National Concrete Pavement Technology Center

Project description

Since 2006, Defiance County has been experimenting with an in-house developed flexible concrete mix that mimics the behavior of asphalt at a reduced cost. This mix has been used primarily to widen roadways, patch for trenches and utilities, and for small surface paving. Various adaptations of the mix have been placed by Defiance County in an effort to refine the mix and improve its performance. Having positive experiences, the surrounding Counties of Paulding, Putman, and Henry started utilizing the Defiance mix at various locations for similar purposes. Over time, additional efforts to improve the mix have been made. Some of these efforts were done in-house by one of the Counties while other more laboratory focused efforts were conducted through the Ohio Research Initiative for Locals (ORIL) program. In September 2023, ORIL conducted a Research-On-Call task that evaluated various recycled materials as potential improvements for incorporation into the Defiance mix. This task focused on incorporating suitable locally available waste materials (e.g., tire shreds, scrap fiberglass insulation, and shredded recycled plastics). The results indicated that adding recycled fiberglass fibers could provide improved performance at a lower cost. While the findings from this research are promising, several questions remain that need to be addressed to optimize the mix, assess performance, and determine its potential use beyond northwestern Ohio. The northwestern counties utilizing this mix have experienced some cost savings, however, this may not replicate to other counties across Ohio due to material availability or lack of access to contractors. For example, Defiance County has easy and inexpensive access to recycled fiberglass fibers because the County Engineering's Office also manages the County landfill. In addition, there are two contractors located in Defiance County with the ability to fabricate the mix. The goal of this research is to optimize the flexible concrete mix designed and used by northwestern counties in Ohio and determine its potential for statewide application. Identifying the effective range of recycled fiberglass material to incorporate into the mix has the potential to increase that savings even further. Determining the potential for other Local Public Agencies to utilize this mix will provide more opportunities for its use which could eventually lower costs associated with its production and placement resulting in more savings.