Highway Pavement Materials and Design

A highway pavement is composed of a system of overlaid strata of chosen

processed materials that is positioned on the in-situ soil, termed
thesubgrade. Its basic requirement is the provision of a uniform skid-
resistant running surface with adequate life and requiring minimum
maintenance. The chief structural purpose of the pavement is the support
of vehicle wheel loads applied to the carriageway and the distribution of
them to the subgrade immediately underneath. If the road is in cut, the
subgrade will consist of the in-situ soil. If it is constructed on fill, the top
layers of the embankment structure are collectively termed the subgrade.
The pavement designer must develop the most economical combination of
layers that will guarantee adequate dispersion of the incident wheel
stresses so that each layer in the pavement does not become overstressed
during the design life of the highway.

The major variables in the design of a highway pavement are:

_ The thickness of each layer in the pavement
_ The material contained within each layer of the pavement
_ The type of vehicles in the traffic stream
_ The volume of traffic predicted to use the highway over its design life
_ The strength of the underlying subgrade soil.

There are three basic components of the highway pavement, general

definitions of which are given here.

Foundation
The foundation consists of the native subgrade soil and the layer of graded
stone. The function of the subbase and capping is to provide a platform on
which to place the roadbase material as well as to insulate the subgrade
below it against the effects of inclement weather. These layers may form
the temporary road surface used during the construction phase of the
highway.

Roadbase
The roadbase is the main structural layer whose main function is to
withstand the applied wheel stresses and strains incident on it and
distribute them in such a manner that the materials beneath it do not
become overloaded.
Surfacing

The surfacing combines good riding quality with adequate skidding

resistance, while also minimising the probability of water infiltrating the
pavement with consequent surface cracks. Texture and durability are vital
requirements of an good pavement surface as are surface regularity and
flexibility. For flexible pavements, the surfacing is normally applied in two
layers – basecourse and wearing course – with the basecourse an
extension of the roadbase layer but providing a regulating course on which
the final layer is applied. In the case of rigid pavements, the structural
function of both the roadbase and surfacing layers are integrated within the
concrete slab. In broad terms, the two main pavement types can be
described briefly as:

_ Flexible pavements The surfacing and roadbase materials, bound with

bitumen binder, overlay granular unbound or cement-bound material.

_ Rigid pavements Pavement quality concrete, used for the combined

surfacing and roadbase, overlays granular cement-bound material. The
concrete may be reinforced with steel.

Pavements are thus composed of several layers of material. They can

consist of one or more bitumen or cement-bound layers overlaying one or
more layers of unbound granular material which in turn is laid on the in-situ
soil (if the highway is in cut) or imported soil/granular material (if the
highway is constructed in fill) which exists below formation level.

FIGURE:

Soils at subformation level

Unless the subsoil is composed of rock, it is unlikely to be strong enough to
carry even construction traffic. Therefore it is necessary to superimpose
additional layers of material in order to reduce the stresses incident on it
due to traffic loading. The in-situ soil would suffer permanent deformation if
subjected to the high stresses arising from heavy vehicle traffic loading.
The shear strength and stiffness modulus are accepted indicators of the
susceptibility of the soil to permanent deformation. A soil with high values
of both these characteristics will be less susceptible to permanent
deformation. Both are usually reduced by increases in moisture content.
Knowledge of them is essential within the pavement design process in
order to determine the required thickness of the pavement layers. Since it
is not always feasible to establish these two parameters for a soil, the,
California bearing ratio (CBR) test is often used as an index test. While it is
not a direct measure of either the stiffness modulus or the shear strength, it
is a widely used indicator due to the level of knowledge and experience
with it that has been developed by practitioners.

