Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations

This study investigates the effectiveness of different dowel bar techniques in enhancing the performance of joints connecting concrete slabs in jointed plain concrete pavement. Eighteen specimens were divided into three groups to explore the influence of various factors including dowel embedment len...

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Main Authors: Usama Heneash, Mohamed Ghalla, Taher A. Tawfik, Galal Elsamak, Mohamed Emara, Ali Basha
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-03-01
Series:Results in Engineering
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123024021017
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author Usama Heneash
Mohamed Ghalla
Taher A. Tawfik
Galal Elsamak
Mohamed Emara
Ali Basha
author_facet Usama Heneash
Mohamed Ghalla
Taher A. Tawfik
Galal Elsamak
Mohamed Emara
Ali Basha
author_sort Usama Heneash
collection DOAJ
description This study investigates the effectiveness of different dowel bar techniques in enhancing the performance of joints connecting concrete slabs in jointed plain concrete pavement. Eighteen specimens were divided into three groups to explore the influence of various factors including dowel embedment length (100 mm, 150 mm, and 200 mm) on joint behavior, dowel anchors provided to the ends of the dowels, and the effect of incorporating strain-hardening cementitious composites in the middle slab on joint performance. Results revealed that increasing dowel length improved load transfer efficiency and resulted in more favorable crack patterns, while end anchors further enhanced crack distribution by preventing debonding between the dowel and concrete. Longer dowels increased ultimate load capacity by 38 %. This increase was 30 %, and 10 %, for specimens with end anchors and strain-hardening cementitious composites, respectively. Both longer dowels and strain-hardening cementitious composites significantly enhanced energy absorption capacity. Finally, a finite element model developed to simulate the behavior of the tested specimens showed good agreement with the experimental data. Based on the finite element results, increasing the base layer thickness, using advanced concrete materials like strain-hardening cementitious composites, or incorporating anchors can significantly enhance the structural performance of jointed plain concrete pavement.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2590-1230
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publishDate 2025-03-01
publisher Elsevier
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series Results in Engineering
spelling doaj-art-3ece3fd0d0514e3a8891ffa2d46ea10b2024-12-29T04:48:02ZengElsevierResults in Engineering2590-12302025-03-0125103858Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigationsUsama Heneash0Mohamed Ghalla1Taher A. Tawfik2Galal Elsamak3Mohamed Emara4Ali Basha5Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh, EgyptCivil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh, Egypt; Corresponding authors.Institute of Construction and Architecture, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravsk´a cesta 9, SK-845 03 Bratislava, Slovak Republic; Department of Construction and Building Engineering, High Institute of Engineering, October 6 City, Egypt; Corresponding authors.Civil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh, EgyptStructural Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, EgyptCivil Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kafrelsheikh University, Kafrelsheikh, EgyptThis study investigates the effectiveness of different dowel bar techniques in enhancing the performance of joints connecting concrete slabs in jointed plain concrete pavement. Eighteen specimens were divided into three groups to explore the influence of various factors including dowel embedment length (100 mm, 150 mm, and 200 mm) on joint behavior, dowel anchors provided to the ends of the dowels, and the effect of incorporating strain-hardening cementitious composites in the middle slab on joint performance. Results revealed that increasing dowel length improved load transfer efficiency and resulted in more favorable crack patterns, while end anchors further enhanced crack distribution by preventing debonding between the dowel and concrete. Longer dowels increased ultimate load capacity by 38 %. This increase was 30 %, and 10 %, for specimens with end anchors and strain-hardening cementitious composites, respectively. Both longer dowels and strain-hardening cementitious composites significantly enhanced energy absorption capacity. Finally, a finite element model developed to simulate the behavior of the tested specimens showed good agreement with the experimental data. Based on the finite element results, increasing the base layer thickness, using advanced concrete materials like strain-hardening cementitious composites, or incorporating anchors can significantly enhance the structural performance of jointed plain concrete pavement.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123024021017Connected slabsStrain-hardening cementitious compositesConcrete pavementDowelsDebondingFinite element modeling
spellingShingle Usama Heneash
Mohamed Ghalla
Taher A. Tawfik
Galal Elsamak
Mohamed Emara
Ali Basha
Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
Results in Engineering
Connected slabs
Strain-hardening cementitious composites
Concrete pavement
Dowels
Debonding
Finite element modeling
title Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
title_full Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
title_fullStr Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
title_full_unstemmed Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
title_short Impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements: Experimental and numerical investigations
title_sort impact of various dowel bars techniques in joints of plain concrete connected rigid pavements experimental and numerical investigations
topic Connected slabs
Strain-hardening cementitious composites
Concrete pavement
Dowels
Debonding
Finite element modeling
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590123024021017
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