Pavement Design Manual - 2002 Chapter Erreur ! Style Non Défini. Volume II - Rigid Pavements

Pavement Design Manual - 2002 Chapter Erreur ! Style non défini.
Volume II - Rigid Pavements Erreur ! Style non défini.
1. INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this Pavement Design Manual - Volume II is to give specific guidance
and recommendations to the engineers responsible for the design of rigid pavements in
Ethiopia. It is one of the series of “Design manuals, Standard Contract Documents and
Specifications” The preparation of this rigid pavement design manual is part of the
framework initiated by ERA to upgrade the highway network in Ethiopia.
This volume contains :
o A description of rigid pavements : their characteristics, their components and
their function, the different types of slabs and joints, including drawing details.
o A description of the factors influencing the pavement type selection and the
design process.
o A design procedure for the different types of pavement, slab reinforcement, joint
details and joint layout.
The design method is a directly utilizable one, based mainly on empirical results and full
scale experiments. Although an analytical, comprehensive approach to the design is
possible, based on the stresses and strains induced in the pavement by an applied wheel
loading, it is very complicated, rarely used, leads to minor changes and as such is not
covered in these pages.
Ethiopian Roads Authority Page 1

2. RIGID PAVEMENTS
2.1 General Characteristics
Rigid pavements (also called concrete pavements), as the name implies, are rigid and
very strong in compression. The strength of the pavement is contributed mainly by a
concrete slab, unlike flexible pavements where successive layers of the pavement
contribute cumulatively. The rugose surface required for an adequate resistance to
skidding in wet conditions can be provided by dragging stiff brooms transversely across
the newly-laid concrete or by cutting shallow randomly spaced grooves in the surface of
the hardened concrete slab.
This constitution implies the following advantages :
o It is feasible to design rigid pavements for longer design lives, up to 60 years.
o Little maintenance is generally required
o Rigid pavement do not deform under traffic
o A relatively thin pavement slab distributes the load over a wide area due to its
high rigidity. Localized low strength subgrade materials can be overcome due to
this wider distribution area.
o Concrete is very resistant to abrasion making the anti-skidding surface texture
last longer.
o In the absence of deleterious materials (either in the aggregate or entering the
concrete in solution from an external source), unlike with flexible pavements,
concrete does not suffer deterioration from weathering. Neither its strength nor
its stiffness are materially affected by temperature changes.
The main disadvantages compared to flexible pavements are as follows :

o The initial investment is often more costly.
o If badly designed or not properly constructed, they tend to be more troublesome
and reconstruction or repair is more difficult.
Until now, concrete pavements have not been extensively used in most tropical countries
and in Ethiopia in particular, mainly due to a lack of tradition and experience in their
design and construction. One characteristic of concrete pavements is that either they
prove to be extremely durable, lasting for many years with little attention and
maintenance, or they give troubles from the start, sometimes because of faults in design,
but more often because of mistakes in construction.
2.2 Types of Rigid Pavements
Depending on the level of reinforcement, the rigid pavements are categorized into three
basic types:
o Jointed Unreinforced Concrete Pavements (JUCP)
o Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavements (JRCP)
o Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavements (CRCP)

2.2.1 JOINTED UNREINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

In Jointed Unreinforced Concrete Pavements (JUCP), the pavement consists in an
unreinforced concrete slab cast in place continuously and divided into bays of
predetermined dimensions by the construction of joints. The bays dimensions are made
sufficiently short so as to ensure that they do not crack. The bays are linked together by
tie bars, the main function of which is to prevent horizontal movement (i.e. the opening
of warping joints) and thus ensure load transfer through aggregate interlock.
2.2.2 JOINTED REINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

In Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavements (JRCP) the pavement consists generally in a
cast in place concrete slab divided in reinforced concrete bays separated by joints. The
reinforcement is made to prevent developing cracks from opening. This allows to design
much larger bays than with JUCP. The bays are linked together by tie bars to prevent
horizontal movement and thus ensure load transfer through aggregate interlock. The
longitudinal reinforcement is the main reinforcement. A transverse reinforcement though
not absolutely necessary in most cases is usually added to facilitate the placing of
longitudinal bars.
2.2.3 CONTINUOUSLY REINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavements (CRCP) are made of a cast in place
reinforced concrete slab without joint. The expansion and contraction movements are
prevented by a high level of sub-base restraint. The frequent transverse cracks are held
tightly closed by a large amount of continuous high tensile steel longitudinal
reinforcement.

