Cyclic Behavior and Microstructure of Recycled Concrete Aggregate as a Pavement Base Layer
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
Mechanical analysis of resilient and permanent deformation is critical for pavement design and construction, as repeated traffic loading is the primary factor influencing material stability. This study investigates the cyclic mechanical behavior and microstructural characteristics of Recycled Concrete Aggregate (RCA) to evaluate its suitability as a sustainable pavement base material. Geotechnical characterization classified the RCA as a well-graded gravel (GW) adhering to Department of Highways Thailand Type D specifications, with a maximum dry unit weight of 18.85 kN/m³. Multi-stage repeated load triaxial testing was performed to determine resilient modulus and permanent deformation characteristics under varying deviatoric stress states. Results indicated that the RCA exhibits a robust resilient modulus ranging from 125 to 260 MPa. Based on Werkmeister’s and shakedown theory, the material remained within the stable Plastic Creep zone (Range B) across all loading stages (150–450 kPa), demonstrating high resistance to incremental collapse. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) analyses revealed a complex matrix of carbonated adhered mortar and quartz-rich natural aggregates. While the porous interfacial transition zone (ITZ) contributed to elevated water absorption (6.65–7.46%), the non-plastic nature of cementitious fines prevented moisture-induced instability. The integration of macro-mechanical results with micro-scale mineralogical findings validates that RCA provides sufficient structural integrity for high-traffic pavement foundations. This research supports the transition toward a circular economy in Thailand’s infrastructure sector by providing a technical basis for the wide-scale implementation of recycled construction and demolition waste in transportation projects.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
References
References
Z. A. Khan, U. Balunaini, N. H. Nguyen, and S. Costa, "Evaluation of cement-treated recycled concrete aggregates for sustainable pavement base/subbase construction," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 449, p. 138417, 2024.
F. Maghool, M. Senanayake, A. Arulrajah, and S. Horpibulsuk, "Permanent deformation and rutting resistance of demolition waste triple blends in unbound pavement applications," Materials, vol. 14, no. 4, p. 798, 2021.
S. K. H. Shah, T. Uchimura, and K. Kawamoto, "Permanent deformation and breakage response of recycled concrete aggregates under cyclic loading subject to moisture change," Sustainability, vol. 14, no. 9, p. 5427, 2022.
A. Arulrajah, J. Piratheepan, M. M. Disfani, and M. Bo, "Resilient moduli response of recycled construction and demolition materials in pavement subbase applications," Journal of materials in civil engineering, vol. 25, no. 12, pp. 1920-1928, 2013.
M. Hoy et al., "Improved fatigue properties of cement-stabilized recycled materials–Lateritic soil using natural rubber latex for sustainable pavement applications," Transportation Geotechnics, vol. 40, p. 100959, 2023.
S. Narani, M. Abbaspour, S. M. M. Hosseini, and F. M. Nejad, "Long-term dynamic behavior of a sandy subgrade reinforced by Waste Tire Textile Fibers (WTTFs)," Transportation Geotechnics, vol. 24, p. 100375, 2020.
E. O. Fanijo, J. T. Kolawole, A. J. Babafemi, and J. Liu, "A comprehensive review on the use of recycled concrete aggregate for pavement construction: Properties, performance, and sustainability," Cleaner Materials, vol. 9, p. 100199, 2023.
S. Horpibulsuk, W. Katkan, W. Sirilerdwattana, and R. Rachan, "Strength development in cement stabilized low plasticity and coarse grained soils: Laboratory and field study," Soils and foundations, vol. 46, no. 3, pp. 351-366, 2006.
M. Hoy et al., "Innovations in recycled construction materials: paving the way towards sustainable road infrastructure," Frontiers in Built Environment, vol. 10, p. 1449970, 2024.
K. Hrapović, "Paving of concrete carriageway Case study Tauern motorway at the Wengen-Pongau junction," Journal of Road and Traffic Engineering, vol. 69, no. 1, pp. 1-12, 2023.
M. Ismail, B. Muhammad, and N. A. Mohamad, "Durability performance of natural rubber latex modified concrete," Malaysian Journal of Civil Engineering, vol. 21, no. 2, pp. 195-203, 2009.
M. A. Rahman, A. Arulrajah, J. Piratheepan, M. Bo, and M. Imteaz, "Resilient modulus and permanent deformation responses of geogrid-reinforced construction and demolition materials," Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering, vol. 26, no. 3, pp. 512-519, 2014.
S. Werkmeister, A. R. Dawson, and F. Wellner, "Permanent deformation behavior of granular materials and the shakedown concept," Transportation Research Record, vol. 1757, no. 1, pp. 75-81, 2001.
C. Lu, J. Chen, C. Gu, J. Wang, Y. Cai, and T. Zhang, "Resilient and permanent deformation behaviors of construction and demolition wastes in unbound pavement base and subbase applications," Transportation Geotechnics, vol. 28, p. 100541, 2021.
S. Muench, T. Van Dam, P. Ram, and K. Smith, "Pavement Resilience: State of the Practice," United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Highway Administration, 2023.
M. Saberian, J. Li, B. Nguyen, and G. Wang, "Permanent deformation behaviour of pavement base and subbase containing recycle concrete aggregate, coarse and fine crumb rubber," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 178, pp. 51-58, 2018.
