Table of Contents

Chapter 1 ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 1
INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Background............................................................................................................................................................................. 2
Chapter 2 ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................................................................................................................... 4
2.2 Studies On White Topping ............................................................................................................................................. 5
2.3 The procedure to be adopted for Implementing Whitetopping as Maintenance Strategy ................... 6
2.4 Advantages of White Topping ...................................................................................................................................... 7
2.5 Scenario of Whitetopping ............................................................................................................................................... 8
2.6 Comparisons of Rigid And Flexible Pavement....................................................................................................... 8
Chapter 3 ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 10
DESIGNING AND CONSTRUCTION OF ULTRA THIN WHITETOPPING .............................................................. 10
3.1 Design Procedure ............................................................................................................................................................ 10
3.2 Construction Procedure ............................................................................................................................................... 10
3.2.1 Surface Preparation...................................................................................................................................................... 10
3.2.2 Placing ................................................................................................................................................................................ 11
3.2.3 Finishing and Texturing ............................................................................................................................................. 12
3.2.4 Curing ................................................................................................................................................................................. 12
3.2.5 Joint Sawing and Sealing ............................................................................................................................................ 12
3.3 First UTW Project in Kentucky.................................................................................................................................. 13
3.4 Factors Affecting UTW Performance ...................................................................................................................... 14
3.5 Repair of UTW .................................................................................................................................................................. 14
3.6 Concrete Mix Design ...................................................................................................................................................... 16
3.7 Life Cycle Cost Analysis ................................................................................................................................................ 16
3.8 Advantages of UTW ........................................................................................................................................................ 17
3.9 Disadvantages of UTW .................................................................................................................................................. 17
Chapter 4 ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 18
CONCLUSIONS............................................................................................................................................................................ 18
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................................................................. 19

WHITETOPPING A Viable and Sustainable Option for Rehabilitation of roads

Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Road traffic is increasing steadily over the years. This is an international phenomenon. An
international forecast predicts that such increase will continue in near future. Even in case of
developed countries, there is a shortage of funds required for new infrastructure projects, both
for constructing them and more significantly towards their maintenance and repairs. The
position in the context of a developing country like India is obviously far worse.
The increasing truck weights and tyre pressures on our pavements in recent years have
pushed the demand on the performance of our pavements to a higher level. Many asphalt
pavements have experienced rutting while many others have experienced longitudinal
cracking. As a result, more and more roads are deteriorating and the existing pavement
structure as a whole is often found to be inadequate to cope up with the present traffic[1].
The cost of strengthening and repair by Conventional method of this large network will need
huge resources both physical and financial which are quite scarce.
Most of the existing flexible pavements in the network broadly have thin bituminous layers.
These bituminous pavements, in general, have a problem that they get deteriorated with time.
Most of our roads exhibit, in general, the following deficiencies:
Rutting
Fatigue cracking
Block crack (D-cracking)
Thermo cracking
One of the possible solutions to this problem is the use of whitetopping (WT), which is a
cement concrete layer placed over an existing asphalt pavement. Ultra Thin White Topping
(UTWT) and Thin White Topping (TWT) are being increasingly practised in USA and
West Europe. Whitetopping is stronger than asphalt overlay, and thus more resistant to
rutting and surface-initiated cracking. Consequently, whitetopping pavements pose
potential economical and technical benefits. However, they need to be effectively
evaluated for feasibility and proper application techniques, suitable for India, so that their
use can provide the maximum benefits to the road users in particular and Indian economy
at large.Ultra-Thin Whitetopping is an emerging and innovative technology for asphalt
pavement

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rehabilitation in India. The concrete overlay utilizes closely spaced transverse and
longitudinal joints to reduce tensile stresses caused by traffic loads and environmental
conditions such as thermal stresses and curling due to temperature changes[2].

