Topic 4: Construction of the

Flexible Pavement

Prepared by: Pn Sapinah binti Hadi

Subtopic

Pavement purpose
Flexible pavement
Characteristic of flexible pavement
Flexible pavement surface layer, road
base, sub-base, sub-grade.(explain
function of the types of layer)
Sketch layer of flexible pavement structure

 Pavement works
Preparation of materials used in the subbase and road base of flexible pavement
Priming cover -prime coat, tack coat

Pavement purpose
Load support
Smoothness
Drainage

Types of pavement
Flexible Pavement
Rigid Pavement

Flexible Pavement
Not constructed using concrete
Pavements with very low flexural strength
and are flexible in their structural
behaviour when under a load.

Characteristic of flexible
pavement

Elastic
Use bituminous
Easy to do road maintenance
Do not have any expansion joint.

Flexible Pavement Structure

Surface layer

Road Base

Sub-base

Sub-grade is the natural soil beneath road construction

Figure 6.1

Construction Depth

Function of sub-grade
SUB GRADE is a layer of natural soil or filled soil
prepared to receive the pavement materials over it.
Function: to transfer the entire load coming to it to the
earth mass and provide a good support to the pavement
structure.
The strength properties of the soil sub-grade is
necessary to evaluate.
The following tests on soils are carried out to find out its
strength:

CBR test
Triaxial Compression test
Plate load test
California resistance value test

Function of sub-base course

SUB BASE is one course that is constructed to prepare
the drainage from rough materials, and it absorbs forces
from road base directly and spreads the forces to the
sub grade.
The sub base course has the following function:
It improves the bearing capacity of sub-grade
It checks the capillary rise of sub soil water
It prevents sub-grade material from working up into the base
course.
It eliminates frost heave in frost affect area.

Function of base course

ROAD BASE is the main course of the road pavement. It
absorbs force from surface directly and spreads the
force to the sub base.
It is most important component of pavement structure
because it has to bear the impact of traffic transferred
through the wearing course.
It serves following functions:
It acts ad foundation for the road pavement and transfer the
traffic load to the sub-base course.
It withstands the high shearing stress imposed upon it due to
impact of traffic on the wearing course.

Function of binder course

Providing a flat base layer to wearing course.
To spread the traffic force to base course.

Function of wearing course

Wearing course is the topmost layer of the
pavement structure.
It has the following functions:

It provides smooth and dense riding surface.

It resists pressure exerted by tyres.
It takes up wear and tear due to the traffic.
It provide a water tight layer against infiltration of
surface water.

Pavement works
A.Preparation Sub-Grade Layer
B.Laid the sub-base course
C.Laid the base course
D.Spray the priming coat.
E. Laid the premix (pavement conrete
asphalt or bituminous pavement)
F. Construct road

A.Preparation Sub-Grade Layer

It is done after placing the drainage system, piping and
electric cable.
The sub-grade surface will be compacted levelled and
be cut to make camber as in plan.
If the material of the soil did not have a good quality, it
will be changed with suitable material.
Base formation covers with 50-75mm sand layer or
quarry dust and will be compacted with 8-10 tone
compactors.
This job must be done to prevent the clay from absorbing
into the stone layer of sub-base and reduce the shear
strength of the pavement.

B& C:
PREPARATION OF
MATERIALS USED IN THE
SUB-BASE AND ROAD BASE
OF FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

Materials usually use:

a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.

Crusher run
Sand
Laterite
Dry Bound Macadam
Wet Bound Macadam
Dense Bound Macadam
Stabilized Soil

 Macadam Base Courses:

The term macadam originally referred to a road
surface or base composed of crushed stone was
mechanically locked by rolling and cemented
together by the application of stone screenings
and water.
Macadam bases may be classified as dry-bound
macadam, water bound macadam and
penetration macadam according to the method
of construction.

(d)Dry Bound Macadam

Dry-bound macadam : is a layer from
crushed-aggregate base course, which
gains its grain interlock through rolling or
vibration. This type of base courses is
cheap and suitable for low traffic only.
In dry bound macadam, vibrations are
used to fill the parent fines into the voids of
gravels.

