Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599

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Construction and Building Materials

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Application of cement-treated recycled materials in the construction

of a section of road in Malaga, Spain
Pablo Pérez a, Francisco Agrela b,⇑, Rosario Herrador c, Javier Ordoñez d
a
Construction Manager, Aristerra Company, Málaga, Spain
b
Area of Construction Engineering, University of Cordoba, Ed. Leonardo Da Vinci, Ctra. Madrid, N-IV, Km 396, Córdoba, Spain
c
Construction Agencia de Obra Pública, Junta de Andalucía, Spain
d
Department of Construction and Project Engineering, University of Granada, Spain

h i g h l i g h t s

 Recycled aggregates from crushed concrete were used in a real section of road.
 The Cement-treated recycled aggregates exhibited adequate structural behaviour.
 Different mixtures were produced, which all demonstrated satisfactory long term results.
 Recycled Aggregates presented a higher water absorption capacity in the Real Application.
 Deflections demonstrated the feasibility of the use of these recycled materials in road constructions.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In Spain, there is a low rate of application of recycled aggregates in construction of road bases and sub-
Received 25 June 2012 bases. Recycled aggregates from crushed concretes (RCA) are usually used as unbound material in road
Received in revised form 30 January 2013 structural layers. Recent studies have confirmed the possibility of applying these RCA in road bases as
Accepted 26 February 2013
Cement Treated Granular Material (CTGM), which would result in greater effectiveness in terms of its
Available online 19 April 2013
mechanical behaviour as well as its durability. In this paper, it is included a research based on a real appli-
cation performed in the construction of a road base, in which these RCA were applied in the production of
Keywords:
CTGM. The results concluded that the effectiveness of those sections built using recycled aggregates was
Cement-treated granular materials
Recycled concrete aggregates
similar those constructed using natural aggregates. As a result, the application of RCA treated with
Real application cement is a real alternative in the construction of road bases and sub-bases.
Section roads Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction The re-use of these wastes provides a great environmental benefit

because they are recycled and, consequently, the exploitation of
Cement Treated Granular Materials (CTGMs) have been applied quarries and gravel pits in the natural environment is reduced.
in road construction for the last century [1]. Cement acts as a sta- These RCA materials have been investigated for the production of
bilizing element, and if mixed with gravel and natural sand, it re- structural concrete [6], non-structural concrete [7,8] and sub-base
sults in the so-called CTGM. This material presents a suitable materials for roads, either as unbound material [9,10] or cement-
fatigue behaviour in the short and long term, a high workability treated granular material [11]. These RCA are most frequently used
and a greater mechanical strength [2,3]. in road bases and sub-bases [12].
Basically there are two types of Recycled Aggregates (RAs), Poon and Chan [13] investigated the load-bearing and compres-
those from crushed concrete, known as Recycled Concrete Aggre- sion capacity of both RCA and a mixture of this RCA with bricks for
gates (RCAs), and those from the treatment of Construction and their use in the road sub-bases. The feasibility of these materials
Demolition Waste (CDW) known as Recycled Mixed Aggregates were demonstrated when they present CBR values higher than
(RMAs) [4,5]. In recent years, both RA have been widely studied. 30%.
Xuan et al. [14] studied the mechanical properties of RCA trea-
⇑ Corresponding author address: Francisco Agrela, Area of Construction Engi- ted with cement in laboratories. Their research demonstrated that
neering, Universidad de Córdoba, Ctra. N-IV, Km 396, Campus Rabanales, Edif. the mechanical properties of the CTGM manufactured with RA de-
Leonardo Da Vinci, 14071 Córdoba (Espan ~a), Spain. Tel.:+34685844859; pend on the type and content of cement used, as well as the quan-
fax:+34957212239. tity of water, the curing time, and the quality of the RA themselves.
E-mail address: fagrela@uco.es (F. Agrela).

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.02.034
594 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599

Herrador et al. [15] conducted a study on the application of RA material properties were studied; in addition, auscultation tests
from CDW, where two sections of road were constructed and were performed in the short and long-term to evaluate the
tested, namely, one linking highway A-367 to highway A-357, in mechanical behaviour of the materials and its evolution over time.
the municipal township of Ardales, Málaga (Spain). The use of recy-
cled materials instead of natural materials in sub-base layers, in a 2. Materials
level below the surface of the pavement, was demonstrated to be a
real and appropriate alternative, as both materials exhibited the 2.1. Cement

