Pavement Engineering

Lecture Notes

For Exit Exam Candidates

March 10, 2023

 Chapter One
Type of Pavement and Its stress and strain
A highway pavement is a structure consisting of superimposed layers of processed materials above

the natural soil sub-grade, whose primary function is to distribute the applied vehicle loads to the

sub-grade. The pavement structure should be able to provide a surface of acceptable riding quality,

adequate skid resistance, favorable light reflecting characteristics, and low noise pollution. The

ultimate aim is to ensure that the transmitted stresses due to wheel load are sufficiently reduced,

so that they will not exceed bearing capacity of the sub grade. Two types of pavements are

generally recognized as serving this purpose, namely flexible pavements and rigid pavements. This

chapter gives an overview of pavement types, layers, and their functions, and pavement failures.

Improper design of pavements leads to early failure of pavements affecting the riding quality.

Requirements of a pavement

An ideal pavement should meet the following requirements:

• Sufficient thickness to distribute the wheel load stresses to a safe value on the sub-grade

soil,

• Structurally strong to withstand all types of stresses imposed upon it,

• Adequate coefficient of friction to prevent skidding of vehicles,

• Smooth surface to provide comfort to road users even at high speed,

• Produce least noise from moving vehicles,

• Dust proof surface so that traffic safety is not impaired by reducing visibility,

• Impervious surface, so that sub-grade soil is well protected, and

• Long design life with low maintenance cost.

 Types of pavements

The pavements can be classified based on the structural performance into two, flexible

pavements and rigid pavements. In flexible pavements, wheel loads are transferred by grain-to-

grain contact of the aggregate through the granular structure. The flexible pavement, having less

flexural strength, acts like a flexible sheet (e.g. bituminous road).

On the contrary, in rigid pavements, wheel loads are transferred to sub-grade soil by flexural

strength of the pavement and the pavement acts like a rigid plate (e.g. cement concrete roads). In

addition to these, composite pavements are also available. A thin layer of flexible pavement over

rigid pavement is an ideal pavement with most desirable characteristics. However, such pavements

are rarely used in new construction because of high cost and complex analysis required.

Flexible pavements
Flexible pavements will transmit wheel load stresses to the lower layers by grain-to-grain transfer

through the points of contact in the granular structure (see Figure 19:1). The wheel load acting on

the pavement will be distributed to a wider area, and the stress decreases with the depth. Taking

advantage of these stress distribution characteristic, flexible pavements normally have many

layers. Hence, the design of flexible pavement uses the concept of layered system. Based on this,

flexible pavement may be constructed in a number of layers and the top layer has to be of best

quality to sustain maximum compressive stress, in addition to wear and tear. The lower layers will

experience lesser magnitude of stress and low-quality material can be used. Flexible pavements

are constructed using bituminous materials. These can be either in the form of surface treatments

(such as bituminous surface treatments generally found on low volume roads) or, asphalt concrete

surface courses (generally used on high volume roads such as national highways). Flexible

pavement layers reflect the deformation of the lower layers on to the surface layer (e.g., if there is

any undulation in sub-grade then it will be transferred to the surface layer). In the case of flexible
pavement, the design is based on overall performance of flexible pavement, and the stresses

produced should be kept well below the allowable stresses of each pavement layer.

Types of Flexible Pavements

The following types of construction have been used in flexible pavement:

▪ Conventional layered flexible pavement,

▪ Full - depth asphalt pavement, and

▪ Contained rock asphalt mat (CRAM).

Conventional flexible pavements are layered systems with high quality expensive materials are

placed in the top where stresses are high-, and low-quality cheap materials are placed in lower

layers.

Full - depth asphalt pavements are constructed by placing bituminous layers directly on the soil

sub grade. This is more suitable when there is high traffic and local materials are not available.

Contained rock asphalt mats are constructed by placing dense/open graded aggregate layers in

between two asphalt layers.

Modified dense graded asphalt concrete is placed above the sub-grade will significantly reduce

the vertical compressive strain on soil sub-grade and protect from surface water.

Typical layers of a flexible pavement

Typical layers of a conventional flexible pavement includes seal coat, surface course, tack coat,

binder course, prime coat, base course, sub-base course, compacted sub-grade, and natural sub-

grade (Figure 19:2).

Seal Coat: Seal coat is a thin surface treatment used to water-proof the surface and to provide skid

resistance.

Tack Coat: Tack coat is a very light application of asphalt, usually asphalt emulsion diluted with

water. It provides proper bonding between two layer of binder course and must be thin, uniformly

cover the entire surface, and set very fast.

Prime Coat: Prime coat is an application of low viscous cutback bitumen to an absorbent surface

like granular bases on which binder layer is placed. It provides bonding between two layers. Unlike

tack coat, prime coat penetrates into the layer below, plugs the voids, and forms a water tight

surface.
Surface course:Surface course is the layer directly in contact with traffic loads and generally

contains superior quality materials. They are usually constructed with dense graded asphalt

concrete (AC). The functions and requirements of this layer are:

✓ It provides characteristics such as friction, smoothness, drainage, etc.

✓ Also, it will prevent the entrance of excessive quantities of surface water into the

underlying base, sub-base and sub-grade,

✓ It must be tough to resist the distortion under traffic and provide a smooth and skid-

resistant riding surface,

✓ It must be water proof to protect the entire base and sub-grade from the weakening

effect of water.

Binder course: This layer provides the bulk of the asphalt concrete structure. Its chief purpose

is to distribute load to the base course The binder course generally consists of aggregates having

less asphalt and doesn't require quality as high as the surface course, so replacing a part of the

surface course by the binder course results in more economical design.

Base course: The base course is the layer of material immediately beneath the surface of binder

course and it provides additional load distribution and contributes to the sub-surface drainage It

may be composed of crushed stone, crushed slag, and other untreated or stabilized materials.

Sub-Base course: The sub-base course is the layer of material beneath the base course and the

primary functions are to provide structural support, improve drainage, and reduce the intrusion of

fines from the sub-grade in the pavement structure If the base course is open graded, then the sub-

base course with more fines can serve as a filler between sub-grade and the base course A sub-

base course is not always needed or used. For example, a pavement constructed over a high quality,
sti_ sub-grade may not need the additional features offered by a sub-base course. In such situations,

sub-base course may not be provided.

Sub-grade: The top soil or sub-grade is a layer of natural soil prepared to receive the stresses

from the layers above. It is essential that at no time soil sub-grade is overstressed. It should be

compacted to the desirable density, near the optimum moisture content.

Failure of flexible pavements

The major flexible pavement failures are fatigue cracking, rutting, and thermal cracking. The

fatigue cracking of flexible pavement is due to horizontal tensile strain at the bottom of the

asphaltic concrete. The failure criterion relates allowable number of load repetitions to tensile

strain and this relation can be determined in the laboratory fatigue test on asphaltic concrete

specimens. Rutting occurs only on flexible pavements as indicated by permanent deformation or

rut depth along wheel load path. Two design methods have been used to control rutting: one to

limit the vertical compressive strain on the top of sub grade and other to limit rutting to a tolerable

amount (12 mm normally). Thermal cracking includes both low temperature cracking and thermal

fatigue cracking.

Rigid pavements

Rigid pavements have sufficient flexural strength to transmit the wheel load stresses to a wider

area below. A typical cross section of the rigid pavement is shown in Figure 19:3. Compared to

flexible pavement, rigid pavements are placed either directly on the prepared sub-grade or on a

single layer of granular or stabilized material. Since there is only one layer of material between

the concrete and the sub-grade, this layer can be called as base or sub-base course. In rigid

pavement, load is distributed by the slab action, and the pavement behaves like an elastic plate

resting on a viscous medium (Figure 19:4).

Rigid pavements are constructed by Portland cement concrete (PCC) and should be analyzed by

plate theory instead of layer theory, assuming an elastic plate resting on viscous foundation.

Plate theory is a simplified version of layer theory that assumes the concrete slab as a medium

thick plate which is plane before loading and to remain plane after loading. Bending of the slab

due to wheel load and temperature variation and the resulting tensile and flexural stress.

Types of Rigid Pavements

Rigid pavements can be classified into four types:

▪ Jointed plain concrete pavement (JPCP),

▪ Jointed reinforced concrete pavement (JRCP),

▪ Continuous reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP), and

▪ Pre-stressed concrete pavement (PCP).

Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement are plain cement concrete pavements constructed with

closely spaced contraction joints. Dowel bars or aggregate interlocks are normally used for load

transfer across joints. They normally have a joint spacing of 5 to 10m.

Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement: Although reinforcements do not improve the

structural capacity significantly, they can drastically increase the joint spacing to 10 to 30m.

Dowel bars are required for load transfer. Reinforcement’s help to keep the slab together even

after cracks.

Continuous Reinforced Concrete Pavement: Complete elimination of joints are

achieved by reinforcement. Failure criteria of rigid pavements Traditionally fatigue cracking has

been considered as the major or only criterion for rigid pavement design. The allowable number

of load repetitions to cause fatigue cracking depends on the stress ratio between flexural tensile

stress and concrete modulus of rupture. Of late, pumping is identified as an important failure
criterion. Pumping is the ejection of soil slurry through the joints and cracks of cement concrete

pavement, caused during the downward movement of slab under the heavy wheel loads. Other

major types of distress in rigid pavements include faulting, spalling, and deterioration.

Factors affecting pavement design:

There are many factors that affect pavement design which can be classified into four categories as

traffic and loading, structural models, material characterization, environment.

Traffic and loading:

Traffic is the most important factor in the pavement design. The key factors include contact

pressure, wheel load, axle configuration, moving loads, load, and load repetitions.

Contact pressure: The tire pressure is an important factor, as it determines the contact area and

the contact pressure between the wheel and the pavement surface. Even though the shape of the

contact area is elliptical, for sake of simplicity in analysis, a circular area is often considered.

Wheel load: The next important factor is the wheel load which determines the depth of the

pavement required to ensure that the sub grade soil is not failed.

Wheel configuration affects the stress distribution and deflection with in a pavement. Many

commercial vehicles have dual rear wheels which ensure that the contact pressure is within the

limits. The normal practice is to convert dual wheel into an equivalent single wheel load so that

the analysis is made simpler. Axle configuration: The load carrying capacity of the commercial

vehicle is further enhanced by the introduction of multiple axles.

Moving loads: The damage to the pavement is much higher if the vehicle is moving at creep speed.

Many studies show that when the speed is increased from 2 km/hr to 24 km/hr, the stresses and

deflection reduced by 40 per cent.

Repetition of Loads: The influence of traffic on pavement not only depends on the magnitude of

the wheel load, but also on the frequency of the load applications. Each load application causes

some deformation and the total deformation is the summation of all these. Although the pavement

deformation due to single axle load is very small, the cumulative effect of number of load repetition

is significant. Therefore, modern design is based on total number of standard axle load (usually 80

kN single axle).

Structural models

The structural models are various analysis approaches to determine the pavement responses

(stresses, strains, and deflections) at various locations in a pavement due to the application of wheel

load. The most common structural models are layered elastic model and visco-elastic models.

Layered elastic model: A layered elastic model can compute stresses, strains, and deflections at

any point in a pavement structure resulting from the application of a surface load. Layered elastic

models assume that each pavement structural layer is homogeneous, isotropic, and linearly elastic.

