Material Selection and Mixture Proportioning Methods for Sustainable Roller-Compacted Concrete Pavements

Although roller-compacted concrete pavement (RCCP) has been considered the most popular among its counterparts, it has not been widely used due to a number of reasons. The most dominant reason is the variability in mixture proportioning methods and material selection considering its unique behavior compared to conventional concrete mixes. Therefore, the present paper focuses on the above-mentioned parameters by critically reviewing the literature over the past four decades (1984–2021). Initially, the influence of conventional and recycled waste materials on the fresh & hardened state behavior of RCCP is reviewed in detail. Subsequently, the potential applications of various mineral & chemical admixtures and the different types of synthetic and metallic fibers for performance improvement are discussed. In addition, this study has critically appraised various mixture proportioning methods ranging from conventional concrete approaches to empirical, semi-empirical, and theoretical methods for RCCP. The study concludes by noting that all considered materials (alternative aggregates, chemical & mineral admixtures, and fibers) could be used to produce high-quality RCCP; however, an optimal proportion must be prudently selected. Consequently, RCCP could be effectively proportioned by adopting solid suspension, optimal paste volume, and gyratory compaction methods. In addition, it is observed that the strength of the RCCP is related to the aggregate-cement ratio (A/C), water-cement ratio (W/C), and coarse-sand ratio (C/S); the A/C ratio shows an inverse relationship with strength, whereas a mixed behavior between W/C and strength was found. Nevertheless, RCCPs having a vebe time, A/C ratio, and C/S ratio in the ranges of $30–50\mathrm{s}$ , $5–8$ , and $1–1.4$ , respectively, could be used for the surface course application of pavements.