Structural Design g Of Pavements

Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

CE 6505

 A highway pavement is designed to support the wheel loads imposed on it from traffic moving over it. Additional stresses are also imposed by changes in the temperature of environment. Pavement should be strong enough to resists the stresses imposed on it and should be thick enough to distribute the external loads on the subgrade.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

It should be sufficiently thick to distribute the loads and stress to a safe value on the subgrade soil. It should h ld be b structurally t t ll sound d enough h to t withstand the stresses imposed on it. It should provide a reasonably hard wearing surface, so that the abrasive action of wheels does not damage the surface. It should be dust free so that traffic safety is not impaired. p Its riding quality should be good.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

It should be smooth enough to provide comfort to the road users at the high speeds at which modern vehicles h l are driven. d The surface of the pavement should develop as low a friction as possible. The surface of the pavement should have adequate roughness to prevent skidding of vehicles. The surface should not produce excessive level of sound. The surface should be impervious so that water does not penetrate the pavement. The pavement should have long life and low maintenance i cost.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Design Precision Precision: : A rigid pavement is amenable y to much more p precise structural analysis than flexible pavement because of the flexural strength of concrete. Flexible pavements design i mainly is i l empirical. i i l Service Life: Life: A well designed rigid pavement has a life of about 40 years or more. more The life of flexible pavement varies from 10 to 20 years. Maintenance: Maintenance : A well designed rigid pavement g g p needs practically very little maintenance. Flexible pavements needs frequent maintenance.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Initial cost: cost: High initial cost is required to g p construct rigid pavement . Initial construction cost of flexible pavement is comparatively low. Stage Construction: Construction: A rigid pavement does not permit stage construction. On the other hand, flexible pavement suits the concept of stage construction. Availability of Binding materials materials: : Cement is more available than bitumen in Bangladesh.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Surface Characteristics: A good rigid pavement g Thus surface is smooth and free from rutting. the riding quality of a rigid pavement is always assured. In a bituminous surface, it is only the asphaltic h lti concrete t surface f th t can give that i th the comparable ride quality. Penetration of Water Water: : A rigid pavement surface is practically impervious, except at joints. If joints are properly sealed and well maintained water will not penetrate and soften the subgrade. A flexible pavement surface is not impervious. Water can find its way a into the lower lo er layer la er through cracks and pores.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Utility Location Location: : In case of rigid pavement it is difficult to find the place of utility location after construction. In y to dig g the p case of flexible p pavement it is easy pavement and find the place for utility locations. Glare and Night g Visibility Visibility: y: Rigid g p pavements have a g grey y color which can cause glare under sunlight. Black bitumen pavement is free from this defect. But flexible pavement required more street lighting than rigid pavement. pavement Traffic Dislocation during Construction: Construction: A rigid pavement requires at least 28 days before it can be thrown open to traffic. On the other hand, a flexible pavement can be thrown open to traffic after it is rolled. Further traffic will facilitate its compaction. Thus rigid pavement cause di l dislocation i of f traffic, ffi in i case of f the h work k is i done d on existing road.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Flexible Pavements

Rigid Pavements

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Hot mix Asphaltic (HMA) pavements are classified as "flexible" pavements because the total pavement structure deflects, or flexes, under loading. A flexible pavement structure is typically composed of several layers of material. E h layer Each l receives i th loads the l d from f th above the b l layer, spreads them out, then passes on these loads to the next layer below below. Thus, the further down in the pavement structure a particular layer p y is, , the less load ( (in terms of force p per area) it must carry.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Load distribution at Surface course

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Load distribution at Base course

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Load distribution at Sub-Base course

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

In flexible pavements material layers are usually arranged in order of descending load bearing capacity with the highest load bearing capacity material (and most expensive) on the top and the lowest load bearing g capacity p y material (and ( least expensive) on the bottom.

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

The typical flexible pavement structure consisting of: i ti f Surface course. This is the top layer and the layer that comes in contact with traffic. It may be composed of one or several different HMA sublayers. Base B course. This Thi is i the th layer l di tl below directly b l the surface course and generally consists of aggregate (either stabilized or unstabilized) gg g ( ) or HMA. Subbase course. This is the layer (or layers) under the base layer. layer A subbase is not always needed.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

A typical flexible pavement structure consists of the surface course and the underlying base and sub-base courses. Each of these layers contributes to structural support and drainage. The surface course (typically an HMA layer) is the stiffest (as measured by resilient modulus) and contributes the most t to t pavement t strength. t th The underlying layers are less stiff but are still important to pavement pa e e t strength st e gt as well e as drainage d a age and a d frost ost protection. A typical structural design results in a series of layers that gradually grad all decrease in material quality q alit with ith depth. depth
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Basic Structural Elements of Flexible Pavement

