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SELF-CONSOLIDATING PERVIOUS CONCRETE

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John T. Kevern Kejin Wang

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Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

SELF-CONSOLIDATING PERVIOUS CONCRETE

John T. Kevern1, Kejin Wang2, and Vernon R. Schaefer3
1
University of Missouri-Kansas City
2, 3
National Concrete Pavement Technology Center, Iowa State University

ABSTRACT

Pervious concrete presents a unique set of challenges when it comes to

consolidation and compaction. In pervious concrete mixture design and construction, the
goal is to achieve a specified porosity at a given design unit weight. This can be achieved
through a highly workable mixture or by applying addition compaction to a more stiff
mixture. This paper describes research on the development of self-consolidating pervious
concrete. By tailoring initial workability and compactibility parameters, the mixtures can
be designed to flow and be placed easily but, still maintain the required void structure for
stormwater infiltration and skid resistance. The mixtures contained various combinations
of crushed aggregate, SCMs, admixtures, and fibers. The effects of each component on
workability were studied by low-pressure gyration testing. It is expected that the newly
developed self-consolidating pervious concrete will have much improved uniformity.
Improved density consistency will increase durability and allow more wide-spread use of
pervious concrete and in higher traffic volume applications.

INTRODUCTION

Portland Cement Pervious Concrete (PCPC) contains the same material

components of cementitious binder, aggregate, water, and chemical admixtures as
conventional concrete but through specific mixture proportioning maintains around 20%
porosity for water movement. Common usage of PCPC in the Unites States (U.S.) is as a
method to convey stormwater into an underlying aggregate storage layer to allow
infiltration and manage stormwater runoff requirements (1). However, PCPC has also
been used in limited applications for noise reduction and increased skid resistance on high
volume roadways in Europe and Japan (2).
PCPC is comprised of aggregate particles coated with cement paste, and the
strength is produced when the paste coated particles come into contact creating an area of
load transfer. Strength and porosity are a function of the thickness of paste surrounding
the particles, which both occupies void space between the aggregate particles and effects
the area of load transfer. A larger paste thickness produces greater contact area and
strength but occupies more aggregate void space reducing concrete porosity. While
strength generally decreases with increased porosity and porous pavements with around
15% voids have high strength, durability, and permeability, laboratory and anecdotal
evidence suggests that pore sizes may not be sufficiently large enough to maintain long-
term permeability and may be more prone to clogging (2, 3). PCPC with porosity above
25% has excellent permeability but lacks enough strength for durability, especially in
high-volume applications. A balance must be achieved between strength for durability
and porosity for permeability.
Pervious concrete is currently one of the quietest pavements (3). The open surface
diffuses tire noise and has been measured up to 7 db lower than typical dense graded
Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

asphalt (4). Placements in the U.S. are most often performed by hand, where concrete is
placed in piles and then raked roughly level with forms and finished with a weighted
roller or roller-screed. This manual placement technique produces areas of higher
compaction where the concrete was initially placed and areas of low compaction in
between. Uniform compaction of PCPC in field construction is always a challenge. Not
only has durability been linked to density but the uneven surface porosity will produce
unwanted variable tire noise. This paper describes research performed to develop self-
consolidating pervious concrete, specifically for slipform applications.
In order to maximize the potential benefits of pervious concrete as an overlay
material for noise reduction and skid resistance, the mixture must possess the following
properties:
• High strength and long-term durability using,
• Highly durable aggregate,
• Sufficient porosity (around 25%) to minimize noise reduction and maintenance,
• High workability for ease of placement and uniform surface porosity and,
• Ability to maintain porosity when compaction is applied by the paver.

