J. Basic. Appl. Sci. Res.

, 2(9)8725-8731, 2012 ISSN 2090-4304

© 2012, TextRoad Publication Journal of Basic and Applied
Scientific Research
www.textroad.com

Development Correlation between Benkelman Beam Deflection and Falling

Weight Deflectometer for Conventional Whitetopping Overly
D. R. Jundhare1, Dr. K. C. Khare2; and Dr. R. K. Jain3
1
Research Scholar, Civil Engineering Department, Sinhgad College of Engineering, Vadgaon (Bk.),
Pune-411041. M. S. India. University of Pune
2
Professor, Civil Engineering Department, Sinhgad College of Engineering, Vadgaon (Bk.),
Pune-411041.M. S. India
3
Professor, Pad. Dr. D.Y. Patil Institute of Engineering and Technology, Pimpri,
Pune - 411018. M. S. India

ABSTRACT

India has one of the largest highway and road networks on the planet, third only to the road network of the United
States and China. The road network has expanded from 0.4 million km in 1951 to about 3.32 million kilometers
presently, a sevenfold increase, but traffic has increased 120 times (Department of Road Transport and Highways,
Govt. of India). This leads to the deterioration of the surface of the asphalt pavements and a need to rehabilitate
them before further damage could occur. Since the use of a concrete overlay, called as whitetopping, is a relatively
new concept in Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) pavement rehabilitation in India, there is a need to evaluate its performance
for Indian traffic and climatic conditions by conducting Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) and Benkelman Beam
Deflection (BBD) test on conventional whitetopping overlays constructed in Pune city (India). This paper presents
the linear, exponential and logarithmic relationship between Benkelman Beam and FWD deflections for the edge
and corner loading positions of conventional whitetopping overly by using computer.
Keywords: Benkelman Beam Deflection, Falling Weight Deflectometer, Conventional Whitetopping

INTRODUCTION

Whitetopping is the Portland Cement Concrete (PCC) overlay constructed on the top of an existing bituminous
pavement. Rutting of bituminous pavement is a real problem in hot climate like India, with heavy truck loads,
operating under frequent start/ stop conditions. Whitetopping is applied where rutting of bituminous pavement is a
recurring problem. Whitetopping is classified into three types according to the PCC slab thickness as follows (IRC:
SP: 76 – 2008):
Conventional Whitetopping: It consists of a PCC overlay of thickness 200 mm or more which is designed and
constructed like a new rigid pavement without assuming any composite action. It is constructed without
consideration of any bond between the concrete overlay and underlying bituminous layer.
Thin Whitetopping (TWT): It consists of a PCC overlay of thickness greater than100 mm and less than 200mm.
The bond between the overlaid PCC and underlying bituminous layer is often considered but it is not mandatory.
High strength concrete with fibres is commonly used.
Ultra- Thin Whitetopping (UTW): PCC overlay of thickness equal to or less than 100 mm is classified as Ultra-
Thin Whitetopping (UTW). Bonding between PCC overlay and underlying bituminous layer is mandatory in case of
UTW. The UTW requires a good bond with the underlying HMA layer to perform well as indicated by the literature
(Cole 1997; Rasmussen et al. 2002; Lin and Wang 2005).
Pavement surface deflection measurements are the primary means of evaluating a flexible pavement structure
and rigid pavement load transfer. Although other measurements can be made that reflect (to some degree) a
pavement's structural condition, surface deflection is an important pavement evaluation method because the
magnitude and shape of pavement deflection is a function of traffic (type and volume), pavement structural section,
temperature affecting the pavement structure and moisture affecting the pavement structure. Deflection
measurements can be used in back calculation methods to determine pavement structural layer stiffness and the
subgrade resilient modulus. Thus, many characteristics of a flexible pavement can be determined by measuring its
deflection in response to load. Furthermore, pavement deflection measurements are non-destructive. Pavement
surface deflection can be measured using Benkelman Beam or Falling Weight Deflectometer.

