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International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121
www.elsevier.com/locate/IJPRT

Density and SCB measured fracture resistance of

temperature segregated asphalt mixtures
Minkyum Kim a,⇑, Louay N. Mohammad b, Pranjal Phaltane c, Mostafa A. Elseifi d
a
College of Engineering, Louisiana Transportation Research Center, Louisiana State University, 4101 Gourrier Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70808, United States
b
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Engineering Materials Characterization Research Facility, Louisiana Transportation Research
Center, Louisiana State University, 4101 Gourrier Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70808, United States
c
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Louisiana State University, 4101 Gourrier Ave., Baton Rouge, LA 70808, United States
d
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Louisiana State University, 3526c Patrick Taylor Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, United States

Received 18 May 2016; received in revised form 22 November 2016; accepted 20 January 2017
Available online 11 February 2017

Abstract

Segregation is a serious challenge for high quality constructions of asphalt pavements.

Temperature segregation (or temperature differential) in uncompacted asphalt mats has been identified with the use of infrared ther-
mal cameras at the paving site. Four Louisiana asphalt rehabilitation projects were selected for investigating the effects of temperature
segregation on the quality and performance of asphalt pavements. A multi-sensor infrared temperature scanning bar (IR-bar) system
mounted behind the paver measured the real-time thermal profile. The quality of paving mats was measured by the density of field cores
while the performance was measured by the mix’s intermediate temperature fracture resistance using the semi-circular bend (SCB) test.
Results showed that temperature-segregated samples generally had lower densities than the control samples, although the differences
were mostly statistically insignificant. On the other hand, temperature segregated samples generally had lower fracture resistance than
the control samples measured by the SCB Jc values. Four out of six comparison cases showed the differences were statistically significant.
Further verification effort was recommended for confident implementation of the IR thermal imaging technology to the asphalt pave-
ment construction specification.
Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Society of Pavement Engineering. This is an open access article under the CC BY-
NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Keywords: Temperature segregation; Temperature differential; Thermal segregation; Density; Semi-circular bend (SCB); Asphalt pavement

1. Introduction result in non-uniform mixes that do not duplicate the orig-

Segregation has been a serious concern for the asphalt
paving industry for decades. Brock [2] described segrega-
tion in asphalt mixtures as ‘‘a concentration of coarse
materials in some areas and fine materials in others, which
⇑ Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: mkim@lsu.edu (M. Kim), louaym@lsu.edu
(L.N. Mohammad), pphalt1@tigers.lsu.edu (P. Phaltane), elseifi@lsu.edu
(M.A. Elseifi).
Peer review under responsibility of Chinese Society of Pavement
Engineering.
inal design, grading, or asphalt cement.” He suggested that
the segregated areas would develop localized premature
distresses such as fatigue cracking, rutting, raveling, pot-
hole, etc. A number of research efforts on the topic was
conducted in the past decades [3,5,6,8,9,16,17,19]. Stroup-
Gardiner et al. [15] further identified segregation as (1) gra-
dation segregation, (2) temperature segregation, and (3)
aggregate-asphalt segregation (a.k.a. drain-down in stone
matrix asphalt).
Gradation segregation results in either coarse aggregate-
rich or fine aggregate-rich spots and has been the most
common type of segregation; therefore, many remedies