 Term: dry bond macadam is relating to

how of fine aggregate is spread.
Coarse aggregate: 37.5mm @ 50.0mm
Fine aggregate: 5mm until dust.

Method of construction:
Spreading coarse aggregate compact
7.5cm thickness
Rolling
compaction- rollers starting from edges
then shifted to the centre.

and

Spreading fine aggregate to filled voids

in between the coarse aggregate.
Rolling and do compaction.

(e)Wet Bound Macadam

Water-bound macadam: is a layer composed of crushed
stone or slag that are bound together by stone dust and
water. The layer is compacted by heavy rollers or
vibratory compactors. Stability is gained by grain
interlock, as well as by cementation of the fine fraction.
In water bound macadam, water is used to fill the
parents fines into the voids of gravel. This technique
gives better results normally to fill the voids. But if the
subgrade is clayey then water will reduce its strength.

Method of construction:
Spreading coarse aggregate. WBM course compacted
thickness of 7.5 cm.
Rolling - Compaction rollers starting from edges and
then shifted to the centre.
Application of Screening dry rolling
Sprinkling and Grouting - Water is sprinkled, swept and
rolled. Additional screenings till coarse aggregates are
well bonded and firmly set. (2-5% water).
Application of Binding Material - in two or more
successive layers surface is sprinkled with water and
rolling is done.
Setting and Drying

(f) Dense Bound Macadam

There have three types of dense bound
macadam:
Rolled asphalt
Macadam tar
Macadam bitumen

Using the best graded aggregate which

either pre-mixed with tar or asphalt.

D& E.Construction of Road Surface

The road surface is constructed with bitumen materials,
such as concrete asphalt, macadam bitumen and so on.
The constructed should be free from dust and
waterproof.
To construct the surface layer, the base course must be
prepared first.

 There have 2 types of coat:

Prime coat between base course and binder
course.

Strip coat / tack coat between binder coarse

and wearing coarse.

Prime Coat
First application of low viscosity liquid
bituminous material over an existing porous
or adsorbent pavement material like WBM
base course
Objective is to plug the capillary voids and
bond loose material using a binder of low
viscosity
Allowed to cure for at least 24 hours

 Function:
To seal the pores by penetrating into it.
To water proof underlying layer.
To coat and bond dust and loose minerals
particles.
To provide adhesion between the base and
superimposed layer.

Tack Coat/strip coat

Application of bituminous material over an
existing pavement surface that is relatively
impervious
Promotes bond between old and new
surface
Binder does not penetrate into the layer &
remains at the surface

USED IN FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT ROAD SURFACE

PREPARATION AND
VARIETIES OF MATERIALS

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a) Premix
asphaltic concrete

a composite material commonly used

in construction projects such as road
surfaces, airports and parking lots
consists of asphalt (used as a binder)
and mineral aggregate mixed
together, then laid down in layers and
compacted
concrete has different performance
characteristics in terms of surface
durability, tire wear, braking efficiency
androadway noise
generates less roadway noise than
Portland cement concrete surfacing
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Asphalt concrete

A layer of asphalt concrete

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 Bituminous Macadam
used to cover the use of bituminous materials for bonding
together or preserving the surface of broken-stone roads in
a variety of ways
In some instances, the tar is only used to coat the surface
of a macadam road, with a view to prevent the formation of
dust and the raveling of the road
The other hands, tar is mixed with the broken stone used
in building the road to form a bituminous concrete before
laying it on the road
road must be very dry when the tar is applied
work should be done during warm

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 work should be done during warm

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Cold fine asphalt

a high-quality, polymer-modified cold fine asphalt available in batch
orders to builders, road repair municipalities
known as cold fine or cold asphalt, was first recognized as a way to
make road repairs quickly because it can be applied right from the
container without heating
also doesnt require any special heavy rolling machines or special
applicators as it can be shoveled or poured into a pothole or utility
cut and tamped down with a hand tool.

