ANALYSIS OF FULL-DEPTH PCC PATCHES FOR JOINTED CONCRETE PAVEMENTS. PROCEEDINGS, 4TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON CONCRETE PAVEMENT DESIGN AND REHABILITATION, PURDUE UNIVERSITY, APRIL 18-20, 1989

The purpose of this study was to determine the most efficient dowel bar spacing and dowel bar size for the design of full-depth patches for jointed PCC pavements. The major highway pavements selected for this study were subjected to heavy axle loads of 34 kips for rear tandem axles, 30 kips for front tandem axles, and 8 kips for the steering axle of a typical truck with a length of approximately 60 feet. This study evaluated the loading scheme in which the tire loads were located at the slab corner and along the edge of the concrete pavement. Stresses and deflections were calculated with the finite element program JSLAB. The findings are reported in this paper along with the following conclusions: (1) A full-depth PCC pavement patch with six or seven dowel bars will experience excessive bearing stresses--consequently, this particular design should not be used; and (2) Load transfer devices for full-depth PCC pavement patches should have no fewer than eight dowel bars of a minimum 1 1/4 in. diameter.