Component Dowel-Bar Model for Load-Transfer Systems in PCC Pavements

Abstract

A component dowel-bar model has been developed to simulate the doweled joint in portland-cement-concrete (PCC) pavements. The model consists of two bending beams of finite length, embedded in concrete, connected by a shear-bending beam. The objective is to model the dowel-bar load-transfer mechanism in PCC pavements. The new model can appropriately consider the interaction between concrete and embedded dowels. The model allows a rigorous numerical analysis without an increased number of unknowns. The model can be integrated into a finite-element program to predict the responses of the load transfer system, including distributions of bending moment, shear force and bearing stress of each dowel without using the assumption of effective length. A comparison between experimental and analytical results has verified that the component model can be used to reasonably predict the responses of a dowel bar load transfer system.