same characteristics and were equally appropriate. This result im-

A type of cement known as CEM II/A-V 42,5R was used, which contains approx-
plies that the natural aggregates could be progressively substituted imately 15% fly ash. The characteristics of this type of cement are summarised in
with recycled aggregates (CDW). Table 1.
Agrela et al. [16] undertook a project consisting of the applica-
tion of RMA obtained from a mixture of concrete and masonry 2.2. Natural sand and gravel
work in the elaboration of CTGM. In the project, 100% of the natural
Natural materials were used, and their grain size distributions are provided in
material was substituted so that some sections of road were com-
Figs. 1 and 2. It has been observed that the nominal sizes are 0/4 and 2/5 for the
pared. The first and the second sections contained two different sands and 5/15 and 15/25 for the gravels. The physical and chemical properties
types of recycled aggregates and the third one contained natural are provided in Table 2. All of the parameters fulfil the requirements of the article
aggregates. The RMA were demonstrated to have an adequate 513 in the Spanish Regulations for Road Materials called PG3 [17], except for the Los
Angeles Abrasion Test, whose limit value must be under 30%.
mechanical capacity, and the road surface presented few deforma-
tions two years after its execution.
2.3. Recycled coarse aggregates: characteristics and manufacture
The present project aims at studying the efficiency of using RCA
treated with cement in the construction of a road in Málaga, Spain. Recycled gravel resulting from the crushing of concrete waste was used, and
Some sections of this road were built using recycled CTGM, apply- this process was performed in the firm Aristerra, located in Málaga, Spain (Fig. 3).
ing RCA to form a cement treated base layer. The natural coarse The blocks of concrete had previously been subjected to a process of cleaning as
well as manual and mechanic selection, which consisted of separating the different
aggregate was substituted by coarse fraction of RCA, and natural
materials such as wood, plastic, iron, etc. Next, the material was introduced into the
sand was applied to complete the mixture of recycled CTGM. Fur- production line, starting with a pre-screening of 25 mm to remove the particles
thermore, before using the materials in road execution, their whose size was below this measure, to guarantee a better quality in the RCA.

Table 1
Properties of cement.

SiO2 (%) Fe2O3 (%) Al2O3 (%) CaO (%) MgO (%) SO3 (%) Loss on ignition (%) Specific mass (gr/cm3) Specific surface area blaine (cm2/gr)
22.61 3.48 7.55 55.81 1.93 3.23 3.73 3.02 4030

Fig. 1. Particle size distribution of natural sand.

Fig. 2. Particle size distribution of natural coarse aggregates.

 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599 595

Table 2
Physical and chemical properties of natural aggregates.

NA 2/5 NA 5/15 NA 15/25 NA 0/4

3
Saturated surface dry density (Mg/m ) 2.73 2.78 2.83 2.83
Water absorption (%) 1.56 0.89 0.41 0.46
Flakiness index (%) 6.00 3.00 6.00 –
Los angeles abrasion test (%) 0.00 38.00 0.00 0.00
CaO/MgO 1.73 1.73 1.73 1.26
Al2O3 (%) 0.075 0.075 0.075 0.070
Acid soluble sulphate content (SO3%) 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.15

Fig. 3. Recycled aggregates manufacturing plant.

Fig. 4. Particle size distribution of recycled concrete aggregate.

The product whose size was over 25 mm was crushed in an impact crusher, and The level of water absorption was higher for the RCA, as it is possible to observe in
then, the metallic elements were removed using an electromagnet. Finally, the par- Tables 2 and 3, where the water absorption capacity was analysed in every material.
ticles larger than 25 mm and smaller than 5 mm were removed with a screening The density values were lower for the natural aggregates than for the recycled ones. In
equipment (Fig. 4). Due to the humidity of the mixture and aimed at removing physical and chemical properties, we can observe that the values obtained for the nat-
the particles with a size lower than 5 mm, which could be adhered to the coarse ural aggregates are the same as those obtained for the recycled ones (Tables 2 and 3).
fraction of the RCA, the material was spread on the ground for a week for drying.
Then all this material was screened again with a 5 mm sieve, in order to obtain
the product in the optimal condition for use. The production control was performed 3. Mixtures
according to the Standard UNE-EN:13242:2003 [18].
Eventually, the resulting product was known as RCA-5/25. The particle size dis- Two mixtures were produced for application to the different
tribution of this material is included in Fig. 4 and its physical and chemical proper- sections of the road sub-base. Different types of aggregates were
ties are summarised in Table 3.
Besides the tests applied on the coarse aggregates prescribed by PG3 [17], other
used. In Table 4 are shown the different quantities of materials ap-
tests were performed on the aggregates, which are recommended in Structural Con- plied in the mixtures used for this performance.
crete Spanish Regulation ‘‘EHE-2008’’, taking into account that the RA are usually Two different mixtures were obtained. In section 1, a material
heterogeneous materials. consisting of a cement treated recycled concrete aggregates,
Moreover, a test was performed to identify the content of light particles in the
known as CT-RCA, was used. In section 2, a Cement Treated Natural
coarse fraction of the RCA, according to UNE 7134:58 [19]. It was concluded that all
of the materials used in this test presented lower quantity of light particles than the Aggregates, known as CT-NA, was applied too. In Fig. 5, the final
limits established in article 28.3.1, Spanish Regulation EHE-2008 [20,21]. This test granulometry of the mixtures can be observed.
guaranteed that the double screening process applied on the coarse fraction of For the manufacturing of the two materials mentioned above,
the RCA was appropriate. 3.5% cement was applied, as well as 8.1% water for the CT-RCA
596 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599

