Concrete Hardstanding Design for Heavy Loads

[Truk]

What is the best design method to use in designing the thickness of a concrete slab to carry a Wheel load of 41.6kN.[91 700lbs] imparted by a Cat. 785C haulage truck onto a grade  30MPa.[4350psi] concrete slab. The under laying material has a CBR of 3%

 

[Ginger]

Solution depends on the design life of the road, number of vehicle movements and the length of the road.<br><br>I have designed temporary (3 year life) heavy duty haul roads in the UK on similar soils.&nbsp;&nbsp;I suspect that the British Standards are of no use to you, however, I found that in my case the most cost effective solution was to use a geotextile laid onto the subgrade.&nbsp;&nbsp;On top of this was a crushed limestone sub-base and then a mass concrete slab over the top with movement joints at 20m centres.<br><br>The better geotextile manufacturers often produce design guides with their products (to your country's standards)which may give you your exact solution.<br><br>Regards <p>Andy Machon<br><a href=mailto:Andy@machona.freeserve.co.uk>Andy@machona.freeserve.co.uk</a><br><a href= > </a><br>

 

[mikeh]

If you are considering a slab for a maintenance area, design life, number of vehicles etc. is difficult to estimate.

Given the large wheel loads, empirical methods are probably of little help to your problem. I have found that modelling the slab as a beam on an elastic foundation will provide good results. It may be a little complex to model but this method will also give you confidence in your solution.

Of course you will need good soils information and good quality control during construction.

Regards,

Mike Hayden
mike.hayden@home.com
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