STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Each month, or every other month, a student will provide a 1-page illustrated abstract of the research they are currently conducting. This is a wonderful opportunity for the student, our ISCP Members, and technology/research transfer to our concrete paving industry.
The International Society for Concrete Pavements (ISCP) “STUDENT RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT” February 2022 is Jordan Ouellet, Tech, BEng, MASc, PhD Candidate, Teaching and Research Assistant-University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign:
Bio:
Jordan Ouellet graduated as a civil engineering technician in 2012 and is a registered professional technologist in Québec, Canada. He worked as a field inspector and as a R&D technician for a major paving company all while earning a Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) in construction engineering and a Master of Applied Sciences (MASc) from the École de Technologie Supérieure. His thesis focused on pre-cracking of cement treated bases.
Mr. Ouellet is currently pursuing his doctoral studies at the
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with Professor Jeffery Roesler,
his research focusing on mixture design and evaluation
of fresh properties of RCC.
The resurgence of RCC pavements requires better connection between the RCC mix design and field constructibility. A properly designed RCC mixture will result in a constructible pavement that has optimal sustainability with the local available aggregates. Current procedures are based on RCC hardened strength properties and mostly rely on the designer’s experience for constructibility. The purpose of this research is to develop a RCC mixture design method for any local aggregate source that considers pavibility, compactibility, and finishability as well as sustainability.
The volume (and therefore density) of RCC is subject to change from the batching to finishing process, where the final density is a key contractual requirement. A better understanding of the volumetric relationship between the constituents can help optimize the paste content for sustainability and reach specified densities in the field. The RCC phase diagram shown in Figure 1, illustrates the significance of the ratio at which the intergranular voids are filled by paste and its potential of being a key mix design metric to understand RCC fresh behavior. This research aims to define these key mix design metrics and ranges that govern RCC constructibility.
Currently, the impact of volumetrics on RCC fresh behavior is being quantified in the laboratory with a research-grade gyratory compactor, “green” strength properties, and a dynamic hybrid rheometer as seen in Figure 2. Analysis of the experimental results from the lab and field will allow for the selection of the key mix design metrics and values. The expected outcome of this research is a universal RCC mix design procedure for any aggregate source and project objective that meets constructibility and sustainability requirements.
ISCP would like to feature a “STUDENT RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT” each month, or every other month. If you would like to nominate a student, or if you are a student and would like to nominate yourself or a colleague, please send ISCP an email to: newsletter@concretepavements.org
Prior SPOTLIGHTS:
Inaugural December 2021: Katelyn Kosar, Phd Student-Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering-University of Pittsburgh (Pitt): www.concretepavements.org/2021/12/14/new-at-iscp-student-research-spotlight/
January 2022: Aniruddha Baral, Ph.D. Candidate-Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering-University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign: www.concretepavements.org/2022/01/15/student-research-spotlight-jan-2022/