ACCELERATED STRENGTH TESTS FOR QUALITY CONTROL OF CONCRETE PAVEMENTS

Abstract

This study presents an evaluation of accelerated methods for measuring concrete flexural strength for pavement quality control within 24 hours, compared to the conventional 28- and 90-day tests mandated by current Corps of Engineers pavement design procedures. With rapid construction techniques outpacing the traditional strength assessment methods, there's a pressing need for quicker evaluation processes. The research focused on the use of elevated curing temperatures as a means to predict long-term flexural strength, particularly through warm water curing methods (ASTM C 684, Procedure A), due to its safety, reliability, and minimal adverse effects on specimens. Three concrete mixtures with varying water-cement ratios were prepared to cover a broad strength range, resulting in 1,061 specimens tested for flexural, splitting tensile, and compressive strengths at accelerated (24-hour) and standard intervals (14, 28, and 90 days). The findings demonstrated that the warm water method, with its high coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.894 to 0.945), offers reliability comparable to or better than 14-day tests for predicting 28- and 90-day flexural strengths. These results suggest a promising direction for improving quality control practices in pavement construction, allowing for earlier detection of strength issues and potentially reducing the reliance on protracted testing durations. (Abstract generated by AI tool ChatGPT 4)