Early Cracking of Concrete Pavement - causes and repairs

Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements: Causes and Repair

Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements

Binod Kumar, Scientist, and Dr. Renu Mathur, Head, Rigid Pavements Division, CRRI, New
Delhi

Hundreds of kilometers of concrete pavements are being constructed in the country under National
Highway Development Programme (NHDP). Some of the concrete pavements have already been
opened to traffic while some others are due to be completed soon. The construction of these
concrete pavements in different parts of the country has been carried out by the best available
construction agencies using most modern construction equipment, the best possible materials, and
under the supervision of various national and international consultants and experts. Despite
adopting good construction techniques and quality control measures, many kind of premature
distresses have been observed in these newly constructed concrete pavements. The most common
distresses have been observed in the form of full depth transverse and longitudinal cracking,
settlement cracking, corner cracking, cracks over dowel bars, cracks over slab culverts, and blow
ups etc. These distresses do indicate the failure of concrete slabs but more than that they indicate
the human failure to understand the few basic and fundamental things related to concrete material
and pavement. It is the ignorance and negligence on the part of those associated with the
construction of concrete pavements that most of the time leads to the occurrence of such
premature distresses. This paper discusses the different kinds of distresses that have been observed
on newly constructed concrete pavement slabs under different projects. The causes of distresses
and repair techniques that have been adopted at some of the projects have also been discussed.
Introduction
It is to the credit of the concrete that not many complaints are received on the vast amount of
concrete laid for the construction of concrete pavements. While it is easy to determine the
properties of hardened concrete that will be suitable for the pavement quality concrete, great care
is required throughout the entire construction process to ensure that the laid concrete attains all its
desired properties without leading to any premature distresses. Any negligence during the
construction process may lead to premature distresses in concrete pavement slabs. These distresses
may appear in the form of uncontrolled cracking, plastic shrinkage cracking, settlement cracking
mainly over pipe culverts and near slab culverts, popouts, crack over dowel bars etc.

Many such type of cracks have been observed in concrete pavement slabs that either have been
completed in recent past or are being constructed at the projects under National Highway
Development Programmes. All kinds of distresses observed in concrete pavements happen due to
some specific reason associated with the behavior of either concrete as a material or concrete
pavement slab as a structure. Sometimes, it is very confusing and difficult to ascertain the correct
cause of a particular kind of distress but it is possible to find it out by carrying out an investigation
coupled with proper understanding of concrete pavement response to environmental and traffic
loadings. In any case, it is very essential to fix the cause of distress before selecting the most
suitable repair methodology.
When it comes to the repair of distressed concrete pavements, very limited options are available. It
is very difficult and time consuming to repair hardened concrete. Full depth and partial depth
repair, slab replacement, crack sealing, crack stitching, staple pinning are some of the repair
techniques that can be used for repairing the distressed concrete pavements. The causes and repair
techniques for these distresses are discussed in the following paragraphs.
Uncontrolled Shrinkage Cracking
Like all materials, concrete also expands and contracts with variations in temperature. Concrete
shrinkage starts as it cures. The temperature and moisture gradient that exists between top and
bottom of the concrete pavement slabs causes the curling and warping of the slab. The natural
response causes the concrete pavement to crack at regular intervals. A fundamental feature of
concrete pavements is to introduce a jointing system to control the location of these expected
cracks. Contraction joints which are generally provided at each 4.5m interval, are specifically
meant for controlling the location of these type of cracks.