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Surface course The course is in Th surface f i the th layer l i contact t t with ith traffic loads and normally contains the highest quality materials. materials It provides characteristics such as friction, smoothness, , noise control, , rut and shoving g resistance and drainage. In addition, it serves to prevent the entrance f excessive quantities of f surface f of water into the underlying base, subbase and subgrade.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Surface course
This structural of Thi top t t t l layer l f material t i l is i sometimes ti subdivided into two layers : Wearing Course: This is the layer in direct contact with traffic loads. loads It is meant to take the brunt of traffic wear and can be removed and replaced as it becomes worn. A A properly l designed d i d (and ( d funded) f d d) preservation ti program should h ld be b able to identify pavement surface distress while it is still confined to the wearing g course. This way, the wearing course can be rehabilitated before distress propagates into the underlying intermediate/binder course. Intermediate/Binder Course: This layer provides the bulk of the HMA structure. Its chief purpose is to distribute load.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

y beneath the surface The base course is immediately course. It provides additional load distribution and contributes to drainage and frost resistance. Base courses are usually constructed out of Aggregates:

Base course

Base courses are most typically constructed from durable aggregates that will not be damaged by moisture or frost action. Aggregates can be either stabilized or unstabilized. In certain situations where high base stiffness is desired, base courses can be constructed using a variety of HMA mixes mixes. In relation to surface course HMA mixes mixes, base course mixes usually contain larger Maximum aggregate sizes, are more open graded and are subject to more lenient specifications.

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

SubSub -Base course

The subbase course is between the base course and the subgrade. It functions primarily i il as structural t t l support t but b t it can also: l

Minimize the intrusion of fines from the subgrade into the pavement structure. Improve drainage drainage. Minimize frost action damage. Provide a working gp platform for construction.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

The subbase generally consists of lower quality materials than the base course but better than the subgrade soils. A subbase course is not always needed or used. For example, l a pavement constructed d over a high hi h quality, stiff subgrade may not need the additional features offered by a subbase course so it may be omitted from design. However, a pavement constructed over a low quality soil such as a swelling clay may require the additional load distribution characteristic that a subbase course can offer. In this scenario the subbase course may consist of high quality fill used to replace poor quality Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman subgrade.

SubSub -Base course

Rigid pavements are so named because the pavement deflects t structure t t d fl t very little littl under d loading due to the high modulus of elasticity of their surface course. A rigid pavement structure is typically composed of a PCC surface course built on top of either (1) the subgrade or (2) an underlying base course. Because of its relative rigidity, g y, the pavement p structure distributes loads over a wide area with only one, or at most two, structural layers
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

The typical consisting of:

rigid

pavement

structure

Surface course. This is the top layer, which

consists of the PCC slab. slab Base course. This is the layer directly below the PCC layer and generally consists of aggregate or stabilized subgrade. Subbase course. This is the layer y (or ( layers) y ) under the base layer. A subbase is not always needed and therefore may often be omitted.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

A typical rigid pavement structure consists of the surface course and the underlying base and subbase courses (if used). The surface course (made of PCC) is the stiffest (as measured by resilient modulus) and provides the majority of strength. The underlying layers are orders of magnitude less stiff but still make important contributions to pavement strength as well as drainage and frost protection.
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Surface course

The surface course is the layer in contact with traffic loads and is made of PCC. It provides d characteristics h such h as friction f smoothness, noise control and drainage. In addition, addition it serves as a waterproofing layer to the underlying base, subbase and subgrade. subg ade The surface course can vary in thickness but is usually between 150 mm (6 inches) (for light loading) and 300 mm (12 inches) (for heavy loads and high traffic).
Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

PCC Surface

Rigid Pavement Slab (Surface Course) Thickness

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Base course

The base course is immediately beneath the surface course. It provides (1) additional load distribution, (2) contributes to drainage and frost resistance, (3) uniform support to the pavement and (4) a stable platform for construction equipment . Bases also help prevent subgrade soil movement due to slab pumping.

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Base course

Base courses are usually constructed out of:

Aggregate base. Stabilized aggregate or soil DenseDense -graded HMA. Permeable HMA. Lean concrete

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman

Sub Base

The subbase course is the portion of the pavement structure between the base course and the subgrade. It functions primarily as structural support but it can also:

Minimize the intrusion of fines from the subgrade into the pavement structure. Improve p drainage. g Minimize frost action damage. Provide a working platform for construction. The subbase generally consists of lower quality materials than the base course but better than the subgrade soils. Appropriate materials are aggregate and high quality structural fill. A subbase course is not always needed or used.

Prof. Dr. Md. Mizanur Rahman