Table 3
Physical and chemical properties of recycled aggregates (RCA).

Saturated surface dry Water Coefic. de Flakiness Los Angeles CaO/MgO Al2O3 (%) Acid soluble sulphate
density (Mg/m3) absorption (%) forma total index (%) abrasion test (%) content (SO3%)
RCA 5/25 2.531 4.72 0.25 3.00 38.00 1.60 0.070 0.07

Table 4
Proportions of aggregates used in the mixtures.

TIPO Granulometry – Natural/recycled Proportions in

material nominal sizes (mm) the mixture
CT-RCA 5/25 Recycled 55
2/5 Natural 20
0/4 25
CT-NA 5/15 Natural 20
2/5 25
0/4 26
15/25 29

and 5.6% water for the CT-NA. The compaction capacity of the
materials was measured using Modified Proctor test [22]. This test
Fig. 6. Modified proctor curves.
was performed this test on the recycled materials in two ways. The
first one was performed in the typical manner, whereas the second
occurred once the water contained in the material had been pre- The execution was performed by the Civil Works Agency of
saturated after 20 min to create a completely homogeneous mate- Andalusian Government. Two sections were constructed with
rial. The dry density values were higher in the second case. There- CTGM, the first of them with CT-RCA and the second one with
fore, it was decided to perform the test using the second way, to CT-NA, as shown in Fig. 7. In section 1, a 150 m long section road
obtain real data. For the layer where Natural Aggregates were ap- was built, and in section 2, another of 70 m long. In both sections,
plied, it was obtained a density value of 100% compared to Modi- pre-cracking was performed every 5 m.
fied Proctor test value obtained in laboratory, with 2.4 tn/m3 of The road surface sections, illustrated in Fig. 8, were designed
density and 5.10% of humidity. For the other layer constructed with according to the guidelines for road surfacing in Andalusian high-
CT-RCA, the maximum density obtained was 2.33 tn/m3, with an ways (2007) [23].
optimum humidity of 5.6%. In Fig. 6, the Modified Proctor test val-
ues are shown. 4.2. Experimental methods

CT-NA was used on the road surface course, in the access num-
4. Application ber 2, with the objective of comparing the application of CT-RCA in
the same layer of the road. The same parameters were used to
4.1. Description of the sections measure the road surface course for both types of aggregates.
According to the technical specifications for heavy vehicles [24],
Once the properties of the materials had been evaluated, and the mean intensity of vehicle traffic was 100–199 vehicles per
taking into account that the RCA properties were satisfactory, a day. The foundation of the road had to present a medium strength
real application was performed. The road executed in the research (100 MPa). The compaction value required for the section had to be
was the connection between A-357 and A-367, in the town of Ar- 98%, according to the Modified Proctor Value of Reference. The
dales, Málaga (Spain), connecting it to Ronda and Campillos, in average compaction value in the section built with CT-RCA was
the area of Málaga. The material was delivered to the jobsite and 99.6%, whereas in the section built with CT-NA, it was 99.8%, taking
was subsequently spread and compacted on February 11th, 2009. as a reference the Modified Proctor Value previously mentioned.

Fig. 5. Particles size distribution in aggregate mixtures.

 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599 597

Fig. 7. General view of the test sections.

Fig. 8. Cross sections of the road.

Fig. 9. Deflection measurement – section road 1.

