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BBL sponsored by Europe and Central Asia Region Transport Unit
Tuesday, January 15th, 2008 -- 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
presented by:
Dr. Juan Pablo Covarrubias
Download the presentation (PPT)
Download the background paper (PDF)
Dr Juan Pablo Covarrubia will present details of a new concrete pavement design method for developing countries. This new methodology reduces the thickness of pavements by up to 30% compared to conventional concrete pavement design.
The difference with the traditional design systems is that the new design method takes into account concrete slab loading and optimizes the thickness by changing the dimension of the slabs so that only one set of wheels loads can be applied at any time.
Trials in Chile have shown that this new design method reduces the initial cost of concrete pavements by about 20% compared to asphalt pavements.
The design has been used in Guatemala with more than 400 km lane built and is working well. The design method is also being validated by the University of Illinois with a trial pavement section. A complete design software is being developed.
A second benefit of the system is that pavements can be designed for higher loads, so heavier trucks can use the roads. This can optimize total expenditures on a transport network by reducing the number of vehicles needed and the overall cost of transport.
Juan Pablo Covarrubias holds a PhD in Transportation and Highway Engineering, from the University of Birmingham, England. He has held various positions including Associate Professor and Head of the Construction Department at the School of Civil Engineering at the Catholic University of Chile, Santiago. He was President and CEO of the Chilean Cement and Concrete Institute (ICH) for five years, and Team Leader for the Rigid Pavements Performance models developed for the HDM4 model.
His areas of expertise are mainly related to use of concrete materials in road and airfield pavements, nuclear reactors, heavy weight concrete, high early strength concrete, low density concrete, and impacts of fire damage on concrete structures.
Dr Covarrubias is now a consultant specializing in concrete works, specially in road and airfield pavement construction, hydro-electric power plants, and in mining construction. He was also a consultant to the World Bank in India, for the Construction of Concrete Pavements in the National Highways.
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