ACPA Concrete Pavement Progress - Quarter 3, 2021

Concrete Pavement Progress www.acpa.org 24 A C P A B O N U S B R I E F Roller-Compacted Concrete in the Lab AS PART OF AN EFFORT TO DEMONSTRATE THE POTENTIAL OF RCC IN MANY APPLICATIONS, the Roller-Compacted Concrete Pavement Council funded a surface durability research study at the Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) Concrete Industry Management program. In the study, around 15 undergraduate students led by Dr. Heather Brown, Professor inMTSU’s School of Concrete and ConstructionManagement and lauded subject matter expert on concrete, evaluated the abrasion resistance of four RCC mixtures. Type IL Portland Limestone Cement (PLC) was used with various aggregate combinations that are common in RCC production throughout the southeastern United States. Six samples per each RCCmix were compacted in the laboratory. Five of each set were treated with various finishing aid products and troweled and the sixth sample was not troweled to mimic traditional RCC surface. One of the mixes was proportioned using the PLC and aggregate blend from the Alabama Dept. of Transportation’s (ALDOT) I-59 shoulder reconstruction project near Trussville. Brown says, “We’ve got a lot of interest from architects, engineers, and contractors about Type IL cement, so we were particularly excited to get samples from a project that is using portland limestone cement in such large quantities.” At MTSU’s laboratory, students built six slabs, 2-ft. by 2-ft. by 5.5-in., to represent the pave- ment at the I-59 project. The slabs were compacted to a density similar to densities typically required for pavement projects. All total, students made 24 compacted slabs, and extracted cores were tested for surface abrasion resistance, compressive strength, and density. The study results are being analyzed and a report will be available later in 2021. Additional information about the Middle Tennessee State University Concrete and Construction Management program. MTSU is an active partner in the Concrete Industry Management program (CIM). The CIM program of fers both a four-year Bachelor of Science degree and a customized MBA in Concrete Industry Management, and currently boasts 100% job placement once completed. To learn more about this program, or to of fer your support, please visit concretedegree.com. ACPA’s 58th Annual Meeting November 30 - December 2, 2021 | Huntington Beach, CA Registration now open at acpa.org (select Events)