Extending Flexible Pavement

Life Using Geogrids

By Jim Penman, CGeol, FGS, and Joe Cavanaugh, P.E.

PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
SERIES

September 2006

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Professional Development Series

eogrids have been in common use for more than 25 years. While they
have gained widespread acceptance as a solution to problems associated
with roads constructed on soft or problematic subgrades, their use on

competent subgrades has been less common. Clear, well-established design methodology is
now available that allows the design engineer to quantify the benefits of using geogrids to
extend pavement design life. This approach can be applied for the design of major highways

or light-duty pavements associated with local housing or retail store developments.

Geogrid technology has developed steadily since the
products were first introduced in the early 19805. The initial

Instructions
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Learning Objectives

geogrids rapidly gained popularity within the civil engineering industry, principally due to their ability to provide simple,
cost-effective solutions in various roadway and grade separation applications.

A geogrid is a regular grid structure of polymeric material

used to reinfOfCe soil or other geotechnical engineering related
materials. Products generally are classified as either uniaxial
geogrids or biaxial geogrids, depending upon whether their
strength is predominantly in one
or two directions. Uniaxial
Figure 1: Uniaxial (UX) and
biaxial (BX) geogrid

geogrids are principally used in

grade separation applications
such as retaining walls and steep
slopes; biaxial geogrids are used
mainly in roadway applications.

Examples of both geogrid types

are shown in Figure 1.
This article is principally
concerned with the use of biaxial
geogrids in base reinfOfCement
applications. In these situations, the existing subgrade is of a
firm nature or has been rendered such through the use of a
subgrade improvement te<:hnique. One of the principal failure

1) Understand the mechanisms by which geogrids reinforce pavement structures and how the benefits of
using geogrids can be quantified.
2) Develop a general understanding of the design
methodology currently prescribed by AASHTO for

Figure 2: The inclusion of 8X Geogrids provides lateral confinement of the base, which results in enhanced pavement performance - either an increase in the pavement life, a decrease in the
required thickness of the pavement, or a combination of the two.

including the benefits of geogrid reinforcement in flexible pavement structures.

3) Gain insight on how these techniques can provide costeffective solutions, even on relatively low-volume pavements.
4) Develop a basic understanding of state-of-the -art
mechanistic-empirical design techniques and how
these methods will enhance pavement design practices
in the future.

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Extending Flexible Pavement Life

Current design practice for
flexible pavements

Table l: Keygeogrid propertiesdescribed by1he us. ArrrryCorpsciEngineEfS

Geogrld Prop rty
Rib
Shape
properties
Thickness
Stiffness

Judgment
Rectangular Is better
Thicker Is better
High stiffness Is better

Aperture
properties

Should be matched totill type used

Round or square Is better
High stiffness Is better

Size
Shape
Stiffness

High compared to rib strength (>90%)

Junction strength
Overall

Torsional
strength
Stability

High Is better, minimum of 0.65 cm-kgr

recommended
High Is better

mechanisms of a pavement under these firm subsoil conditions

is rutting resulting from progressive lateral movement of the
aggregate base course during traffic loading (Figure 2).
The amount of lateral movement can be reduced greatly
by including a biaxial geogrid within, or at the bottom of, the
base course layer, Partial penetration of coarse aggregate
particles through the geogrid apertures and subsequent
compaction results in "mechanical interlock" or "confinement" of the aggregate particles.

The American Association of State

Officials
Highway
and
Transportation
(AASHTO) provides guidelines for the design of
flexible pavements in its current design guide (AASHTO,
1993), The design methods described in the guide are based
on a purely empirical approach following a set of large-scale
tests undertaken in Ottawa, 111., in the late 1950s.
The designer is required to know the following input
parameters for a proposed pavement section:
Structural Number (SN) - This is determined by
adding the structural cOfltributioflS from each of the pavement layers, as shown in Figure 3.

"
1
'

1"liliIIIIiIII' "."
ACC BI..