S. Werkmeister, A. R. Dawson, and F. Wellner, "Permanent deformation behaviour of granular materials," Road materials and pavement design, vol. 6, no. 1, pp. 31-51, 2005.
C. Wang, C. Chazallon, P. Hornych, and S. Braymand, "Permanent and resilient deformation behaviour of recycled concrete aggregates from different sources, in pavement base and subbase," Road Materials and Pavement Design, vol. 24, no. 9, pp. 2245-2262, 2023.
K. Wang and Y. Zhuang, "Characterizing the permanent deformation Response-Behavior of subgrade material under cyclic loading based on the shakedown theory," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 311, p. 125325, 2021.
Y. Xiao, K. Zheng, L. Chen, and J. Mao, "Shakedown analysis of cyclic plastic deformation characteristics of unbound granular materials under moving wheel loads," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 167, pp. 457-472, 2018.
M. S. Rahman, S. Erlingsson, and A. Ahmed, "Modelling the permanent deformation of unbound granular materials in pavements," Road Materials and Pavement Design, vol. 24, no. 8, pp. 1917-1938, 2023.
F. Gu, Y. Zhang, X. Luo, H. Sahin, and R. L. Lytton, "Characterization and prediction of permanent deformation properties of unbound granular materials for pavement ME design," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 155, pp. 584-592, 2017.
J. Zhang, A. Zhang, J. Li, and H. Fan, "Enhanced understanding on permanent deformation behaviour of subgrade compacted clay under long-term cyclic loading," Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, vol. 187, p. 108972, 2024.
B. Ghorbani, A. Arulrajah, G. Narsilio, S. Horpibulsuk, and M. W. Bo, "Shakedown analysis of PET blends with demolition waste as pavement base/subbase materials using experimental and neural network methods," Transportation Geotechnics, vol. 27, p. 100481, 2021.
M.-E. P. D. G. AASHTO, "A Manual of Practice-Interim Edition," Washington, DC: American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, 2008.
M. Hoy et al., "Strength Development of Bottom Ash-Based Geopolymer-Stabilized Recycled Concrete Aggregate as a Pavement Base Material," Coatings, vol. 15, no. 8, p. 935, 2025.
C. Traiyasut et al., "Performance of natural rubber latex modified bottom ash-based geopolymer stabilized recycled concrete aggregate as a pavement base material," Cleaner Engineering and Technology, p. 101080, 2025.
R. Jia and Z. Chu, "Triaxial mechanical properties and microstructure of Tianjin clay stabilized with fly ash-based geopolymer," Soils and Foundations, vol. 65, no. 6, p. 101687, 2025.
N. Q. Tran, M. Hoy, A. Suddeepong, S. Horpibulsuk, K. Kantathum, and A. Arulrajah, "Improved mechanical and microstructure of cement-stabilized lateritic soil using recycled materials replacement and natural rubber latex for pavement applications," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 347, p. 128547, 2022.
F. Muhammad, M. Harun, A. Ahmed, N. Kabir, H. R. Khalid, and A. Hanif, "Influence of bonded mortar on recycled aggregate concrete properties: A review," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 432, p. 136564, 2024.
B. Ghorbani, E. Yaghoubi, A. Arulrajah, and S. Fragomeni, "Long-term performance analysis of demolition waste blends in pavement bases using experimental and machine learning techniques," International Journal of Geomechanics, vol. 23, no. 6, p. 04023058, 2023.
T. Nian, M. Wang, S. Li, P. Li, and J. Song, "Enhancing pavement structural resilience: analyzing the impact of vehicle-induced dynamic loads on RAP-recycled cement-stabilized crushed stone pavements with tip cracks," Materials and Structures, vol. 57, no. 7, p. 162, 2024.
X. Shi, A. Mukhopadhyay, and D. Zollinger, "Long-term performance evaluation of concrete pavements containing recycled concrete aggregate in Oklahoma," Transportation Research Record, vol. 2673, no. 5, pp. 429-442, 2019.
ASTM, "ASTM D422-63: Standard Test Method for Particle-Size Analysis of Soils," ed: ASTM International West Conshohocken^ ePA PA, 2007.
D. DOH, "S204/2000 Standard of soil cement base," Department of Highways, Thailand, 2000.
D. ASTM, "Standard test method for particle-size analysis of soils," 2007.
D. ASTM, "1557–12. Test Method for Laboratory Compaction Characteristics of Soil Using Modified Effort (56,000 ft–lbf/ft3 (2,700 KN–m/m 3))," ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2012.
M. Naeini, A. Mohammadinia, A. Arulrajah, and S. Horpibulsuk, "Cyclic behavior of semi-rigid recovered plastic blends in railway track substructure," Transportation Geotechnics, vol. 28, p. 100514, 2021.
A. Mohammadinia, M. Naeini, A. Arulrajah, S. Horpibulsuk, and M. Leong, "Shakedown analysis of recycled materials as railway capping layer under cyclic loading," Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering, vol. 139, p. 106423, 2020.
S. Gao, J. Guo, Y. Zhu, and Z. Jin, "Study on the influence of the properties of interfacial transition zones on the performance of recycled aggregate concrete," Construction and Building Materials, vol. 408, p. 133592, 2023.
Y. Xiao et al., "Characterizing and predicting the resilient modulus of recycled aggregates from building demolition waste with breakage-induced gradation variation," Materials, vol. 15, no. 7, p. 2670, 2022.