In other words, the material properties are same at every point in a given layer and the layer will

rebound to its original form once the load is removed. The layered elastic approach works with

relatively simple mathematical models that relates stress, strain, and deformation with wheel

loading and material properties like modulus of elasticity and poisons ratio.

Material characterization

The following material properties are important for both flexible and rigid pavements.

➢ When pavements are considered as linear elastic, the elastic moduli and poisson ratio of

sub grade and each component layer must be specified.

 ➢ If the elastic modulus of a material varies with the time of loading, then the resilient

modulus, which is elastic modulus under repeated loads, must be selected in accordance

with a load duration corresponding to the vehicle speed.

➢ When a material is considered non-linear elastic, the constitutive equation relating the

resilient modulus to the state of the stress must be provided. However, many of these

material properties are used in visco-elastic models which are very complex and in the

development stage.

Environmental factors

Environmental factors affect the performance of the pavement materials and cause various

damages. Environmental factors that affect pavement are of two types, temperature and

precipitation and they are discussed below:

Temperature

The effect of temperature on asphalt pavements is different from that of concrete pavements.

Temperature affects the resilient modulus of asphalt layers, while it induces curling of concrete

slab. In rigid pavements, due to difference in temperatures of top and bottom of slab, temperature

stresses or frictional stresses are developed. While in flexible pavement, dynamic modulus of

asphaltic concrete varies with temperature. Frost heave causes differential settlements and

pavement roughness. Most detrimental effect of frost penetration occurs during the spring break

up period when the ice melts and sub grade is a saturated condition.

Precipitation
The precipitation from rain and snow affects the quantity of surface water infiltrating into the sub

grade and the depth of ground water table. Poor drainage may bring lack of shear strength,

pumping, loss of support, etc.

 Chapter Two
Traffic Loading and Volume
Traffic is the most important factor in pavement design and stress analysis. Traffic constitutes the

load imparted on the pavement causing the stresses, strains and deflections in the pavement layers

and the subgrade. Hence the pavement design must account for the amount of traffic load expected

over its design life. The traffic loads on pavement can be characterized by:

• Magnitude of load (wheel load or axle load)

• Configuration of load (axle and wheel configuration – single/dual wheel, single/tandem/tridem

axle, wheel and axle spacing):- these relate to the number of contact points per vehicle (no. of

wheels) and their spacing.

• As spacing between wheels gets smaller, then their influence areas will overlap and one has to

consider the combined effect of all interacting wheel loads instead of dealing with a single

wheel load.

• Load repetitions: Loads, along with the environment, damage pavement over time. Each

individual load (from commercial vehicles) inflicts a certain amount of unrecoverable damage.

This damage is cumulative over the life of the pavement and when it reaches some maximum

value the pavement is considered to have reached the end of its useful service life.

• Other considerations include tire pressure, contact area, vehicle speed, traffic distribution

across the pavement etc. There are three different procedures for considering traffic effects in

pavement design. These are:

➢ Fixed traffic

➢ Fixed vehicle

➢ Variable traffic and vehicle

 1.0. Fixed Traffic Procedure

In fixed traffic procedure, the pavement design is made for a single wheel load only and the

number of load repetition is not considered. If the pavement is subjected to multiple wheels, they

must be converted to an equivalent single wheel load (ESWL), so that the design method based

on single wheel can be applied. This method has been used most frequently for airport pavements

or for highway pavements to be used by heavy wheel loads but light traffic volume. Usually, the

heaviest wheel load anticipated is used for design purposes. This method is not so commonly used

today. However, the concept of converting multiple-wheel loads to a single wheel load is important

and discussed here.

1.1. Equivalent Single Wheel Load (ESWL)

The ESWL can be defined as the load on a single wheel that will induce an equivalent amount of

response (stress, strain or deflection) on a given pavement system to that resulting from multiple

wheel load. The ESWL obtained from any theory depends on the criteria selected to compare the

single-wheel load with multiple-wheel loads. The use of different criteria for the comparison of

equivalent response (i.e., based on stress, strain or deflection) has an effect on the computed value

of ESWL.

For flexible pavements, the ESWL can be determined from theoretically calculated or

experimentally measured stress, strain, and deflections. It can also be determined from pavement

distress and performance tests. It should be noted that any theoretical method can be used as a

guide and should be verified by performance. The comparisons of equal response (stress, strain,

deflection) can be made by assuming equal contact pressure under both the equivalent single wheel
and the multiple wheels or by assuming equal contact area under all wheels. Some of the methods

used for converting multiple-wheel loads to an equivalent single wheel load include:

o Equal vertical stress criterion

o Equal vertical deflection criterion

o Equal tensile strain criterion

o Equal contact pressure criterion

For rigid pavements ESWL can be determined by comparing the critical flexural stress in the

concrete.

A. Equal Vertical Stress Criterion

Boyd and Foster (1950) presented a semi rational method for determining ESWL based on the

consideration of the vertical stress in an elastic half-space. The method assumes that the ESWL

varies with the pavement thickness, as shown in figure 3.1 below. The figure shows a total load

2Pd applied on a dual wheel assembly, with center to center spacing between tires of Sd and clear

distance between tire edges of d (d=Sd-2a). For thicknesses (depth) smaller than half the clearance

between dual tires, i.e. d/2, no stress overlap occurs and the stress at these depths is due to only

one wheel of the dual, hence ESWL is equal to one half the total load (ESWL=Pd). For thickness

greater than twice the center-to-center spacing of tires, i.e 2Sd, the subgrade stresses due to the

two wheels overlap completely, hence ESWL is equal to the total load (ESWL = 2Pd). By

assuming a straight-line relationship between thickness and wheel load on logarithmic scales, the

ESWL for any intermediate thickness can be easily determined. After the ESWL for dual wheels

is applied, the procedure can be applied to tandem wheels.

 2.0. Variable Traffic and Vehicle

In this procedure, both traffic and vehicle are considered variable, so there is no need to assign an

equivalent factor for each axle load. The various axle loads can be divided into a number of groups

and the stresses, strains and deflections under each load group can be determined separately and

used for design purposes. This procedure is most suited to mechanistic methods of design, wherein

the responses of pavement under different loads can be evaluated by using a computer.

3.0. Fixed vehicle Procedure

In this procedure, the thickness of a pavement is governed by the number of repetitions of a

standard vehicle or axle load (usually 80kN single axle load). Axle loads which are not equal to

80kN or consist of tandem or tridem axles must be converted to an 80kN single-axle load by an

equivalent axle load factor (EALF). EALF is defined as the damage per pass to a pavement by the

axle in question relative to the damage per pass of a standard axle load, (80KN). The number of

repetitions under each single or multiple axle load must be multiplied by its EALF to obtain the

equivalent effect based on an 80kN single axle load. A summation of the equivalent effects of all

axle loads during the design period results in an equivalent single axle load (ESAL). ESAL is the

design parameter to be used in pavement thickness design. Due to the great varieties of axle loads

and traffic volumes and their intractable effects on pavement performance, most of the design

methods in use today are based on the fixed vehicle procedure.

3.1. Determination of EALF

The EALF depends on:

• Type of pavement,
• Thickness or structural capacity
• Terminal condition at which the pavement is considered failed,
• Failure criterion
• The condition of the deterioration of pavement at the time of evaluation, etc.
The most widely used method for determining EALF is based on empirical equations developed

from the AASHO road test (AASHTO 1972). EALF can also be determined theoretically based

on the critical stresses and strains in the pavement and the failure criteria.

EALF for Flexible Pavement

AASHTO Equivalency Factors
The following regression equation is one of the most widely used methods for determining EALF

obtained from the AASHTO Road Test:

Where, Wtx = the number of x-axle load application at the end of time t,

Wt18 = the number of 18kip (80KN) single axle load application to time t,

Lx = the load in kip on one single axle, one set of tandem axles, or one set of tridem

axles,

L2 is the axle code: = 1 for single axles, 2 for tandem axles, and 3 for tridem axles,

SN = structural number - a function of thickness, modulus of each layer, and drainage

condition of base and subbase.

pt= terminal serviceability – which indicates the pavement conditions to be considered as

failures,

β18= the value of βx when Lx = 18 and L2=1

Practically, EALF is not very sensitive to pavement thickness and SN equal to 5 may be used for

most cases and a pt value of 2 or 2.5 can be used.

Theoretical Analysis

In mechanistic analysis, fatigue cracking and permanent deformation of pavements are employed
as failure criteria. To limit the failure due to fatigue cracking, the allowable number of load
repetition is expressed as:

Where, εtx and εt80 are the tensile strains at the bottom of asphalt layer due to x kN and 80 kN

axle load repetitions respectively. The constant f2 was determined by Asphalt institute and Shell

and the values are 3.291 and 5.671 respectively. A theoretical analysis of EALF was also

conducted by Deacon based on an assumed f2 value of 4, which is in the range determined by

Asphalt institute and Shell. For single axles, it is reasonable to assume that tensile strains due to

the axles in question and the standard single-axle are directly proportional to axle loads. Using 4

as the value of f2, the EALF can be approximated by what is known as the fourth power rule as:
Where, Ls is the load on standard axles which have the same number of axles as Lx. If the EALF

for one set of tandem or tridem axles is known, that for other axles can be determined by the above

equation. The other failure criterion is to control permanent deformation by limiting the vertical

compressive strain on top of the subgrade, which can be expressed as:

Suggested values of f5 are 4.477 by the Asphalt Institute, 4.0 by Shell, and 3.71 by the University

of Nottingham. The use of 4 for f5 is also reasonable. Therefore, when Ls and Lx are of the same

axle configuration, the EALF based on fatigue cracking may not be much different from that based

on permanent deformation and similar equation with the power of 4 can be applied.

ERA pavement design manual, which is based on TRL Road Note 31, relates the damaging

effect of axle loads to the standard 80kN axle using a power of 4.5 instead of 4. For multiple

axle vehicles, i.e. tandem or tridem axles, each axle in the multiple-group is considered

separately.

EALFs for Rigid Pavements

AASHTO Equivalency Factors

The AASHTO equations for determining the EALF of rigid pavements are:
 Traffic Analysis
The deterioration of paved roads is caused by traffic results from both the magnitude of the

individual wheel loads and the number of times these loads are applied. Hence, to design a paved

highway, it is necessary to consider not only the traffic volume or the total number of vehicles that

will use the road but also to predict the number of repetitions of each axle load group (or wheel

load group) during the design period. To convert the traffic volumes into cumulative equivalent

standard axle loads (ESAL or CESAL which is one design parameter in pavement design)

equivalency factors are used. On the other hand, the mechanism of deterioration of gravel roads

differs from that of paved roads. Design of thickness of gravel roads is directly related to the

number of vehicles using the road rather than the number of equivalent standard axles as that for

paved roads. The traffic volume is therefore used in the design of unpaved roads (gravel roads), as
opposed to the paved roads which require the conversion of traffic volumes into the appropriate

cumulative number of equivalent standard axles.

The deterioration of paved roads by traffic results both from Magnitude of Load and Repetition

of Load. Hence, to design a paved highway, it is necessary to consider:

• The traffic volume or the total number of vehicles that will use the road &

• To predict the number of repetitions of each axle load group (or wheel load group) during

the design period.

• The traffic volume is converted into cumulative equivalent standard axle loads (ESAL or

CESAL) using equivalency factors (EALF).

