Pavement Materials & Design

)110401466/2104011466)
Pavement Types
Instructor:
Prof. TALEB M. Al-ROUSAN
 Pavement Definition
 In engineering terms, a pavement means a man-made surface on
natural ground that people, vehicles or animals can cross. Any
ground surface prepared for transport counts as a pavement.

 Pavement, in civil engineering, durable surfacing of a road,

airstrip, or similar area. The primary function of a pavement is to
transmit loads to the sub-base and underlying soil. ... Such
a pavement has enough plasticity to absorb shock.

 Pavement is that part of the road or highway which supports the

wheel loads imposed on it from traffic moving over it.

 Pavement is a multi-layered structure put as horizontal layers one

above the other, which distributes the vehicular loads over a larger
area
 Pavement Types

1. Flexible Pavement: Pavement

constructed of bituminous and granular
materials. It’s called “flexible” since the
total pavement structure “bends” or
“deflects” due to traffic loads.
2. Rigid pavement: Pavement constructed
of Portland cement concrete.
 Pavement Functions
 Reduce and distribute the traffic loading so as
not to damage the subgrade (natural soil).
 Provide vehicle access between two points
under all-weather conditions.
 Provide safe, smooth and comfortable ride to
road users without undue delays and excessive
wear & tear.
 Meet environmental and aesthetics requirement.
 Limited noise and air pollution.
 Reasonable economy.
 Classification of pavements by
Function

Ports and
Highway Parking lots Airport Heavy industrial
pavement pavements pavements pavements
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 Classification of Pavements by
Structure

Flexible Rigid (concrete)

pavements pavement
(asphalt concrete)
Gravel (unpaved ) Composite
pavements pavements
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 Pavement 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.
 Dust proof surface: so that traffic safety is not impaired by
reducing visibility.
 Impervious surface: so that sub-grade soil is well protected.
 Long design life with low maintenance cost.
 Produce least noise from moving vehicles.
 Flexible Pavement Types

1. Conventional flexible pavements,

discussed in detail.
2. Full-depth asphalt pavements.
3. Contained rock asphalt mat (CRAM), not
widely accepted for practical use .
Conventional Flexible Pavements

 Are layered systems with better materials on

top where the intensity of stress is high and
inferior materials at the bottom where the
intensity is low.
 Adherence to this design principle makes the
use of local materials possible and usually result
in the most economical design.
Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont.
 Cross section consist of (from top):
1. Seal coat
2. Surface course
3. Tack coat
4. Binder course
5. Prime coat
6. Base course
7. Subbase course
8. Compacted subgrade
9. Natural subgrade

 The use of various courses is based on either necessity

or economy, and some of the courses may be omitted.
Conventional Flexible Pavements Cross
Section
 Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Seal Coat (Chip seal)
 Seal coat: Thin asphalt surface treatment used to:
1. Waterproof or seal the surface.
2. Rejuvenate or revitalize old bituminous wearing surfaces.
3. To nonskid slippery surfaces.
4. Improve night visibility.
 Single Surface treatment = single application of
bituminous material that is covered by a light spreading
of fine aggregate or sand (spread mechanically) then
compacted with pneumatic tired rollers.
Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Surface Course
 Is the top course of asphalt pavement
(Wearing course).
 Constructed of dense graded HMA.
 Must be:
 Tuff to resist distortion under traffic
 Provide smooth and skid resistant riding surface.
 Water proof to protect the entire pavement from the
weakening effects of water.
 If the above requirements can not be met, the
use of seal coat is recommended.
Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Binder Course
 Binder course (known also as Asphalt base
course) is the asphalt layer beneath the
surface course.
 Reasons for use:
1. HMA is too thick to be compacted in one layer (if
the binder course is more than 3” it is placed in two
layers).
2. More economical design, since binder course
generally consist of larger aggregates and less
asphalt and doesn’t require high quality.
Conventional Flexible Pavement Layers
 Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Tack & Prime Coats
 Tack coat: Very light application of asphalt (emulsion) to
ensure a bond between the surface being paved and the
overlying course. Binds asphalt layer to PCC base or to an
old asphalt pavement.
 Prime coat: Application of low viscosity Cutback asphalt to
an absorbent surface such as untreated granular base on
which asphalt layer will be placed on. It binds the granular
base to the asphalt layer.
 Tack coat doesn’t require the penetration of asphalt into
the underlying layer, while prime coats penetrates into the
underlying layer, plugs the voids , and form a watertight
surface.
 Both are spray application.
Prime Coat
Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Base & Subbase Courses
 Base course: Layer immediately beneath
the surface or binder course.
 Composed of crushed stone, crushed slag,
or other untreated or stabilized materials.
 Subbase course: Layer beneath the base
course, used mostly for economy purposes
since it can be of lower quality.
Conventional Flexible Pavements
Cont./ Subgrade
 Subgrade can be either in situ soil or a
layer of selected materials.
 The top 6” of subgrade should be scarified
and compacted to the desired density near
the optimum moisture content.
Full-Depth Asphalt Pavements