1.1 Background
Concrete Roads were first built by Romans (300 BC 476 AD). They were quite innovative
in the construction with the use of innovative materials viz., use of `Pozzolana cement from
the village Pozzouli near Italy, horse hairs as fibres in concrete, admixtures in their primitive
form (like animal fat, milk & blood). These roads, scientifically designed and constructed had
a long life and thus lead to the adage all (concrete) roads lead to Rome[3].
By the mid-1950s, continuously reinforced concrete pavements (CRCP) started to gain in
popularity because the design offered the benefit of eliminating joint distress. The cost of the
steel in CRCP was expansive, and so, to be competitive, CRCP was built 25 to 50 mm
thinner, leading to premature distress. (The justifications perpetuated for using thinner
structural slabs are many but are primarily related to comparisons of deflections with jointed
pavements that had poor load transfer between slabs).
Also in 1950s, the slip form paver came into use. It reduced paving trains from 100 workers
down to about 25. Also the economics changed in that materials became cheap and labour
was more expansive. Hence, this led to a return to uniform thicknesses that could be easily
placed by the early slip forms [4].
Prestressed concrete was introduced in the late 1940s and was first used in airport
paavements. About 1959, two-way prestressed slabs were used at Biggs military airfield in
Texas. The 24-in (610 mm) plain pavement was replaced with 9-in (230 mm) post tensioned
slabs. Unfortunately the fear of the unknown, the need to use more skilled labour, and the
reluctance of mile-a-day slip from contractors to embrace this unproven technology have held
this concrete saving technology back. About a dozen highways with prestressed concrete
pavements of various designs were built in the United States between 1970 to 1990 [4].

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Table 1 UTW PROJECTS IN INDIA

Year

Location

Thickness (mm)

2003

Pune ( In front of P.M.C Office)

125

2004

New Delhi ( CRRI campus road)

40-75

2006

Ghaziabad (Campus road of HRD centre)

50

2006

New Delhi (Meetha Pur, Badarpur)

125

2007

Mumbai ( Mahul Road)

100

2008

Thane ( In Gaotham Road)

125

2009

Pune ( Dahanukar Colony, Kothrud)

125

According to National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Synthesis of

Highway Practice 99, the first recorded use of whitetopping in the United States was in Terre
Haute, Indiana. On this project, constructed in 1918, a 75 to 100mm jointed reinforced
concrete overlay was put in place. According to McGhee (1994), from 1918 to 1992,
approximately 200 white topping projects were done. Among them, 158 were jointed plain
concrete pavement, 14 continuously reinforced concrete, 10 fibre-reinforced concrete, and
seven were jointed reinforced concrete pavement [5]. Construction of white topping is not
limited to the U.S. only. Other countries including Belgium, Sweden, Canada, Mexico,
Brazil, the Republic of (South) Korea, Japan, F Austria, and the Netherlands [6] have
undertaken recent projects with white topping (Rasmussen and Rozycki, 2004). Agencies are
widely expected to use white topping as it is a cost-competitive technique, can be constructed
with minimal interruption of the travelling system, as well as be a means of green
construction compared to asphalt concrete overlay. Ultra-thin whitetopping overlay
technology has been started in India in 2003.Table show various UTW projects in India [7].