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijprt.2017.01.004
1996-6814/Production and hosting by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of Chinese Society of Pavement Engineering.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121
have been introduced and resulted in significant reductions
of the problem. Common remedies for reducing the
chances of gradation segregation include multiple pile
truck loading from the storage bin at the plant, and use
of material transfer vehicle (MTV) from the truck bed to
the paver. Temperature segregation is a phenomenon that
has been identified with the introduction of high-
precision portable infrared thermal cameras at the paving
site. Many state agencies and researchers have investigated
this phenomenon in recent years [1,4,7,12–15,18]. A com-
mon finding of these research studies is that temperature
segregation (or temperature differential) during the lay-
down operation of asphalt mixtures can cause a com-
paction problem that leads to the lower-than-desirable
pavement density, which consequently results in a consider-
able reduction of pavement service life.
In Louisiana, asphalt construction contractors are
required to follow some operational practices such as the
truck loading/hauling methods and use of MTV in order
to prevent segregations [11]. Hence, it is generally expected
that the uniformity of Louisiana asphalt mixtures is appro-
priate to the required quality. However, investigations con-
cerning temperature segregation and its associated
problems have not been thoroughly conducted. Therefore,
it is necessary to identify how often and under which con-
ditions temperature segregation is likely to occur in Louisi-
ana asphalt paving projects. Moreover, understanding the
ultimate link between temperature segregation and asphalt
pavement performance via mechanical properties of
asphalt mixtures would enable Louisiana pavement engi-
neers to tailor the solutions to fix the problem.
2. Objectives and scope
The objective of this study was to identify the relation-
ship between temperature segregation and the quality of
asphalt pavements. The quality of asphalt pavements was
measured primarily by the density of field cores. In addi-
tion, selected field cores were tested in the lab using the
semi-circular bend (SCB) test to evaluate the fracture resis-
tance of mixtures at intermediate service temperatures.
3. Background
A comprehensive study on segregation problems in
asphalt pavement construction was conducted by Stroup-
Gardiner et al. [15] through the national cooperative high-
way research program (NCHRP) 9-11. The objectives of
this study were to develop procedures for defining, detect-
ing, and measuring segregation, and to evaluate the effects
of segregation on hot-mix asphalt (HMA) pavement
performance. Nondestructive technologies capable of
evaluating the characteristics of the entire mat during con-
struction were considered the most desirable methods. The
best candidate technologies were expected to produce mea-
surements strongly correlated with changes in key
performance-related mixture properties.
113
Two main types of segregation have been thoroughly
investigated in the literature: gradation segregation and
temperature segregation. Gradation segregation is the most
common type and can occur as the result of aggregate
stockpiling, handling, asphalt mixture production, storage,
truck loading practices, construction practices, and equip-
ment adjustments. Temperature segregation was identified
as occurring as the result of differential cooling rate of por-
tions of the mix in the exposed part of the mix in the haul
truck, along the sides of the truck bed, in the wings of the
paver, etc. An additional type, aggregate-asphalt segrega-
tion, common in stone matrix asphalt (SMA), was also sug-
gested. Segregation may be defined as a lack of
homogeneity in the HMA constituents of the in-place
mat of such a magnitude that there is a reasonable expec-
tation of accelerated pavement distresses. ‘‘Constituents”
should be interpreted to encompass asphalt cement, aggre-
gates, additives, and air voids.
A thorough evaluation of temperature differential (TD)
phenomenon was performed by Willoughby et al. [18] from
1998 through 2000. The objectives of the study were to
identify the problems experienced by the Washington
Department of Transportation (WSDOT) with hot-mix
paving, and whether temperature or aggregate segregation
could be the possible causes of these problems. The authors
found that the temperature segregation occurred more fre-
quently than the aggregate segregation did, and the temper-
ature segregations caused reduced density of pavement
areas, which would eventually result in reduced pavement
life. In this study, TD less than 14°C (25°F) did not result
in significant density differentials, while TD greater than
14°C resulted in density differentials more frequently. It
was also found that the use of material transfer vehicles,
pneumatic rollers as breakdown or intermediate rollers,
and timely compaction can reduce the temperature segre-
gation related density differentials.
In 2005, the Connecticut Department of Transportation
(ConnDOT) published guidelines for reduction of Temper-
ature Differential Damage (TDD) for HMA [7]. After five
years of field survey and distress analysis, it was recom-
mended that TD alone should not be used as a quality
acceptance characteristic (QAC) to award incentive or to
punish contractors, but the identified TD areas should be
sampled for further evaluations to ensure the quality of
the paving mat. Furthermore, use of proper insulations
for hauling trucks, minimizing waiting time, use of MTV,
and careful hopper wing control were recommended as best
practices to avoid TDD.
The South Carolina Department of Transportation
(SCDOT) also evaluated thermal differential in HMA
and its effects on the laboratory test results [1]. Results
showed that the most identifiable cause of temperature
segregation within a pavement appeared to be due to either
