Relationship between repeated triaxial test and Hamburg wheel tracking test on asphalt mixtures

Both the repeated triaxial test （RTT） and the Hamburg wheel tracking test （HWTT） are adopted to evaluate the high temperature performance of the stone mastic asphalt （SMA） and the mastic asphalt （MA）. The correlation of the permanent deformations of the MA and the correlation of the deformation developments of the SMA between the two tests are analyzed, respectively. Results show that both the two tests can effectively identify the high temperature performance of mixtures, and the correlation between the final results of the two tests as well as that between the deformation developments of the two tests are excellent with R20.9. In order to further prove the correlation, viscoelastic parameters estimated from the RTT results is used to simulate the rutting development in the HWTT slabs by the finite element method （FEM）. Results indicate that the correlation between the two tests is significant with errors less than 10%. It is suitable to predict the rutting development with the viscoelastic parameters obtained from the RTT.

Rutting Resistance of Asphalt Overlay with Multilayer Wheel Tracking Test

The rutting resistance of maltilayer asphalt overlay was researched by using laboratoty wheel tracking test. The effects of loading level and test temperature on rutting resistance of asphalt overlay structure were evahuaed by means of multilayer specimens . In comparison with multilayer tests, standard specimens of various layers were also conducted to evaluate the rutting resistance. Experimental results indicated that the test tempercature and applied load have a significant effect on rutting resistance of asphalt concrete. Higher test tempercature and heavier applied load resulted in higher rut depths. In addition, the mutilayer wheel tracking test has been demonstrated to be a more reasonable solution in evaluation on rutting resistance of asphatt pavement structure beasuse it reflects the cumulative permanent deformation in all of asphalt layers.

Rutting resistance of asphalt mixtures in the middle course

In order to improve the rutting resistance of asphalt mixtures in the middle course to reduce the rutting of asphalt pavement, the influence of different types of gradation with their own optimal asphaltaggregate ratios is analyzed. Some investigations are made out on the mixture in the middle course through the modified wheel tracking test in air bath and the Hamburg wheel tracking test （HWTT） in water bath, and the results of which are compared with the corresponding research in Germany. Results show that the Sup20 and the modified AC-20I have better performance than that of AC-20I under the same test conditions. In addition, the high-quality bitumen and hard aggregate can improve the rutting performance of the mixture in water-submerged conditions. The selection of modified asphalt, hard aggregate and a reasonable gradation are essential to the improvement of the rutting resistance of the mixtures used in the middle course.

Study on High Temperature Behaviour of Gussasphalt

Rutting is one of the most damages in the asphalt surfaces for the orthotropic steel bridge decks. With Hamburg wheel tracking device, the suitable test conditions for Gussasphalt in Germany are pointed out, the high temperature behaviour of Gussasphalt with different binders are tested and compared. The polymer modified binder has higher resistance stability to rutting. The retained time and mixed frequency have obvious effects on Gussasphalt behaviour during Gussasphalt retained period.

Wheel tracking methods to evaluate moisture sensitivity of hot-mix asphalt mixtures

Existing test methods to determine moisture sensitivity in hot-mix asphalt （HMA） mixtures are time consuming and inconsistent. This research focused on wheel tracking devices to evaluate moisture sensitivity. The Asphalt Pavement Analyzer （APA） and the Hamburg Wheel Tracking Device （HWTD） were used for this research. Compacted cylindrical samples were fabricated using a Superpave Gyratory compactor. This study selected two most commonly used mixtures, SM-12.5A with PG 64-22 binder in overlay projects and SM-19A mixtures with PG 64-22 binder for major modification projects at Kansas Department of Transportation. Test results show that APA tests could induce stripping in most samples without any anti-stripping agent, which could be identified visually. However, APA results did not indicate any stripping inflection point while the HWTD results showed stripping inflection points, which are important to identify stripping potential of mixtures. The APA results show that wet tests are severe at lower temperatures. The HWTD results show improvement in the performance using anti-stripping agents at later stage. The HWTD test is more effective as a rapid test method in case of determining moisture sensitivity. Laboratory results from this study should be verified and correlated with field performance.

Evaluation of rutting performance of stone matrix asphalt mixtures containing warm mix additives

Permanent deformation or rutting, one of the most important distresses in flexible pavements, has long been a problem in asphalt mixtures and thus a great deal of research has been focused on the development of a rheological parameter that would address the rutting susceptibility of both unmodified and modified bituminous binders. In this research, three warm mix additives(Sasobit, Rheofalt and Zycotherm) were used to modify 60-70 penetration grade base binder. The rutting potential of both modified and unmodified binders were evaluated through the multiple stress creep recovery(MSCR)-based parameter, nonrecoverable compliance(Jnr) and recovery parameter(R). Several performance tests carried on stone matrix asphalt(SMA) mixtures comprising different nominal maximum aggregate sizes(NMASs, 9.5, 12.5 and 19 mm), like Marshall stability, dynamic and static creep and Hamburg wheel tracking tests to evaluate their rutting performance. The objective of this work is to correlate MSCR test results to performance. Results indicate that for the range of the gradations investigated in this work, increasing the nominal maximum aggregate size of the gradation would increase the permanent deformation resistance of the SMA mixture. Addition of 3% sasobit to base binder leads an increase in Jnr100 about 82%. Addition of 2% rheofalt to base binder leads an recovery increase of about 9.76 % and 27.44% in stress levels of 100 and 3200 Pa, respectively. The results reveal that rutting resistance of mixtures improves as Jnr decreases. The use of the MSCR test in the rutting characterization of bituminous binders is highly recommended based on the results of this work.

Rutting Resistance of Asphalt Pavement Mixes by Finite Element Modelling and Optimisation

Asphalt pavement rtting is a major safety concem and is one of the main distress modes of asphalt pavement.Research into asphalt pavement mixes that provide strong resistance for nutting is considered of great significance as it can help provide extended pavement life and significant cost savings in pavement maintenance and rehabilitation.The objectives of this study are to develop numernical models to investigate the ntting of asphalt concrete pavements and to find optimal design of asphalt pave-ment mix for nutting resistance.Three-dimensional Finite Element mod-els were first developed to simulate both the axial compression and wheel track testing in which a visco elastic-plastic material model was used to predict the ntting of the asphalt concrete pavements.A strain hardening creep model with the material parameters developed from experimental testing was employed to model the time-dependent characteristics of the asphalt concrete pavements.The results were validated against the pre-vious experimental wheel track test results of different pavement mixes.Finally,optimisation techniques using the Design Of Experiments method were applied to the simulation rutting results by varying creep parameters to identify their effects on rutting resistance in order to obtain an optimal asphalt pavements mixes.The results of this paper clearly demonstrate an efficient and effective experimental-numerical method and tool set towards optimal design for asphalt concrete pavements for rutting resis-tance.