Flexible Pavement Thickness

Design / AASHTO Method

Source:
Chapter 20: Traffic & Highway Engineering by Nicholas Garber and Lester Hoel, Third
Edition, Brooks/Cole.
Chapter 16: Highway Engineering, by Paul Wright & Karen Dixon, 7 th Edition, Wiley &
sons
Instructor:

Dr. TALEB M. AL-ROUSAN

AASHTO Method/ Introduction

Based on the results of AASHTO road test conducted on Ottawa,

Illinois.
It is an effort that was carried out with the cooperation of all states
and several industry groups.
Many types of test section were prepared and tested.
Rigid & flexible
A-6 subgrade
Four lane divided highway loops.
Tangents sections with different lengths (> 100 ft).
Flexible: HMA surface (1-6 ), well-graded crushed limestone
base (0-9), and uniformly graded sand-gravel subbase (0-6).
Vehicles were driven for thousand repetitions (single axle ( 2,
000 30, 000 lb) and tandem (24, 000 48,000 lb).

AASHTO Method/ Introduction

Data were collected from pavement with respect to

extent of cracking and amount of patching required to
maintain the section in service.
Longitudinal and transverse profiles were obtained to
determine extent of rutting, surface deflection caused
by loaded vehicles moving at very low speeds,
Pavement curvature at different speeds, stress
imposed on the subgrade and temperature distribution
in the pavement layers.
Data were thoroughly analyzed and the results formed
the basis for the AASHTO method
Interim guide was published in 1961, revised in 1972,
further edition 1986, then 1993

AASHTO Design Method/ Design

Considerations

This method Incorporates various design

inputs including :

Pavement Performance (Loss of serviceability).

Traffic
Subgrade soil properties
Materials of construction
Environmental effects
Drainage
Reliability

Pavement Performance
Structural

and functional performances.

Structural performance: related to the physical
condition of the pavement with respect to the
factors that have negative impact on the
capability of the pavement to carry the traffic
load.

These factors include: cracking, faulting, raveling,

and so forth.

Functional

performance: is an indication of
how effectively the pavement serves the user.

The main factor considered under functional

performance is riding quality.

Functional Performance

To quantify pavement performance, a concept known

as the serviceability performance was developed.
Procedure was developed to determine the present
serviceability index (PSI) of the pavement based on its
roughness and distress which were measured in terms
of extent of cracking, patching, and rut depth for
flexible pavements.
PSI is a surrogate measure for PSR (present
serviceability rating)
PSR is based on panel of engineers rating (subjective)
PSI is based on physical measurement of pavement
roughness using special equipments (objective)

Serviceability
Pavement

ability to serve traffic at some

instances during its life.
Initial & terminal serviceability indices must be
established to compute the change in
serviceability ( PSI) in the design equation.
Initial PSI = F( Pavement type & construction
quality) [ 4.2 for flexible & 4.5 for rigid).
Terminal PSI = Lowest index that is tolerable
for a pavement before it require rehabilitation
[ 2.5 for major highways & 2.0 for other roads].

Pavement Serviceability
Concept

It involves the measurement of the behavior of the

pavement under traffic and its ability to serve traffic at
some instance during its life.
The evaluation is systematic but subjective.
Evaluated by rating of the riding surface by individuals
who travel over it.
Can be evaluated also by means of certain
measurements made on the surface.
Scale: 0 (very poor) to 5 (very good).
PSI = F ( Roughness or slope variance in the two
wheel paths, the extent & type of cracking or patching,
and the pavement rutting displayed at the surface].

Traffic

Treatment of traffic load in AASHTO is similar to that presented

in the Asphalt Institute method.
The total load applications due to all mixed traffic within the
design period are converted to 18-kip ESAL using the EALF.
ESALi = (AADTi) (Fd) (Gjt) (Ni) (FEi) (365)
Or
ESALi = (AADTi) (Fd) (Gjt) (fi) (365)
Gjt = ( (1 + j)t -1)/ j )
ESAL = SUM [ESALi ]
from i =1 to n
n= number of truck categories
ESAL : ESAL for all vehicles during the design period.

Roadbed Soils (Subgrade Materials)

AASHTO method used the subgrade Mr to define its property.

Mr (psi) = 1500 CBR ( for fine-grained soil with CBR <10)
Mr (psi) = 1000 + 555 (R value) (for R <=20)
Normal Mr (During summer and fall) for materials susceptible to
frost action can reduce by (50 80%) during the thaw period.
Also Mr of subgrade can vary through the year even when there
is no thaw period/
In order to take these variations into consideration is to
determine and effective annual roadbed soil resilience modulus.
An effective roadbed (Mr) should be found that is equivalent to
combined effect of the subgrade (Mr) of all the seasonal (Mr).
See Fig. 20.18 in text and Fig. 16.12 in ref. book

Effective Roadbed Resilient

Modulus
1.
2.