The contraction joint system assures of crack control in new concrete pavement. However, certain
design or construction factors may influence the effectiveness of a contraction joint system.
Unexpected changes in the weather during and after construction can induce uncontrolled cracking
despite the adoption of proper jointing system. Because of the complexity of interrelated factors,
uncontrolled cracks will occur in some concrete pavements. Theses cracks generally develop
within the first thirty to forty five days.
Prevention of Uncontrolled Cracking
Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements Concrete slabs crack when tensile stresses within the
concrete overcome the tensile strength. At early ages, the tensile stresses develop from restraint of
the concrete's volume changes or slab bending from temperature and moisture gradient through
the concrete. Each transverse and longitudinal saw cut induces a plane of weakness where a crack
will initiate and then propagate to the bottom of the slab. Uncontrolled cracking can be controlled
by adopting following precautionary measures.
Timing of Sawing Joints
There is an optimum time to saw contraction joints in new concrete pavements, which is defined
as the sawing window. It represents a short period after the placement of concrete within which
concrete can be cut successfully before it cracks in an uncontrolled manner. If the sawing of the
joints is started too early then it may lead to raveling along the cut. The jagged, rough edges arte
termed as raveling. Some raveling is acceptable if the widening of saw cut for filling joint sealant
would remove the ravel edge. If the raveling is too severe, it will affect the appearance and ability
to seal the joint. If sawing of joints is delayed beyond a certain period when significant concrete
shrinkage occurs then it may induce random cracks within the pavement (Photograph 1).
Saw Cut depth
The influence of the saw cut depth on early cracking primarily depends upon the time of sawing.
Early sawing of the joints may require lesser saw-cut depth for preventing random cracking.
Generally the saw-cut depth is kept as 0.25 to 0.33 times the depth of the slab. If the depth of the
saw-cut is less than the required depth then it may not sufficiently weaken the concrete at that
location and it may ultimately lead to cracking of concrete elsewhere.
Weather and Ambient Conditions
The weather almost always has a role in the occurrence of uncontrolled cracking. Air temperature,
wind, relative humidity, and sun light all influence concrete hydration and shrinkage. These
factors may heat or cool concrete or draw moisture from exposed concrete surfaces. Concrete
paved in early morning will often reach higher temperatures than concrete paved during the late
morning or afternoon because it receives more radiant heat. As a result, concrete paved during the
morning will generally have a shorter sawing window, and often will exhibit more instances of
uncontrolled cracking.
Joint spacing
Theoretical and practical studies have shown that the optimum joint spacing depends upon the slab
thickness, concrete aggregates, subbase, and climate. Pavement with long transverse joint spacing
may crack at locations other than the saw cuts due to tensile stresses from temperature curling.
Most of the time the spacing of transverse contraction joints in plain pavement are kept 4.5 m to
6.0 m. It is also important to check the transverse and longitudinal contraction joint spacing to see
if it is within the limits as described in various codes and specifications.
Curing conditions
The internal temperature and moisture of concrete also influence the time available for joint
sawing. The temperature relates to the strength gain of the concrete and partly controls the time of
initiating the saw cut and final time before the onset of cracking. The sawing of joints should be
completed before the concrete surface temperature begins to fall since thermal contraction begins
as soon as the concrete temperature falls. Heat development profile of a concrete mix can be
obtained by using concrete maturity meters. Monitoring of concrete surface temperature will let
know the concrete strength and also the point when surface temperature begins to decline and
sawing should be completed.
Misalignment of dowels
Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements The formation of initial cracking will not be
influenced either by the presence or misalignment of dowel bars. The alignment of dowel bars
only becomes a factor of restraint if a crack extends below the joint saw cut and misalignment
exceeds a tolerance of 3 percent. If a crack exists below the saw cut, and an uncontrolled crack
occurs nearby, then it is possible that dowels are misaligned and have caused locking of joint i.e.
not allowing joint opening or closing (Photograph 2).
Blowups
Blowups are compressive joint failures brought about by excessive expansion related to high
temperatures, high moisture contents, or a combination of the two. Blowups may occur gradually
or may be sudden and dramatic. Failures are full depth and full lane width and can present serious
hazards to traffic.

Blowups become likely when normal joint movement is restricted by infiltration. Increase in
concrete volume brought about by elevated temperatures and moisture contents create longitudinal
thrust that may overcome the compressive strength of the weakest joint in the section. Blowup
tendency is more pronounced on pavements with long slabs where individual joint movements are
greatest. Joints typically fail in the lower portions first. This failure provides an inclined plane for
the slabs to slide upward when further expansion occurs. A sudden and dramatic blowup can occur
when the upper portion shears off with little or no warning. Most blowups occur during a
significant hot spell and usually in the afternoon. Blowups seldom occur where joint spacing is
less than 6 m, with no intermediate expansion joints, even where joints are not sealed. Blowups
almost never occur in new pavements. If the pavement is susceptible to blowups, they begin to
occur after 3 to 5 years of age. The blowups usually occur at joints or cracks in the pavement and
the concrete at the blowup appear to be weak or deteriorated at that point.
Settlement Cracks
Settlement of the subgrade and subbase can cause the cracking of the concrete pavement. Cracks
resulting from settlement of subgrade are normally variable in direction but most commonly they
appear diagonally and extend continuously to many slabs. Repeated heavy truck loads may further
cause breaking of slabs into several pieces due to loss of support beneath the slab. Locations of
underlying pipe culvert and slab culvert are more prone to settlement cracking.

Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements

Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements: Causes and Repair
Settlement of subgrade and other pavement layers over pipe culverts and in the vicinity of slab
culverts mainly during and after rainy season can cause the full depth cracking of overlying
concrete slabs. Photograph 3 shows the shattered slabs due to settlement.
Cracks Over Dowel Bars
Fine hair line to moderately wide cracks may develop sometimes over the dowel bars (Photograph
4). The length of the cracks may be as long as the length of dowels. These cracks are mostly
surface cracks with 25 to 40 mm depth from the slab surface. However, in some cases, these
cracks may penetrate up to the surface of dowel bars. These cracks may not affect the load transfer
capacity of the dowel bar assembly, but gradually the spalling of these cracks may lead to
deterioration of slab surface over the dowel locations. Possible reasons of such cracks are too little
or too much vibration of dowel bar inserter unit, stiff concrete mix, shallow depth of dowel bars,
and natural phenomenon of settling heavy solids in a liquid medium around dowels. Inadequate
vibration of DBI unit and stiff concrete mix may leave a dowel trail in which the concrete is not
compacted properly. Subsequently concrete settles down within the trail and creating a crack over
dowel location. Too much vibration of DBI unit may create segregation of aggregates in the dowel
trail resulting in too much accumulation of slurry and water in the trail over dowel. This may
cause the excessive shrinkage of concrete at these locations leading to cracking. Also, the surface
concrete over dowel locations becomes weak due to high water cement ratio leading to abrasion of
mortar from the surface.
Misplaced Saw Cuts at Transverse Joints
Saw cut of transverse joint at proper location with respect to position of dowel bar assembly is a
common construction practice. But some occasional mistakes may happen resulting in the
misplaced saw cut. Proper location of saw cut over dowel assembly, not only improve the joint
load transfer efficiency but also ensures better performance of the pavement through-out its life.
Tolerance for sawing transverse joint i.e., the allowable translation of saw cut from the middle of
the dowel assembly, depends upon the length of the dowel. It has been found that 15 cm of dowel
embedment is all that is necessary for effective load transfer under highway loadings. Thus, for a
commonly used 50 cm long dowel bar, the available tolerance is 20 cm, i.e. 10 cm either way from
the centre of the dowels.
Cracks Over Slab & Box Culverts
If concrete pavement slabs are constructed over an underlying slab or box culvert and the
transverse joint locations do not match with the boundary of underlying slab of the culvert, then it
is most likely that full depth transverse cracks will develop in the concrete pavement slabs just
above the extreme boundaries of culvert slab on both sides (Photograph 5). Many such instances
have been observed in recently completed concrete pavements in the country. Occurrence of such
cracks in more prevalent where pavement quality concrete (PQC) and dry lean concrete (DLC)
layers are laid directly over the culvert slab without any intermediate layer of granular sub-base. If
a granular layer is placed over culvert slab before laying PQC and DLC, then this layer acts as a
crack arresting layer and possibility of developing transverse cracks in pavement slab is reduced if
not eliminated completely.
Plastic Shrinkage Cracks
The weather almost always play an important role in the occurrence of uncontrolled cracking of
concrete pavement. Air temperature, wind velocity, relative humidity and sunlight influence the
hydration and shrinkage of concrete. These factors may heat or cool concrete or draw moisture
from exposed concrete surface. Plastic shrinkage cracking is a result of rapid drying of concrete
pavement surface due to either high ambient temperature, high wind velocity, low humidity or a
combination of these factors. These cracks are generally tight and appear in the form of parallel
groups perpendicular to the direction of the wind soon after the placement of concrete Adequate
curing measures are necessary to prevent their occurrence (Photo 6).
Surface Popouts
A pop out is a conical fragment that breaks out of the surface of the concrete leaving a hole that
may vary in size. Usually a fractured aggregate particle will be found at the bottom of the hole,
with part of the aggregate still adhering to the point of the popout cone. The cause of a popout is a
piece of porous rock having high water absorption and relatively low specific gravity. As the
offending aggregate absorbs moisture, its swelling creates internal pressure sufficient to rupture
the concrete surface. Pyrite, hard-burned dolomite, coal, shale, soft fine grained limestone, clay
lumps, or chert commonly cause popouts. It may also be caused by water uptake of expensive gel
formed during the chemical reaction between the alkali hydroxide in the concrete and reactive
siliceous aggregates. Most popouts appear within the first year after placement. Popouts caused by
alkali-silica reaction may occur as early as few hours to a few weeks, or even a year after
placement of concrete. Popouts caused by moisture induced swelling may occur shortly after
placement due to the absorption of water from the plastic concrete or they may not appear until
after a season of high humidity or rainfall. Popouts are considered a cosmetic detraction and
generally do not affect the service life of the concrete.