,-

Asphalt surface course

Asphalt base course
Dense-graded aggregate
Granular sub-base

SH _ I IOAl _ OA2

a _ 0.01(1

SH _ Z.OAO_O.80

~::~~~e a_ O.I4.m _ l.O

SH_'. 0.".1.0 _ O.&S

'";=:",::::.~"~"C'"NC,COC.",C.~o~.~o7.~o.O..~,,.,.,.~,,:-...,

Table 2:Typicallayer coefficients for pavement materials

Material

Structural Number

- IIY'I' coet'llcle nt (lypIc:al .al...... hown In r oblel)

m _ dralnage f ... o, Ityplca l .al...... hown In Ta b" 3)

Typical layer
coefficient, 0 1
0.40 - 0.44
0.30 - OAO
0.10 - 0.14
0.06 - 0.1 0

Figure 3: Ca lculation of the Structural Number for a pavement

section.

Geogrid technology
The principal benefit of using a geogrid within the
unbound aggregate component of a flexible pavement is less
rutting at the surface because of reduced lateral spreading of
the unbound aggregate. However, an additional feature of the
reinforcement is that the geogrid-confined aggregate results
in a much stiffer base course layer and a lower dynamic deflectioo of the pavement structure during traffic loading. Fatigue
cracking of the asphalt is therefore reduced because of the
presence of the geogrid reinforcement.
In ord er for geogrid s to work successfully in base reinforcement applications, they must have the capacity to facilitate
effi cient load transfer between the aggregate and the
geogrid. Webster (1992) reported on a large-scale research
program undertaken by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
(Corps) to investigate and determin e the key physical properties of a geogrid required to create optimal interaction and
load transfer. A summary of the key material properties determined in the study are presented in Table 1.

Standard Nonnal Deviate (ZR) - This parameter determines the probability that a road will maintain an acceptable
level of serviceability during its design life. Typical values of reliability recommended by MSHTO are presented in Table 4, and
the relationship between reliability and the required input
parameter, ZIl' is shown in Table 5.
Standard Deviation (S~ - This parameter describes the
reliability of the input parameters selected for the local conditions. Default values of 0.40 to 0.50 are recommended for
flexible pavements.
Change In Serviceability (apSI) - This describes the
loss in serviceability during the design life of the road and is
dictated by acceptable levels of cra cking, rutting, etc. An
initial serviceability, Pi of 4.2 is normally assumed, and
AASHTO recommends a terminal serviceability, Pr of 2.S or
higher for a major highway and 2.0 for highways with less
traffic. Once Pi and Pr are determined, apsi '" Pi - Pro
Subgrade Resilient Modulus (M R) - This defines the
strength of the subgrade or foundation 1ayer on which the
Table 4: Recommended reliability for roads based on AASHTO (1993)

Table 3: Typical drainage coefficients for unbound pavement materials

Qu.lI.,. of
cl<ain..,.
E>c<.Uent

f,'r
""'"

V"'1 poor

Pfopootlotl oft!"", p _ ment I. opproachlng ... u,.. I.... ~I

<I

I _S

S_2S

~1S

1.40-1.15
1.35 - 1.25
1.15-1.15
I.IS-1.05
1.05 _ 0.95

1.15 - 1.10
L25 - 1.15
1.15 - I.oS
1.05 - O.ao
0.95 _ 0,75

1, l(l-1.2O
1.15 - 1.00
1.00-0.00
0.00-0.60
0,75 _ 0.40

1.20
'00

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Interstate and other f.eeways

Principal Arte.ials
Collectors

Local

Recommended level of reliability ('!til

Urban
Rural
85-99.9
80-99.9
SO-99
75 -95
SO-95
75 -95
50 - 80
50 - SO

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main pavement sits.