material segregation at the end of a truck load or the intro-
duction of cooler material as the result of dumping the
paver wings. Proper utilization of a MTV appeared to be
the most effective means to minimize thermal differentials
114 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121
in the pavement mat for many mixtures. Results also
showed that haul time appeared to be one of the largest
factors contributing to TDD. With haul times greater than
70 min, the occurrence of temperature segregation
increased.
The North Dakota Department of Transportation
(NDDOT) investigated the use of thermal cameras in
asphalt pavement construction in order to determine
whether thermal segregation occurs in the state [14]. Obser-
vations suggested that thermal segregation, if defined as the
freshly laid mat having an area 13.9°C (25°F) colder than
adjacent areas, does occur in North Dakota asphalt pave-
ment. The correlation between temperature and density
was compared to that between TD and density. It was
reported that the density was more dependent on tempera-
ture than on TD. Authors suggested that it may also be
possible to determine limiting mat temperatures, below
which pavement density would be significantly affected.
In Texas, the Pave-IR system was first proposed more
than a decade ago and the system was implemented after
the system was developed in a commercial version by
MOBA, Inc. in Germany [12]. Using the device, perfor-
mance of 14 asphalt pavement projects in Texas were mon-
itored from 2004 to 2009 [13]. With projects ranging in age
from two to seven years, most projects did not exhibit dis-
tress at locations of known thermal segregation. On some
projects, the Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) data sug-
gested traffic action may have homogenized the pavement
surface density. However, on several projects, evidence of
thermal segregation still existed, generally noted by differ-
ences in surface appearance and localized decreases in the
surface dielectric constants measured from the GPR. Per-
formance testing cores after some years of service indicated
that thermal segregation did not impact the Hamburg test
results but may lead to a higher susceptibility to cracking.
It was concluded that the presence of thermal segregation
at the time of construction does not guarantee failure
within two to seven years, but the results do show that
thermally-segregated locations may remain anomalies in
the mat that deteriorate due to cracking when on the sur-
face, or contribute to failures of subsequent overlays.
Cho et al. [4] studied the relationship between thermal
differential and the density of compacted mat using a ther-
mal camera device with a handheld GPS system. It was
shown that a significant relationship existed between TD
and pavement density as the level of TD increased. Haul
time was not found to be significant in creating TD within
the observed time range. The authors suspected that TD
created during transport was caused by the type of truck
used. The use of a belly dump truck with material pick-
up machine appeared to contribute to more uniform mat
temperatures. Almost one-third of all investigated TD
locations are showing signs of deterioration between
8 months and 1.5 years after construction, which led the
authors to believe that TD was clearly causing premature
distresses.
4. Methodology
4.1. Field projects and asphalt mixtures
Four asphalt rehabilitation projects in Louisiana were
selected for evaluation (Table 1). Each of the four projects
was constructed by a different contractor. A slightly smal-
ler sized paver was utilized in LA30 project, while the other
three projects used the same paver model. A different
model of MTV was used in LA1053, but both models of
MTV, i.e., Roadtec Shuttle Buggy and Weiler E2850, were
similar in size. Travel times of hauling trucks ranged from
less than 10 min to up to 50 min. The target laydown tem-
peratures were 135°C (275°F) in LA1058 and 149°C (300°
F) in LA30, US165, and LA1053.
Table 2 presents the asphalt mixtures used in the four
projects. A 12.5-mm (0.5 in.) nominal maximum aggregate
size (NMAS) Superpave wearing course with PG70-22M
grade asphalt cement was used in LA30 and US165, while
a 12.5-mm (0.5 in.) NMAS Superpave warm-mix asphalt
(WMA) wearing course with PG70-22m grade asphalt
cement and a 19.0-mm (0.75 in.) NMAS Superpave binder
course with PG64-22 grade asphalt cement were used in
LA1058 and in LA1053, respectively.
4.2. Temperature segregation measurements
A multi-sensor infrared temperature scanning bar (IR-
bar) system was used to measure the real-time temperature
profiles immediately behind the paver (Fig. 1). The IR-bar
system consists of a 12-sensor-3.6 meter (12 ft) wide sensor
bar with an accuracy of 1.1°C (2°F), a distance recording
odometer, a GPS signal receiver, and an operating unit that
collects and displays the location information and the real-
time temperature profiles.
Temperature profile data were analyzed to identify
thermally-segregated areas at multiple levels such as low,
medium, and high. In identifying the temperature segre-
gated areas, small cold areas that were typically smaller
than a 30
30 cm2 rectangular area were ignored due to
the precision of location information and to exclude false
temperature readings that could happen by sensor block-
ages. With up to a meter precision of both odometer and
GPS measured location information, temperature segre-
gated areas larger than several meters in length were only
selected for field sampling.
4.3. Laboratory tests
Field cores were obtained from the temperature-
segregated areas within one or two weeks after paving.
Thickness of field cores ranged from 38 mm (1.5 in.) to
50 mm (2 in.) depending on their design layer thickness.
Density of these core samples was measured in accordance
with AASHTO T 166, ‘‘Bulk Specific Gravity of Com-
pacted Asphalt Mixtures Using Saturated Surface-Dry
Specimens.” In addition, cores from LA30, US165, and
 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121 115