California bearing ratio

The California Bearing Ratio (CBR) test is a penetration test used to

evaluate the subgrade strength of roads and pavements. The results of
these tests are used with the empirical curves to determine the thickness of
pavement and its component layers. This is the most widely used method
for the design of flexible pavement.
The CBR test was developed by the California Division of Highways to
classify and evaluate soil-sub grade and base course materials for flexible
pavements. An empirical test, the CBR test has been used to determine the
material properties for pavement design. Empirical tests measure the
strength of the material and are not a true representation of the resilient
modulus. It is a penetration test in which a standard piston, with a diameter
of 3 in or 76 mm, is used to penetrate the soil at a standard rate of 1.25
mm/minute. The pressure up to a penetration of 12.5 mm and its ratio to
the bearing value of a standard crushed rock is termed as the CBR. In most
cases, CBR decreases as the penetration increases. The ratio at 2.5 mm
penetration is used as the CBR. In some cases, the ratio at 5 mm may be
greater than that at 2.5 mm. If this occurs, the ratio at 5 mm should be
used. The CBR is a measure of resistance of a material to penetration of a
standard plunger under controlled density and moisture conditions. The test
procedure should be strictly adhered to if a high degree of reproducibility is
desired. The CBR test may be conducted on a remolded or undisturbed
specimen in the laboratory. The test is simple and has been extensively
investigated for field correlations of flexible pavement thickness
requirement.
The laboratory CBR apparatus consists of a mould of 150 mm diameter
with a base plate and a collar, a loading frame and dial gauges for
measuring the penetration values and the expansion on soaking. The
specimen in the mould is soaked in water for four days and the swelling
and water absorption values are noted. The surcharge weight is placed on
the top of the specimen in the mould and the assembly is placed under the
plunger of the loading frame.
Load is applied on the sample by a standard plunger with diameter 50 mm
at the rate of 1.25 mm/min. A load penetration curve is drawn. The load
values on standard crushed stones are 1370 kg and 2055 kg at 2.5 mm
and 5.0 mm penetrations respectively.

Example Problem:

Subbase and capping

The subbase and capping together act as a regulator of the surface of the
subgrade below and protect it against the effects of inclement weather.
They, along with the subgrade, provide a secure platform on which the
upper layers of the highway pavement can be built. The determinant of the
thickness of this section of the pavement is the strength of the underlying
subgrade. Its design is independent of the cumulative traffic incident on the
upper layers of the pavement over its design life. For subgrades in excess
of 5% CBR, the required subbase depth is no greater than 225mm, down to
a minimum of 150mm at a subgrade CBR of 15%. Granular and cement-
based subbases are recommended for flexible pavements while only
cemented subbases are recommended for rigid-type pavements. In the
case of unbound subbases, their grading should be such that it constitutes
a dense layer of relatively high stiffness modulus, relatively impermeable to
water though not of necessity free draining. Their laboratory CBR should be
a minimum of 30%.

Thickness
The thickness of the subbase/capping layer is dependent on the CBR
of the subgrade.
subbase combined with capping (denoted by the heavy continuous line).
The following four broad categories apply:

(1) No subbase is required if the subgrade is composed of hard rock or of a

granular material with a CBR of at least 30%, provided the water table is
not at a high level.

(2) In the case of subgrades with a CBR greater than 15%, a subbase
thickness of 150 mm is required (in practical terms this constitutes the
minimum subbase thickness for proper spreading and compaction).

(3) Where the CBR of the subgrade lies between 2.5% and 15%, two
options are available:

(a) use 150mm of subbase over a layer of capping material, the

thickness of which depends on the subgrade CBR, or

(b) a layer of subbase varying between 150mm (at 15% CBR) and
350mmb(at 2.5% CBR) in thickness.

(4) For all pavements where the subgrade CBR is below 2.5% and for rigid
pavement construction on materials with CBR less than 15%, 150mm of
subbase must be used on top of capping. The thickness of the capping
layer will reach 600mm where the CBR of the subgrade dips below 2%.

(5) Where the subgrade CBR is substantially below 2%, the material will
often be removed in favour of more suitable material. The depth of this
imported material would typically be between 500mm and 1000mm deep.
Though this material may in reality be quite strong, it will be assumed to
have a CBR of 2% and will thus require a 600mm capping layer.