness of PQC
grade concrete was
150 mm and average
28 days cube-strength
of PQC came around
48 MPa.
 The most important and delicate part of the
construction
• Within 15 to 18 hrs. of
construction of the
PQC, 1 mt x 1 mt
paneling was formed
by cutting 3 mm
groove upto 1/3rd
depth of PQC i.e. upto
50 mm.
• The timing of saw
cutting on PQC is very
important. It should
not be very early so
that the cut grooves
are not blared, but
have a sharp cut.
 Making grooves by saw cutting
• On the other hand, it should
not be done after 3 to 4
days when concrete of high
grade specially with OPC
gains a considerable
strength.
• For cutting groove on such a
small scale work, diamond
cutters fitted in hand hold
small machines with which
marble slabs are cut, were
used. But the cutters should
be concrete grade
(tougher), simple marble
stonecutters will not do.
• For large scale work,
suitable machines are to be
adopted
 Trying other method of making groove
• For grooving arrangement,
initially another method was
tried – inserting 3 mm ply
boards cut to size coated
with de-shuttering oil for
making 1 mt x 1 mt. panel.
• But this methodology was
found to be unsuitable
because after the initial
setting time, it was difficult
to detach the ply boards to
get a defined and firm
groove. For proper
functioning of the short
paneled concrete pavement,
making defined and firm
groove up to the desired
depth is very important.
 Curing
• Soon after grooving
was done on PQC in
appropriate panel
size, Curing was
started and
maintained for 28
days.
• As such, there was
no reinforcement
or dowel bar
anywhere in this
short paneled
concrete pavement.
 Design Philosophy
• If a pavement is made of small
concrete blocks, there is only
compressive stress at the bottom.
Small concrete blocks
• If the size of the slab is increased,
tensile stresses are caused in the
slab due to bending moment from
the overhanging lever-arm of the
slab beyond the wheel contact area,
multiplied by the reaction from Bigger size concrete slabs
foundation.
• Here the reactive pressure is not
constant unlike stationary Civil
Engineering structures like,
foundation of a wall or column.
Thus, for that kind of problem,
analysis can only be possible by 3D
Finite element method. ANSY’s
software was used for the analysis.
 Design Philosophy
• A 4 mt. x 4 mt. concrete
pavement can be made to
16 panels of 1 mt x 1 mt.
size by saw cutting upto
1/3rd depth.
• Stress was analyzed by
placing a dual wheel
carrying a load of 50 KN
(half of 10.2 MT) at a tyre
pressure of 0.8 MPa.
• The other dual wheel
assembly of the same axle
would be about 2.00 mt. 4.0mx 4.0 m concrete slab was formed
away from the centre of the into 1.0 mx1.0 m short panels by saw
dual wheel (shown in the cutting to one third depth of the slab
fig) causing little
interference in stress to the
loaded panel.
 Design Philosophy
• Load transfer at the
joints and bond with
foundation add to the
safety of the pavements
because of reduction of
flexural stresses as
found in the analysis.
• But long term bonding
with the founding layer
or load transfer across
the saw cut joints are
doubtful. Thus, analysis
was done without
considering load
transfer and bonding
with founding layer.
 Design Calculation data
• The sub-grade has a soaked CBR value of 5%
and the corresponding K-value (modulus of
Sub-grade reaction) is 42 MPa/m as per
Table-2 of IRC:58/2011.

• As per table – 3 & table – 4 of IRC:58 (2011),

the effective K value over 100 mm lean
concrete base is about 230 MPa/m.
However, to be on safer side a value of 200
MPa/m is used in the analysis.
 Design Calculation data
• Considering two wheels coming on a single panel
and no load transfer across the joints and no
bonding of PQC layer with the base lean concrete
layer, the computed stress for the dual wheel load
of 50 KN corresponding to the legal axle load limit
of 100 KN/10.2T) having a tyre pressure of 0.8
MPa is found as 1.70 MPa.

• The allowable flexural stress (Modulus of rupture)

for M-40 grade concrete is:
Fcr = 0.7√fck = 4.4 MPa, which is much greater than
1.7 MPa.
 Design Calculation data
• Even due to overloading, if the
axle load is 200 KN, the
computed stress is 3.4 MPa
<4.4MPa, so the pavement is
safe.
• If instead of short paneled
pavement conventional 3.75 mt Even with 20 MT. overloaded axle, the
width of concrete pavement computed flexural stress on short paneled
was considered with tranvrse pavement is 3.4 Mpa<4.4MPa, so safe
joint spacing @ 4.0 mt, the
flexural stress due to load and
temperature differential as per
IRC:SP:62(2004) is found to be
4.66 MPa which is more than
4.4 MPa. Thus, not safe.
• For short-paneled pavement,
temperature stress is ignored For the conventional size of concrete
because they are negligible [as pavement @3.75mt.*4.00mt, computed
explained in IRC:SP:62(2014)]. flexural stress is 4.66MPa>4.4MPa, so unsafe
 Cost Comparison
• As per costing during construction, i.e. March, 2012, 150 mm
M-40 grade PQC along with 100 mm lean concrete with allied
items came about Rs. 1500/- per sq. meter.
• Costing could have been curtailed, had a bit safer option was
not adopted.
• The second alternative of 50 mm bituminous macadam and
25 mm Mastic Asphalt was estimated to be Rs. 1000/- per sq.
meter. But, there is serious doubt of the durability of this
alternative by more than one or two rainy season.
• The third alternative i.e. the conventional rigid pavement of
250 mm PQC and allied items, dowel bars, tie bars etc. was
estimated to be Rs. 3300/- per sq. meter. In this case, the
construction time also would be more.
Advantages and utility of short-paneled concrete pavement
• Initial price of short paneled
pavement is a bit costly than
conventional bituminous
pavement. But if the
durability in the perspective
of long term economy is
seen, short-paneled What it was
concrete pavement is much
economical.
• Durability of this pavement
is expected to be not less
than 20 years.
• Shorter is the joint spacing
i.e. panel size, lower will be
the thickness of PQC layer.
What it is
Advantages and utility of short-paneled concrete pavement
• If bonding with base layer
is ensured, stresses will be
much lower and so can be
the thickness of PQC layer.
• Very useful and cost
effective maintenance free
solution which may be
applied in village road,
municipal roads, bus bays,
parking bays, terminals, toll
plaza and urban roads with
drainage problem.
Prof. Pandey visited the site with his
• The stretch of the road students soon after construction,
needs a block period of 04.05.2012 and according to him this
construction time phase pavement will last for at least 25
curing time. years.
Pavement Performance

The pavement so far

performed nicely
 References
• Whitetopping - Indian specifications and international
experiences , a presentation by Prof. A. Veeraraghavan, IIT
Madras
• Evaluation of concrete pavement design and construction in
US over the last 100 years, a presentation by Mark B Snyder,
University of Pittsburgh, USA
• Analytical design of Short Paneled concrete pavements by
M.V. Arun Chand & Prof. B. B. Pandey, IIT, Kharagpur, Paper no.
605, vol.74-3, October-December,2013, IRC.
• Short panelled Concrete pavement in Built-Up Area by Rajib
Chattaraj & Prof. B.B. Pandey, Indian Highways(IRC), Annual
number, January,2014
• IRC-58 (2011)
• IRC SP 62 (2004)
• IRC SP 76(2008)