An Investigation of the Effects of Temperature and Frequency on Asphalt Pavement Strain Using an Accelerated Testing System

• Main Author: Gould, Jonathan Scott
• Other Authors: Paramasivam Jayachandran, Committee Member
• Format: Others
• Published: Digital WPI 2007
• Subjects: strain; MMLS3; temperature; frequency; accelerated pavement testing; hot mix asphalt; Pavements; Asphalt; Testing; Live loads; Hot mix asphalt
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.wpi.edu/etd-theses/856; https://digitalcommons.wpi.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1855&context=etd-theses

" The determination of strain is an important step when using a mechanistic-empirical structural design, such as the AASHTO 2002 Design Guide. This thesis investigated the use of accelerated pavement testing system on Hot Mix Asphalt pavements to determine actual transverse and longitudinal strains under loads of varying frequency at different temperatures. A Model Mobile Load Simulator (MMLS3) was used in this study. Laboratory compacted pavement slabs were instrumented with thermocouples for monitoring the pavement's temperature, and with strain gauges in transverse and longitudinal directions at the bottom surface to measure strain. The slabs were subjected to loading by the MMLS3, running at different speeds. The pavement slab and accelerated loading equipment were enclosed in an environmental chamber to control temperatures during testing. Strains were also determined from layered elastic analysis after determining modulus values by two different methods - Resilient modulus testing and Witczak’s dynamic modulus equation. Comparisons of pavement strains calculated through the use of layered elastic design software and actual strains obtained during loading were made. The test results have shown a significant difference between strain values obtained using an instrumented pavement slab and those obtained with the use of standard resilient modulus values or dynamic modulus values determined by using a typical layered elastic design model. To avoid the discrepancies, two approaches are proposed - The first is modeling strain with accelerated pavement testing and the second one is using a correction factor. "