• CESAL is one design parameter in pavement design

Gravel Roads - mechanism of deterioration of gravel roads different from that of paved roads.

• Design of thickness of gravel roads is more related to the number of vehicles using the road

rather than the CESAL.

• The Traffic Volume in terms of initial AADT is used in the design of unpaved roads (gravel

roads).

The following Parameters and Considerations/Steps are involved in Traffic Analysis for pavement

design.

Design Period
The length or duration of time during which the pavement structure is expected to function

satisfactorily without the need for major intervention (rehabilitation such as overlays or

reconstruction) or the duration in time until the pavement structure reaches its terminal condition

(failure condition). Selecting appropriate design period depends on:

• Functional importance of the road

 • Traffic volume

• Location and terrain of the project

• Financial constraints

• Difficulty in forecasting traffic

Longer Design Period for important roads, high traffic volume, roads in difficult location and

terrain where regular maintenance is costly and difficult due to access problems or lack of

construction material.

Determine Traffic Volume (ADT, AADT)

Vehicle classification

• Small axle loads from private cars and other light vehicles do not cause significant

pavement damage.

• Damage caused by heavier vehicles (commercial vehicles).

• Hence, important to distinguish the proportion of vehicles which cause pavement damage

(commercial vehicles) from total traffic

• To do this, we need to have a vehicle classification system

• To distinguish between commercial vehicles and small cars.

• Distinguish between the different types of commercial vehicles and group them according

to their type, size (loading), configuration, etc.

Traffic Count
Traffic Count necessary:

• To assess the traffic-carrying capacity of different types of roads

• Examine the distribution of traffic between the available traffic lanes

• In the preparation of maintenance schedules for in-service roads

 • In the forecasting of expected traffic on a proposed new road from traffic studies on the

surrounding road system

Traffic volume data determined from:

• Historical traffic data available in relevant authorities (ERA conducts regular 3 times a

year (Feb., Jul., Nov.) traffic counts on its major road network) and/or

• By conducting classified traffic counts:

• On the road to be designed – if the road is an existing road and the project is

Upgrading, Rehabilitation, Maintenance, reconstruction, etc.

• On other parallel routes and/or adjacent roads – for new roads

• Traffic volume data may vary daily, weekly, seasonally.

Hence to avoid error in traffic analysis and capture the average yearly trend, minimum 7 days

count recommended. ERA recommended procedure:

• Conduct 7 days classified traffic count

o 5 days for 16 hrs

o Minimum 2 days for 24 hrs (one week day and one weekend)

• For long projects, there may be large difference in traffic volume along the road and

hence it is necessary to make the traffic counts at several locations.

ADT (Average Daily Traffic)

ADT is determined from the traffic count data as follows;

• Adjust the 16hrs traffic count data into 24hr data by multiplying with the average night

adjustment factor

• Night adjustment factor = (24hr traffic)/ (16hr traffic): - obtained from the two days 24hr

count data.
 • (ADT)o = the current Average Daily Traffic= Average of the 7 days 24 hr traffic volume

data

(AADT)o (Annual Average Daily Traffic = total annual traffic in both

directions divided by 365)

• In order to capture the average annual traffic flow trend, adjustment must be made for

seasonal traffic variation. Hence traffic count as above must be made at different

representative seasons (ERA conducts traffic counts on February, July and November)

• Make adjustment to (ADT)o :based on the season at which the current traffic count belongs

to and based on seasonal adjustment factors for the road (or similar roads) derived from

historic traffic data (ERA or other regional/national sources)

• (AADT)o = (ADT)o adjusted for seasonal variation

Traffic Forecast

Determining traffic growth rate over the design period.

• Very uncertain process

• Requires making analysis and forecast of past and future traffic growth trends, social and

economic development trends, etc.

• In forecasting, Traffic categorized into the following:

▪ Normal Traffic: Traffic that would pass along the existing road or track even if no new or

improved pavement were provided.

➢ Forecasted by extrapolating data on traffic levels and assume that growth will

remain either constant in absolute terms i.e. a fixed number of vehicles per

year, or

➢ Constant in relative terms i.e. a fixed percentage increase.

 ➢ Growth rate can also be related linearly to anticipated Gross Domestic Product

(GDP).

▪ Diverted Traffic: Traffic that changes from another route (or mode of transport) to the

project road because of the improved pavement, but still travels between the same origin

and destination. Origin and destination surveys (O/D survey) should preferably be carried

out to provide data on the traffic diversions likely to arise.

▪ Generated Traffic:

• Additional traffic which occurs in response to the provision or improvement of the

road.

• It may arise either because a journey becomes more attractive by virtue of a cost

or time reduction or because of the increased development that is brought about by

the road investment.

• Generated traffic is also difficult to forecast accurately and can be easily

overestimated.

• From thorough analysis of economic, social and development trends, determine

overall growth rate r for all vehicle categories or separate growth rate for each

vehicle category.

Axle Load Survey

• Carried out together with the traffic count

• Portable vehicle(wheel) weighing devices or weigh in motion (WIM) devices can be used

for survey

• Each axle of the vehicle is weighed and EALF computed for each axle
• Each axle of a tandem axle or tridem axle assembly is considered as one repetition and

EALF calculated for each axle i.e. a tandem axle constitutes 2 load repetitions and a tridem

axle constitutes 3 load repetitions. (According to ERA Pavement design manual).

• AASHTO pavement design procedure considers each passage of a tandem or tridem axle

assembly as one repetition and EALF calculated correspondingly.

Truck factor

Truck factor can be computed for each vehicle by summing up the number of ESAL per

vehicle. Average truck factor can be computed for each vehicle category (for example for

Buses, Light Trucks, Medium Trucks, etc.), by summing up the ESAL of all the vehicles in

each category and dividing by the number of vehicles (of that category) weighed:

Where TFi = Truck factor for the ith vehicle category

n = number of vehicles weighed (of the ith vehicle category) during the axle load survey

ESALj = number of equivalent standard axle loads for the jth vehicle.

Design Traffic Loading

The data and parameters obtained from the studies discussed in the preceding sections can now

be used to estimate the design cumulative design traffic volume and loading.

1. Adjustment for Lane and Directional Distribution of Traffic: the AADT should be

adjusted as follows :
 • Lane Distribution Factor (P): accounts for the proportion of commercial vehicles in the

design lane. For two lane highways, the lane in each direction is the design lane, so the lane

distribution factor is 100%. For multilane highways, the design lane is the heavily loaded

lane (outside lane).

• Directional Distribution Factor (D): factor that accounts for any directional variation in

total traffic volume or loading pattern. It is usually 0.5 (50%). However, could be adjusted

based on actual condition (if there is directional tendency to commercial vehicle

distribution (volume or loading); for example, if the heavy vehicles in one direction are

loaded and come back empty in the other direction).

2. Calculating (AADT)1

AADT1 = Annual Average Daily Traffic (both directions) at year of Road Opening (year at which

construction works are completed and the whole road is made open for traffic).

• If time between traffic count year (design time) and estimated year of road opening = x, then

Note that AADT1 is used as the Design Traffic Parameter for Gravel Roads (ERA Pavement

Design Manual)

3. Cumulative Traffic Volume (T) :can be computed for all traffic (T) or for each vehicle

class (Ti)

Ti = 365*(P) *(D)*AADT1i*[(1+ri)N – 1] / ( ri )

Ti = cumulative volume of traffic for the ith commercial vehicle class in the design lane over the

design period (adjusted for lane distribution and direction).

ri = annual growth rate for the ith commercial vehicle class

P = Lane distribution factor;

D = Directional distribution factor N = Design Period in years

3. Design Traffic (Cumulative Equivalent Standard Axle Load - CESAL) – is computed

by multiplying the total traffic volume for each vehicle category (Ti) by its corresponding

truck factor (TFi)

Design Traffic Load = CESAL=∑(Ti x TFi)

Summery Questions

1. List the traffic factors that are directly consider in pavement design.

2. What are the special parameters used to find the equivalency factors of axle load for

Rigid pavement but not flexible pavement.

3. CESAL is the one design parameters of Gravel Road. (True/ False?).

 4. The dominant flexible pavement failure criteria is fatigue cracking according to ERA

Pavement design manual(True /False?).

5. If there is no neighbour road around new constructed road, which type of traffic source

will be zero.

6. The following traffic survey data has been given as follows in table below. The average

seasonal factor of all vehicle type is 0.31. The growth rate is 6.2% for all type of

vehicle. The design period of the road is 15 years which will begin service after 3 years.

Day//VT Monday(16.hr.) Tuesday(16hr.) Wednesday(16hr.) Thursday Friday(24.hr) Saturday(24.hr) Sunday Repetitive No.

mean Axle axle

load

PC 240 235 180 189 260 240 160 600KG 2

Bus 40 35 40 40 40 40 40 1200KG 3

S.Truck 123 125 128 211 112 36 28 180KG 2

M.Truck 24 35 18 21 11 12 18 240KG 3

L.Truck 4 8 24 8 16 17 2 280KG 4

TT 11 21 23 19 24 36 1 340KG 6

6.1. Determine average night time factor.

6.2. Calculate ADT and AADT

6.3. Determine Track factor and which traffic class belong to.

Chapter Three

Subgrade (Soil) Material

The subgrade constitutes the foundation material for the pavement structure as highway pavements

ultimately rest on the native soil (subgrade). Hence the performance of the pavement is affected

by the characteristics of the subgrade. And one of the major functions of a highway pavement is
to reduce the stresses transmitted to the subgrade to a level which the soil will accept without

significant deformation. Soil is also used as construction materials for highway construction (fill,

capping layer, subbase, etc.).

Soil Survey and Site Investigation

A soil survey forms an essential part of the preliminary engineering survey for a road and its

purpose is to furnish the design engineer with all required information regarding the soil and

ground water condition so that a rational and economical design can be obtained. The information

most often required from soil investigation include depth, thickness, and properties of each soil

layer (the characteristics of the soil profile), location of groundwater table, and availability of

suitable local construction materials.

Information obtained from the soil survey enables to make decision on one or more of the

following design requirements:

✓ stability of the proposed location, both horizontally and vertically, and thereby selection of

roadway alignment;

✓ suitability of local materials for use as a construction material for embankments and

pavement layers;

✓ subsurface and surface drainage requirements;

✓ need for treatment of subgrade and type of treatment required;

✓ thickness of pavement required; and

✓ design of foundations for bridges and other structures.

The soil investigation work involves the following steps:

 I. Desk study: refers to work taken up prior to commencing the ground investigation. It is

the first step in any soil survey work and involves the collection and review of existing

information on the general soil characteristics of the area in which the highway is to be

located. Most of the time these studies supported by secondary data such as geological

map.

II. Site Reconnaissance: The data inferred above is normally supplemented with field

reconnaissance survey to assess or visually inspect actual soil condition and any problems

to be anticipated (may involve collection of few samples and field/laboratory testing). This

is a walk over survey of the site involving visual inspection of alignment soils and other

pertinent geotechnical, topographic and hydrologic/hydraulic features. The information

gained from the desk study and reconnaissance will be used in the successive screening

and final selection of the most suitable route alignment. Also, it will be used to plan type

and extent of subsequent detail field/laboratory investigation required.