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Chapter 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Performance Evaluation
D. R. Jundhare, Dr. K. C. Khare; and Dr. R. K. Jain conducted performance evaluation
studies to determine functional and structural condition of a whitetopping overlay which has
the purpose of routine monitoring or planning the corrective action. Following conclusions
are reached from the detailed study carried out using Benkelman Beam Deflection(BBD) as
per guidelines given in IRC: 81-1997, as Non Destructive Test(NDT) for determining
deflection at three critical load positions and Load Transfer Efficiency (LTE) has been
calculated at the transverse joints of 100 mm thick on in-service UTW overlay constructed in
Pune city, Maharashtra State (India), for its performance evaluation subjected to various
traffic and climatic conditions relevant to Indian scenario. The deflections obtained in this
study after two year is 0.461mm, 0.415 mm and 0.265 mm at the edge, corner and interior
respectively. These deflection results have been compared with the results of three
dimensional FE model (Jundhare D. R. et al., 2012), these values show good agreement. LTE
in the 100 mm thick UTW overlay for this study has been ranging from 88.03% to 100.00 %
in the 1.00 m x 1.00 m panel size. These results of LTE have been compared with the results
of 120 mm thick overlay (Cable, J. K. et al., 2006). LTE obtained for their study ranges from
99.60% to 99.90%. In another study, based on the finite element method using KENSLAB
computer program (Huang 1985) 84% of LTE value has been observed at transverse joint of
bonded type of interface. When results of BBD test from this study have been compared with
the deflection values obtained by three dimensional FE model (Jundhare D. R. et al., 2012)
and LTE values obtained by Cable, J. K. et al. (2006) as well as KENSLAB computer
program, these values show good agreement. Therefore it can be concluded BBD is a useful,
reliable and alternative tool to Falling Weight Deflectometer(FWD) for the study of
performance evaluation of UTW overlay.
D. R. Jundhare, Dr. K. C. Khare; and Dr. R. K. Jain said Following conclusions are the model
in this study is a simple non-linear type developed by applying static axle loading. Through
the present study following conclusions have been drawn for the edge loading case, the
method of Westergaard gives stress 21.81 % and deflection 29.45 % more when compared

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with 3D FEM results. Comparison with ALIZE Method gives stress 2.09 % less. The
difference between the values from this method and the 2D modeling is due to the various
assumptions adopted in deriving these theories. It is revealed that, increasing the modulus of
subgrade reaction (k) of HMA resulted in reducing the stresses and deflections in plain
cement concrete overlay. FEM analysis of the whitetopping shows stresses and deflection
induced in the whitetopping within the safe limits. Therefore unbonded plain cement concrete
overlays can be an economical and durable rehabilitation option, when the existing pavement
is severely deteriorated as compared to construction of conventional rigid pavement or HMA
overlay. This work confirms that the use of ANSYS software has a great potential as a
powerful tool for a 3D modeling of the conventional unbounded whitetopping.

D. R. Jundhare, Dr. K. C. Khare; and Dr. R. K. Jain said Following conclusions are reached
from the detailed study carried out using BBD as per guidelines given in IRC: 81-1997 and
FWD test as NDT for determining deflection at edge and corner load positions of 320 mm
thick on in-service conventional whitetopping overlay constructed in Pune city, Maharashtra
State (India), for its performance evaluation and correlation development subjected to various
traffic and climatic conditions relevant to Indian scenario. The linear, exponential and
logarithmic relationship has been developed using Benkelman Beam and FWD deflection
values on conventional whitetopping overlays. Among of the linear, exponential and
logarithmic relationships; the exponential relationship gives high R value. R2 value of the
three relationships, it is higher in edge loading position than corner loading position. The
relationships developed are quite fair as R2 values are in between 0.65 to 0.80 which shows
the good correlation strength between the BBD and FWD deflection values.
The literature studies has helped us understand the pavement rehabilitation by white topping,
performs relatively well as compared to the conventional bituminous concrete overlay which
has been practiced widely even with its higher maintenance cost and lesser durability [8].

2.2 Studies On White Topping

. There has been a renewed interest in whitetopping, particularly on Thin White Topping
(TWT) and Ultra-Thin White Topping (UTWT) over Conventional White Topping. Based on
the types of interface provided and the thickness of overlay, classification is as follows:

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Conventional White topping which consists of PCC overlay of thickness 200 mm or

more, which is designed & constructed without consideration of any bond between
existing overlay & underlying bituminous layer (without any 1composite action).

Thin White topping (TWT) which has PCC overlay between 100 200 mm. It is
designed either considering bond between overlay & underlying bituminous layer or
without consideration of bond. High strength concrete (M 40 or higher) is normally
used to take care of flexure requirement. Joints are at shorter spacing of 0.6 to 1.25 m.