Premature Distresses in Concrete Pavements

Curb Cracking
Curb cracking mainly occur wherever the curbs are cast monolithically with concrete pavement
slab. It may also be observed, though not so predominantly on the curbs laid cast-in situ with curb
casting machines but not casted monolithically with the slabs. In both the cases, cuts are provided
into curb stones just opposite to the transverse joints of the pavement to allow the expansion and
contraction of the curbs. If the joint of these curbs is blocked by soil, stone grits and other material
then the expansion of curbs along with concrete slabs becomes difficult and due to excessive
compressive stresses curbs may crack.
Repair Methodology
Full Depth Repair
Full-depth repair (FDR) is a concrete pavement restoration (CPR) technique that can be used to
restore the structural integrity and reliability to concrete pavements having certain types of
distress. It involves making lane-width, full-depth saw cuts to remove the deteriorated concrete
down to the base, repairing the disturbed base, installing load-transfer devices, and refilling the
excavated area with new concrete. It is an effective, permanent treatment to repair pavement
distresses particularly those that occur at or near joints and cracks. By removing and replacing
isolated areas of deterioration, full-depth repairs may delay or stop further deterioration and
restore the pavement close to its original condition. The distresses that can be addressed using full-
depth repairs include transverse cracking, corner breaks, longitudinal cracking, deteriorated joints,
D-Cracking, blowups, and punchouts.
Selection of patch size
It is important that the boundaries be located so that all significant distresses are removed.
Deterioration near joints and cracks may be greater at the bottom of the slab than at the top of the
slab. Therefore, further investigation should be performed. The location of patch boundaries also
depends on the level of load transfer which is to be provided. The patches must be of sufficient
size to eliminate rocking and longitudinal cracking of the patch. A minimum patch length of 1.75
m and full-lane patch width of 3.5m is recommended to provide stability and to prevent
longitudinal cracking. For the same reason, the minimum remainder of the slab must be at least
1.75 m for a 3.5 m wide slab. Combining two smaller patches into one large patch often can
reduce repair cost. However, the longest patch length should not exceed the pavement's slab
length. Following guidelines may be followed for locating repair boundaries.
The recommended minimum repair length for 3.5 m wide slab is 1.75m for repairs provided with
mechanical load-transfer devices, and 2.4 - 3m for repairs with aggregate interlock joints. All
repairs should be full-lane width.
The minimum recommended distance from the full-depth repair joints to the nearest transverse
crack or joint is 1.75m.
A boundary that would fall at an existing doweled transverse joint should be extended 0.3 m to
include the existing joint.
If distress is present on only one side of an existing non-doweled joint, that joint may be used as a
boundary.
On multiple-lane highways, it is generally not necessary to match joints in adjacent lanes, as long
as the minimum length requirements are met, all of the deteriorated area has been included within
the repair boundaries, a separation fiberboard has been placed along the longitudinal joint, and the
patch is not tied to the adjacent lane.
However, if the distressed areas in both lanes are similar and both lanes are to be repaired,
aligning repair boundaries to avoid small offsets and to maintain continuity may be desirable.
Removal of distressed concrete
The outer boundaries of a repair should be cut by diamond blade saw cut machine. Deteriorated
concrete from the repair area may be removed either by lifting out or by breaking up. It is
preferable to lift the deteriorated concrete whenever possible. Lifting the old concrete imparts no
damage to the subbase and is usually faster and requires less labor than any method that breaks the
concrete before removal. For lifting out, holes are drilled into the old concrete surface, then lift
pins are inserted into holes and concrete is removed with the help of chains fastened to a crane.
Deteriorated concrete may also be removed by breaking it into small pieces. The drawback of this
method is that it often damages the subbase.

When using mechanized breaking equipment like drop hammers or hydraulic rams, operators must
exercise control on the equipment's break energy. Operators should begin breaking the concrete in
the center of the removal area and move outward toward buffer cuts. Buffer cuts are made about
0.3 m away from the perimeter of saw cuts within the patch. The operator should reduce the break
energy (drop height) before starting on the area outside the buffer cuts. Then there will be less
chance of damaging concrete beyond the patch perimeter.