Once these input parameters have been
determined, it is possible to calculate the
allowable traffic capacity, W 1& for a particular
pavement section using the following equation:
Jog,, (w, . ) _ Z. S, +9.36Jog,, (SN + J) - 0.20 +

I I

log" 4&PSI
2-U
' 1094

Reliability

Z,

Reliability

Z,

99.99
99.9
99
98
97

-3.750
-3.090
-2.327
-2.054
-1.881
-1.751
-1.645
-1.55S
-1.476

92
91

60

-1.405
-1.340
-1.282
-1.037
-0.84 1
-0.674
-0.524
-0.253

50

96
+2.321og" M.-8.07

0.40+ (SN+ l/"

The allowable traffic capacity determined using this equation is quoted in Equivalent Standard Axle Loads (ESALs). To
put this into perspective, a typical, fully laden 20-ton truck
would impose a load equivalent to approximately 5 ESALs.

Geogrids in flexible pavement designs

Geogrids were invented in the late 19705 and sold
commercially for the first time in the early 1980s. Clearly, they
were not used in the original road test used to develop the
current AASHTO design methodology for flexible pavement
design. However, guidance for incorporating geogrids for
base reinforcement in flexible pavements is given in the
Interim Standard PP46-01 published by AASHTO in 2001.
This document recognizes that geogrids used in flexible
pavements provide one or both of the following benefits:
extension of pavement design life; and
reduction of pavement layer thickness.
It is further stated in AASHTO's PP46-01 that to quantify
these performance benefits for a particular geogrid, it is
neces~ry to undertake large-scale performance testing under
carefully controlled (OnditiOflS. A good summary of the testing undertaken during the first 20 years since geogrids were
introduced is provided by Perkins and Ismeik (1999).
Irrespective of the type of test undertaken, the objective is
the ~me - quantify the improved performance of geogridreinforced pavement sections compared with unreinforced
test sections.

133 kN

Table 5: Relationship between Reliability and

Standard Normal Deviate,4,

95
9'
93

90

85
80
75

70

Quantifying extended design life for geogridreinforced pavements

Consider the two pavement sections shown in Figure 4.
The sections are identical apart from the fact that the reinforced pavement contains a geogrid at the subgrade-base
course interface.
The parameter generally used to quantify the extension of
pavement design life using geogrids is the Traffic Benefit Ratio
(TBR). This is defined as follows:
TBR =

No. of cycles for given deformation in reinforced section

No. of cycles for giveo defOfmation in unreinfOfCed sectioo

The results shown in Figure 4 are from the Corps testing

undertaken by Webster (1992). In this simple example, the
TBR would be calculated as follows:
TBR = 500/106 = 4.72

In other words, the use of a geogrid in this pavement

section extended the pavement design life (for a 1-inch
surface rut) by a factor of 4.72.
The AASHTO design guide methodology described above
can be used to calculate the allowable traffic for an unreinforced pavement. To determine the extended pavement life
when using a geogrid in the same pavement sectiOfl, this value
is simply multiplied by the appropriate TBR value for the

133 kN

Powmonttypo

Unre inforced

Reinforced

Figure 4: Performance benefits for extended design life

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Extending Flexible Pavement Life

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80% reductloll III , ... ' ...-11, <IIP'<lty ofu.., Pl'Y""'ent.

Figure 5: Premature p.1vement failure.

geogrid concerned. Keep in mind, however, that in accordance
with the directions given in PP46-01, any TBR values used for a
particular geogrid must have been determined using testing
methods correlated to observed field perfOfTllance.