Ultra-Thin White topping (UTWT) which has PCC overlay of less than 100 mm.
Bonding between overlay & underlying bituminous layer is mandatory. To ensure
this, the existing layer of bitumen is either milled (to a depth of 25 mm) or surface
scrapped (with a non-impact scrapper) or gently chiseled. Joints are provided at a
spacing of 0.6 to 1.25 m [3].

Figure: 1 Conventional (No Bond) V/s Ultra-Thin White Toping (Bond is there)

2.3 The procedure to be adopted for Implementing Whitetopping

as Maintenance Strategy
Design life--should be at least 15 years; 25 to 30 years is often projected for city streets.
Cost alternatives--define initial construction costs, maintenance costs, and the design life
of the topping.
Drainage considerations - define the elevation of crown sections to ensure good drainage.
Pavement patching--identify areas that require sub grade repair after the milling operation
Thickness design--considers the thickness of the asphalt pavement, the thickness of the

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topping, traffic loads, and panel layout.

Longitudinal and transverse joints--determine joint spacing by the overlay pavement
thickness and the geometrics of the area to be paved. Normal practice is to saw the joints
in the new pavement; tooled joints are also permitted for some areas.
Profile correction--determine joint spacing by the thinnest concrete profile and carry this
spacing throughout the project.
Surface texture--texture is specified in relation to the speed of traffic. Drag (burlap or
boom) textures are good for low-speed facilities; high-speed facilities should use more
aggressive textures.
Traffic control--traffic can be detoured, shifted, or otherwise accommodated during
construction, but there must be a plan before construction starts.
Construction staging--stage the construction to cause the least disruption [9].

2.4 Advantages of White Topping

Reduced thickness due to thickness of overlay remaining constant for over 2

decades.

Fast-Track construction making use of innovations in concrete technology & batch

mixing, concretes can be designed to have 3 days compressive (& flexural) strength,
so as to open the road for traffic within 5 days of construction.

Reduced maintenance as the concrete overlays live for over 2 decades, with least
maintenance.

Cost-effective compared to asphalt overlays when Life Cycle Cost is taken into
consideration.

Improved service life with better riding quality, improved fuel efficiency of
vehicles.

Little pre-overlay repairs.

Improvement in safety in view of the increased reflection of light particularly on

city roads, it would save 24 % less electricity compared to flexible pavements.

Reduction in operational costs and lower absorption of solar energy.

Improving the environmental benefits as concrete roads are much greener and less
polluting.

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2.5 Scenario of Whitetopping

Base: Most of the existing, worn asphalt pavement is left in place and serves as a base. Ruts
in the asphalt are milled down to start with a clean level surface. Ultra-thin white topping
(UTW) should not be placed over asphalt pavement that shows signs of deep pavement
distress. If potholes, alligator cracking, or deep fissures exist in the asphalt, the concrete will
not form an adequate bond, resulting in pavement that lacks adequate support. Asphalt
pavement should be at least 3-inches thick to provide a sufficient base for UTW.
Many installers mill off the amount that will be replaced by the UTW so that they dont
change the surface grade. White topping can be placed using conventional paving
equipment.

Joints: Joint spacing is critical to a good performing UTW project. Successful projects
use a short joint spacing to form, in effect, a mini-block paver system. Experience
indicates that joint spacing should be no more than 12 to 18 inches each way per inch
of white topping thickness. For example, a 3-inch UTW surface should be jointed into
3x 3 or 4x4 foot squares. Joints are sawed early to control surface cracking [10].

2.6 Comparisons of Rigid And Flexible Pavement

Flexible pavements are the conventional asphalt/bituminous concrete pavements whereas
rigid pavements are cement concrete pavements. In asphalt pavements grain to grain transfer
of load takes place, where as in cement concrete pavements layer to layer transfer of loads
takes place.
Asphalt pavements consists of sub grade, granulated sub base, base and bituminous concrete
layers. Whereas the rigid pavements subgrade and base layers.