3. PAVEMENT STRUCTURE
Rigid pavements generally consist of, as shown in Figure 1 below, a subbase, and a
concrete slab constructed above the subgrade. (With a capping layer if required)
Concrete Slab
Rigid Pavement
Subbase
Capping Layer
( If required)
Subgrade
Natural ground or
embankment
Figure 1 Rigid Pavement structure
The capping layer consists of selected fill and is provided in cases of low strength
subgrade. It allows to increase the bearing capacity of the subgrade and thus enables a
lesser pavement thickness to be adopted.
The subbase of a rigid pavement structure consists of one or more compacted layers of
material placed between the subgrade and the concrete slab. In some cases the material
can be cement stabilized to increase its quality. If the subgrade materials quality is
acceptable and if the design traffic is low (less than one million equivalent standard axles
(ESAs)), a subbase layer may not be necessary between the prepared subgrade and the
concrete slab.
A subbase is provided under a concrete pavement for the following reasons:
o to provide a stable “working platform” for the construction equipment;
o to prevent “pumping” at joints and slab edges.
The concrete slab consists of Portland cement concrete, reinforcing steel (When
required), load transfer devices and joint sealing materials.
Transverse reinforcement is provided to ensure that the longitudinal bars remain in the
correct position during the construction of the slab. It also helps to control any
longitudinal cracking that may develop.
The details regarding the design of the pavement slab thickness and the amount of
reinforcement required are discussed in Chapter 7.

4. JOINTS
Joints are placed in concrete pavements, whether reinforced or not to permit expansion,
contraction and warping of the slab, thereby relieving stresses due to environmental
changes (Temperature and moisture) and friction, and to facilitate construction. Joints
are classified according to their direction, either transverse or longitudinal and upon their
function. They are either contraction, expansion, warping or construction joints and in
most cases , they combine several of these functions.
Typical details of the different types of joints are presented in Appendix B (adapted from
Ref. 8).
4.1 Transverse Joints
Transverse Joints are the joints perpendicular to the centerline of the road. They are
designed to prevent contraction and expansion stresses which develop over long
distances. In some specific places like around in-pavement objects or at junctions,
transverse joints are also required to limit warping stresses.
4.1.1 CONTRACTION JOINTS
Contraction joints are the main type of transverse joints. They are provided in JRCP and
JUCP to relieve the tensile stresses due to temperature or moisture changes and friction.
They provide weakened sections between bays to induce tension cracking at preferred
locations in the concrete after it has been placed. If contraction joints were not installed,
random and uncontrolled cracking would occur on the surface of the pavement. They
also contribute to the limitation of the warping stresses.
Load transfer between bays is provided by dowels.
Contraction joints shall consist of:
o a sawn joint groove
o dowel bars
o a sealing groove
The groove and sealant shall be as specified. The dowel bars shall be 20 mm in diameter
at 300 mm spacing, 400 mm long for slabs up to 239 mm thick, and 25 mm in diameter
for slabs 240 mm thick or more.
4.1.2 EXPANSION JOINTS
The primary function of an expansion joint is to provide space for the expansion of the
slab, thereby preventing the development of compressive stresses, which may cause the
slab to buckle. Expansion joints are also contraction joints. Transverse expansion joints
are used at the limit between CRCP and other types of pavement or structures and
sometimes at regular intervals in JUCP and JRCP.
The construction of this type of joints is relatively costly and they require high levels of
maintenance. If not well maintained and not functioning properly, they tend to stay
closed after expansion of the slab, which induces excessive opening of the adjacent
contraction joints, thus being a cause of failure. They are consequently avoided as far as
possible and it is often preferred to accept to maintain localized failures due to expansion
stresses than to run the risk of serious distress at the expansion joints.

