Variability of Air Voids and Mechanistic Properties of Plant-Produced Asphalt Mixtures

Abstract

The results of a laboratory and field evaluation of the variability of physical and mechanistic properties of plant-produced asphalt mixtures are presented. Three asphalt mixtures from two overlay rehabilitation projects were selected. Comparison analyses were conducted on density measurements between two laboratory (AASHTO T166 and ASTM D6752-02, or CoreLok) and one in situ (pavement quality indicator) test methods. In addition, two laboratory mechanistic tests—indirect tensile (IDT)-strength and frequency-sweep-at-constant-height tests—and two field nondestructive tests with falling weight deflectometer (FWD) and light falling weight deflectometer (LFWD) were performed to characterize the variability of the plant-produced mixtures evaluated in this study. Superpaver gyratory compactor (SGC) samples and field cores were used in the laboratory testing program. A strong correlation was observed between the two laboratory bulk specific gravity test methods: AASHTO T166 and CoreLok. The IDT strengths of SGC samples were higher than those of field cores. A good correlation was found between the complex shear moduli of SGC samples and field cores. Field test results indicated that the LFWD test may be used as an alternative to the FWD test in pavement structure evaluation.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Hughes

C. S.

NCHRP Synthesis of Highway Practice 152: Compaction of Asphalt Pavement. TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 1989.

Prowell

B. D.

, and Dudley

M. C.

. Evaluation of Measurement Techniques for Asphalt Pavement Density and Permeability. In Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 1789, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 2002, pp. 36–45.

Daniel

J. S.

, and Kim

Y. R.

. Relationships Among Rate-Dependent Stiffnesses of Asphalt Concrete Using Laboratory and Field Test Methods. In Transportation Research Record 1630, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 1998, pp. 3–9.

Brown

E. R.

, and Foo

K. Y.

. Evaluation of Variability in Resilient Modulus Test Results (ASTM D41-23). NCAT Report 91-6. National Center for Asphalt Technology, Auburn University, Auburn, Ala., Oct. 1989.

Button

J. W.

, Little

D. N.

, Jagadam

, and Pendleton

O. J.

. Correlation of Selected Laboratory Compaction Methods with Field Compaction. In Transportation Research Record 1454, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 1994, pp. 193–201.

Consuegra

, Little

D. N.

, Von Quintus

, and Burati

J. L.

Jr. Comparative Evaluation of Laboratory Compaction Devices Based on Their Ability to Produce Mixtures with Engineering Properties Similar to Those Produced in the Field. In Transportation Research Record 1228, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 1989, pp. 80–87.

Monismith

C. L.

, Hicks

R. G.

, Finn

F. N.

, Sousa

, Harvey

, Weissman

, Deacon

, Coplantz

, and Paulsen

. SHRP-A-415. Permanent Deformation Response of Asphalt Aggregate Mixes. University of California, Berkeley, and Strategic Highway Research Program, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 1994.

Baladi

G. Y.

, and Crince

J. E.

. The Engineering Characteristics of Michigan Asphalt Mixture. Final Report MDOT-PRCE-MSU-1999-110. Michigan Department of Transportation, Lansing, 1999.

Chang

C.-M.

, Baladi

G. Y.

, and Wolff

T. F.

. Detecting Segregation in Bituminous Pavements. In Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 1813, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 2002, pp. 77–86.

10.

Hausman

J. J.

, and Buttlar

W. G.

. Analysis of TransTech Model 300 Pavement Quality Indicator: Laboratory and Field Studies for Determining Asphalt Pavement Density. In Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 1813, TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., 2002, pp. 191–200.

11.

Louisiana Standard Specifications for Roads and Bridges. State of Louisiana, Department of Transportation and Development, Baton Rouge, 2000.

12.

Pavement Quality Indicator Model 301 Operator's Handbook. TransTech Systems, Schenectady, N.Y., 2001.

13.

Anderson

, and McGennis

. Ruggedness Evaluation of the Shear Frequency Sweep Test for Determining the Shear Modulus of Asphalt Mixtures. Presented at Annual Meeting of the Association of Asphalt Paving Technologists, White Bear Lake, Minn., 2003.

14.

Collop

A. C.

, Armitage

R. J.

, and Thom

N. H.

. Assessing Variability of in Situ Pavement Material Stiffness Moduli. Journal of Transportation Engineering, Vol. 127, Jan., Feb. 2001, pp. 74–81.

15.

Brown

S. F.

, Tam

W. S.

, and Brunton

J. M.

. Development of an Analytical Method for the Structural Evaluation of Pavements. Proc., 2nd International Conference on Bearing Capacity of Roads and Airfields, Vol. 1, Plymouth, U.K., Sept. 15-17, 1986, pp. 267–276.

16.

Pavement Quality Indicator Model 300. Operator's Handbook. TransTech Systems, Inc., Schenectady, N.Y., April 10, 2000. http://www.transtechsys.com/ [Accessed March 4-5, 2004].

17.

Pavement Quality Indicator Model 301. Operator's Handbook. TransTech Systems., Inc., Schenectady, N.Y., Jan. 24, 2002. http://www.transtechsys.com/ [Accessed March 4-5, 2004].

18.

Spellerberg

, Savage

, and Pielert

. NCHRP Web Document 54 (NCHRP Project D9-26): Precision Estimates of Selected Volumetric Properties of HMA Using Non-Absorptive Aggregate. TRB, National Research Council, Washington, D.C., Feb. 2003.

19.

ISO/IEC 17025:2000 Standard. General Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories. International Organization for Standardization/International Electrotechnical Commission, Geneva, Switzerland, 2000.

20.

Assessment of Field Asphalt Density Gauge Data When Compared with Cores Processes According to AASHTO T-166. Technical Note 0302. TransTech Systems, Inc., Schenectady, N.Y., April 9, 2003. http://www.transtechsys.com/Test%20Plan%20and%20Data%20Assessment%20Plan%20for%20PQI.pdf [Accessed March 4-5, 2004].

21.

Ott

R. L.

Introduction to Statistical Method and Data Analysis, 4th ed. Duxbury Press, Pacific Grove, Calif., 1992.