Rigid Pavement

Flexible Pavement

Figure: 2.1 Comparisons of Rigid and Flexible Pavement

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Table 1 COMPARISION OF RIGID AND FLEXIBLE PAVEMENTS

Comparisons
Strength
Cost
Noise level
Safety
Environmentally friendly
Ride
Life span
Maintenance
Heat Reflection

Rigid
High
High
Low
More
Yes
Smooth
More
Less
Less

Flexible
Low
Low
High
Less
No
Rough
Less
More
More

2.7 Advantages of Rigid Pavement compared to Flexible Pavement

Longer life cycle of the pavement structure

Slow rate of deterioration

Surface deficiencies could be corrected

Improve skid resistance of the pavement

To improve ride quality (restores crown)

Very smooth riding surface

No excess stone build ups

No broken windshields from loose aggregate

Ease of construction, use standard paver

Minimal construction time

Dont have to adjust structures

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Chapter 3
DESIGNING AND CONSTRUCTION OF ULTRA THIN
WHITETOPPING
3.1 Design Procedure
Following UTW design procedure is adopted:
1) Based on traffic data number of equivalent axle loads are obtained. The elastic
modulus and thickness of the existing asphalt pavement are also obtained.
2) Allowable tensile stress in asphaltic concrete has been calculated.
3) Thickness for UTW is assumed. Maximum tensile stress in allowable compression
due to UTW for both bound and unbound conditions are found out.
4) Maximum tensile stress in allowable compression is compared with the allowable stress
5) Maximum tensile stress in UTW due to both axle load and temperature
differentials has been calculated.
6) Stress ratio in UTW is obtained and Maximum allowable load repetitions are determined.
7) If the UTW fatigue criterion indicates a small number of ESALs, then UTW thickness
increased and repeat the steps 4 to 6 [11].

3.2 Construction Procedure

3.2.1 Surface Preparation
A clean surface is required for proper bond. Milling the surface followed by cleaning
improves bond because it exposes more of the aggregate of the asphalt pavement. The
milling creates a rough surface that also enhances the bond between the two layers. If
milling is not done, water or abrasive blasting should be used to clean the asphalt
surface. When water blasting is used, the surface must be allowed to air dry before the
concrete is placed.
Once a surface is cleaned, it is important to keep it clean until the concrete overlay is
placed. Dust, dirt and debris that falls or blows onto the asphalt surface must be
removed as shown in figure 3.1. If the surface is cleaned on the day prior to paving, air
cleaning may be required on the day of paving to remove dirt and dust. If the traffic is

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allowed on the milled surface, the surface must be re-cleaned prior to paving [12].

Figure: 3.1 Surface preparation

3.2.2 Placing
After surface preparation, there must be enough asphalt remaining to form a sufficient
composite section that can carry the load. There must be enough asphalt to minimize
concrete tensile stresses, and enough concrete to minimize asphalt strains. It is
recommended that the minimum asphalt thickness after milling exceed 3 inches.
Paving UTW isnt any different than paving any other concrete pavement.
Conventional slip-form and fixed-form pavers as shown in figure 3.2, as well as small
equipment - such as vibrating screeds - have all been used successfully, without major
modifications.

Figure: 3.2 Spreading and leveling of UTW over prepared pavement

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3.2.3 Finishing and Texturing

Typical concrete finishing and texturing procedures are appropriate for ultra-thin white
topping. Texturing of the finished UTW pavement surface is required to provide
adequate surface friction of the roadway. Surface friction is provided by carpet drag or
brooming, which also reduces noise as shown in figure 3.3.

Figure: 3.3 Finishing and Texturing

3.2.4 Curing
Proper curing is critical to avoiding shrinkage cracking in the concrete overlay and to
prevent de-bonding between the asphalt and concrete. Because the overlay is a thin
concrete slab, it has high surface area to volume ratio and can lose water rapidly due to
evaporation. Curing UTW is similar to curing new PCC pavements. It requires curing
the entire pavement surface and edges as soon as surface conditions permit after the
finishing operations using either blanket or membrane methods. The most common
practice is to spray liquid, a membrane curing compound.