They are generally not required if the slab is cast during the hottest time of the year.
In expansion joints, complete separation between the two adjacent concrete bays is
required, and a compressible joint is used to fill the void.
Load transfer between bays is provided by dowels.
Expansion joints shall consist of :
o a joint filler board
o dowel bars
o a sealing groove
The joint filler board and sealing groove shall be as per the Specifications. The dowel
bars shall be 25 mm in diameter at 300 mm spacing, 600 mm long for slabs up to 239
mm thick, and 32 mm in diameter for slabs 240 mm thick or more.
Warping Joints
Warping joints allow a slight relative rotation of the bays and reduce the stresses due to
warping.
Transverse warping joints are used for special cases, such as extra joints at manhole
positions, or when unreinforced slabs are alongside reinforced slabs, or in long and
narrow or tapered (odd-shaped) JUCP slabs between normal joint positions, to reduce the
length/width ratio of the bays to 2 or less, and in other similar situations.
Warping joints shall consist of:
o a sawn groove
o tie bars
o a sealing groove
The sealant shall be as per the Specifications. The tie bars shall be 12 mm in diameter at
300 mm spacing, and 1000 mm long.
4.2 Longitudinal Joints
Longitudinal joints are warping joints, allowing a slight relative rotation of the slab
portions and reducing the stresses due to warping. They are required at such a spacing
that they will reduce the combination of thermal warping stresses and loading stresses to
a minimum, they also reduce the risk of longitudinal random cracking, and often serve at
the same time as construction joints. These joints allow a slight rotation, but differential
lateral displacements between adjacent bays are prevented by tie bars provided at mid-
depth of the slab.
These tie bars also prevent the opening of the cracks and thus the Load transfer is
achieved through aggregate interlock.
Longitudinal joints shall consist of :
o bottom crack inducer
o a sawn groove
o tie bars
o a sealing groove

The sealant shall be as per the Specifications. The tie bars for all longitudinal joints,
except where transverse reinforcement is permitted in lieu, shall be 12 mm in diameter at
600 mm spacing, and 1000 mm long.
4.3 Construction Joints
Construction joints are required to facilitate construction, especially when concreting is

stopped.
In JUCP and JRCP, they shall be coupled with other joints
Additional reinforcement shall be placed when dealing with transverse construction
joints for CRCP. This can be achieved by providing for each longitudinal bar, a 700mm
long reinforcement bar (Dia. 20mm ) centered on the joint as shown in Figure 2 below.
Figure 2 Transverse construction joint for CRCP slabs

5. SELECTION OF THE PAVEMENT TYPE

The highway engineer or administrator does not have at his disposal an absolute or
indisputable method for determining the type of pavement which should be selected for a
given set of conditions.
First a judgment must be made on many varying factors such as traffic, soil, weather,
materials, construction, maintenance and environment. In some cases overriding factors
can dictate pavement type. For instance, for heavily traveled facilities in congested
locations, the need to minimize the disruptions and hazard to traffic may dictate the
selection of CRCP.
When there is no overriding factor, which may often be the case, it is standard practice to
design typical sections of the road using each of the available options and then to
compare them on an economical point of view.
Unavoidably, there will be instances where financial circumstances are such to make first
cost the dominate factor in selection, even though higher maintenance or repair costs may
be involved at a later date.
Figure 3 Pavement type selection process
Where circumstances permit, a more realistic economical evaluation has to take into
account all expected costs including the initial cost of construction, the cost of
subsequent stages or corrective works, anticipated life, maintenance cost and salvage
value. Costs to road users during periods of reconstruction or maintenance operations are
also appropriate for consideration.
Although pavement structures are based on an initial design period, few are abandoned at
the end of this period and continue to serve as part of the future pavement structure. For
this reason, the analysis period should be of sufficient duration to include a representative
reconstruction of all pavement types.