III. Detail Investigation (Ground investigation and laboratory testing): This

will involve obtaining and investigating enough soil samples along the selected route,

carrying out field tests as required, transporting the sampled soils to a central laboratory

and laboratory testing. The results of the investigation will be used to characterize the

different soil types along the road and map their boundaries (homogeneous sections), and

derive pertinent design parameters required – deformation parameters (E), shear strength

parameters (C, ), empirical design parameters (CBR), and index property of the soil.

❖ The field investigation and sampling are carried out by the following methods:

• Test pits or trenches,

• Hand augers
 • Boring test holes and sampling with drill rigs

• Geophysical methods (Seismic or electrical)

❖ The routine tests normally carried out on subgrade soils include:

• Soil classification and index tests: gradation, Atterberg limits, moisture content;

• Compaction and Strength tests: compaction test (standard or modified), CBR test

• Field tests (on existing road): field density and moisture content, DCP test

Subgrade Soil Laboratory Test

The subgrade (the foundation material) must possess sufficient strength and stiffness to provide

adequate support for the pavement structure and associated traffic load, without shear failure or

excessive deformation.

General desirable properties of a subgrade soil (or any foundation material) include: Stability:

good strength and stiffness under adverse loading and climatic (moisture) conditions,

incompressibility, good drainage properties, ease of compaction, volume stability (no/minimum

shrink / swell characteristics with change in moisture content).

Gradation Test

The type of soil can be described in terms of the particle sizes present. The particles in soil may

range from granular fractions (boulders and cobbles - >75mm in size, Gravels 75 – 4.75mm in

size; Sand – 4.75 – 0.075mm) to fine fractions which are too small to measure directly (silt –

0.075mm – 0.002mm & clay - < 0.002mm and colloids - <0.001mm in size). Gradation test is

conducted in order to obtain the maximum size and the grain size distribution of particles in the

soil. It is expressed in terms of particles by weight finer than specified sizes.

Gradation test (sieve Analysis) is carried out for soil particles larger than 0.075(0.063) mm.

Sedimentation tests (Hydrometer test) is conducted for smaller (finer) particles.

Depending on the sample at hand, different types of gradation tests may be carried out:

• Dry Sieve Analysis (for pure coarse or granular materials without fines)

• Wet sieve analysis with/without sedimentation test on the fine fractions (for mixture of course-and fine-grained

soils) and

• Hydrometer analysis (for fine grained soils).

The gradation of soils influences many properties of the soil such as density/compatibility,

strength/stability/deformability, voids content, permeability, etc. Also, particle shape, mineral

composition and degree of compaction have an effect on the above properties.

Atterberg Limit

Soils containing clay exhibit a property called plasticity. Plasticity is the ability of a material to be

molded (irreversibly deformed) without fracturing. This behavior is unique to clays and arises due

to the electrochemical behavior of clay minerals.

The stiffness or consistency of fine-grained soils depends on their moisture content, and varies

with variations in the amount of moisture present. Depending on its moisture content, a soil can

exist in one of the following states: viscous liquid, plastic solid, semi solid and solid. Atterberg

proposed a series of tests for the determination of the consistency properties/states of fine-grained

soils. Atterberg limits define the moisture contents at which the soil changes from one state to

another.

These include the liquid limit (LL), the plastic limit (PL), shrinkage limit (SL). They are

determined by tests carried out on the fine soil fraction passing the 425μm (No. 40) sieve.

Liquid limit (AASHTO T89) may be defined as the minimum water content at which the soil will

start to flow under the application of a standard shearing force (dynamic loading).
Plastic limit (AASHTO T90) – measure of toughness – the moisture content at which the soil

begins to fracture when rolled into a 3mm diameter thread.

Shrinkage limit 9AASHTO T92) is the maximum moisture content after which further reduction

in water content does not cause reduction in volume. It is the lowest water content at which a

clayey soil can occur in a saturated state.

Plasticity index (PI=LL-PL) is the numerical difference between the liquid and plastic limits.

Thus, it indicates the range of moisture content over which the soil remains deformable (in plastic

state).

Another index that is used to reflect the properties of the natural soil is the liquid index (LI) and is

defined as:

where, wn is the natural moisture content of the soil.

Consistency limits and the plasticity index are used in the identification and classification of soils.

Generally, soils having high values of liquid limit and plasticity index are poor as

subgrades/engineering materials. Both the liquid limit and plastic limit depend on the type and

amount of clay in the soils. In soils having same values of liquid limit, but with different values of

plasticity index; it is generally found that rate of volume change and dry strength increases and

permeability decreases with increase in plasticity index. On the other hand, in soils having same

values of plasticity index but different values of liquid limit, it is seen that compressibility and

permeability increase, and dry strength decreases with increase in liquid limit. Soils that cannot be

rolled to a thread at any water content are termed as Non-Plastic (NP).

Compaction Test
Compaction is the process by which air is excluded from a soil mass to bring the particles closer

together and thus increase its density (dry density).The state of compaction of a soil is

appropriately expressed in terms of the dry density (d) which is a measure of the state of packing

of soil particles.

In-situ soils (foundation soils) in highway construction or other structures, and imported soils used

in embankments, subbases, bases in roads or other types of construction projects are placed in

layers and compacted to a higher density. Increasing the density of a soil improves its strength,

lowers its permeability, and reduces deformability (settlement, volume change). Compaction is

achieved in the field by using hand-operated tampers, sheep-foot rollers, rubber-tired rollers, or

other types of rollers.

The maximum density achieved because of compaction with rollers, and other types of compaction

equipment is measured in the field and compared with the maximum dry density of the soil

previously determined in laboratory compaction tests. This is the most common method of quality

control at construction sites.

If a loose soil is compacted by the application of a fixed amount of energy, then the dry density

achieved is related to the moisture content. The moisture-density relationship of soils was first

studied by Procter, and the test is sometimes known as Procter test. The dry density that can be

obtained by compaction varies with the moisture content, type of soil being compacted, and the

compaction effort.

It can be seen from this relationship that for a given compactive effort, the dry density of a soil

will vary with its water content. At low moisture content, the soil is dry and stiff and friction

between adjacent particles prevents/limits relative movement between particles to assume denser

configuration. As water is added, larger films of water form around the particles, causing
lubrication effects and facilitating relative movements between particles to assume denser

configuration (high density of soil mass). Thus, the density increases and the air content decreases

as the moisture increases. At some moisture content, the soil attains the maximum practical degree

of saturation (S<100%). The degree of saturation, S, cannot be increase further due to entrapped

air in the void spaces and around the particles. Hence any further addition of water will result in

the voids being overfilled with water causing separation of particles and reduction of density (the

additional water taking the space of the solid particles). The moisture content at which maximum

dry density is obtained is known as optimum moisture content (OMC). At moisture content higher

than the OMC, the air and water in the soil mass tend to keep particles apart and prevent

compaction. The dry density at higher moisture contents than OMC, thus, decreases and the total

voids increase.

Soil type and gradation heavily affect the density that can be achieved by compaction. Granular,

well graded soils generally have fairly high maximum densities at lower optimum moisture

contents, while clayey soils have lower densities and higher OMC. The edge-to-side bonds

between clay particles resist compactive efforts preventing attainment of denser structure. With

granular soils, the more well graded soils have spaces between large particles that are filled with

smaller particles when compacted, leading to a higher density than with uniform or poorly graded

soils.

Laboratory compaction test: is a standard method of compaction using a standard amount of

compactive effort to produce a soil density against which site density values can be compared. The

original test involved compacting the soil in three approximately equal layers in a standard mould,

using a 2.5kg hammer falling through a height of 305mm (standard compaction test). However,

with the advent of heavier compaction equipment, greater densities were now achievable in the
field. A modified version of the test was developed to allow the application of greater compactive

effort (and achieve greater density) – i.e., compacting the soil of the same height in five

approximately equal layers using a 4.5kg hammer falling through 457mm height (modified or

heavy compaction test).

The soil sample is first air dried and sieved (usually through the 4.75-mm (No.4) sieve or 19mm

sieve), mixed thoroughly with water and then compacted in layers. The mass of the compacted

sample is measured (W), and a small sample taken to measure the corresponding moisture content

(w)

The bulk density of the soil for each trial is obtained by dividing the weight of the soil by the total

volume (γb=W/V). The dry density of the soil is determined by:

Field density test

Since the compatibility of soils varies considerably, the construction requirements for roads are

usually specified as a percentage of the maximum dry density found in a laboratory compaction

test for each soil type encountered on the project. For example, a project specification might

require that the soil be compacted to 95% of the maximum dry density found by the standard

compaction test. Quality control of compaction on a construction project involves conducting

standard field compaction tests on each soil type and constructed layer after compaction, and

comparing the result with the laboratory maximum dry density value for the soil, to ascertain if

the specifications have been met. If the maximum dry density from the test was 2000 kg/m3 at an
optimum water content of 11%, the required field density would be 95% of 2000, or 1900 kg/m3.

The moisture content of the soil should be as close as possible to 11%, which reduces the required

compactive effort (for example, number of passes of the roller). Field density tests are made using

either destructive or nondestructive methods.

• Destructive methods: the simplest is the core-cutter method. This method can be used

only on cohesive soils free from coarse-grained material. It involves driving a hollow metal

cylinder, which has a cutting edge, into the soil to remove an undistributed sample on which

dry density and moisture content determinations can be made. The other commonly used

methods are the Sand Replacement method and Rubber Balloon method. In these methods,

a sample of compacted material is dug out of a test hole in the soil layer whose density is

being checked. The bulk mass of the soil removed is immediately weighed (making sure

that it does not loose any moisture) and the sample transported to the laboratory for

measuring the moisture content or the oven dried mass. The volume originally occupied by

the sample (the test hole) is then measured. The two methods differ in the method used to

measure the volume of the test hole. In the rubber balloon method, the volume is

determined by forcing a liquid-filled balloon into the test hole. The rubber membrane

allows the fluid to fill all the cavities in the test hole. The volume of fluid required to do

this is read on a scale on the apparatus. In the sand replacement method (using a sand cone

apparatus), the weight of a standard dry sand (Ws), of known unit weight, γs, required to

fill the test hole is measured. The volume of the test hole is then determined from the known

unit weight of the sand as follows:

• The quick and nondestructive method of measuring the in situ density and moisture

content of the compacted soil is the nuclear method. Using the nuclear equipment, the

density is obtained by measuring the scatter of gamma radiation by the soil particles since

the amount of rays is proportional to the bulk density of the soil. The moisture content is

also obtained by measuring the scatter of neutrons emitted in the soil due to the presence

of hydrogen atoms. The detector in the nuclear equipment measures the amount of rays and

the neutrons that passes through the soil, and thus the density and the moisture content can

be calculated.

California Bearing Ratio (CBR) Test

It is an empirical test used for evaluating the stability or strength of subgrade soil and other

flexible pavement materials for pavement design. The CBR values obtained from either

laboratory tests or in-situ (field tests) have been correlated with flexible pavement

thickness requirements for highways and airfields.

In this test, a plunger is made to penetrate the soil, which is compacted to the prevalent dry

density and moisture content anticipated in the field (or to MDD and OMC as specified) in

a standard mould (CBR) mould at a specified rate of penetration. The resulting load-

penetration curve is compared with that obtained for a standard crushed rock material,

which is considered an excellent base course material.

