Evaluation of Seasonal Effects on Subgrade Soils

Abstract

One objective of the FHWA’s Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) program is to determine climatic effects on pavement performance. The LTPP instrumentation program includes seasonal monitoring program (SMP) instrumentation to monitor the seasonal variations of moisture, temperature, and frost penetration. Findings from the SMP instrumentation are to be incorporated into future pavement design procedures. Data from SMP instrumentation at the Ohio Strategic Highway Research Program Test Road (US-23, Delaware County, Ohio) and other reported results were analyzed to develop empirical equations. General expressions for the seasonal variations of average daily air temperature and variations of temperature and moisture in the fine-grained subgrade soil at the test site are presented. An expression for the seasonal variation of resilient modulus was derived. Average monthly weighting factors that can be used for pavement design were computed. Other factors such as frost penetration, depth of water table, and drainage conditions are discussed.

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