ANALYSES OF THE INFLUENCE OF MATERIAL CHARACTERISTICS ON PAVEMENT DESIGN

Abstract

Currently, only empirical design methods are used in the application of well-known standards for pavement structure design. Given this fact, it is assumed that material characteristics correspond to average quality materials. Thus, the aim of this study included examining the influence of material characteristics on pavement design analyzing changes in the cement bound base layer (CBL) characteristics with respect to the occurrence of cracks and changes in the asphalt layer given typical seasonal changes. The study involved varying CBL modulus as 15 GPa, 10 GPa, and 5 GPa. Additionally, the moduli of asphalt layers were varied from 6 MPa to 2 MPa to simulate real conditions in pavement structure life. The analyses indicated that there was a significant difference in pavement behavior with respect to changes in material characteristics. Given these significant differences, it is extremely important to properly define material characteristics while using empirical design methods. Proper material characterization combined with the utilization of empirical and analytical methods increases the possibility of reducing layers thickness to design cost-effective structures.