Depending upon the prevailing climatic conditions of the site, the compacted specimens

are immersed in water for four days before the penetration test. The soaking process is to

simulate the worst moisture condition of the soil that may occur in the field. During this

period, the sample is loaded with a surcharge load that simulates the estimated weight of

pavement layers over the material tested. Any swell due to soaking is also measured.
 The CBR is then determined by reading off from the curve the load that causes a penetration

of 2.54 mm and dividing this value by the standard load (13.34kN) required to produce the

same penetration in the standard crushed stone as

Similarly, the CBR at 5.08 mm penetration is obtained by dividing the load causing a penetration

of 5.08 mm with the standard load of 20kN required to produce the same penetration in standard

crushed stone. The CBR corresponding to 2.54mm penetration is normally greater than that at

5.08mm pen., and is accepted as the CBR of the soil (provided that it is greater than that obtained

at 5.08mm penetration). AASHTO T193 test procedure stipulates that, if the CBR at 5.08 mm pen.

is greater than that at 2.54mm pen., the entire test should be repeated on a fresh sample. If the 5.08

mm pen. CBR in the repeat test is still greater, then it is accepted as the CBR of the soil.

Resilient Modulus Test

The resilient modulus has recently been accepted as the most representative test for soils and

aggregates under highway loading conditions. Stress in pavements is due to repeated moving

wheel loads, and hence this test simulates the soil under a series of load applications. The resilient

modulus, MR, is the elastic modulus obtained from repetitive load test that simulates the actual

pavement loading. It is calculated as the ratio of the imposed repeated deviator stress (σd) to the

recoverable axial strain εr.

Soil stabilization

Soil stabilization involves the use of stabilizing agents (binder materials) in weak soils to improve

its geotechnical properties such as compressibility, strength, permeability and durability. The
components of stabilization technology include soils and or soil minerals and stabilizing agent or

binders (cementitious materials).

Stabilization: Stabilization is the process of blending and mixing materials with a soil to improve

certain properties of the soil. The process may include the blending of soils to achieve a desired

gradation or the mixing of commercially available additives that may alter the gradation, texture

or plasticity, or act as a binder for cementation of the soil.

Modification: Modification refers to the stabilization process that results in improvement in some

property of the soil but does not by design result in a significant increase in soil strength and

durability.

Most of stabilization has to be undertaken in soft soils (silty, clayey peat or organic soils) in order

to achieve desirable engineering properties. Because, fine grained granular materials are the easiest

to stabilize due to their large surface area in relation to their particle diameter. A clay soil compared

to others has a large surface area due to flat and elongated particle shapes. On the other hand, silty

materials can be sensitive to small change in moisture and, therefore, may prove difficult during

stabilization. Peat soils and organic soils are rich in water content of up to about 2000%, high

porosity and high organic content. The consistency of peat soil can vary from muddy to fibrous,

and in most cases, the deposit is shallow, but in worst cases, it can extend to several meters below

the surface. Organic soils have high exchange capacity; it can hinder the hydration process by

retaining the calcium ions liberated during the hydration of calcium silicate and calcium aluminate

in the cement to satisfy the exchange capacity. In such soils, successful stabilization has to depend

on the proper selection of binder and amount of binder added.

Use of Stabilization for pavement Material

Pavement design is based on the premise that minimum specified structural quality will be

achieved for each layer of material in the pavement system. Each layer must resist shearing, avoid

excessive deflections that cause fatigue cracking within the layer or in overlying layers, and

prevent excessive permanent deformation through densification. As the quality of a soil layer is

increased, the ability of that layer to distribute the load over a greater area is generally increased

so that a reduction in the required thickness of the soil and surface layers may be permitted.

Quality improvement: The most common improvements achieved through stabilization

include better soil gradation, reduction of plasticity index or swelling potential, and increases in

durability and strength. In wet weather, stabilization may also be used to provide a working

platform for construction operations. These types of soil quality improvement are referred to as

soil modification.

Thickness reduction. The strength and stiffness of a soil layer can be improved through the

use of additives to permit a reduction in design thickness of the stabilized material compared with

an unstabilized or unbound material. The design thickness strength, stability, and durability

requirements of a base or subbase course can be reduced if further analysis indicates suitability.

FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED.

In the selection of a stabilizer, the factors that must be considered are the type of soil to be

stabilized, the purpose for which the stabilized layer will be used, the type of soil improvement

desired, the required strength and durability of the stabilized layer, and the cost and environmental

conditions.

Method of Soil Stabilization

Soil stabilization methods can be divided into two categories, namely, mechanical and chemical.

Mechanical stabilization.

1. Mechanical stabilization: is the blending of different grades of soils to obtain a required

gradation requirement

2. Chemical Stabilization: is the blending of the natural soil with chemical agents. Several

blending agents have been used to obtain different effects. The most commonly used agents

are Portland cement, asphalt binders, and lime.

Lime Stabilization

In general, all lime treated fine-grained soils exhibit decreased plasticity, improved workability and reduced

volume change characteristics. However, not all soils exhibit improved strength characteristics. It should be

emphasized that the properties of soil-lime mixtures are dependent on many variables. Soil type, lime type,

lime percentage and curing conditions (time, temperature, moisture) are the most important.

Slaked lime is very effective in treating heavy plastic clayey soils. Lime may be used alone or in combination

with cement, bitumen or fly ash. Sandy soils can also be stabilized with these combinations. Lime has been

mainly used for stabilizing the road bases and the subgrade. The addition of lime leads to increase the strength

and durability of soil. Normally 2 to 8% of lime may be required for coarse grained soils and 5 to 8% of lime

may be required for plastic soils. The amount of fly ash as admixture may vary from 8 to 20% of the weight

of the soil. Experience has shown that lime reacts with medium-, moderately fine-, and fine-grained soils to

produce decreased plasticity, increased workability and strength, and reduced swell. Soils classified according

to the USCS as (CH), (CL), (MH), (ML), (SC), (SM), (GC), (GM), (SW-SC), (SP-SC), (SMSC), (GW-GC),

(GP-GC), and (GM-GC) should be considered as potentially capable of being stabilized with lime.

Cement Stabilization
Portland cement can be used either to modify and improve the quality of the soil or to transform

the soil into a cemented mass with increased strength and durability. The amount of cement used

will depend upon whether the soil is to be modified or stabilized. The cementing action is believed

to be the result of chemical reactions of cement with siliceous soil during hydration reaction. The

important factors affecting the soil cement are nature of soil content, conditions of mixing,

compaction, curing and admixtures used.

Cement content for modification of soils

✓ Improve plasticity. The amount of cement required to improve the quality of the soil

through modification is determined by the trial-and-error approach. If it is desired to reduce

the PI of the soil, successive samples of soil-cement mixtures must be prepared at different

treatment levels and the PI of each mixture determined.

✓ Improve gradation. If the objective of modification is to improve the gradation of a

granular soil through the addition of fines, then particle-size analysis (ASTM D 422)

should be conducted on samples at various treatment levels to determine the minimum

acceptable cement content.

✓ Reduce swell potential: small amounts of Portland cements may reduce swell potential of

some swelling soils. However, Portland cement generally is not as effective as lime and

may be considered too expensive for this application. The determination of cement content

to reduce the swell potential of fine-g-rained plastic soils can be accomplished by molding

several samples at various cement contents and soaking the specimens along with untreated

specimens for 4 days. The lowest cement content that eliminates the swell potential or

reduces the swell characteristics to the minimum is the design cement content. The cement

content determined to accomplish soil modification should be checked to see whether it

 provides an unconfined compressive strength great enough to qualify for a reduced

thickness design in accordance with criteria established for soil stabilization.

✓ Frost areas: Cement-modified soil may also be used in frost areas, but in addition to the

procedures for mixture design described in items (1) and (2) above, cured specimens should

be subjected to the 12 freeze-thaw cycles prescribed by ASTM D 560 (but omitting wire-

brushing) or other applicable freeze-thaw procedures. This should be followed by

determination of frost design soil classification by means of standard laboratory freezing

tests. If cement-modified soil is used as subgrade, its frost susceptibility, determined after

freeze-thaw cycling, should be used as the basis of the pavement thickness design if the

reduced subgrade design method is applied. The procedure for stabilizing soils with cement

involves:

i. Pulverizing the soil

ii. Mixing the required quantity of cement with the pulverized soil

iii. Compacting the soil cement mixture

iv. Curing the compacted layer

Bitumen Stabilization

Bitumen Stabilization is carried out to achieve one or both of the following purpose:

Waterproofing of natural materials and or binding of natural materials.

✓ Waterproofing the natural material through asphalt stabilization aids in maintaining the

water content at a required level by providing a membrane that impedes the penetration

of water, thereby reducing the effect of any surface water that may enter the soil when it

is used as a base course. In addition, surface water is prevented from seeping into the

subgrade, which protects the subgrade from failing due to increase in moisture content.
 ✓ Binding improves the durability characteristics of the natural soil by providing an
adhesive characteristic, whereby the soil particles adhere to each other, increasing

cohesion.

Questions.

1. Which method of soil sampling method have been used to extract soils for visual inspection

purpose only.

2. Which soil investigation method is feasible to investigate the foundation soil for the

proposed bridge location.

3. What is the desirable property of subgrade soil of flexible pavement structure?

4. Which property of soil are affected by the gradation of soil?

5. List the corresponding gradation test of coarse grain soil and fine-grained soil?

6. Put the soil type in their increasing order of plasticity based on the given data as shown in

table below.

7. Determine the state of each soil type based on the given data below if the natural water

content of all soil type is 30%.

CONSISTENCY
SOIL A SOIL B SOIL C SOIL D
LIMITS

Wl 34% 50% 48% 44%

Wp 15% 18% 12% 20%

8. Soil compacted at optimum moisture content reduces swelling of the soil.

A: True B: False

9. Determine the modified CBR value of the specimen at 2.54 mm penetration if the dial

reading obtained from the graph is 40 divisions and 100 division of load dial represents

200 kg load in the calibration chart of proving ring.

10. What does CBR stand for?

11. Which of the below materials are used to construct subgrade more frequently?

A. Bitumen

B. Cement

C. Soil

D. Aggregate

12. Which of the below is a function of the subgrade?

A. Distribute wheel load

B. Support wheel load

C. Provide binding

D. Ensure drainage

13. Which one of the following is better subgrade material according to AASHTO soil

classification system.

A: A1(20) B: A2(8) C: A2(0) D: None

14. In standard proctor teste, 1.8 kg of bulk soil was filled the mould (volume=940cc) after

compaction. A soil sample weighing 23g was taken from mould and oven dried for 24hr at

temperature of 110oc . Weight of the dry sample was found to be 20g and specific gravity
 of soil solids is G=2.7. Determine both the dry density and theoretical maximum dry

density of the compaction.

Chapter Four

1.0. Unbound Granular Pavement Material

Pavement design requires the efficient use of locally available materials if economically

constructed roads are to be built. Unbound granular materials are pavement materials without

binder and cementing paste.