3.2.5 Joint Sawing and Sealing

Sawing is critical to avoid random cracking in white topping. Partial-depth saw cutting
operations should commence immediately after the concrete has gained enough
strength to prevent ravelling and spalling of the joint
Joints should be sawed with lightweight saws as early as possible to control cracking.
Saw-cut depth should be 1/4 - 1/3 of overlay thickness as shown in figure 3.4.
Typically, the joints are not sealed. They have performed well without sealant because
the short joint spacing minimizes joint movement. Performance to date shows no
benefit from sealant use [13].

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Figure: 3.4 Joint Sawing and Sealing

3.3 First UTW Project in Kentucky

The first high- profile UTW project in the United States took place in Louisville, Kentucky,
in 1991. I was a landmark in UTW history, demonstrating that ultra thin whitetopping 50 to
90 mm can carry traffic loads typical of many low volume roads, residential streets, and
parking lots [14]. The pavement section served as an access road to a disposal facility, which
was selected to provide performance data on a common distress and failure modes of UTW
overlays that are subjected to heavy loads similar to those of garbage trucks. The accessed
roads serviced 400 to 500 trucks 5 days in a week. This was viewed as a suitable site for the
accelerated testing of the UTW pavement, as the truck loading was 20 to 100 times greater
than that on an average low volume road. The significant findings from the Louisville UTW
experiment were that the bond between the UTW and the existing HMA pavement
significantly reduced the stresses in the concrete section. This allows the section to perform
as a composite section, corner cracking was the predominant distress and joint spacing has a
significant effect on the rate of corner cracking. The success of this project led to a number of
different projects in other states including Georgia, Virginia, Florida and Lowa [15]

Thin concrete overlay has been used in increasing numbers over hot-mix asphalt (HMA)
pavements and at intersections as a rapid and economical method of repair. These repairs
have shown outstanding services in the state of Oklahoma with service lives over 10 years
when used in areas with moderate truck traffic [16]

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3.4 Factors Affecting UTW Performance

a) Concrete Mixture Proportions
b) Typical Construction Procedures adopted
c) Traffic loading on the pavements
d) Pavement Monitoring and maintenance

3.5 Repair of UTW

When to repair
Generally, repairs should be considered when:

Panels are broken into four or pieces

Surface irregularities or settlement affect ride quality

Loose or missing concrete is evident

Repair procedures
The repair of UTW pavement involves locating and replacing deteriorated panels. Because
UTW joint spacing usually creates small panels, the removal and replacement of concrete is
very simple.
There are six steps involved in repair of UTW:
1) Identify the panels to be removed.
2) The damaged panel is saw cut to the perimeter and to full depth of concrete.
3) The damaged concrete panel and any deteriorated asphalt pavement beneath is removed
completely.
4) The area to be corrected is well prepared and patched accordingly.
5) Place, finish, and cure the new concrete.
6) Saw the joints for lateral and longitudinal expansions which takes place during summer
and open the stretch to traffic.

Identify and isolate slabs to be removed

The first step in the repair process for UTW is to determine which panels need to be
replaced. The panels are usually identified with bright colored paint .cracks in panels
do not require repair, but if the UTW overlays breaks up begins moving or dislodging,
repairs are warranted. The entire panel containing the distress should be removed and
replaced.

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Saw cut panels to bottom of concrete overlay

The distressed panel should be cut at all joint lines using diamond or abrasive-bladed
saws to the bottom of the concrete overlay. Care should be taken not to damage the
underlying asphalt layer. Full-depth sawing to the bottom of the concrete overlay
results in clean cuts, easy removal of the deteriorated concrete, and less joint spalling.