Geogrid use in local subdivision developments

surface layers at considerable expense. If ruts

have developed, it will also be necessary to
replace the granular foundatiOfl layer(s).
Consider the three pavement sections
shown in Figure 5. The trafficking capacity in each
case has been calculated using the AASHTO guidelines
described above.
Strange as it may sound, in this typical example, leaving off
the 1.S inches of asphalt surfacing during a phased-constructioo procedure (Section B) reduces trafficking capacity of the
pavement by more than 80 percent. For subdivisioo roads,
however, the majority of the total trafficking is experienced
during construction of the road itself and the surrounding
housing. Therefore, it is not surprising that when the surface
layer is installed at the end of construction, the rest of the
pavement structure is approaching the end of its design life.
Placement of an additional thin surface layer results in some
additional trafficking capacity, but a year or two later the road
starts to show the sort of surface distress indicative of problems
associated with the structural integrity of the lower layers.
The simple solution to this problem is a layer of geogrid
installed at the bottom or within the base course during initial
construction. The allowable trafficking determined for SectiOfl
C in Figure 5 was calculated by applying a TBR value of 6 (typical for a high quality geogrid with the required supporting
performance data) to the trafficking capacity for Section B. The
outcome is that the trafficking capacity of the thinner road used
during the construction phase exceeds that for which the
completed road (Section A) was originally designed.
From the road owner's perspective, for relatively little additional expense at the start of construction, the lifetime of their
road is extended enormously, and expensive and disruptive
rehabilitation or reconstruction activities are avoided.

The previous sections described the general methods by

which geogrids can be used to extend pavement design life.
This section focuses on how this technology can be applied
to solve a specific problem associated with relatively lightduty pavements.
As the population of our towns and cities continues to
expand rapidly, new or recently constructed housing, in the
form of subdivision developments, is becoming increasingly
commonplace. One of the more frequent problems associated with the roads in these developments is a direct result of
their method of construction.
Phased construction (Figure 6) has become an extremely
common practice, particularly so in residential developments.
To build a roadway to gain site access, contractors initially
Geogrid use in retail store developments
place the aggregate component of the pavement and, usually,
Another use of geogrid technology can be found in the
a thin asphalt layer on top. This technique is
particularly useful when local trenches are
required for installation of utility pipes and
Figure 6: A typical subdivision road during construction on which the thin
cables. Once the overall site development is
surface aspha lt layer has not yet been installed.
completed, the remaining asphalt is plaCed,
ensuring that the road is in pristine condition
on Day 1 of its formal use. Or is it?
Pavement distress in the form of asphalt
cracking at the surface is common on roads
within subdivisions (Figure 7). In many cases,
these cracks start to appear shortly after
constructiOfl - perhaps as soon as one or two
years. Once the cracking starts to develop, the
deterioration accelerates very quickly. Pavement
distress depicted by alligator cracking is the
most common in such developments and
points to an overall integrity problem as the
pavement approaches the end of its design life.
Under these circumstances, the current owner
of the road will need to replace the road's

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development of pavements around retail

stores. Typically, thicker, heavy-duty pavements are adopted in the loading areas
around such stores, while thinner, lighter-duty
pavements are used for the car parking areas,
One of the main problems associated with this approach is
the potential for a "bathtub" effect - the subgrade is at a
lower level in the areas of the heavy-duty pavements, These
areas are prone to water ingress and build up, resulting in a
reduction in the long-term strength of the pavement. In
colder regions, these areas are also more susceptible to the
effects of freeze-thaw activity. Both of these situations reduce
the design life of the pavement, but there are additional practical problems for the contractor associated with this more
complicated method of construction.
Consider the two sets of pavement sections shown in
Figure 8, In each case, the trafficking capacity of the geogridreinforced sections is at least as great as the unreinforced pavement sections. Clearly, the reinforced sections offer cost
benefits because they are thinner and require less material.
However, the major advantage of this scenario is gained from
the fact that the light- and heavy-duty sections are of the same
thickness, which creates a uniform subgrade elevation, In
addition to offering protection against the bathtub problems
described above, the reinforced se<:tions offer significant material cost savings. Additional benefits result from increased
speed of construction - fewer stake-out procedures, less
undercut/ disposal of fill, and simpler construction.

DesIgn Scenario" - Proposed

Stlndard Duty

lU,OOO Es-.I:s

Pa~ent

Section

Heavy Duty

Standa rd Duty

121.000 ESAI.'.

Deslan Scenlrlo 8 . MKI1I~1ai1ly ReInforced Pa~,"ent Sect10n

Standa rd Duty

Heavy Duty

Stlndard Duty

8lu1.. Geoptd

- - -

165,000 ESAI.'.

330,000 Es-.!.'s

165,000 ESAI.'.

