Heat-Induced Pavement Buckling
For motorists and pedestrians, even a small pavement buckle poses a risk. For municipalities and Departments of Transportation, time is of the essence to make repairs for risk mitigation. That’s when having the ability to pour high-quality concrete quickly and when you need it is more than helpful.
Causes Of Road Buckling
A marked increase in air temperature or cement hydration causes road buckling. It’s more common in older concrete pavement. As heat increases, the concrete expands, fills the joint spacing, if applicable, and forces the slabs upward. How much the slab expands and contracts vary based on:
- Aggregate type, such as granite, limestone, shale, or siliceous gravel;
- Cementitious material content;
- Water-cement ratio;
- Temperature range;
- Age of the concrete; and
- Ambient relative humidity.
The aggregate type plays the largest role in expansion due to the individual thermal properties. Siliceous aggregates have the highest tendency for expansion. This type of pavement distress is found in all three pavements:
- Jointed plain;
- Jointed reinforced; and
- Continuously reinforced.
Concrete Pavement Repairs
Full-depth repair is frequently used when a pavement issue, such as buckling, occurs at or near a pavement joint. To prepare the area for replacement, saw cuts spanning the lane width extend downward to the base. Then, crews remove the damaged concrete before base repairs proceed the placement of new concrete.
Use Of Fast Setting Concrete
Because all materials needed for producing concrete are stored separately on a volumetric concrete mixer, it creates an ideal situation for repairing the affected pavement. The mixer can be driven directly to the work area and a finishing crew can begin to work as soon as you’re ready to pour. Depending on the type of fast setting concrete, the surface may be ready for traffic again within two to three hours.
To learn more about our full line of concrete production solutions, contact Cemen Tech today.