3.
4.

Find (Mr) for subgrade once/twice a month

during the whole year.
Compute Relative damage using equation or
scale. See Fig. 20.18 in text and Fig. 16.12
in ref. book
Compute the average relative damage value.
Use the average relative damage value to
determine the effective roadbed (Mr) using
the formula or the scale.

Materials of Construction

Subbase Construction Materials

Base Course Construction Materials

Quality of the material is determined in terms of the layer coefficient,

(a3).
See Figure 20.15 in text.
Materials should satisfy general requirements for base course.
Quality of the material is determined in terms of the layer coefficient,
(a2).
See Figure 20.16.

Surface Course Construction Materials

Usually HMA with dense-graded aggregate and max size of 1.

Quality of the material is determined in terms of the layer coefficient,
(a1).
See Figure 20.17.

Layer Coefficient (ai)

Is

a measure of the relative effectiveness of a

given material to function as a structural
component of the pavement.
See Figures in Ref. book:
16.13 : Asphalt concrete surface course (a1)
16.14 : Bituminous treated base (a2)
16.15 : Granular base (a2)
16.16 : Granular subbase (a3)
16.17 : Cement treated bases (a2).

Environment

Temperature and Rainfall are the two main

environmental factors used in evaluating pavement
performance in the AASHTO method.
Effect of temperature includes:

Stresses induced by thermal action

Changes in creep properties
Effect of freezing and thawing on subgrade soil.

Effect of rainfall is due mainly to penetration of the

surface water to the underlying material.
If penetration occur the properties of the underlying
material will significantly altered.

Environment

Normal Mr (During summer and fall) for materials

susceptible to frost action can reduce by (50 80%)
during the thaw period.
Also Mr of subgrade can vary through the year even
when there is no thaw period/
In order to take these variations into consideration is to
determine and effective annual roadbed soil resilience
modulus.
This was discussed earlier in the roadbed soil section.
Effect of moisture, temperature, and material aging
should be accounted for by adding it to the loss of
serviceability over the design period along with
serviceability loss due to traffic.

Subgrade Mr Seasonal Variation

Freeze Time

Recovery
Time

Drainage

1.

2.

Water affect the strength of base and roadbed soil.

The approach is to provide a suitable drainage layer (see
Fig. 20.19) , and by modifying the structural layer
coefficient by incorporating the factor (mi) for the base
and subbase layer coeffiecients (a2 & a3).
The coefficient depends on:
Quality of drainage: measured by the length of time it
takes water to be removed from base or subbase up to
(50% of saturation).see Table 20.14 in text for
definitions of drainage quality.
Percent of time the pavement structure is saturated.
See Table 20.15 in text and Table 16.7 in Ref. For
recommended (m) values for different levels of drainage
quality.

Reliability

It provides a predetermined level of assurance (R) that

the pavement section will survive the period for which
they were designed.
Reliability Design Factor: Accounts for chance
variations in both traffic prediction & performance
prediction.
(R) is a mean of incorporating some degree of
certainty into the design to ensure that the various
design alternatives will last the analysis periods.
(R) is a function of the overall standard deviation (So).
See Table 20.16 in text or Table 16.6 in Ref. for
suggested levels of Reliability for various functional
classifications.

Overall So

So: Overall standard deviation that accounts for

standard deviation (or variation) in materials &
construction, chance variation in traffic prediction, and
normal variation in pavement performance.
So = 0.45 for flexible pavement (0.40 - 0.50)
So = 0.35 for rigid pavements (0.30 -0.40).
Reliability Factor (Fr >= 1.0)
Log (Fr) = - (Zr) (So)
Zr = Standard Normal Variate for a given reliability (R
%).
See Table 20.17 in text for Zr values for different
Reliability levels.

Structural Design
The

objective of the AASHTO method is to

determine a flexible pavement stuructural
number (SN) adequate to carry the projected
design ESAL.
It is left to the designer to select the type of
surface used, which can be either asphalt
concrete, a single surface treatment, or a
double surface treatment.
The design procedure is used for ESAL >
50,000 for the performance period.

Basic Design Equation

Structural Number (SN)

SN

= F (pavement layer thickness, layer

coefficient, & drainage coefficient)
Required Inputs (See Fig.20.20 in text
and 16.11 in Ref.):
ESAL
Reliability
So
Effective
PSI

roadbed (Mr)

Selection of Pavement Thickness

Design
Once

SN is determined, it is necessary
to determine the thickness of various
Layers.
SN = a1 D1 + a2 D2 m2 + a3 D3 m3

ai : Coefficient of layer i
Di : Thickness of layer i
mi : Drainage Modifying Factor for layer i.

General Procedure for Selection

Layer Thickness

General Procedure for Selection

Layer Thickness Cont.
1.