Figure 8: Biaxial geogrids create uniform subgrade elevations.

A glimpse into the future

Essentially, M-E pavement design involves the use of

numerical modeling te<:hniques to predict accurately the
by AASHTO is based purely on empirical results from the largestresses and strains developed in a particular pavement
section as a result of traffic loading. The mechanistic (or theoscale field tests undertaken in Ottawa, III., in the late 19505.
retically-based) predicted performance is then calibrated with
New pavement design approaches, based on me<:hanisticempirical (M-E) principles, are now being developed and
field tests (empirical data) to validate the methodology.
refined by AASHTO and other entities.
Official publication of the new AASHTO design guide may
still be several years away, but the availability of
Figure 7: Condition of a sutxlivision road only two to three years after fina l paving.
M-E-based design methods incorporating the
use of geogrids within the pavement structure
is imminent. Researchers at the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign are about to
publish the results of a four-year project investigating the use of geogrids in base reinforcement applications. Although this type of work
has been undertaken previously by several
authors, the scale of the testing undertaken at
the University of Illinois to develop accurate
transfer functions is unprecedented. Similarly,
the discrete element modeling approach used
to define the interaction between the geogrid
and surrounding soil is revolutionary.
This eagerly anticipated advancement in
pavement design will be published by the
University of Illinois at the 86th Annual Meeting
of the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in
Washington, D.C., Jan. 22-26, 2007.

As previously stated, the current design approach prescribed

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Extending Flexible Pavement Life

Summary
Geogrids can be used successfully to extend the design life
of flexible pavements in a variety of base reinforcement applicatioos. The techniques are equally applicable to major highways and small subdivisioo roads. Significant life cycle cost
savings can be achieved with relatively little additional upfront expenditure.
Current AASHTO design methods exist to determine
appropriate pavement sectioos incorporating geogrids into
pavement structures. However, new and extremely innovative, state-of-the-art techniques using M-E principles are just
around the comer.

Evaluation of Geosynthetic Reinforced Base

Course Layers in Flexible Pavements: Part I
Experimental Work, Geosynthetics International, Vol. 4, No.6, pages 549-604.
Webster, S.L., 1992, Geogrid Reinforced Base
Courses for Light Aircraft: Test Section Construction, Behavior
Under Traffic, Laboratory Tests and Design Criteria,
Geotechnical Laboratory, Department of the Army,
Waterways Experiment Station, Corps of Engineers,
Mississippi.

Jim Penm an . CGeol. FGS, d ir('rlor 01 Ili.l\ia l l'r()(lllrl,

References

'\l'l'lirati"n'i I('f f,'n';.;!f hl1 nnational ( ""fporation, i, a ;.!('okdmicri

,'n)!i!hw with n ll'[(' than 13 :l":!f' "xpni"n l'" in tilt' )!('o, :'ntlh't ir,
li..ld. ! it- L ITI I", ,',HltM t",! at ,il'('!]!nan(lI' t"!I,afroq ', u)II I, Joe
( "a m naug h , P.E. lite pre\ ident "I Ihhnol,,;.!; I, 'r len,ar
intefll ation<l i Corporat ion , i\ a re;.!i-t(Tt'd prok'~ i \ H l al t'!l;.!i!lt'(T in
wHTal ,ta((', and ha, ,.\ ;','<1" "I' "'I'erit'!lre in ;.!eowntl]('tit, and
)!,'ornl lT1 ita i de\ i)!lIitoll \ rruttion . I it' t all lw t()T1 ta tlt' d at
jra, <!T1 ;HJgh(Ii',t('n\;!iT' 11'1'.('( lTI I.