WORKABILITY TEST DEVELOPMENT

The porosity as determined through fresh unit weight testing is controlled by the
concrete workability. Workability is provided by the cement paste lubrication between the
particles. For equal sized particles, an angular particle will have more surface area and
require a larger volume of paste to produce similar workability as a rounded aggregate
particle. Since the objective of pervious concrete is to produce a permeable concrete with
a smooth surface at the design void content (DVC) measured by the unit weight, this may
be achieved either by a highly workable mixture with little compaction or a less workable
mixture with substantial additional compaction energy. Consequently, workability for
pervious concrete must be defined by two parameters (a) the initial workability or self-
consolidating ability, and (b) compactibility under additional compaction as the concrete
nears the DVC.
Compaction and finishing of PCPC is commonly performed by some type of
roller, it is known that gyratory compaction best simulates the kneading type compaction
imparted by rollers (5). Gyratory compaction devices used in the asphalt industry for
Superpave mixture designs employ high compaction pressure (600 kPa) to simulate
construction activities. While gyratory compaction may be appropriate for PCPC, the
pressure was not, so a gyratory compactor was modified to achieve much lower and more
appropriate pressure for pervious concrete of 60 kPa. Analysis of the compaction
densification curve yielded both the Workability Energy Index (WEI) and Compaction
Densification Index (CDI) for defining pervious concrete workability parameters as
shown for a typical mixture in Figure 1. The graph represents the apparent Degree of
Compaction (DoC) as compared to the DVC versus the number of gyrations at 60 kPa.
WEI is the area under the curve from one to eight gyrations and the CDI is the area from
DoC at eight gyrations to 100 gyrations or the DVC, whichever occurs first. The range of
workability parameters both for initial workability and compactibility are shown in Figure
1 (6).
Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

Experience has shown that mixtures with high WEI and low CDI are very fluid
and self-consolidating but have poor shape holding characteristics. Mixtures with low
WEI and high CDI have excellent shape holding ability but are difficult to place.
Consequently, the ideal mixture for slipform pervious concrete will possess high WEI for
rapid placement and high CDI for edge stability.
102
Workability (WEI)
100
Explanation Range
98 Self-Consolidating > 640
Apparent DoC (%)

96 Acceptable Workability 640>WEI>600

94 Poor Workability WEI<600
92 Compaction Densification Index (CDI)
90 Compactibility (CDI)
Explanation Range
88
Workability No Additional Compaction Required CDI<50
86 Energy
Normal Compaction Effort Required 50<CDI<450
84 Index (WEI)
Considerable Additional Compaction Effort
82 Required CDI>450
8
0 20 40 60 80 100
Gyrations @ 60kPa

Figure 1. Definition of workability indices and range of typical values (6)

EXPERIMENTAL WORK

The mixture design experimental phase was divided into eight sections
determining aggregate type, binder-to-aggregate amount, optimized sand content, water-
to-cement ratio, fiber type, fiber addition rate, cementitious material composition, and
chemical admixture scheme. The objective was to produce a self-consolidating concrete
that also required considerable additional compaction effort, had porosity between 20%
and 25%, and 7-day tensile strength greater than 2.1 MPa. Typical pervious sections are
opened to traffic after 7-days, so mixtures were iterated on 7-day tensile strength and
workability.
The selected coarse aggregate was crushed granite with 98% passing the 9.5 mm
sieve and 18% passing the 4.75 mm sieve selected due to previous performance and
availability. The granite had specific gravity of 2.65, absorption of 0.6%, micro-deval
abrasion loss of 7%, and compacted voids of 45%.
The concrete was mixed and cured according to ASTM C192. Samples were
tested for fresh workability and then placed by lightly rodding each cylinder in three
equal lifts to ensure uniform compaction. After 7-days, compressive strength was
evaluated on sulfur-capped specimens according to ASTM C39 and C617 and splitting
tensile strength according to ASTM C496. Porosity was determined using the volume
displacement method and the procedure developed by Montes et al. (7, 8).
Two types of fibers were used, a shorter fibrillated polypropylene, previously
investigated in pervious concrete, and a cellulose micro-fiber (9). Fibers were included at
0.9, 1.8, and 3.0 kg/m3. Cementitious materials included Type II Portland cement, class C
fly ash, and grade 120 blast furnace slag investigated up to 50% replacement for cement
with SCMs. The baseline mixture included a high-range water reducer and air entraining
agent, additional admixtures included individual and combinations of a viscosity
modifier, hydration stabilizer, two latex-based workability aids, and slipform rheology
modifying admixture.
Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