Table 1
Field projects investigated.
Route Contractor Paver model MTV model Haul time (min) Paving time Target temperature (°C)
LA30 A CAT AP655 Shuttle buggy <10 Night 149
LA1058 B CAT AP1055 Shuttle buggy 30 Day 135
US165 C CAT AP1055 Shuttle buggy 50 Day 149
LA1053 D CAT AP1055 Weiler E2850 20 Day 149

Table 2
Asphalt mixtures.
Designation Layer Mix type NMAS (mm) Asphalt cement Layer thickness (mm)
LA30 Wearing course Superpave HMA 12.5 PG70-22 m 38.0
LA1058 Wearing course Superpave WMA 12.5 PG70-22 m 38.0
US165 Wearing course Superpave HMA 12.5 PG70-22 m 50.0
LA1053 BC Binder course Superpave HMA 19.0 PG64-22 50.0

Fig. 1. Multi-sensor IR-bar system.

LA1053 were used to investigate whether the temperature
segregation affects the fracture resistance of finished pave-
ments using the semi-circular bend (SCB) test. The SCB
measured fracture property has been known to indicate
the long-term cracking performance of asphalt pavements
at intermediate service temperatures [10]. Tests were per-
formed in accordance with DOTD TR 330, standard test
method for ‘‘Evaluation of Asphalt Mixture Fracture
Resistance Using the Semi-Circular Bend (SCB) Test at
Intermediate Temperature.”
The SCB test characterizes the fracture resistance of
asphalt mixtures based on a fracture mechanics concept,
the critical strain energy release rate, also called the critical
value of J-Integral, or Jc. To determine the critical value of
J-Integral, semi-circular specimens with two different notch
depths at 25.4 mm (1 in.) and 38.0 mm (1.5 in.), were tested
using four replicates per notch depth. The test was con-
ducted at 25°C (77°F). A semi-circular specimen was
loaded monotonically until fracture occurred under a con-
stant cross-head deformation rate of 0.5 mm/min in a
three-point bend load configuration, Fig. 2. The load and
deformation are continuously recorded and the critical
value of J-Integral is determined by Eq. (1):
 