If subbase has been damaged during removal operation of old concrete then it would be necessary
to repair it by adding and compacting new subbase material.
Providing load transfer
Dowels at transverse joints are essential for load transfer for most full depth repairs, except for
light traffic pavements. Holes are drilled in the vertical faces of the slab, parallel to the surface and
sides of the slab. The diameter of the holes should be the minimum that is necessary to
accommodate the size of dowel bar that is to be used. The hole diameter also depend on the
anchoring material. Cement-based grout requires a hole diameter 5-6 mm larger than the nominal
outside dowel diameter. Epoxy anchoring materials only require a hole diameter about 2 mm
larger than the nominal dowel diameter. After drilling, the holes are cleaned with compressed air
to force out all the dust and debris. Holes are then plugged with some suitable epoxy resin with the
help of a long nozzle that feeds the epoxy to the back of the hole. Insert new dowel bars accurately
aligned parallel to the surface and sides of the slab. Make sure that the epoxy anchoring material
flow forward along the entire dowel embedment length during insertion. Debond the dowel bars
with thin, tight fitting plastic sheaths. A bond breaking 5-6 mm thick fibre board should be placed
along any longitudinal face with an existing concrete lane or concrete shoulder. It would allow the
patch and the old concrete to move independently.
Placing & finishing the new concrete
Place and evenly spread pavement quality concrete to the appropriate surcharge. Thoroughly
compact the concrete using internal vibrators and then finish the surface with the help of a screed
vibrator. Particular care should be taken to ensure full compaction around the dowel bars and
edges of the repair. The patch surface should match the surrounding surface profile.
Texturing and curing
Patch surface may be textured so that it is similar to the surface of the surrounding pavement. The
first few hours after pouring the concrete are the most critical for good curing. Therefore, apply
liquid-membrane-forming curing compound immediately after texturing over the surface of newly
placed concrete. To prevent moisture loss and to protect the surface against the occurrence of
plastic shrinkage cracks, polythene sheet may be placed over the patch surface.
Sawing and sealing joint
The final step is to saw transverse and longitudinal joint sealant reservoirs at the patch boundaries.
Sealed joints will lower the potential for spalling at the patch joints. The joints may be filled with
any suitable joint sealant.
Cross-Stitching
Cross-stitching is a repair technique for longitudinal cracks which are in reasonably good
condition. The purpose of cross-stitching is to maintain aggregate interlock and provide added
reinforcement and strength. The tie bars used in cross-stitching prevent the crack from vertical and
horizontal movement or widening. This technique knits the cracked portions of the slab together
and reduces the chances of crack to grow further.

Cross-stitching uses deformed tie bars drilled across a crack at angles of 30-45 degrees. Deformed
steel bars of 10-12 mm diameter are sufficient to hold the crack tightly closed and enhance
aggregate interlock. Full depth holes of 18-20 mm dia are drilled at a pitch distance of 300 mm
with the offset of 150 mm from the crack. The holes are drilled alternately from each side of the
crack so that one hole passes through the crack from left to right while the next from right to left.
After drilling, the holes are flushed with high pressure air to clean out any residual dust. Then a
high strength epoxy gel adhesive is injected into the holes. Immediately after injecting epoxy,
deformed steel rods are inserted into each hole. The crack is sealed at the top with a silicon
sealant.

Do not stitch a transverse crack which has assumed the role of an adjacent joint. Stitching will not
allow transverse joint movement (open and closure). A new crack will likely develop near a
stitched working crack or the concrete will spall over the reinforcing bars.
Slab Replacement
In cases where a slab has full depth and intersecting multiple cracks, slab replacement become
necessary. It involves the demolition and replacement of affected slab. Prior to breaking out of the
affected slab, a full depth saw cut be made around the perimeter of the repair to minimize the
damage to the surrounding slab. This should include the existing transverse joints on both sides.
Care should be taken to ensure that the saw cut do not extend into adjacent slabs. It accidentally it
happens, then the cut into the adjacent slab should be repaired with epoxy mortar. The concrete of
the affected slab may then be sawn into smaller pieces before being broken up and removed from
the slab. The concrete that remains in the corner of the patch after saw cutting should be broken
out carefully to avoid undercutting the remaining slab. Reinstatement of the sub-base, if required,
should be done by taking care of full compaction especially in the corners. A plate vibrator should
be used to compact the subbase. Fixing of dowels into drilled holes, placing, compacting,
finishing, texturing and curing of fresh concrete into the patch will be as described in full depth
repair section.
Concluding Remarks
Many type of cracks such as uncontrolled transverse full depth cracks, plastic shrinkage cracks,
full depth cracks near slab culverts, cracks over dowel bars etc. have been observed on the
concrete road projects that have been completed recently. All such cracks can be prevented or
minimized by making aware the site staff about the precautions to be taken during concrete
paving. Due care during construction can reduce the troubles which otherwise would be very
difficult and costly to remove after the concrete has set.
Acknowledgment
Authors are thankful to Dr. S. Gangopadhyaya, Director, Central Road Research Institute, New
Delhi, for his encouragement and kind permission to publish this paper.
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NBMCW September 2009