Corresponding Author: D. R. Jundhare, Research Scholar, Civil Engineering Department, Sinhgad College of Engineering,
Vadgaon (Bk.), Pune-411041. M. S. India. University of Pune. E mail: [email protected]

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Use of Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) for the evaluation of pavements is gaining popularity in many
countries, as it is possible to simulate the magnitude and duration of load applied by a fast moving vehicle on
highways using this equipment. However, the use of FWD in India has been very limited so far because of its high
cost and difficulties encountered in maintaining the equipment. Therefore, a need has been aroused to identify an
alternative to FWD test, which can be cost effective and easily available. Benkelman Beam test is one the static load
deflection equipment which measures the maximum deflection response of a pavement to static or slowly applied
loads. Advantages of the Benkelman Beam include ease to use, low equipment cost, and large database can be
created about performance of the pavement over the years. But, the guidelines given by IRC: 81-1997 for
conducting Benkelman Beam Test are applicable only for flexible pavements. In this study attempt has been made to
conduct this test on the top of conventional whitetopping. Hence, Benkelman Beam test as per IRC: 81-1997 and
FWD test have been carried out to find deflection on top 320 mm thick conventional whitetopping overlay
constructed in Pune city, India. The deflections on the surface of slab were measured at corner and edge loading
positions. Relationship is drawn between deflections readings measured by Benkelman Beam on X axis and
deflections readings obtained by FWD on Y axis. Thus the paper discusses about the linear, exponential and
logarithmic relationship between Benkelman beam deflection and Falling Weight Deflectometer for the edge and
corner loading positions of conventional whitetopping overly. The data of study area has been given in Table 1
(Jundhare D.R. et al., 2008)

BENKELMAN BEAM DEFLECTION (BBD) TEST

Static load deflection equipment measures the maximum deflection response of a pavement to static or slowly
applied loads. The most commonly used static deflection device is the Benkelman Beam. Surface deflection data
from 320 mm thick conventional whitetopping overlay test sections at Pune City, India was obtained using
nondestructive test of Benkelman Beam. This test has been carried out on top surface of existing conventional
whitetopping to obtain the deflection measurements at edge and corner of each slab as shown in Figures 1 and 2.
The vehicle used to carry out BBD test was having 81.70kN rear axle weight as per guidelines given in IRC: 81-
1997. The pavement temperature was measured after every one hour interval during the deflection measurements
using a digital thermometer as shown in Figure 3. The cross section of conventional whitetopping is shown in Figure
4. The deflection data was analyzed and characteristic deflection calculated after incorporating necessary corrections
for temperature and seasonal variations. The deflections were worked out as per guidelines given in IRC: 81-1997.
The observations and results are given in Table 2 and 3.

Table 1: Details of Study Area Data and Analysis

Sr. No. Description Value Adopted
1 Type of pavement Conventional Whitetopping
2 Length of road 9.00 km
3 Compressive Strength of Concrete (Fck) 40 MPa
4 Flexural Strength of Concrete = 0.7 √ Fck 4.43 MPa
5 Elastic Modules of Concrete (E) (Cl.4.7.2 –IRC:58) 31625 MPa
6 Poisson’s Ratio (μ) (Cl.4.7.2 –IRC:58) 0.15
7 Coefficient of Thermal Expansion of Concrete (α) (Cl.4.7.3 –IRC-58) 1.0E-05/OC
8 Tyre pressure (q) (Cl.4.2 – IRC-58) 0.8 MPa
9 Rate of Increase of Traffic (r) 3%
10 Spacing of Contraction Joints (L) 4500 mm
11 Width of Slab (B) 3650 mm
12 Present Traffic Volume 21233 ESAL/Day
13 Design Life of Pavement 20 Years
14 Number of Lanes / Carriageway 2
15 Dual Carriageway (Y/N) Yes
16 Type of Subgrade (R for Rocky & S for Soil) S
17 If Soil Subgrade, CBR of Subgrade (%) 8
18 Temperature Differential (t) (Table –1-IRC: 58) 21o C
19 Modulus of subgrade reaction 0.12 MPa/mm
20 Panel size 3650 mm x 4500 mm

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Fig.1: BBD Test in Progress Fig.2: Enlarged View at Corner Loading

Fig.3: Measuring Pavement Temperature (Inside) Fig.4: Cross Section of whitetopping

Table 2: BBD Test Analysis for Edge Wheel Loading on Surface of Conventional Whitetopping
Panel / Dial Gauge Reading (mm) Deflection Pavement Temperature Seasonal Corrected
Slab in mm Temp. (0C) correction Correction Deflection (D)
No. Factor
Initial Intermediate Final
1 100 94 93.5 0.13 37.5 -0.025 1.05 0.11025
2 99 94 93 0.12 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.11025
3 34 29 28 0.12 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.11025
4 88 83 82 0.12 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.11025
5 76 71 70.5 0.11 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.09975
6 77 73 72 0.10 34.5 0.005 1.05 0.11025
7 81 77 76 0.10 34.5 0.005 1.05 0.11025