AASHTO, 1993, AASHTO Guide For Design of Pavement

Structures, American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials.
AASHTO, 2001, Provisional Standard PP46-01:
Recommended Practice For Geosynthetic Reinforcement of
the Aggregate Base Course of Flexible Pavements, April 2001
Interim Edition.
Perkins, S.W. and Ismeik, M., 1999, A Synthesis and

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Article Title: Exlending Flexible Pavement life Using Geogrids

Publication Date: Septembef 2006

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this Reporting Form to (513) 64$.7993. (You do not need to send the Quiz; on~ this Reporting Form is necessary to be submitted.)
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Professional Development Series Quiz

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Quiz Instructions
On the Professional Development Series Reporting Form (p<lge PDH 7), circle the correct answer for each of the following questions.
, . In base reinforcement applicatio ns (firm subgrade co nditions),
what is the main function of a geogrid in improving pavement
performance?
a) Enhance loild distribution resu lting in less vertical deflection of

the subgrade.
b) Reduce lateral movemeot of aggregate particles within the base

course layer.
c) Prevent pumping of th e subgrade.
d) Reduce dynamic deflection of the asphalt.

6. Which of the following soil properties would be of greatest

value to an engineer when designing a reinforced pavement on
a relatively competent formation?
a) Shear strength of the subgrilde.
b) Shear strength of the base course.
c) Consolidation properties of the subgrade.
d) AJI equally valuable.
7. What difference(s) would you observe in the visual dist ress

2. Which of the following sets of index properties for a geogrid

would likely give the best indication of how the product will
perform in roadway applications?
a) Ultimilte temile strength; aperture size.
b) Tensile strength at 2% strain; percentage open area.
c) Aperture stability modulus (torsional rigidity); junction strength.
d) True initial modulus in use; creep limited strength.

between subgrade rutting and base course rutting?

a) The al ligator cracks will be larger on the section with base COUf5e
rutting.
b) The rut profile wil l be wider on the section with subgrade
rutting.
c) There is no difference, the rut profiles will be th e same.
d) None of th e above, as rutting always develops in both layef5
equally, and therefore you cannot determine the origin of the
rutting.

3. Which of the following are ~t state ments?

a) Geogrids can never provide effective separation between two
layers because of the passage of fine mil through their apertures.
b) Geogrids and geotextiles essentially use the 5ilme mechanisms
to provide reinforcement
c) The strength of the geogrid used will be the predominant factor
that determines the extension of design life for a reinforced pavement
d) None, all these statements are fa lse.

8. A subdivision road is characterized by alligator cracking but no

surface rutting. What is the most likely mode of failure for the
pavement?
a) Reflection of previous cracks caused by thermal expansion!
co ntraction.
b) Fatigue fai lure of the road as it reaches the elld of its design life.
c) Presence of a weak binder within the asphalt.
d) All of the above are equally likely.

4. Vl/hich of the following is a ~t statement regarding the current

AASHTO (1993) pavement design approach?
a) l arge-scale trafficking studies conducted in the 1950s form the
basis for the design method.
b) The design approach is based primarily on theoretical predictions
of pavement performance.
c) Benefits of geog rids for base reinforcement are included in the
method.
d) NOlle, all of the above are false.

9. If the silty gravel subbase (overlying the subgrade, and

supporting a dense-graded gravel base layer) is the critical
layer in a five-layer pavement section, where would you best
position the geogrid?
a) At the subbase-subgrade interface.
b) In the midd le of the subbase layer.
c) At the subbase-base interface.
d) Any of the above, because the geog rid wi ll provide the same
contribution at al l three locatio ns.

S. Based on the current AASHTO (1993) design approach, with all

other conditions remaining unchanged, what would be the
effect of increasing the subgrade strength?
a) An increase in the overall Structural Number (SN) of the pavement.
b) A likely increase in the drainage properties of the pavement
c) An increase in the allowable traffic for the pavement.
d) Al l of the above.

10. Which of the following advantages apply to MechanisticEmpirical design methods compa red with the purely empirical
approach currently adopted by AASHTO?
a) Designs can account for va riations in material properties with
time.
b) The approach can more easily be adapted to take account of
local mil and climatic conditions.
c) Design methods adopted now will more easily adapt to changes
in ve hicle ioads in the future as trucks develop.
d) All of the above.

OPOH

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