If the analysis of the above given factors does not show a far higher interest of one option
rather than another, a second set of factors can be considered such as the performance of
similar pavements in the area or the skills of contractors.
Basically, the use of the different types of rigid pavement is as follows:
o JUCP is suitable for all levels of traffic, whenever the risk of subgrade
movement is low.
o JRCP is suitable for all levels of traffic and is used when the risk of settlements
of the subgrade can not be neglected.
o CRCP shall basically be considered only for rather high design traffic (>30
msa). They can also be included for less heavily trafficked schemes where the
advantage of lower maintenance throughout the design life may be worthwhile.
they are particularly suitable were settlement of the sub-soil is expected.

6. STRESS DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN CRITERIA
6.1 Stress Development
The concrete slabs in concrete pavement are subjected to two main types of stresses :
o The stresses developed because of changes of the environment (moisture and
temperature) and closely depending upon the intrinsic properties of the concrete.
In Ethiopia, though the annual range of temperature is small, the daily range of
temperature is high, varying from 20°C to 40° C (Ref. 1), and hence thermal
stresses deserve special attention.
o The stresses coming from the traffic loads.
Both types of stresses can not be prevented from developing, but the design of concrete
pavement shall take them into account in order to keep them in acceptable ranges of
values. Analytical methods have been developed aiming at computing accurately the
stresses developed in concrete pavements for a theoretical design. But they are rather
complicated and necessitate strong hypothesis on the quality and the evolution of the
different layers composing the subgrade. That is why the approach of this manual is
limited to a qualitative description of the phenomena which justify the pragmatic design
procedure exposed in section 7.
6.1.1 HORIZONTAL TENSILE STRESSES

While hardening and later depending on external humidity, the moisture rate of the
concrete decreases, thus inducing tensile stresses in the material.
When the temperature drops after hardening, thermal tensile stresses are also induced,
depending on the thermal coefficient of the concrete.
Since the movements of the lower face of the pavement are limited by the friction with
the subbase, cracks appear as soon as the sum of these tensile stresses exceed the
concrete tensile strength. When cracks become too wide, they enable water infiltration or
slabs and subgrade vertical movements thus accelerating the degradation of the
pavement.
Depending on the type of slab this issue is coped with differently:
In JUCP
The development of cracks is controlled by placing joints at regular intervals and a
separation membrane between the slab and the subbase. The limited lengths of the bays
and the increased possibility of horizontal movements limit the tensile stresses and thus
prevent the slabs from cracking between joints.
In JRCP
The transverse cracks which are expected to develop between transverse joints are held
tightly closed by the longitudinal reinforcement that is incorporated into the slab.

In CRCP:
The continuous reinforcement causes the cracking to occur at regular and little spaced
locations thus limiting the opening of cracks to acceptable values.
6.1.2 HORIZONTAL COMPRESSIVE STRESSES

If the temperature rises after hardening, thermal compressive stresses are induced,
depending on the thermal coefficient of the concrete. If they become too high, this may
cause the slab to buckle.
According to the type of slab, this issue is treated as follows:
In JUCP and JRCP:
The placing of expansion joints and the increased possibility of movement through the
use of the separation membrane permit the expansion of the concrete and the dissipation
of compressive stresses. Nevertheless, the issue is avoided as far as possible in casting
the concrete at the hottest period of the year.
In CRCP:
The continuous reinforcement increases the resistance of slabs but the compressive
strength remain limited and the slab is prone to expansion failure. It is thus preferable to
cast CRCP slabs during the hottest time of the year to limit the potential of thermal
expansion.
6.1.3 WARPING STRESSES

Warping stresses occur in rigid pavement slabs when variations in moisture content
and/or temperature from the top to the bottom of the slab occur.
In dry climate, or dry periods, the top of the slab is drier than the bottom, causing the
edges of the slab to tend to heave as represented in Figure 4 below and inducing tensile
stresses at the top of the slab and compressive stresses at the bottom. Permanent warping
stresses also generally occur because the top of the slab cures faster and shrinks more
than the bottom.
Concrete slab self

weight and traffic loads Drier
tension Wetter
Base
Figure 4 Curling of concrete slab due to moisture gradients
During daytime, the top of the slab tends to be warmer than the bottom, causing the
middle of the slab to tend to heave and inducing tensile stresses at the bottom of the slab
and compressive stresses at its top as represented in Figure 5 below.
During nighttime, the opposite phenomenon occur.