Table 3: BBD Test Analysis for Corner Wheel Loading on Surface of Conventional Whitetopping
Panel / Dial Gauge Reading (mm) Deflection Pavement Temperature Seasonal Corrected
Slab in mm Temp. (0C) correction Correction Factor Deflection
No. Initial Intermediate Final (D)
1 44 40 39.5 0.09 37.5 -0.025 1.05 0.06825
2 98 95 94 0.08 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.06825
3 88 85 84 0.08 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.06825
4 69 63 62 0.08 36.5 -0.015 1.05 0.06825
5 54 51 50.5 0.07 36 -0.01 1.05 0.06300
6 78 76 75 0.06 34.5 0.005 1.05 0.06825
7 81 79 78 0.06 34.5 0.005 1.05 0.06825

FALLING WEIGHT DEFLECTOMETER (FWD) TEST

Impact deflection testing by FWD for pavement nondestructive evaluation (NDE) is widely used testing devices
among many nondestructive testing technologies available for pavement condition evaluation (Hudson et al., 1987).

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The FWD device applies an impact load on a steel loading plate and measures peak deflections on the pavement
surface using seismic velocity transducers at the center and at the several locations away from the loading plate.

Fig.5: Schematic of FWD Deflection Sensors Fig. 6: FWD Test Carried on Study Road

Use of FWD for evaluation of pavements is gaining popularity in many countries, as it is possible to simulate
the magnitude and duration of load applied by a fast moving vehicle on highways using this equipment. In order to
determine the applicability of utilizing the finite element method to analyze the unbonded conventional
whitetopping, non-destructive field testing of pavement using FWD was performed on existing conventional
whitetopping overlay under study. In this study, Dynatest 8000 FWD model with 150 mm diameter load plate and
nine displacement measuring sensors, was used which is trailer mounted and have the capability to apply load of 50
kN and 100 kN. For details of the testing procedure, construction report (Cable et al. 2003, Foxworthy, P.T., and
Darter M. I., 1986) is referred. One transducer is located at the center of the load plate and remaining transducers are
placed at varying intervals from the plate. Figure 5 shows schematic showing the arrangement of the sensors of
FWD test equipment used in this study. The Figure 6 shows the FWD test carried out on surface of conventional
whitetopping overlay and test data given in Table 4and 5.

Table 4: FWD Stresses and Deflections Data at Edge of Overlay Slab

Sr. No. Stress DEFLECTION IN MM AT DISTANCE IN MM FROM LOAD POINT Test Load
In MPa (kN)
(Series) 0 -200 -300 450 600 900 1200 1500 1800
1 0.814 0.1223 0.1004 0.0902 0.0857 0.0778 0.0652 0.0585 0.0414 0.0392 51.53
2 0.912 0.1214 0.1002 0.0921 0.0899 0.0781 0.0609 0.0552 0.0463 0.0384 54.46
3 0.757 0.1229 0.1018 0.0982 0.0878 0.0794 0.0696 0.0518 0.0475 0.0368 50.51
4 0.811 0.1187 0.1004 0.0808 0.0715 0.0701 0.0622 0.0566 0.0450 0.0343 51.32
5 0.821 0.1115 0.0934 0.0827 0.0728 0.0690 0.0628 0.0586 0.0399 0.0294 53.02
6 0.798 0.1195 0.0995 0.0875 0.0724 0.0699 0.0655 0.0546 0.0399 0.0293 51.40
7 0.785 0.1183 0.0981 0.0851 0.0786 0.0695 0.0599 0.0502 0.0384 0.0297 51.48