 Are constructed by placing one or more layers of

HMA directly on the subgrade or improved
subgrade.
 Used for heavy traffic.
 When local materials are not available.
 Minimize the administration and equipment
costs.
 Typical cross section: Asphalt surface, tack coat,
asphalt base, and prepared subgrade.
Full-Depth Asphalt Cross Section
Advantages of Full-depth Asphalt
Pavements
1. Have no permeable granular layers to entrap
water and impair performance.
2. Reduced construction time.
3. Construction seasons may be extended.
4. Provide & retain uniformity in the pavement
structures.
5. Less affected by moisture or frost.
6. Little or no reduction in subgrade strength
because moisture do not build up in subgrade
when full-depth asphalt is used.
 Rigid Pavements
 Pavement constructed of Portland cement concrete
layer (150 -300 mm) placed over granular
base/subbase layers (100-300 mm) supported by the
subgrade.
 Rigid Pavements
 Rigid pavements are placed either directly on the
prepared subgrade or on a single layer of granular or
stabilized materials (called base course or subbase).
 Use of base course in rigid pavements:
1. Control of pumping (ejection of water and subgrade soil
through joints, cracks, and along the edges. stabilized base are
less erodible).
2. Control of frost action.
3. Improvement of drainage (raise pavement from water table).
4. Control of shrinkage and swell (work as waterproof and as
surcharge load).
5. Expedition of construction (working platform).
Rigid Pavement Cross Section
 Types of Rigid Pavements

1. Joint Plain Concrete Pavements (JPCP).

2. Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavements
(JRCP).
3. Continuous Reinforced Concrete pavements
(CRCP).
4. Prestressed Concrete Pavements (PCP).
 A longitudinal joint should be installed
between the two traffic lanes to prevent
longitudinal cracking.
Joint Plain Concrete Pavements (JPCP)

 Constructed with closely spaced contraction

joints.
 Dowels or aggregates interlock may be used
for load transfer across the joints.
 Joint spacing ( 15 to 30 ft)
 Tie bars are used for longitudinal joints.
JPCP
JPCP
 Jointed Reinforced Concrete
Pavements (JRCP).
 Steel reinforcement in the form of wire mesh or
deformed bars do not increase the structural
capacity of pavements but allow the use of
longer joint spacing.
 Joint spacing (30- 100 ft).
 Dowels are required for load transfer across the
joints.
 The amount of distributed steel increase with
the increase in joint spacing and is designed to
hold the slab together after cracking.
JRCP
JRCP
Continuous Reinforced Concrete
pavements (CRCP).
 It has no joints.
 Joints are the weak spots in rigid
pavements.
 Eliminating joints reduced thickness of
pavement by 1 to 2”.
 Used for heavy traffic.
 Most frequent distress is punchout at the
pavement edge.
CRCP
CRCP
Prestressed Concrete Pavements (PCP)

 The pre application of a compressive stress to the

concrete greatly reduces the tensile stresses caused
by traffic and thus decrease the thickness of
concrete required.
 Has less probability of cracking and fewer
transverse joints and therefore results in less
maintenance and longer pavement life.
 Used more frequently for airport pavements than
for highway pavements because the saving of
thickness for airport pavements is much greater
than for highways.
PCP
 Composite Pavements
 Composed of both HMA & PCC.
 Using PCC bottom layer & HMA top layer results
in an ideal pavement with most desirable
characteristics.
 PCC provide strong base.
 HMA provides a smooth non-reflective surface.
 Very expensive and rarely used.
 Most of the available are the rehabilitation of
PCC using asphalt overlays.
Typical Composite Pavement Sections
 Rigid VS. Flexible pavement
Load Distribution over the Subgrade
 The essential difference between
the two types of pavements, flexible
and rigid, is the manner in which
they distribute the load over the
subgrade.
 Rigid pavement
 because of PCC’s high elastic
modulus (stiffness), tends to
distribute the load over a
relatively wide area of subgrade
 The concrete slab itself supplies
most of a rigid pavement’s
structural capacity.

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 Rigid VS. Flexible pavement
Flexible Pavement Load Distribution

• Flexible pavement uses more flexible surface course and

distributes loads over a smaller area.
• It relies on a combination of layers for transmitting load to
the subgrade
Image source: 41
Rigid VS. Flexible pavement

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Jordanian
National
Building
council
Specifications
for highway
and bridge
construction
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Specifications for highway
and bridge construction

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Specifications for highway
and bridge construction

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Specifications for highway
and bridge construction

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Specifications for highway
and bridge construction

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