Concrete Slab self Daytime

weight and traffic loads hotter
tension
Cooler
Base
Concrete Slab self Nighttime

weight and traffic loads Cooler
tension hotter
Base
Figure 5 Curling of concrete slab due to temperature gradients
Warping stresses are limited in providing joints, either warping or contraction joints
which allow a slight relative rotation of the bays.
6.1.4 SHEAR AND BENDING STRESSES

With a minimum concrete thickness of 150 mm and a theoretical continuous support on
the subbase shear and bending stresses developed by the traffic loads are not prejudicial
to rigid pavement except in case of punctual loss of support due to movements of the
subbase or of the subgrade. The continuous transmission of vertical loads along the
pavement is essential because relative vertical movements of the bays create pumping
mechanisms which accelerate dramatically the deterioration of the subbase.
6.2 Design Criteria
As above explained, the factors which shall intervene in the design of rigid pavements
are as follows:
o the subgrade quality
o the quality of the steel and concrete composing the slabs
o the traffic
o the environment (Moisture and temperature)
o the notional design life
For the simplified experience-based design procedure exposed in this manual, the
assumption is made that the materials used for construction meets the standard
requirements as defined in section 3. Which means mainly a yield strength of 500 MPa
for the steel reinforcement bars and a 28 day characteristic compressive strength of 40
MPa for the concrete.
As stated in the previous section, the accurate computation of the stresses in the concrete
is not in the scope of this manual and thus, the proposed thickness design procedure and

joint layout for rigid pavement is suitable for the usual natural ranges of temperature and
moisture rates.
Consequently, the two parameters to be accounted for in the design procedure are the
traffic data and the bearing capacity of the subgrade.

7. DESIGN OF RIGID PAVEMENTS

A general methodology of rigid pavement design is presented in Figure 9, page 20.
7.1 Design life
Due to the structural properties of concrete slabs, their durability is very good and they
can be designed for periods of up to 60 years. If properly constructed, the pavement will
last long with a good level of serviceability and low maintenance requirements.
It is common practice to design concrete pavements for 40 years or more. Given that the
required slab thickness varies linearly with the logarithm of the cumulated number of
ESAs, designing for longer periods generally requires marginal additional slab thickness
and reinforcement and proves to be more economical.
This possibility to design rigid pavements for more than twice the maximum design life
of flexible pavements and the lower associated maintenance costs make them generally
more economical in the long term.
7.2 Design Traffic Loading
The method for computing Cumulative Equivalent Axle Load over the design life is
described in in ERA Pavement Design Manual 2002, volume 1, Chapter 2. The same
method is used for rigid pavement but the equivalency factors to be used are those given
in table 1.
Table 1
Equivalency Factors for Different Axle Loads
(Rigid Pavements)
Wheel load (103 kg) Axle load Equivalency
(single and dual) (103 kg) factor
1.5 3.0 0.02
2.0 4.0 0.05
2.5 5.0 0.13
3.0 6.0 0.28
3.5 7.0 0.53
4.0 8.0 0.93
4.5 9.0 1.53
5.0 10.0 2.40
5.5 11.0 3.63
6.0 12.0 5.25
6.5 13.0 7.33
7.0 14.0 9.92
7.5 15.0 13.1
8.0 16.0 17.0
8.5 17.0 21.6
9.0 18.0 27.1
9.5 19.0 33.7
10.0 20.0 41.4

These factors are marginally higher, when compared with the corresponding values from
Table 2.3 of ERA Pavement Design Manual Volume 1, for loads up to the standard axle
load. However, for heavier loads, the equivalency factors for rigid pavements are lower
and the difference increases exponentially. This reflects the facts that rigid pavements are
more resistant to heavy loads because of the capacity of the concrete slab to spread loads
over a large surface of subbase.
7.3 Thickness Design
7.3.1 CAPPING AND SUBBASE