Remove panels
There are two ways to remove the deteriorated
concrete: 1. Break up 2. Full panel removal
To break up the concrete, jackhammers are used. Care must be taken not to damage
the adjacent panels with any equipment during removal process.
Prepare patch area
Before concrete placement, the asphalt surface should be cleaned by air blasting with
clean, compressed air. Sand or shot blasting is required if air blasting will not remove
foreign material from the surface. The asphalt surface must be kept clean prior to the
placement of new concrete.
Place new concrete
The placement of new concrete into the patch areas of the UTW pavement should follow 6
steps:

Place the concrete into repair areas

Consolidate the concrete using a hand held vibrator

Finish with a straight edge or vibratory screed to meet the existing Grade

Texture the concrete surface to match the surrounding panels

Apply curing compound immediately after the bleed water sheen disappears

Cover with insulating blankets if the ambient temperature falls below about 5 degree
centigrade within 24 hours of placement

Saw joints and open to traffic

Saw joints as soon as possible without revelling the concrete to match the width and location
of existing and adjacent joints. The repaired pavement can be open to traffic once the
concrete has reached the specified opening strength, maturity or curing time [17].

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3.6 Concrete Mix Design

The type of concrete mix for a particular UTW project is often selected based on traffic
conditions, concrete strength and time requirements for opening to traffic.
Many UTW projects have utilized fast track concrete mixes that typically contain
higher cement content or high early-strength cement. In addition, fast track mixes can
be adjusted to produce compressive strengths of at least 20 MPa in 24 hours and 28day strengths in excess of 40 MPa.
Synthetic fibres are often used in UTW mixes to provide additional strength and durability to
the thin concrete layer. It has also been found that these fibres extend the time window for
saw-cutting the joints by delaying early plastic shrinkage cracking.

3.7 Life Cycle Cost Analysis

A recent life cycle cost (LCC) analysis study was conducted in British Columbia to
evaluate the relative effectiveness of Ultra-Thin Whitetopping versus traditional asphalt
rehabilitation of deteriorated or rutted asphalt intersections. The study evaluated 150
intersections in the City of Surrey, B.C. for cost effectiveness of competing
rehabilitation strategies using five different life cycle costing philosophies. They are:
1) Maximizing the net Road User Cost savings
2) Comparing direct agency costs to Road User Cost savings
3) Minimizing an agencys direct agency costs
4) Maximizing the resulting pavement quality
5) Comparing direct agency costs to resulting pavement quality
Cost effectiveness of UTW depends on existing asphalt thickness, amount of truck
traffic, base and sub grade support conditions, and pavement condition. The most
important factors are the existing asphalt thickness and amount of expected truck
traffic.
The LCC study in Surrey, BC shows that UTW rehabilitation is extremely dependent
on site conditions and traffic volume. If a particular site does not have the required
minimum thickness of asphalt and a fairly high volume of truck traffic that will cause
rutting of the asphalt, UTW may not be the most cost effective alternative for repair.
However, if the site conditions do warrant UTW rehabilitation, the benefits can be
substantial[18].

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3.8 Advantages of UTW

Economical cost moderately less than that of conventional asphalt surfacing

High standard of surface texture giving good skid resistance and reduced water spray

Reduced noise levels compared to dense-graded asphalt and sprayed seals

Good ride qualities

Flexible and tolerant to surface deflections

Assists waterproofing of the underlying surface

Thin layer reduces the need for cold planning, etc. to match adjoining surfaces. No
loose aggregate such as in a spray seal

3.9 Disadvantages of UTW

Higher cost than sprayed seal

Effective treatment may require preliminary regulation and SAMI treatments

Low shear resistance may make it unsuitable in areas of high shear forces

Hence the literature studies has helped us in the technical understanding and the methodology
involved in the design procedure of UTW and also the process or methodology involved in
the construction of UTW.

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Chapter 4
CONCLUSIONS

White topping has emerged as a fast growing technology for pavement rehabilitation.

White topping has emerged as a fast, competitive remedy for rutted asphalt
pavements rehabilitation by offering the enhanced performance and durability of
concrete.

White topping overlays are bonded to existing asphalt to create a composite section,
resulting in improved performance and durability at a lower cost.

