Premature Cracking from Cement-Treated Base and Treatment to Mitigate Its Effect

A forensic study was conducted to investigate the premature cracking distress on an ongoing construction project on State Highway (SH) 24. Transverse cracks occurred at approximately every 9–15 m (30–50 ft) along the 9.6 km (5.9 mi) project. The field tests involved both destructive tests, including trenching and coring, and nondestructive tests, including falling weight deflectometer (FWD) and ground-penetrating radar (GPR) tests. The laboratory tests mainly included cement-treated base material and asphalt mixture material series tests. By integrating all the test results, it was concluded that the premature cracking was originating from the cement-treated base (CTB). Although CTB is not a new concept in pavement construction, stabilization of base materials is a complex process, which, if not handled properly, may lead to premature failures. The two primary factors that contributed to the premature failure are (1) an excessive amount of cement in the CTB, and (2) a high moisture content when the CTB was compacted (almost 2% above optimum moisture). It was believed the possibility of premature failure could be reduced significantly, if the lab verification tests were conducted on the CTB before construction started. Pavement life analysis was conducted to evaluate the current structure adequacy to sustain future traffic. In addition, extensive material design was conducted for the final wearing course asphalt mixture, which was intended to mitigate the effect of existing cracks by resisting crack propagation from the underlying structure.