The comprehensive study is on-going, which includes strength development with

time, overlay bond strength, freeze-thaw resistance, and deicer durability testing for both
a latex-modified and non-latex mixtures. The culminating mixture design will be used in
an overlay test placement at the Minnesota DOT MNRoad test facility scheduled for
installation during the summer of 2008.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Once the aggregate type and initial gradation were selected the optimized binder
content was investigated. Binder-to-aggregate (b/a) ratio, by mass, was varied between
21% and 25%. Mixture proportions were adjusted to maintain equal DVC. A slight
increase in initial workability occurred with increased binder while a significant drop in
required compaction energy occurred between 21% and 22.5%, with a small additional
decrease at b/a = 24%. For all mixtures porosity was between 25% and 30%, although 7-
day compressive strength increased from 14.8 MPa for b/a = 21% samples to 17.9 MPa
for b/a = 24% samples. At b/a greater than 24% the samples were not permeable. In
addition to the binder, water-to-cement ratio (w/c) was varied for all three binder
contents. Traditionally water is added to pervious concrete to improve workability, at
least for this combination of aggregate and binder volume, additional water did not
improve workability. At w/c greater than 0.33 the paste drained from the aggregate
creating the potential for imperviousness. W/c of 0.29 was selected for subsequent
iterations, the initial composition was Mixture A in Table 1.
The effect of sand content on the original gradation was investigated for mixtures
containing 24% binder and w/c of 0.29. Workability response for sand addition is shown
in Figure 2 for 0% to 15% sand-to-gravel (S/G) by mass. Initial workability increased
slightly between 0% and 12.5%, however between 7.5% and 10% there was a significant
decrease in the required compaction energy. Sand increases the paste/mortar volume and
increases the mortar viscosity allowing the coarse aggregate particles to support a thicker
paste layer. The increased paste viscosity did not significantly improve workability but
separated the particles allowing better compaction. The mixture response is shown in
Figure 3 for porosity and 7-day compressive strength. At S/G up to 10%, the fine
aggregate bulks the mortar volume creating better compaction and strength. Above S/G of
10% the additional surface area demand of the fine aggregate begins to negatively impact
the mixture properties, Mixture B in Table 1 represents the 10% S/G results.
For both types of fibers there was no effect on initial workability with addition
rate. Compactibility increased linearly with addition rate for the polypropylene fibers,
while no increase in compactibility was observed until the 3 kg/m3 rate for the cellulose
fibers. A maximum 7-day tensile strength of 2.2 MPa occurred at the 3.0 kg/m3 rate for
the polypropylene fiber and of 2.0 MPa at the 0.9 kg/m3 rate for the cellulose fibers.
Cellulose fibers were selected due to the ability to maintain initial workability while
requiring a higher level of compaction, as shown in Mixture C.
Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

700 800 35 25

30
20
600

Compressive Strength
W EI = 450 25

Porosity (%)
WEI

15

CDI
20

(MPa)
600 400
15
10

10
W EI 200
CDI 5
5 Porosity
CDI = 50
7-day
500 0 0 0
0 5 10 15 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Sand to gravel (S/G), % Fine Aggregate Amount (%)
Figure 2. Effect of fine aggregate on workability Figure 3. Effect of FA on concrete properties

