In February, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) will publish a new provisional specification on performance-engineered mixtures (PEM), PP 84. This culminates a concerted effort of the National Concrete Pavement Technology Center (CP Tech Center) and its research partners working on behalf of Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), state agencies, and industry partners.
Now agencies and industry are invited to join a 5-year FHWA pooled fund (solicitation 1439) to participate in follow-through activities to ensure that agencies can specify, and contractors can deliver, concrete mixtures that reliably and sustainably meet performance needs in any given environment. These activities include significant training and assistance for all staffing levels, from the design office through construction.
Efforts will cover a variety of topics, such as:
- Identifying critical properties based on project location
- Selecting tools to monitor compliance
- Conducting new tests properly
- Developing mixtures that meet requirements while improving their sensitivity to batching and construction processes and reducing financial and environmental impacts