Sustainability of concrete pavements

Sergio Carrascon ORTIZ
Northeast Area Director
Instituto Español del Cemento y sus Aplicaciones (IECA)

ABSTRACT

This article deals with the main aspects that mark the sustainability of concrete pavements. Environmental aspects related to its durability, Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), saving in volume of materials and reflectance of light and energy are dealt with. Social aspects related to safety in driving and occupants in the event of fire in tunnels are analyzed, reduction of inconvenience to users due to maintenance operations and reinforcement of the pavement, saving in fuel for circulating vehicles and new ones. surface finishing techniques for concrete pavements that match the characteristics in terms of rolling comfort and noise levels of solutions with bituminous mixtures. Finally and to complete the third aspect of sustainability, the economic aspects are evaluated from the point of view of the Life Cycle Cost Analysis (ACCV), the saving of pavement lighting in urban areas and tunnels and their little dependence on the oil price.

KEYWORDS

Pavement, Concrete, Sustainability, Life Cycle Analysis, Security, Comfort.