A range of SCM combinations were evaluated at 50% replacement for ordinary

Portland cement (OPC). The highest compressive and tensile strength occurred for
samples containing 50% blast furnace slag. However, only a 0.10 MPa decrease in 7-day
tensile strength occurred when the concrete contained 35% slag and 15% fly ash.
Compressive was lower than 100% OPC for all SCM combinations, while all tensile
strength results were higher. Due to the potential for greater long-term strength
development, the (50% OPC, 35% Slag, 15% Fly Ash) ternary mixture was selected,
Mixture D. The highest workability occurred for the (50, 25, 25) and (50, 0, 50) mixtures
while lowest required compaction energy was observed in the 50% fly ash (50, 0, 50)
mixture. All combinations of SCMs had higher workability and lower required
compaction energy than the OPC mixture.
Table 1. Selected fresh concrete and 7-day results
Comp. Str. Tens. Str.
Mixture Composition WEI CDI
(Mpa) (Mpa)
A b/a = 24%, w/c = 0.29 592 650 12.3 1.05
B b/a=24%, w/c=0.29, s/g=10% 630 187 17.9 1.55
C b/a=24%, w/c=0.29, s/g=10%, CF/0.9 626 251 20.6 2.05
D b/a=24%, w/c=0.29, s/g=10%, CF/0.9, SCM(50, 35, 15) 638 113 17.6 2.55
E Mixture D with VMA and HS 642 82 20.3 2.70
F Mixture D with Latex polymer and HS 617 634 15.1 2.10

All combinations of chemical admixtures improved the initial workability and

most decreased the required compaction energy. The selected non-polymer mixture,
Mixture E, contained a viscosity modifying agent (VMA) and hydration stabilizer (HS),
which did not affect the WEI but caused a drop in CDI. To potentially increase bond
strength during subsequent testing, a polymer-modified mixture, Mixture F, was also
selected (Table 1). Testing was performed in the saturated state without drying to
coalesce the polymer film, which is expected to further increase tensile strength. The
latex admixture caused a slight drop in WEI but a substantial increase in CDI. Future
testing will include workability behavior with more realistic increased mixing times and
drying cycles to mimic field conditions.
 Kevern et al. 2008, Third North American Conference on the Design and Use of Self-Consolidating
Concrete (SCC08)

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

The following are conclusions from the present study.

• Self-consolidating pervious concrete has been achieved by tailoring concrete mixture
proportions using low-pressure gyration testing. Self-consolidating slipform pervious
concrete must have a high initial workability for rapid placement and also have
relatively high compactibility to maintain porosity through the paver.
• Increased binder content improved workability more effectively than increased water
content.
• Increased sand content improved workability and caused a large reduction in required
compaction energy, especially for S/G ≥ 10%.
• A ternary cementitious blend produced greater strength and workability than the pure
Portland cement mixture.
• The best performing mixtures contained narrowly graded crushed granite coarse
aggregate, an additional 10% fine aggregate, binder-to-aggregate of 24% by mass,
water-to-cement of 0.29, cellulose fibers at 0.9 kg/m3, and either a latex or viscosity
modifying admixture combined with hydration stabilizer, high-range water reducer,
and air entraining agent.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This study was sponsored by the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center at Iowa
State University through the Sponsored Research Fund by Federal Highway Administration and
the RMC Research and Education Foundation. The opinions, findings and conclusions presented
here are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the research sponsors.

REFERENCES
(1) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). National Menu for BMP Practices Post-Construction Storm
Water Management, 2004. http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/menuofbmps/pdf/final/sec-5_new.pdf
(2) Schaefer, V.R., Wang, K., Sulieman, M.T., and Kevern, J. Mix Design Development for Pervious
Concrete in Cold Weather Climates. A Report from the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center
(CP Tech Center), Ames, IA: Iowa State University, 2006.
(3) Olek, J., W.J. Weiss, N. Neithalath, A. Marolf, E. Sell, and W.D. Thornton. Development of Quiet and
Durable Porous Portland Cement Concrete Paving Materials. Final Report SQDH 2003-5. West Lafayette,
IN: Purdue University, 2003.
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