Table 5: FWD Stresses and Deflections Data at Corner of Overlay Slab

Sr. No. Stress DEFLECTION IN MM AT DISTANCE IN MM FROM LOAD POINT Test Load
In MPa (kN)
(Series) 0 -200 -300 450 600 900 1200 1500 1800
1 0.749 0.0861 0.0792 0.0674 0.0611 0.0595 0.0541 0.0485 0.0373 0.0287 52.93
2 0.761 0.0879 0.0710 0.0689 0.0605 0.0593 0.0548 0.0459 0.0350 0.0341 53.78
3 0.725 0.0893 0.0796 0.0686 0.0615 0.0570 0.0588 0.0455 0.0346 0.0365 51.24
4 0.781 0.0896 0.0761 0.0699 0.0581 0.0551 0.0544 0.0438 0.0333 0.0294 51.20
5 0.773 0.0791 0.0699 0.0649 0.0615 0.0557 0.0521 0.0405 0.0378 0.0295 54.63
6 0.812 0.0872 0.0798 0.0667 0.0619 0.0569 0.0498 0.0398 0.0391 0.0273 51.39
7 0.742 0.0832 0.0794 0.0618 0.0616 0.0561 0.0502 0.0399 0.0298 0.0236 52.44

CONCEPT OF LINEAR, EXPONENTIAL, LOGARITHMIC FUNCTIONS AND R- SQUARED VALUE

The Linear functions are functions that have x as the input variable, and x has an exponent of only 1. Such
functions look like the ones in the graphic to the left. Notice that x has an exponent of 1 in each equation. Functions
such as these yield graphs that are straight lines, and, thus, the name linear. A very common way to express a linear
function is named the 'slope-intercept form' of a linear function. When drawn on a common (x, y) graph it is usually
expressed as: y = mx + c. Or, in a formal function definition: f(x) = mx + c. This function basically

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describes a set, or locus, of (x, y) points, and these points all lie along a straight line. The variable m holds the slope
of this line. The variable c holds the y-coordinate for the spot where the line crosses the y-axis. This point is called
the 'y-intercept'.
The exponential function is the function ex, where e is such that the function ex is its own derivative. The
exponential function is used to model a relationship in which a constant change in the independent variable gives the
same proportional change (i.e. percentage increase or decrease) in the dependent variable. The function is often
written as exp (x), especially when it is impractical to write the independent variable as a superscript.
The logarithmic function is defined as the inverse of the exponential function.
For B > 0 and B not equal to 1,
y = Log Bx is equivalent to x = B y.
Note: The logarithm to the base e is written ln(x).
In statistics, the coefficient of determination R2 is the proportion of variability in a data set that is accounted for by
a statistical model. In this definition, the term "variability" is defined as the sum of squares. There are equivalent
expressions for R2 based on analysis of variance decomposition. R2 is a statistic that will give some information
about the goodness of fit of a model. In regression, the R2 coefficient of determination is a statistical measure of how
well the regression line approximates the real data points. An R2 of 1.0 indicates that the regression line perfectly fits
the data.
The linear, exponential and logarithmic relationship has been developed using FWD and Benkelman Beam
deflection values on conventional whitetopping overlays and equations and R-squared values have been given in
Table 6. The Figure 7,8,9,10,11 and 12 shows the graphs of linear, exponential and logarithmic relationship for BBD
and FWD deflection values.

Table 6: Summary of Relationship and equations for Edge and Corner Lading Positions
Sr. No. Relationship Edge Loading Corner Loading
1 Linear Y= 0.8587x + 0.0258 Y= 1.546 + 0.0183
R2 = 0.7868 R2 = 0.6696
2 Exponential Y= 0.0533e7.3957x Y= 0.0246e18.547
R2 = 0.7991 R2 = 0.6852
3 Logarithmic Y= 0.0901ln(x)+0.3192 Y= 0.10141ln(x)+0.3594
R2 = 0.7868 R2 = 0.6696

Fig. 7: Linear Relationship at Edge Loading Fig. 8: Exponential Relationship at Edge Loading

Fig. 9: Logarithmic Relationship at Edge Loading Fig.10: Linear Relationship at Corner Loading

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Fig. 11: Exponential Relationship at Corner Loading Fig. 12: Logarithmic Relationship at Corner Loading

CONCLUSION

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 R2
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.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The authors are grateful to Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, Pune (India) for kind permission and
availing the required data. The authors are also thankful to Prof. Dr. B. B. Pandey, Indian Institute of Technology,
Kharagpur, India for guidance and encouragement for conducting this study.

REFERENCES

1. Cable, J. K., Anthony, M. L., Fanous, F. S., and Phares, B. M. (2003). “Evaluation of Composite
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Rigid Airfield Pavements.” Transportation Research Record, 1070, Transportation Research Board.
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7. IRC: SP: 76 – 2008 “Tentative Guidelines for Conventional, Thin and Ultra-Thin Whitetopping.”
Indian Road Congress, New Delhi. 2008.

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