Using (E2) as Mr and (Fig. 20.20 or16.11),

determine SN1 required to protect base. Then
compute thickness of Layer D1 as:
D1 >= SN1/ a1

2.
3.
4.

The computed thickness D1 is usually rounded up to

the nearest one-half inch.
In addition for purpose of practicality and economy,
certain min. thicknesses are recommended (Table
20.18 in Text and 16.8 in Ref).
The rounded value of (D1) will be used in the
preceding calculations as (D1).

General Procedure for Selection

Layer Thickness Cont.
1.

Using (E3) as Mr and (Fig. 20.20 or16.11) ,

determine (SN2 ) required to protect the
subbase. Then compute thickness of Layer
D2 as:
D2 >= (SN2 - a1 D1)/ a2 m2

2. The computed thickness (D2 ) is also

rounded up to the nearest one-half inch.
3. The rounded value of (D2 ) will be used in the
preceding calculations as (D2 ).

General Procedure for Selection

Layer Thickness Cont.
1.

Using the roadbed soil (Mr) and (Fig. 20.20

or16.11) , determine SN3 required to protect
the roadbed soil (subgrade). Then compute
thickness of Layer D3 as:
D3 >= (SN3 - a1 D1 a2 D2 m2 )/ a3 m3

2. The computed thickness (D3 ) is also

rounded up to the nearest one-half inch.

Example 1 (20.8 in text)

A flexible pavement for an urban interstate highway.

ESAL = 2x 106
It takes about a week for water to be drained from
within the pavement.
The pavement structure will be exposed to moisture
levels approaching saturation for 30% of time.
Resilience modulus of asphalt concrete = 450,000 psi.
Base course: CBR = 100 , Mr = 31,000 psi
Subbase course: CBR = 22, Mr = 13,500 psi
Subgrade: CBR = 6
Determine a suitable pavement structure.

Example 1/ Solution

The following assumption are made for an interstate

highway:
R = 99 (from 80 99.9 Table 20.16)
So = 0.49 ( range 0.4 0.5)
Initial PSI = 4.5
Terminal PSI = 2.5
PSI = 2
Mr for subgrade = (1500 x 6 )= 9000 psi
From Figure 20. 17 with Mr = 450,000 psi find a1 = 0.44
From Fig. 20. 16 with CBR = 100 find a2 = 0.14
From Fig. 20. 15 with CBR = 22 find a3 = 0.10
From Table 20.14 find drainage quality = Fair
From Table 20.15 find mi = 0.80 ( for base and subbase).

Example 1 Solution
Using

E2 as Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN1 = 2.6
D1>= SN1/a1 = 2.6/ 0.44 = 5.9 in. use 6 -in.

Using

E3 as Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN2 = 3.8
D2>= [SN2 (a1 D1)] / (a2 m2)
D2>= [3.8 (0.44 * 6)] / (0.14 * 0.80)
D2>= 10.36- in.. use 12 -in

Example 1 Solution
Using

subgrade Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN3 = 4.4

D3>= [SN3 (a1 D1)- (a2 D2 m2)] / (a3 m3)

D3>= [4.4 (0.44 * 6) (0.14* 12* 0.80)]/ (.01 * 0.80)

D3>= 5.25 in. use 6 -in

The pavement has a 6-in surface, an 12 -in
base, and a 6 -in subbase.

Example 2
Given:
Flexible pavement in Rural interstate highway.
Design ESAL 3000,000
Subbase exposed to moisture saturation 5% of time & drainage
quality is Fair.
Base saturation level 10% of time (Fair drainage quality).
Mr (HMA) = 420,000 psi ..(a1 = 0.42 ).
Mr (base) = 24,000 psi (a2 = 0.13).
Mr (subbase) = 10,000 psi .(a3 = 0.075).
CBR (Subgrade) = 1.0 thus Mr =1500 (1) = 1500 psi
Reliability Level R = 85%
So = 0.45
PSI = 2
Required: Design the pavement by the AASHTO method

Example 2 Solution
Using

E2 as Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN1 = 2.45
D1>= SN1/a1 = 2.45/ 0.42 = 5.8 -in use 6 -in.

Using

E3 as Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN2 = 3.5
D2>= [SN2 (a1 D1)] / (a2 m2)
D2>= [3.5 (0.42 * 6)] / (0.13 * 0.95)
D2>= 7.9- in use 8 -in

Example 2 Solution
Using

subgrade Mr & Fig. 20.20

SN3 = 6.5

D3>= [SN3 (a1 D1)- (a2 D2 m2)] / (a3 m3)

D3>= [6.5 (0.42 * 6) (0.13* 8* 0.95)]/ (0.075 * 0.90)

D2>= 44.44 -in use 44.5 -in

The pavement has a 6-in surface, an 8 -in base,
and a 44.5 -in subbase.