Field experiments and numerical analysis of curling behavior of cast-in-situ short paneled concrete pavement on lean concrete base

Studies to understand the behaviour and structural integrity of square-shaped short slabs have gained enormous interest in the highway pavement community. Unfortunately, the quantification of curling deformations and subsequent performance studies are very limited. This study examines the curling behaviour of cast-in-situ short paneled concrete pavements (CiSPCP) on a lean concrete base (LCB) of NH-18 (old NH-33) test sections. The test site includes CiSPCP of three different slab sizes, thicknesses, and slab – LCB interface conditions. The curling displacements at the centre and edge of the slabs are measured using a simple experimental setup. The slab length is found to have more influence on curling as compared to the thickness and interface condition. Interestingly, the occurrence of slab response is not expeditious with the maximum temperature gradient (TG). The time lag for the response is around two to four and a half hours of the occurrence of a maximum TG. A multi-slab, finite element (FE) four-layer pavement model is developed to represent the CiSPCP test sections and also to reproduce the evolution of the curling response fairly. Field measured and FE computed displacements are compared and conclusions are drawn.