Methodology for Mechanistic Design of Pervious Concrete Pavements

Abstract

Pervious concrete pavements (PCP) are used as pavement structures that serve as stormwater drainage systems. However, as opposed to the hydrological design, structural evaluation and layer thickness design of PCP are underdeveloped. This paper presents the back-calculation results of 14 PCP installations (102–305-mm slabs) tested using a lightweight deflectometer (LWD). The range of the back-calculated elastic moduli (Ec) of the tested sections was 12–21 GPa, and the range of the composite modulus of subgrade reaction (k-value) was 29–44 MPa/m. Using these moduli, finite-element models (FEM) were developed for each of the tested section and were validated on the basis of the agreement between the FEM-predicted deflections and the LWD deflections. Recommended slab thicknesses were developed using the fatigue model for traditional concrete on the basis of the four traffic categories adopted from the American Concrete Institute (ACI) guide for the design of concrete parking lots. Using the validated FEM, the critical stresses in PCPs with various mechanical properties and under ACI’s axle types and load levels were obtained to estimate the minimum required PCP thicknesses.