Three different cement products are being used in the construction of new Runway 4 at Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC:

• Soil-cement is being used to stabilize the subgrade


• A cement-treated base (CTB) is being constructed on top of the stabilized subgrade


• The runway surface is jointed concrete pavement

The new runway will be approximately 9,400 ft. long and 150 ft. wide, in addition to the accompanying taxiways. The project started in 2006 and will be completed in 2008.

The cement stabilization of the subgrade will provide an excellent working platform for the entire project. The existing subgrade soils are very moisture sensitive, and when disturbed after a rain would turn to mud, causing extensive and very costly construction delays. The entire project area will be treated with soil-cement, which is not moisture sensitive, thereby eliminating delays.

The CTB will allow a gradual increase in stiffness for the pavement structure, bridging between the subgrade soils to the rigid concrete slab. In addition, the CTB will be placed to very precise elevation using laser grade control, which provides an excellent construction platform for paving the concrete runway. More.

Idaho Airport Beats the Clock with Cement Solution

Central Idaho attracts a steady flow of visitors and new residents. The local airport in the town of Hailey relied on their consulting engineers, an experienced contractor, and a soil-cement specialist to rebuild their one and only runway in barely 30 days time. While some local airports shut down for twice that length of time, the Friedman Memorial Airport selected full-depth reclamation (FDR) with portland cement to meet a master plan objective and economically re-open for traffic in the shortest possible time span. More.

What is the proper joint spacing for RCC pavements?

There have been many RCC pavement projects that have been built without contraction joints and have performed satisfactorily. In particular, industrial pavements where appearance is not a major concern and the design incorporates the random cracking, contraction joints have been eliminated for economic reasons.

For projects where crack control is important, contraction joints are used to control the location of cracking in the concrete. Joint spacing should follow similar concepts as used for conventional concrete pavement, although because RCC has less shrinkage than conventional concrete, the control joints can be spaced further apart. Proper joint spacing depends on pavement thickness, concrete and subbase properties, aggregate type and climatic conditions. More.

International Conference on RCC and Soil-Cement Pavement Applications
August 17, 2007, Mexico City, Mexico

Get the latest information on the design and construction of roller-compacted concrete and soil-cement for pavement applications. This one-day program will include presentations on mix design, thickness design, specifications, construction and field testing and inspection requirements. An experienced RCC contractor will be discussing the proper construction techniques using examples from actual projects. More.

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