Strategies to Improve the Sustainability of Concrete Pavements

Abstract: Construction and maintenance of roadway transportation infrastructure has always been a challenging endeavor that historically balanced long-term needs of the public and available funds. In recent years, sustainability and resilience have emerged as critical factors in decision making that must be considered and can shift priorities. Understanding how these factors interact is critical to making informed decisions about transportation infrastructure.

Concrete pavements have historically provided longevity and durability for transportation infrastructure that directly link to the sustainability and resilience demands of today's pavement systems. There are also numerous strategies to help further improve the environmental impacts of concrete pavements in all phases of the pavement life cycle. Pavement design optimization can improve the expected performance of concrete pavements and significantly reduce the life cycle emissions of pavement infrastructure. Material advancements allow for improved mixture optimization and utilization of new low-carbon materials to improve the environmental impacts without impacting long-term performance. Considering use phase impacts can help offset emissions from the traveling public and also improve surrounding communities. Proper preservation of concrete pavements can help further reduce use phase impacts and deliver smoother roadways.

This presentation will introduce and explore strategies to improve the sustainability of concrete pavements across the country and help educate engineers on how to build and maintain better pavements.