A capping layer is required only if the CBR of the subgrade is 15% or less. The required
thickness of a capping layer for a CBR value inferior to 15% can be obtained from Figure
10, page 21.
The subbase layer is required when the subgrade material doesn’t comply with the
requirement for a subbase (CBR is less than 30%) but it is almost always used to
facilitate the obtaining of surface levels with the tolerances required. Generally, the
thickness of the subbase provided will be a constant 15 cm and can be cement stabilized.
For subgrade CBR values inferior to 2%, the subgrade material needs to be treated either
by replacement or in-situ stabilization. These methods of soil improvement are described
in section 7 of the Pavement design manual- Vol. I–2002.
A separation membrane (such as a polythene sheet) is required between subbase and
concrete slab, mainly in order to reduce the friction between the slab and the subbase in
JUCP and JRCP pavements, and thus inhibits the formation of mid-bay cracks. It also
reduces the loss of water from the fresh concrete. For CRCP pavements, a bituminous
spray should be used on the subbase, instead of polythene, because a high degree of
restraint is required.
7.3.2 CONCRETE SLAB THICKNESS AND REINFORCEMENT

Based on the design traffic volume expressed in Equivalent Standard Axle determined as
per sub section 7.2 and project-specific characteristics, the thickness of pavement is
determined.
The following represents procedures for determining the thickness and reinforcement for
each of the pavement types.
Jointed Unreinforced Concrete Pavement (JUCP)
For a given traffic volume in terms of ESAs, the thickness of JUCP concrete slab can be
determined using Figure 12, page 22.
Figure 4 assumes the presence of an effective lateral support to the edge of the most
heavily-trafficked lane (i.e., the right lane), such as a shoulder with a pavement structure
able to carry occasional loads. In the absence of such a shoulder adjacent to the most
heavily trafficked lane, an additional slab thickness is required, and this additional
thickness can be determined using Figure 14, page 23.
JUCP pavements have no reinforcement. However, the longitudinal and transverse joints
are provided with dowels or tie bars depending upon the type of joint. The joint details
are described in section 4.

Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement (JRCP)

For a given traffic volume in terms of ESAs, the thickness of a JRCP concrete slab can
be determined using Figure 12, page 22. The figure can also be used to determine the
longitudinal reinforcement in terms of mm2/m for a given concrete slab thickness. Thus,
several alternate combinations of thickness of concrete slab and amount of reinforcement
can be compared.
In the absence of an effective lateral support provided by the shoulder adjacent to the
most heavily trafficked lane, an additional slab thickness is required and can be
determined using Figure 14.
In addition to the longitudinal reinforcement, JRCP pavements shall be provided with
transverse reinforcement, consisting of 12 mm diameter steel bars at 600 mm spacing.
Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP)

CRCP pavement can withstand severe stresses induced by differential movements. For a
given traffic volume, in terms of ESAs, the thickness of CRCP concrete slab can be
obtained from Figure 13.
Longitudinal reinforcement in CRCP pavements shall be 0.6% of the concrete slab cross-
sectional area, consisting of 16 mm diameter deformed steel bars. Transverse
reinforcement shall be provided at 600 mm spacing, consisting of 12 mm diameter
deformed steel bars, to prevent the opening of any longitudinal cracks which may form.
Transverse reinforcement is required for ease of construction.
Similarly to JUCP and JRCP pavements, in the absence of effective shoulder support
adjacent to the most heavily trafficked lane, the additional slab thickness required can be
determined using Figure 14.
As is evident from Figure 12 and Figure 13, the minimum thickness of concrete
pavement for JUCP and JRCP pavement is 150 mm and that for CRCP pavement is 200
mm. Hence, the designer should carefully assess the necessity and requirements for such
pavements, depending on the design traffic volume, and shall include flexible pavement
as an alternate.
A design example of rigid pavement design is presented in Appendix A.
7.4 Design for Movement
Joints shall be designed according to the general considerations of sub section 4 and
using Drawings B2 to B8.
The general layout of joints shall account for construction consideration and the
following limitations concerning joint spacing and bays dimensions:
7.4.1 TRANSVERSE JOINT SPACING

Maximum transverse joint spacing for JUCP pavements is 4 m for slab thickness up to
230 mm and is 5 m for slab thickness over 230 mm.
For JRCP, contraction joints are generally at a standard distance of 25m.