Granular materials (aggregates): which includes crushed rock aggregates obtained from hard

rock sources, natural (pit-run) gravels, gravel-sand-soil mixtures either as dug or semi-processed

(i.e., screening, crushing of oversized stones, mixing with other materials (mechanical

stabilization) and other artificial or modified materials. Granular materials (aggregates) make up

the bulk (by volume and weight) of the pavement structure and are used in different layers of

pavement structure. They may be used alone or in combination with various types of cementing

materials. They provide a number of functions depending on the layer in which they are used. In

general, they have to be stable and hard to carry the loads by traffic and construction equipment

without failure, excessive deformation and other undue effects, they have to be able to resist wear

due to abrasion by traffic and they have to be durable to resist undue environmental effects (like

freezing and thawing, moisture variations (wetting and drying). The manner in which they do so

depends on the inherent properties and qualities of the individual particles and on the means by

which they are held together (i.e., interlocking, binders, or both). In Gravel Roads, soil-aggregates

form the entire pavement structure; have to be well graded to furnish adequate stability (strength
and stiffness) to carry traffic stresses, should possess adequate number of fines and plasticity of

fines to bind the coarse aggregates.

Subbase aggregates in flexible pavements are specified mainly by their gradation: -to furnish

adequate load-bearing capacity to carry construction traffic and further reduce traffic stresses on

subgrade, prevent the intrusion of fine particles (filtration as required), improve the subsurface

drainage characteristics of the roadway, etc.

Base layer aggregates should have such properties and be graded in such a manner that they have

high stability (strength and stiffness), which is the factor of primary importance. Base layers may

also be used for subsurface drainage.

Base/Subbase Aggregates, under rigid pavements, are not specified mainly by their loadbearing

capacity, but emphasis is also placed on achieving a gradation which will prevent pumping of the

subgrade or intrusion of frost-susceptible materials while at the same time improving the

subsurface drainage characteristics of the roadway.

In high-quality bituminous road surfacing, aggregates comprise of up to about 95 per cent of

the weight of the surfacing. The surfacing aggregates should have adequate stability (as they are

primarily responsible for any load-carrying capacity which the surfacing may have); must be

resistant to abrasion and durable (resistant to adverse weather conditions). Although there are very

many types of bituminous surfacing, in general, the ideal aggregates should have adequate strength

and toughness, ability to crush into chunky particles, free from dust, unduly thin and elongated

particles, and hydrophilic (water loving) characteristics, and should have particle size and

gradation appropriate to the type of construction. These criteria are also important for concrete,

particularly those relating to particle shape and size distribution, since they affect water

requirements and workability of concrete mixes as well as other important concrete properties.
A wide range of materials can be used as unbound base and subbase courses including crushed

quarried rock, crushed and screened, mechanically stabilized, modified or naturally occurring “as

dug” or “pit run” gravels. Their suitability for use depends primarily on the design traffic level of

the pavement and climate. However, such materials must have a particle size distribution and

particle shape which provides high mechanical stability and should contain sufficient fines

(amount of material passing the 0.425 mm sieve) to produce a dense material when compacted.

The use of locally available materials is encouraged, particularly at low traffic volumes. Their

use should be based on the results of performance studies and should incorporate any special

design features which ensure their satisfactory performance.

2.1. Source of Aggregate

Hard rock sources (crushed quarried rock) – hard sound bed rock exposures that need blasting

and crushing

Naturally occurring gravels – which includes alluvial deposits, and highly weathered and

fractured residual formations. These may be used as is (pit-run) or may need further processing to

be suitable for use such as crushing oversized stones and screening and/or other modifications such

as mechanical stabilization.

Crushed aggregates: Hard rocks are important sources of aggregates. There are different types

of rocks, all composed of grains of crystalline minerals held together in a variety of ways. The

Property of a rock depends upon the properties of its constituent minerals and nature of bond

between them (i.e., composition, grain size and texture of the rock) which in turn depends on its

mode of origin. Geologists classify rocks into three major types according to their mode of

origin/formation. These are Igneous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic rocks.

Natural sand and gravel pits have been used extensively as sources of road aggregates. Sand or
gravel pit is first stripped of topsoil, vegetation, and other unsuitable material from the surface of

the deposit to obtain pit run materials. The material obtained is loose, and is usually excavated

with power shovels or front-end loaders. Often it is crushed, especially if there are cobbles or

boulders in the deposit. The smaller sizes go through the crusher without change, whereas larger

particles are broken down to the desired size. Crushed gravel, as this is called, is a high-quality

aggregate used for many purposes. Sand or gravel deposits might be composed of many different

types of mineral particles-such as limestone, sandstone, and granite--depending on the original

bedrock source of the particles.

Recycled material: the use of pulverized concrete from pavements, sidewalks, and buildings

being demolished is growing in other countries both due to the increased cost of natural

aggregates and the desire to recycle rather than landfill these materials. Recycled concrete is

crushed, processed, and used as base material and in concrete and asphalt paving mixtures.

Asphalt pavements can be recycled and reused in pavements. Pulverized asphalt mixtures are

also used as aggregates in base courses, but the proportion may be limited to about 30-50% as

the strength of the layer can be reduced due to the lubricating effect of the asphalt film on the

particles. Aggregates produced from bedrock are obtained from quarries. Aggregate production

involves extraction (blasting and breaking to pieces), crushing (reduction to size using

compression/impact crushers) and screening. After stripping and opening the quarry, holes are

drilled from the surface. Then dynamite is placed and detonated in these holes to break the rock

into sizes that can be transported. The rock is then fed to crushers which reduce it (crush it) to

the required sizes in various types of rock crushers. The aggregates are then screened to the

various required sizes.

2.2. Basic Tests Conducted on Aggregate

Aggregates are obtained from different sources and consequently differ considerably in their

constitutions; inevitably they differ also with regard to their engineering properties. The properties

of aggregate that are important for road construction include its cleanliness (Contamination with

dust and other deleterious materials), particle size and shape, gradation, toughness - resistance to

crushing, wearing/abrasion resistance, durability/soundness, specific gravity and water absorption,

surface texture, tendency to polish, bonding property with bitumen. Aggregate tests are necessary

to determine the suitability of the material for a specific use and to make sure that the required

properties are consistently within specification limits. The following sub-sections discuss

important tests of aggregates and their significance of application:

2.2.1. Particle Size and Shape Test

Gradation test: Gradation is the characteristic of aggregates on which perhaps the greatest

stress is placed in specifications for highway bases, cement concretes, and asphalt mixes. Hence,

gradation test, also called sieve analysis, screen analysis or mechanical analysis, is the most

common test performed on aggregates to evaluate the suitability of the aggregate materials with

respect to their grain size distribution for a specific use. Gradation is determined by separating

the aggregates into portions, which are retained on a number of sieves or screens having specified

openings, which are suitably graded from coarse to fine. The results obtained may be expressed

either as total percentage passing or retained on each sieve or as the percentages retained between

successive sieves. The theoretical maximum density of aggregates is obtained when the grain size

distribution follow the Fuller maximum density equation of the form

in which, p is the percent passing sieve size "d", "D' represents the maximum aggregate size in

the material, and n is a constant which varies between 0.45 and 0.5 for maximum density. The

assumption in this relationship is that the voids between the larger particles are filled with still

smaller particles, until the smallest voids are filled with a small amount of fines. Strength, or

resistance to shear failure, in road bases and other aggregate layers that carry load is increased

greatly if the mixture is dense graded. The larger particles are in contact with each other,

developing frictional resistance to shearing failure, and tightly bound together due to the

interlocking effect of the smaller particles. When aggregate particles are to be bound together by

cement or bitumen, a variation in the grading of an aggregate will result in a change in the amount

of binder required to produce a material of given stability and quality. Proper aggregate grading

contributes to the uniformity, workability and plasticity of the material as it is mixed. Often the

fines content must be limited, because they are relatively weak, and require an excessive amount

of binder to cover them. If fines are present as dust on larger particles, they weaken the bond

between the cement and those particles. Fines in highway bases may lead to drainage and frost-

heaving problems. Also, excessive amounts of fines may result in weak mixtures, as the large

particles are not in contact with each other. The strength of the mixture would then depend only

on friction between the small particles, which is much less than between large particles. In practice,

the required gradation is not found naturally, particularly, if the aggregates are pit-run materials.

In such cases, combining two or more aggregates of different sources satisfies the graduation

requirement for a specific use.

Aggregate Crushing Value (ACV) Test. Aggregate crushing test evaluates the resistance

of aggregates against the gradually applied load. The test is used to evaluate the crushing strength
of available supplies of rock, and in construction, to make sure that minimum specified values are

maintained. The test is undertaken using a metal plunger to apply gradually a standard load of

400kN to a sample of the aggregate (10 – 14 mm) contained in a standard test mould. The amount

of material passing 2.36 mm sieve in percentage of the total weight of the sample is referred to as

the Aggregate Crushing value (ACV). Over the range of normal road making aggregates, ACVs

vary from 5 percent for hard aggregates to 30 percent for weaker aggregates. For weaker

aggregates than this, the same apparatus is used to evaluate the Ten Percent Fines value i.e. the

load which produces 10 percent of fines passing 2.36 mm sieve. The value is obtained by

interpolating of the percentage of fines produced over a range of test loads.

Aggregate Impact Test. This test is a means of evaluating the resistance of aggregates to

sudden impact loading. It is carried out by filling a steel test mould with a sample of aggregate (10

– 14 mm) and then the impact load applied is by dropping hammer at a height of 380 mm. The

Aggregate Impact Value (AIV) is the percentage of fines passing 2.36 mm sieve after 15 blows.

This test produces results that are normally about 105 per cent of the ACV and it can be used for

the same purposes. Both tests give results which are sufficiently repeatable and reproducible for

contract specifications.

Abrasion Test. Abrasion test is the test used to know how the aggregate is sufficiently hard to

resist the abrasive effect of traffic over its service life. The most widely used abrasion test is the

Los Angeles Abrasion Test which involves the use of a steel drum, revolving on horizontal axis,

into which the test sample of chippings is loaded together with steel balls of 46.8 mm diameter.

The Los Angeles Abrasion Value (LAV) is the percentage of fines passing the 1.7 mm sieve

after a specified number of revolutions of the drum at specified speed. The drum is fitted with

internal baffles causing the aggregate and the steel balls to be lifted and then fall as the drum
revolves. The test therefore gives an indication of the impact strength in combination with the

abrasion resistance of the aggregate. For bituminous surface dressings, chippings with an ACV

less than 30 are desirable and the stronger they are the more durable will be the dressings. With

premixed bituminous materials and with crushed stone bases, high mechanical strength, though

useful, is not always of paramount importance. The repeatability and reproducibility of this test

are satisfactory and appropriate for use in contract specifications.

Soundness Test. This test procedure is useful in both survey and design for the evaluation of

aggregates to resist disintegration due to weathering. A sample of aggregate is saturated in a

solution of magnesium sulphate or sodium sulphate, and then removed and dried in an oven.

This process is repeated for five cycles. On completion, the percentage lost gives the durability

of the material. The test is not suitable for providing a single criterion for the susceptibility of

aggregates to rapid weathering but it may find a place as part of the evaluation procedure of

aggregates suspected of containing minerals that are weakened by chemical alteration.