Ultra Thin White topping develops the required strength for opening to traffic in as
little as 24 hours.

In order to help state highway agencies and contractors better design and apply the
UTW, well-controlled pavement response and performance data is needed to improve
and refine the existing UTW design procedures.

Positive impact on reducing CO2 emissions resulting from the manufacturing and
placement of paving materials.

Based on the advantages and a lesser maintenance cost of white topping it could be
concluded that rehabilitation of an asphalt pavement by white topping is a viable and
sustainable technique compared to the bituminous concrete overlay.

Department of Civil engineering, RVCE

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WHITETOPPING A Viable and Sustainable Option for Rehabilitation of roads

REFERENCES
1. Mitesh D. Patel, Prof. P.S. Ramanuj, Bhavin Parmar, Akash Parmar , White topping
as a rehabilitation method: a case study of budhel-ghogha road. IJAERS/Vol.
I/ Issue IV/July-Sept., 2012/31-35 E-ISSN22498974.
2. D. R. Jundhare, K.C. Khare, and R.K.Jain, Ultra-Thin Whitetopping in India: State-of
Practice ACEE Int. J. on Transportation and Urban Development, Vol. 2, No. 1,
April 2012.
3. Dr. V. Ramachandra, WHITETOPPING A Viable & Sustainable Option for
Rehabilitation of Urban Roads"
4. Thomas, J., Pasko., (1998). Concrete Pavements Past, Present and Future. US
Department of Transportation , Federal Highway Administration, 62(1), 1-9.
5. McGhee, K.H., NCHRP Synthesis of Highway practice 204: Portland cement
concrete resurfacing, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council,
Washington, D.C.,1994, pp.73-82.
6. American Concrete Pavement Association, Whitetopping state of practice, ACPA
Publication EB210P, Skokie, Illinois, 1998.
7. IRC: SP: 76 2008 Tentative guidelines for conventional, thin and ultra- thin
whitetopping, Indian Road Congress, New Delhi. 2008.
8. B.N. Skanda kumar, Suhas R, Bhavan V, Performance evaluation on thinwhitetopping eISSN: 2319-1163; pISSN: 2321-7308 Volume: 03 Issue: 07 Jul-2014.
9. Navik, Joe. (2004). Uitra-thin concrete for IDOTs parking lot.
10. Purvesh Raval, Darsh Belani, Prof. Jayeshkumar Pitroda, A Literature Review on
UTW Pavements in Indian Context Impact Factor 1.393, Volume 1, Issue 9, October
2013.
11. Missouri Department of Transportation Research, Development and Technology.
12. IRC: SP-76 (2008). "Tentative Guidelines for Conventional, Thin and Ultra
Thin Whitetopping." Indian Road Congress, New Delhi.
13. Chunhua H., "Synthesis of Current Minnesota Practices of Thin and Ultra-Thin
White topping." http://www.lrrb.org/PDF/200527.pdf. Accessed on July 7,
2011.
14. Synthesis oh Highway Practice 338, Thin and Ultra-Thin White Topping, National
Cooperative Highway Research Program, Transportation Researcg Board ,
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WHITETOPPING A Viable and Sustainable Option for Rehabilitation of roads

Washington D.C.,2004.
15. Haifing Wen, Xiajun Li and Wilfung Martono, Performance Assessment of
Wisconsins Whitetopping and Ultra-thin Whitetopping Projects, March 2010, Report
No. 10-30, 2010.
16. Tyler Ley and Hari Rotithor, Performance of Ultra-Thin Whitetopping in
Oklahoma, Final report FHWA-OK-10-05, 2010.
17. Smith, T., and Fung, R., "Concrete Overlays Sustainable Pavement Preservation
Techniques Helping DOTs Adjusting to New Realities of Shrinking Resources."
www.tac-atc.ca/ conference/smith.
18. IRC: SP-70 (2005). "Guidelines for the Use of High Performance Concrete."

Department of Civil engineering, RVCE

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