Several samples of both materials were collected during con- even though the values were similar, the resistance of the CT-NA
struction. Afterwards some specimens were manufactured in cyl- was higher than that of the CT-RCA.
inder of CBR mold according NLT-305 [25]. The compressive To obtain structural data regarding the surface course, on-site
strength was determined at 7 days, and the mean values were monitoring was performed using High Performance Dynamic Mon-
10.15 MPa for CT-RCA and 10.95 MPa for CT-NA. Consequently, itoring (Auscultación Dinámica de Alto Rendimiento – ADAR) [26].
598 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599

Fig. 10. Deflection measurement – section road 2.

RCA, was better. When the Asphalt surface course was applied,
Table 5 the deflections were measured and were very similar to each other
Deflections and equivalent modulus on cement-treated layers and asphalt surfaces. for both sections.
CT-RCA CT-NA Deflections in the cement-treated layer and on the asphalt sur-
d – Mean deflection on cement-treated 31.71 39.80 face are shown in Table 5. Equivalent modulus was calculated
layer (mm2) – February-09 according to proposal function by Brown (1996).
d – Mean deflection on asphalt surface 12.1 8.87
(mm2) – March-09 2pað1  t2 Þ
d – Mean deflection on asphalt surface 8.39 6.92 Ev ¼
(mm2) – September-10 d
Ev – Equivalent modulus in cement-treated 558.8 445.2 where p is the contact pressure bellow the plate (0.421 MPa in C-T
layer (kPa) – February-09
layer and 0,300 MPa in asphalt surface), a is the plate radius
Ev – Equivalent modulus in asphalt surface 663.0 904.5
(kPa) – March-09 (225 mm in CT layer and 150 mm in Asphalt surface), t is Poisson’s
Ev - Equivalent modulus in asphalt 955.4 1158.3 ratio (0.25 in CT layer and 0,33 in the Asphalt surface), and d is the
surface (kPa) – September-10 measured plate deflection in mm. The results of equivalent modulus
are included in Table 5. The mean deflection of the cement-treated
recycled layer is also higher than those built with natural materials.
The ADAR test defines the load bearing capacity of road surface lay- Better results were obtained on the Asphalt surface in section 2,
ers. It verifies whether this parameter fits project specifications where CT-NA were applied, but similar results in Equivalent Modu-
and whether it is in accordance with the calculations of the pave- lus were obtained 18-months after the construction of both sec-
ment structure. To measure the load bearing capacity of the pave- tions. These results demonstrated that, neither of the road base
ment, the deflections were measured using an impact properties in every section suffered any relevant change, and it is
deflectometer according to NLT-338/07 [27]. DYNATEST HWD- possible to apply Recycled Concrete Materials in the manufacture
8081 equipment and a Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) were of cement-treated granular layers in road bases and sub-bases.
used. The FWD is designed to measure deflections of flexible pave-
ments as well as of rigid pavements and it can calculate the resil- 5. Conclusions
ient modules of all pavement structural components and of the
underlying soil. This deflectometer was equipped with at least se- We can conclude that:
ven geophones located on the longitudinal axis of the vehicle. At
least one of these geophones was located below the application – When the recycled aggregates are used, an exhaustive control of
point of the load at the centre of the strike plate. the production must be performed to appropriately adjust both
The standard test method for measuring deflections NLT-338/ the composition and the distribution of the size of the particles.
07 [27] was used to measure the surface deflections by several geo- – When applying RCA on sub-base layers, these materials must
phones. In contrast, for the application of charge on the different present suitable properties, mainly as far as the acid-soluble
layers, the standards specified in the document ‘‘Technical Specifi- sulphates content and water absorption capacity are concerned.
cations for High-Performance Dynamic Monitoring Tests’’ [26] – The CT-RCA presented a compaction value similar to that of the
from the Civil Works Agency of Regional Government of Andalusia CT-NA as well as a higher optimal humidity value.
were considered. The pressure on this layer was 421 kPa, with a – The cement-treated layer where CT-RCA was used presented a
charge of 67 kN and a 450-mm plate. better response to the impact deflectometer than that where
The deflections on the CT-RCA layer, as well as on the CT-NA, CT-NA was used. This result might be because the RCA is less
the intermediate asphalt layer and the course layer were controlled resistant to waste than the NA. Consequently, its granulation
during execution. Next, three new deflection tests were performed is partly modified during the compression process, improving
on the road surface every six months to study their evolution. its load capacity.
In Figs. 9 and 10, we can observe the results of the deflections, – CT-RCA presented an appropriate capacity of compressive
corresponding to the values obtained in the CTGM layer and on the strength, its average values being a bit lower than those
Asphalt surface. The behaviour of section 1, produced using CT- obtained using CT-NA.
 P. Pérez et al. / Construction and Building Materials 44 (2013) 593–599 599

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