Specific Gravity and Water Absorption. The tests are likely to be used both in surveys

of aggregate resources and in design, particularly in the interpretation of compaction tests and in

the design of bituminous mixtures. They may also be used as part of quality control during

construction, particularly when the survey has indicated that aggregate from the chosen source is

subject to variations in density. The test procedure is simple and the tests are repeatable and

reproducible. Most rocks absorb less than one per cent by weight of water and, up to this level,

water absorption is of no great consequence. However, some rocks can absorb up to 4 percent of

water. This suggests that the rock may be of low mechanical strength and will be difficult to dry

and heat during processing to make bituminous mixtures. Inadequate drying will cause difficulty

in securing good adhesion between bitumen and stone, and in hot process mixtures, where the
stone must be heated to about 180oC, it causes a large waste of energy. In the tests, a 4-kilogram

sample of the crushed rock of specific nominal size chippings is soaked in distilled water for 24

hours, weighed in water (WW), surface dried and weighed in air (WS). It is then oven dried at

105oC for 24 hours and weighed again in air (WD). The specific gravity and the water absorption

are then obtained as follows:

Shape Tests. Three mechanical measures of particle shape which may be included in the

specifications for aggregates for road construction, are the flakiness index, elongation index and

angularity number.

The flakiness index of an aggregate is the percentage by weight of particles whose least thickness

is less than three-fifths of their mean dimension. The mean dimension, as used in each instance, is

the average of two adjacent sieve aperture sizes between which the particle being measured is

retained by sieving.

The elongation index of an aggregate is the percentage by weight of particles whose greatest

length is greater than 1.8 times their mean dimension.

The angularity number of an aggregate is the amount, to the nearest whole number, by which the

percentage of voids exceeds 33 when an aggregate is compacted in a specified manner in a

standardized metal cylinder.

Use of the shape tests in specifications is based on the view that the shapes of the particles influence

both the strength of aggregate particles and internal friction that can be developed in the aggregate

mass. Since, other factors being equal, an aggregate composed of smooth rounded particles of a
certain gradation will contain less voids than one of the same grading but composed of angular

particles, the angularity of an aggregate can be reflected in terms of the volume of contained voids

when the aggregate is compacted. Measurements show that the angularity number may range from

zero for a material of highly rounded beach-gravel particles to 10 or more for newly crushed rock

aggregate.

2.3. Unbound Base and Subbase Materials

(ERA Pavement Design Manual Requirements)

Unbound base and subbase courses in pavement structures are granular materials from sand or

gravel deposits or crushed rock from quarries without admixtures. The required properties of these

materials vary with the type of pavement and the depth of the material in the pavement structure.

Different standard methods of design specify materials of construction differently considering the

traffic load, locally available materials, and environmental conditions. The following describes the

requirements set for different unbound pavement materials for base and subbase courses as

specified in ERA pavement design manual (2002).

2.3.1. Base course

Graded crushed aggregate: This material is produced by crushing fresh, quarried rock usually

termed a 'crusher-run', or alternatively the material may be separated by screening and recombined

to produce a desired particle size distribution, as per the specifications. The rock used for crushed

aggregates should be hard and durable. Laboratory and field experiences have shown that crushed

particles have, in general, more stability than rounded materials due to primarily to added grain
interlock. In addition, crushed materials possess high coefficient of permeability. After crushing,

the material should be angular in shape with a Flakiness Index of less than 35%, and preferably of

less than 30%. In constructing a crushed stone base course, the aim should be to achieve maximum

impermeability compatible with good compaction and high stability under traffic.

To ensure that the materials are sufficiently durable, they should satisfy the minimum Ten Per

Cent Fines Value (TFV) and limits on the maximum loss in strength following a period of 24

hours of soaking in water. Alternatively, if requirements expressed in terms of the results of the

Aggregate Crushing Value (ACV) are used, the ACV should preferably be less than 25 and in any

case less than 29. Other simpler tests e.g., the

Aggregate Impact Test may be used in quality control testing provided a relationship between

the results of the chosen test and the TFV has been determined. Unique relationships do not exist

between the results of the various tests but good correlations can be established for individual

material types and these need to be determined locally. The in situ dry density of the placed

material should be a minimum of 98% of the maximum dry density obtained in the Heavy

Compaction. The compacted thickness of each layer should not exceed 200 mm. Crushed stone

base materials described above should have CBR values well in excess of 100 per cent, and fines

passing 0.425 mm sieve should be non-plastic.

2.3.2. Sub-base course materials

The sub-base is an important load spreading layer which enables traffic stresses to be reduced to

acceptable levels on the subgrade. It also acts as a working platform for the construction of the

upper pavement layers separating the subgrade and base course. Under special circumstances, it

may serve as a filter or as a drainage layer. The selection of sub-base materials depends on the
design function of the layer and the anticipated moisture regime, both in service and at

construction.

Bearing capacity: A minimum CBR of 30 per cent is required at the highest anticipated

moisture content when compacted to the specified field density, usually a minimum of 95 per cent

of the MDD achieved in the Heavy Compaction. Under conditions of good drainage and when the

water table is not near the ground surface the field moisture content under a sealed pavement will

be equal to or less than the optimum moisture (Light Compaction). In such conditions, the sub-

base material should be tested in the laboratory in an unsaturated state. If saturation of the sub-

base is likely; the bearing capacity should be determined on samples soaked in water for a period

of four days.

In the construction of low-volume roads, where cost savings at construction are particularly

important, local experience is often invaluable and a wider range of materials may often be found

to be acceptable. In Ethiopia, laterite is one of the widely available materials and can be used as

a sub-base material for low volume road in general, it should meet the following reequipments.
 2.3.4. Selected subgrade materials and capping layers
These materials are often required to provide sufficient cover on weak subgrades. They are used

in the lower pavement layers as a substitute for a thick sub-base to reduce costs, and a cost

comparison should be conducted to assess their cost effectiveness. The requirements are less strict

than for sub-bases. A minimum CBR of 15 per cent is specified at the highest anticipated moisture

content measured on samples compacted in the laboratory at the specified field density. This

density is usually specified as a minimum of 95 per cent of the MDD in the Heavy Compaction.

Recommended gradings or plasticity criteria are not given for these materials. However, it is

desirable to select reasonably homogeneous materials since overall pavement behavior is often

enhanced by this. The selection of materials which show the least change in bearing capacity from

dry to wet is also beneficial.

Questions
1. Soundness test is carried out by conducting the accelerated weathering test cycle.

A. True

B. False

2. A sample of weight 2731 g was subjected to crushing test after which, the weight of

sample passing the sieve was found to be 761 g. What will be the crushing value of the

sample?

3. The aggregate impact test was conducted on a sample and the following readings were

taken: Weight of sample taken= 350 g

Weight of sample passing 2.36 mm sieve= 92 g

What will be the aggregate impact value for the sample?

4. List the corresponding test to evaluate durability, hardness, porosity of aggregate,

stiffness of aggregate and shape test.

5. Which aggregate laboratory test is used to identify whether an aggregate is well-

graded or not?

6. Which type of aggregate is good to produce stable, durable and workable Hot Mix

Asphalt?

A. Rounded aggregate

B. Angular aggregate

C. Flanky aggregate

D. Elongated aggregate

Chapter Five

Bituminous Material and martial mix design

 Bitumen Laboratory Test
Various tests are conducted on bitumen to assess its consistency, gradation, viscosity, temperature
susceptibility, and safety. There are a number of tests to assess the properties of bituminous
materials. The following tests are usually conducted to evaluate different properties of bituminous
materials.

1. Penetration test
2. Ductility test
3. Softening point test
4. Specific gravity test
5. Viscosity test
6. Flash and Fire point test
7. Float test
8. Water content test
9. Loss on heating test
 1.Penetration Test
It measures the hardness or softness of bitumen by measuring the depth in tenths of a millimeter
to which a standard loaded needle will penetrate vertically in 5 seconds. BIS had standardized the
equipment and test procedure. The penetrometer consists of a needle assembly with a total weight
of 100g and a device for releasing and locking in any position. The bitumen is softened to a pouring
consistency, stirred thoroughly and poured into containers at a depth at least 15 mm in excess of
the expected penetration. The test should be conducted at a specified temperature of 25 0C.It may
be noted that penetration value is largely influenced by any inaccuracy with regards to pouring
temperature, size of the needle, weight placed on the needle and the test temperature. In hot
climates, a lower penetration grade is preferred.

2.Ductility Test
Ductility is the property of bitumen that permits it to undergo great deformation or elongation.
Ductility is defined as the distance in cm, to which a standard sample or briquette of the material
will be elongated without breaking. Dimension of the briquette thus formed is exactly 1 cm square.
The bitumen sample is heated and poured in the mould assembly placed on a plate. These samples
with moulds are cooled in the air and then in water bath at 270C temperature. The excess bitumen
is cut and the surface is leveled using a hot knife. Then the mould with assembly containing sample
is kept in water bath of the ductility machine for about 90 minutes. The sides of the moulds are
removed, the clips are hooked on the machine and the machine is operated. The distance up to the
point of breaking of thread is the ductility value which is reported in cm. The ductility value gets
affected by factors such as pouring temperature, test temperature, rate of pulling etc. A minimum
ductility value of 75 cm has been specified by the BIS.
3.Softening Point
Softening point denotes the temperature at which the bitumen attains a particular degree of
softening under the specified condition of test. The test is conducted by using Ring and Ball
apparatus. A brass ring containing test sample of bitumen is suspended in liquid like water or
glycerin at a given temperature. A steel ball is placed upon the bitumen sample and the liquid
medium is heated at a rate of 50C per minute. Temperature is noted when the softened bitumen
touches the metal plate which is at a specified distance below. Generally, higher softening point
indicates lower temperature susceptibility and is preferred in hot climates.
 4.Specific Gravity
The specific gravity of bitumen is defined as the ratio of mass of given volume of bitumen of
known content to the mass of equal volume of water at 270C. The specific gravity can be measured
using either pycnometer or preparing a cube specimen of bitumen in semi solid or solid state. In
paving jobs, to classify a binder, density property is of great use. In most cases bitumen is weighed,
but when used with aggregates, the bitumen is converted to volume using density value. The
density of bitumen is greatly influenced by its chemical composition. Increase in aromatic type
mineral impurities cause an increase in specific gravity. The specific gravity of bitumen varies
from 0.97 to 1.02.

5.Viscosity

Viscosity denotes the fluid property of bituminous material and it is a measure of resistance to
flow. At the application temperature, this characteristic greatly influences the strength of resulting
paving mixes. Low or high viscosity during compaction or mixing has been observed to result in
lower stability values. At high viscosity, it resists the compactive effort and thereby resulting mix
is heterogeneous, hence low stability values. And at low viscosity instead of providing a uniform
film over aggregates, it will lubricate the aggregate particles. Orifice type viscometers are used to
indirectly find the viscosity of liquid binders like cutbacks and emulsions. The viscosity expressed
in seconds is the time taken by the 50 ml bitumen material to pass through the orifice of a cup,
under standard test conditions and specified temperature. Viscosity of a cutback can be measured
with either 4.0 mm orifice at 250C or 10 mm orifice at 25 or 400C.
6. Flush and Fire Point Test
At high temperatures depending upon the grades of bitumen materials leave out volatiles. And
these volatiles catch fire which is very hazardous and therefore it is essential to qualify this
temperature for each bitumen grade. BIS defined the ash point as the temperature at which the
vapour of bitumen momentarily catches fire in the form of ash under specified test conditions. The
fire point is defined as the lowest temperature under specified test conditions at which the
bituminous material gets ignited and burns.