Expansion joint are required at the limit with other pavement types or with structures like
bridges.
In the current section, expansion joints shall be avoided in casting the concrete slab at the
hottest period of the year. If required, expansion joints should replace every third
contraction joint.
7.4.2 LONGITUDINAL JOINT SPACING

Longitudinal joints shall be placed at the edge of each traffic lanes.
7.5 Design detailing
7.5.1 BAY-LAYOUT
In the current sections of the road, the longitudinal and transverse joints placed as
described in the previous sub-sections divide the slabs in even rectangular bays. At
special locations, like crossings or junctions or when manholes or gulleys are fund,
adapted layouts fitting the road geometry must be adopted, in order to prevent the
development of warping stresses. The main principles for designing the joints layout at
special locations are :
o to avoid long, narrows bays with a length/width ratio greater than 2.
o to avoid bays with acute angled corners.
o to avoid bays with re-entrant angles.
The sketches in Figure 6 below present a possible layout for bays at crossing and
junctions illustrating these principles.
Intersection of
transverse joints
Longitudinal joints Transverse joints
Figure 6 Joints layout at junctions and crossings
7.5.2 GULLIES AND MANHOLES

When gullies, manholes and other in-pavement objects are found, it is essential to
prevent the concrete slab from been supported by the structure. This shall be achieved in
boxing out around the object, which means providing an expansion joint without load
transfer device.
Since the opening in the slab structure is likely to create a weakened section prone to
cracking, it is necessary to locate it at the crossing of normal joints or with additional
warping joints as shown in Figure 7 below.
Figure 7 Box-out around in-pavement objects : layout of joints
7.5.3 INTEGRAL CURBS

Where sidewalks are required. Integral curbs shall be used and linked to the carriageway
slab by a longitudinal joint.
All transverse joints shall extend continuously through the pavement and curb.
Figure 8 below shows typical dimensions and construction provisions for rigid pavement
integral curbs.
Figure 8 Typical Integral Curb

7.5.4 END ANCHORAGE FOR CONTINUOUSLY REINFORCED PAVEMENT SLABS

At CRCP slabs ends (connection with flexible pavements, other concrete pavement types
or structures) anchorage devices are required because the surface of friction is not
sufficient to counterbalance the contraction and expansion stresses, which could provoke
the formation of wide openings.
This can be achieved in providing a succession of reinforced concrete lugs which anchor
the slab in the soil. The lugs are typically bout 1 m deep, they cover the all width of the
slab and are placed every 5 meters over the 30 last meters of the continuous reinforced
pavement. Refer to drawing B6 in appendix B for the design details.

Determine
Design CBR
Design ESAs
Check for
Requirement of Yes
Capping Layer
Determine Capping
No Layer Thickness
from Figure 3.2
Check for Site Constraints,

if any.
Determine pavement type.
JRCP CRCP
Determine Concrete Slab Determine Concrete Slab

Thickness and Thickness from Figure
Reinforcement from Figure 3.4.
3.3.
Check for requirement of Determine longitudinal

transverse reinforcement (cf. § JUCP reinforcement (cf. § 3.2)
3.2).
Determine slab thickness

from Figure 3.3.
Determine additional slab

thickness from Figure 3.5.
Determine joint type
Figure 9 Design Methodology flow diagram

Capping Layer and

Subbase Thickness
(mm)
500
400 Improve Subgrade
300
200
Capping Layer
100 Thickness
0
Subbase Thickness
-100
150
-200
0 2 5 10 15 20 25 30
Subgrade CBR ( %)
Figure 10 Capping Layer and Subbase Thickness design