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 can be applied directly to potholes with little or no prepreparation work

can be used anytime you can see the damage to the

roadway or driveway. It works in fall and early winter
weather and water filled potholes

can be used anytime you can see the damage to the

roadway or driveway. It works in fall and early winter
weather and water filled potholes

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Dry sand mix

It is a foundry sand artificially dried after being made into a mold
A layer of nominal single sized (typically up to 50mm) crushed stone
compacted and fully blinded with angular sand or fine crushed stone
material which is then vibro compacted to produce a dense stable
material.
-Layer thickness up to twice the nominal stone size.
-Material may be hand or machine crushed and laid. Suitable in
areas short of water.

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WET SAND MIX

processes have been identified in literature. It seems

that the term water-bound is generally used to describe

a dry-bound macadam which has been slushed after all
the voids have been filled with dry filler.
The slushing process consists of saturating the
macadam layer (coarse and fine aggregate) spraying it
with water, after which a number of passes are made
with a steel drum roller, forcing the excess fines to the
surface of the layer, from which they are then swept
away.
A water-bound macadam (WM) refers to a method of
construction whereby water is used to force fine material
into the voids during compaction. With proper
construction control, and a phased construction
procedure, the water bound macadam offers a suitable
labour intensive method for road construction.
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 The construction of water-bound macadam may be divided

into two components, namely the placement of the large
aggregate, and the filling of the voids in the large aggregate
skeleton with a fine filler.
The following steps in the construction process will be
discussed individually:
Sub-base and edge-restraint preparation,
Placement of the large aggregate,
Filling of the voids in the coarse aggregate skeleton with a
fine filler.
This material is found in the sub-grade layer.
It is the mixture in the wet bound macadam.

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Explain the construction of road

surface

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Preparation of underlying layer

Underlying course on which bituminous
macadam is to be laid should be prepared,
shaped, and conditioned to a uniform grade and
profile.
Any pot holes/depressions should be properly
rectified and throughly compacted sufficiently in
advance.
The surface should be throughly swept and
scraped clean, free from dust and foreign
materials.
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Application of tack coat or

prime coat
The binder is heated to the appropriate
temperature except in case of emulsion, and
applied to the base.
Quantity of binder is between 50 to 75 kg per
100 m2 for treated surface.
Untreated WBM surface, prime coat applied
using bitumen at the rate 75-100 kg per 100 m2
of the area.

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PREPARATION OF
PREMIX
Mechanical mixer used to mixing the aggregate
and the bituminous binder. Besides that,
improvised hand drum mixer may be used if
mechanical mixer is not procurable.
Bituminous binder(premixing) adopted as per
requirements of the gradation of the aggregates.
The upper limit raise when absorptive type hand
of aggregates used.
Tar used, the contents increase 10 %.
Mixture prepared and transport to the place by
using wheel barrow and hands carts.
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Spreading the premix mixture.

The mix should be spread immediately
after transporting by using:
- Mechanical pavers
- Spreaders
- Graders
o Manual spreading rakers to the desired
thickness and camber.
o Uneven areas should be brought to
camber.

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rolling
A compacting temperature also influences the
strength characteristics of the resulting
pavement.
Min time should be allowed to lapse between
spreading the mix and rolling operation.
Length of bituminous laid, rolling is done
adopting 8 10 t roller.( commence at the
edges and progress towards centre
longitudinally)
The finished surface when the tested with a
template and the straight edges should show
no variation greater than 6 mm over 3 m
length.
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CONSTRUCTION
OF ROAD
SHOULDERS

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INTRODUCTION
Road shoulder is the reserved area alongside the
roadway to be used in the event of an
emergency or breakdown.
Not all county roads have shoulders, but where
present, road shoulders along collector or
community streets are normally unpaved.
Road shoulders are not travelling lanes, and
motorists should not use them as such.
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Safe road shoulders

Design guidelines have resulted in shoulders with a
safe layout for new roads.
Motorways also have safe road shoulders.
Measures to prevent shoulder crashes often
involve infrastructural interventions such as :
i. rumble strips and recovery lanes to prevent a
vehicle leaving the road limiting the height
difference or constructing semi-hardened shoulders
- to ensure that the vehicle remains better steerable
on the shoulder
ii. creating an as wide as possible obstacle-free zone
or placing obstacle protection to safety barriers or
wheel-catching constructions.
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Thank you..