7 Float Test
Normally the consistency of bituminous material can be measured either by penetration test or
viscosity test. But for certain range of consistencies, these tests are not applicable and Float test is
used. The apparatus consists of an aluminum oat and a brass collar filled with bitumen to be tested.
The specimen in the mould is cooled to a temperature of 50C and screwed in to oat. The total test
assembly is floated in the water bath at 500C and the time required for water to pass its way through
the specimen plug is noted in seconds and is expressed as the oat value.

8. Water Content Test

It is desirable that the bitumen contains minimum water content to prevent foaming of the bitumen
when it is heated above the boiling point of water. The water in bitumen is determined by mixing
known weight of specimen in a pure petroleum distillate free from water, heating and distilling of
the water. The weight of the water condensed and collected is expressed as percentage by weight
of the original sample. The allowable maximum water content should not be more than 0.2% by
weight.
9.Loss on Heating Test
When the bitumen is heated it loses the volatility and gets hardened. About 50gm of the sample is
weighed and heated to a temperature of 1630C for 5 hours in a specified oven designed for this
test. The sample specimen is weighed again after the heating period and loss in weight is expressed
as percentage by weight of the original sample. Bitumen used in pavement mixes should not
indicate more than 1% loss in weight, but for bitumen having penetration values 150-200 up to 2%
loss in weight is allowed.

Asphalt Mixture

Asphalt mixes are used in the surface layer of road and airfield pavements. The mix is composed

usually of aggregate and asphalt cements. The design of asphalt paving mix is largely a matter of

selecting and proportioning constituent materials to obtain the desired properties in the finished

pavement structure. The desirable properties of Asphalt mixes are:

 1. Resistance to permanent deformation: The mix should not distort or be displaced when

subjected to traffic loads. The resistance to permanent deformation is more important at

high temperatures.

2. Fatigue resistance: the mix should not crack when subjected to repeated loads over a period

of time.

3. Resistance to low temperature cracking. This mix property is important in cold regions.

4. Durability: the mix should contain sufficient asphalt cement to ensure an adequate film

thickness around the aggregate particles. The compacted mix should not have very high air

voids, which accelerates the aging process.

5. Resistance to moisture-induced damage.

6. Skid resistance.

7. Workability: the mix must be capable of being placed and compacted with reasonable

effort.

8. Low noise and good drainage properties: If the mix is to be used for the surface (wearing)

layer of the pavement structure.

MARSHALL METHOD OF MIX DESIGN

In this method, the resistance to plastic deformation of a compacted cylindrical specimen of

bituminous mixture is measured when the specimen is loaded diametrically at a deformation rate

of 50 mm per minute. There are two major features of the Marshall method of mix design.

I. density-voids analysis and

II. stability-flow tests.

The Marshall stability of the mix is defined as the maximum load carried by the specimen at a

standard test temperature of 60°C. The flow value is the deformation that the test specimen

undergoes during loading up to the maximum load. Flow is measured in 0.25 mm units. In this

test, an attempt is made to obtain optimum binder content for the type of aggregate mix used and

the expected traffic intensity.

STEPS OF DESIGN

1. Select aggregate grading to be used

2. Determine the proportion of each aggregate size required to produce the design grading.

3. Determine the specific gravity of the aggregate combination and asphalt cement.

4. Prepare the trial specimens with varying asphalt contents.

5. Determine the specific gravity of each compacted specimen.

6. Perform stability tests on the specimens.

7. Calculate the percentage of voids, and percent voids filled with Bitumen in each specimen.

8. Select the optimum binder content from the data obtained.

9. Evaluate the design with the design requirements

PROCEDURE

In the Marshall test method of mix design three compacted samples are prepared for each binder

content. At least four binder contents are to be tested to get the optimum binder content. All the

compacted specimens are subject to the following tests:

1. Bulk density determination.

2. Stability and flow test

3. Density and voids analysis

1. Preparation of test specimens

The coarse aggregate, fine aggregate, and the filler material should be proportioned so as to

fulfill the requirements of the relevant standards. The required quantity of the mix is taken so

as to produce compacted bituminous mix specimens of thickness 63.5 mm approximately.

1200 gm of aggregates and filler are required to produce the desired thickness. The aggregates

are heated to a temperature of 175° to 190°C the compaction mould assembly and rammer are

cleaned and kept pre-heated to a temperature of 100°C to 145°C. The bitumen is heated to a

temperature of 121°C to 138°C and the required amount of first trial of bitumen is added to the

heated aggregate and thoroughly mixed. The mix is placed in a mould and compacted with

number of blows specified. The sample is taken out of the mould after few minutes using

sample extractor.

2. Bulk density of the compacted specimen

The bulk density of the sample is usually determined by weighting the sample in air and in

water. It may be necessary to coat samples with paraffin before determining density. The

specific gravity Gbcm of the specimen is given by

Stability test

In conducting the stability test, the specimen is immersed in a bath of water at a temperature

of 60° ± 1°C for a period of 30 minutes. It is then placed in the Marshall stability testing

machine and loaded at a constant rate of deformation of 5 mm per minute until failure. The

total maximum in kN (that causes failure of the specimen) is taken as Marshall Stability. The

total amount of deformation is units of 0.25 mm that occurs at maximum load is recorded as
Flow Value. The total time between removing the specimen from the bath and completion of

the test should not exceed 30 seconds. Following results and analysis is performed on the data

obtained from the experiments.

Bulk specific gravity of aggregate (Gbam)

Since the aggregate mixture consists of different fractions of coarse aggregate, fine aggregate,

and mineral filler with different specific gravities, the bulk specific gravity of the total

aggregate in the paving mixture is given as:

Maximum specific gravity of aggregate mixture (Gbam)

Percent voids in compacted mineral aggregate (VMA)

 The percent voids in mineral aggregate (VMA) is the percentage of void spaces between

the granular particles in the compacted paving mixture, including the air voids and the

volume occupied by the effective asphalt content.

Percent air voids in compacted mixture (Pav)

Percent air voids is the ratio (expressed as a percentage) between the volume of the air voids

between the coated particles and the total volume of the mixture.

DETERMINATION OF OPTIMUM BINDER CONTENT

Five separate smooth curves are drawn with percent of asphalt on x-axis and the following on y-

axis
 • unit weight

• Marshall stability

• Flow

• VMA

• Voids in total mix (Pav)

Optimum binder content is selected as the average binder content for maximum density,

maximum stability and specified percent air voids in the total mix. Thus

EVALUATION AND ADJUSTMENT OF MIX DESIGN

The overall objective of the mix design is to determine an optimum blend of different components

that will satisfy the requirements of the given specifications. This mixture should have:

a. Adequate amount of asphalt to ensure a durable pavement.

b. Adequate mix stability to prevent unacceptable distortion and displacement when traffic
load is applied.

c. Adequate voids in the total compacted mixture to permit a small amount of compaction
when traffic load is applied without bleeding and loss of stability.
 d. Adequate workability to facilitate placement of the mix without segregation.
If the mix design for the optimum binder content does not satisfy all the requirements of

specifications. It is necessary to adjust the original blend of aggregates. The trial mixes can be

adjusted by using the following guidelines.

1. If low voids: The voids can be increased by adding more coarse aggregates.

2. If high voids: Increase the amount of mineral filler in the mix.

3. If low stability: This condition suggests low quality of aggregates. The quality of
aggregates should be improved. (use different aggregate or use cement coated

aggregate).

Flexible Pavement Design

Flexible pavement is multilayered structure with different layer of material property. The

following factors should be considered during design of pavement structure.

• Traffic volume and loading (traffic composition, axle load and repetition and speed

of the vehicle)

• Material property (CBR, Mr, drainage coefficient and layer coefficient)

• Major distress type (low temperature cracking, fatigue cracking and rutting are

major distress type of flexible type of pavement)

o Load related distress

▪ Fatigue (alligator cracking)

▪ Rutting

o Environment/material related distress

▪ Thermal cracking

▪ Bleeding
 ▪ Stripping

• Environmental factor (temperature and precipitation)

AASHTO FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT DESIGN METHOD

The following variables are the direct input of AASHTO pavement design

method

❖ Time (Design Life)

• Performance Period

• Period of time that the initial pavement structure will last before it requires

rehabilitation

• Pavement deteriorates from the initial serviceability to the terminal

serviceability.

• Designer or Government Agency selects the duration (typically 20 yrs).

• Analysis Period

• Time period that any design strategy must cover

• Can be equal to or greater than performance period

• Include the initial pavement service life plus one rehabilitation .

❖ Traffic (Total Design Life ESAL)

Used for highway pavements to convert mixed traffic to a number of standard axles for design.

ESAL is defined as Total number of applications of a standard axle (generally 80KN) required to

produce the same damage or loss of serviceability as a number of applications of one or more

different axle loads and/or configurations over life of pavement.

ESALi = Current Traffic x Growth Factor x 365 x ESAL Factor

❖ Reliability (“Safety Factor”)

• The predicted distress at the end of a design period varies depending on:

• The variability of predicted traffic and

• The quality control on materials and construction,

• It is more reasonable to use a probabilistic approach based on the reliability

concept.

❖ Serviceability (ΔPSI)
 ❖ Soil Resilient Modulus (Mr.) An equivalent modulus that would result in the

same damage if seasonal modulus values were actually used. For each season, relative

damage should be calculated and averaged to recalculate Mr.

❖ Structure Number (SN): is a measure of the performance each pavement layer

or pavement structure. It is depend on the stiffness of material, and drainage

coefficient

SN = a1D1 + a2m2D2 + … + anmnDn

ai (layer coeifficent) = measure of relative ability of a unit thickness of a given material to function

as a structural component of the pavement.

mi (Drainage Coefficient) depends on quality of drainage and availability of moisture

Di= thickness of each layer.

Using either ASHTO empirical formula or ASHTO formula, it is possible to fined structural

number as follows.

Then After the thickness of each layer have been determined as follows.
1. Tar is no longer used as a binder in pavements because of its ______

a) Durability

b) Viscosity

c) Temperature susceptibility

d) Colour change

2. Which of the below is not a type of bitumen used in the construction of flexible

pavements?

a) Oxidized bitumen

b) Cut-back bitumen

c) Modified bitumen

d) Bitumen emulsion

3. Which of the below options represent the types of cut-back bitumen?

a) Rapid, medium and slow setting

b) Rapid, medium and slow curing

c) all

4. What does an 80/100 grade bitumen indicate?

a) Viscosity

b) Temperature

c) Penetration

d) Proportion
5. Bitumen having a higher softening point is preferred in hot climates.

a) True

b) False

6. Which are the two major parameters considered in the Marshall mix design?

a) Workability and stability

b) Density and stability

c) Density and durability

d) Durability and stability

7. What is the specialty of an open-graded bituminous mix?

a) Binder is missing

b) Binder and filler are missing

c) Fine aggregate is missing

d) Coarse aggregate is missing

7. What is the specialty of Gap-graded bituminous mix?

a) Binder is missing

b) Binder and filler are missing

c) Fine aggregate is missing

d) Coarse aggregate is missing

8. There must be sufficient air voids in compacted bitumen to accommodate additional

settlement by traffic load if there is.

a) True

b) False
9. The OBC corresponding to maximum stability, unit weight and 4% air voids are given

as 5, 6 and 5.5. What is the OBC as per Marshall method?