(Adapted from Ref.5)
Type of
Spacing of transverse
Pavement
Joints (m) 2
26 11
25 JRCP 10
24 9
23 8
22 7
21 6
JUCP
5
20 5
419 4
18 3
1 10 100 400 1000
Design Traffic (millions of ESAs)
Figure 11 Joint spacing for JUCP and JRCP Slabs

400 Longitudinal
Reinforcement
(mm2/m)
350
0 JUCP
500
300 600 JRCP
700
800
250
200
150
100
1 10 100 1000
Design Traffic (millions of ESAs)
Figure 12 Design Thickness for JUCP and JRCP Slabs

(Adapted from Ref. 5)
300
Design Thickness of concrete (mm)
250
200
150
100
50
0
1 10 100 1000
Design Traffic (Millions of ESAs)
Figure 13 Design Thickness for CRCP Pavement

Figure 14 Additional Concrete Slab Thickness for Rigid Pavements Without

Lateral Support

REFERENCES
1. ETHIOPIAN MAPPING AUTHORITY (1988). National Atlas of Ethiopia.
2. ETHIOPIAN ROADS AUTHORITY (2000). Pavement Design Manual, Volume

1, Flexible Pavements and Gravel Roads.
3. TRANSPORT RESEARCH LABORATORY (1993). Road Building in the

Tropics. State-of-the- Art Review, No. 9.
4. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATE HIGHWAY and

TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS (1993). AASHTO Guide for Design of
Pavement Structures.
5. THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORT, London (1997). Design Manual for

Roads and Bridges.
6. HIGHWAYS AGENCY, UK (1998). Manual of Contract Documents for

Highway Works, Vol. 1: Specification for Highway Works.

Highway Works, Vol. 2: Notes for Guidance on the Specification for Highway
Works.

Highway Works, Vol. 3: Highway Construction Details.

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Pavement Design Manual - 2002 Chapter Erreur ! Style non défini.

Volume II - Rigid Pavements Erreur ! Style non défini.

Ethiopian Roads Authority Page 1

2.1 General Characteristics

The main disadvantages compared to flexible pavements are as follows :

2.2 Types of Rigid Pavements

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2.2.1 JOINTED UNREINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

2.2.2 JOINTED REINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

2.2.3 CONTINUOUSLY REINFORCED CONCRETE PAVEMENT

Ethiopian Roads Authority Page 3

Figure 1 Rigid Pavement structure

Ethiopian Roads Authority Page 4

4.1 Transverse Joints

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4.2 Longitudinal Joints

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4.3 Construction Joints

Construction joints are required to facilitate construction, especially when concreting is

Figure 2 Transverse construction joint for CRCP slabs

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5. SELECTION OF THE PAVEMENT TYPE

Figure 3 Pavement type selection process

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6. STRESS DEVELOPMENT AND DESIGN CRITERIA

6.1 Stress Development

6.1.1 HORIZONTAL TENSILE STRESSES

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6.1.2 HORIZONTAL COMPRESSIVE STRESSES

6.1.3 WARPING STRESSES

Concrete slab self

Figure 4 Curling of concrete slab due to moisture gradients

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Concrete Slab self Daytime

Concrete Slab self Nighttime

Figure 5 Curling of concrete slab due to temperature gradients

6.1.4 SHEAR AND BENDING STRESSES

6.2 Design Criteria

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7. DESIGN OF RIGID PAVEMENTS

7.1 Design life

7.2 Design Traffic Loading

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7.3 Thickness Design

7.3.1 CAPPING AND SUBBASE

7.3.2 CONCRETE SLAB THICKNESS AND REINFORCEMENT

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Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement (JRCP)

Continuously Reinforced Concrete Pavement (CRCP)

7.4 Design for Movement

7.4.1 TRANSVERSE JOINT SPACING

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7.4.2 LONGITUDINAL JOINT SPACING

7.5 Design detailing

Longitudinal joints Transverse joints

Figure 6 Joints layout at junctions and crossings

7.5.2 GULLIES AND MANHOLES