1 dU
JC ¼  ð1Þ
b da
where: b = sample thickness (mm); a = the notch depth
(mm); and U = the strain energy to failure (kJ).
5. Results and discussion
5.1. Thermal profiles
Two distinctive types of temperature segregation were
observed from all four projects investigated, namely,
‘‘cyclic” and ‘‘irregular” temperature segregations. The first
type of observed temperature segregation is known as cyc-
lic temperature segregation as the temperature fluctuation
occurs in a repeating cyclic pattern. In the thermal profiles
from all four projects shown in Fig. 3, fairly uniform pat-
116 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121
2rd=152mm, 2s=127mm, b = 38 ~ 50mm
Fig. 2. Set-up of semi-circular bend test.
terns of the full-width mat temperature increasing and
decreasing along the longitudinal direction is clearly visual-
ized with changing colors. Fig. 4 presents the correspond-
ing temperature fluctuations in line charts where the
cyclic patterns are more evident. Shapes of the cyclic wave-
forms varied from one project to another and within a pro-
ject depending on how continuously the haul trucks arrive
and feed the mixture into the MTV and paver without
delay. The maximum magnitude of the cyclic temperature
segregation (i.e., peak-and-valley temperature differential)
observed from the four projects did not exceed 25°C (45°
F), while the period (length of one cycle of temperature dif-
ferential) varied typically from 30 m (100 ft) to 75 m
(250 ft). Interestingly, this range of periods roughly
matched the typical length of asphalt mat by a truckload
of asphalt mix, which varied from 20 to 26 metric tons
depending on the size of haul trucks.
Therefore, the cyclic temperature segregation can be
viewed as an ‘‘unavoidable” temperature fluctuation due
mainly to the continuous natural cooling of asphalt mix-
tures from a single truckload for the duration of laydown
of that very mixtures, but its severity is generally at a toler-
able level.
Willoughby et al. [18] reported similar observation
where localized areas of intense temperature differentials
(e.g., TD up to 32°C or 58°F) occurred in a cyclic pattern,
which was believed to be responsible for the cyclic occur-
rence of rough surface macrotexture on the pavements.
However, their observed cyclic temperature segregation
was different from the current study in that the localized
cool areas of mat appeared as ‘‘cold pockets” surrounded
by normal temperature mats. Cyclic appearance of those
cold pockets was most often observed when no MTV was
utilized. In the current study, on the other hand, it is note-
worthy that the use of MTVs were required for all four
field projects by the asphalt specifications, which con-
tributed to proper remixing and even distribution of the
notch
a
P 2s P
2 2
2
asphalt mixtures. Sebesta and Scullion [13] also reported
a similar pattern of temperature differential as ‘‘truck end”
segregation, the period (or frequency) of which was not dis-
cussed in detail.
The second type of temperature segregation was identi-
fied as ‘‘irregular” since it occurred irregularly throughout
the entire paving operation without any characteristic mag-
nitude or period. The irregular temperature segregation
could occur in the longitudinal or transverse direction of
paving operations. The irregular segregation in longitudi-
nal direction most typically occurred whenever paver
stopped as discussed by Stroup-Gardiner and Brown [15]
and Sebesta and Scullion [13]. During the paving opera-
tions, the paver typically stopped multiple times for either
machine-related or operational trouble-shooting. When it
happened, the uncompacted asphalt mat – immediately
behind the screed and up to where the breakdown roller
was waiting – started to cool down, and a significant
amount of cooling occurred as the waiting time extended.
Locations of these longitudinal irregular segregations can
be easily identified from the four line charts in Fig. 4 where
some instantaneous drops of temperature trends are
noticed. Depending on the cooling rate of asphalt mixture,
which is a function of the air temperature, road bed tem-
perature, amount of sunlight, winds, humidity, etc., tem-
perature can drop more than 55.6°C (100°F) within less
than an hour of the stop of paving operations.
Fig. 5 presents the zoomed-in thermal profiles of areas
with typical longitudinal irregular segregations. The length
of the temperature segregated area was fairly consistently
about 1.5 m (4.9 ft) to 2.1 m (6.9 ft), which is the distance
between the IR-bar and the rear edge of the screed. How-
ever, the actual affected areas were typically much wider
than this distance, since the wider areas of the asphalt
mat behind the paver up to where the breakdown roller
stopped left uncompacted until the operation resumed.
The length of the actual uncompacted mat behind the
 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121 117

175°C

LA30

95 °C 0 m 500 m 1000 m 1500 m 2000 m

175°C

LA
1058

95 °C 0 m 500 m 1000 m 1500 m 2000 m

175°C

US
165

95 °C 0 m 500 m 1000 m 1500 m 2000 m

175°C

LA
1053
BC

95 °C 0 m 500 m 1000 m 1500 m 2000 m

Fig. 3. Cyclic pattern of temperature segregation.

paver was observed as little as 4 m (13 ft) and as much as
50 m (164 ft) depending on how close the roller followed
the paver. To minimize the uncompacted mat, therefore,
it seems necessary that the breakdown roller compacts
the mat behind the paver as close as possible when the
paver has to stop. Also, to avoid excessive cooling of the
uncompacted mat, use of insulating tarps on the area can
be considered.
The irregular segregation in transverse direction, on the
other hand, can occur due to poor remixing and uneven
distribution of asphalt mixtures through the paver auger,
and can be noticed as a streak pattern on the thermal pro-
file maps as shown in Fig. 5 of LA30 where light to dark
red streaks are clearly visible on both sides of the paver
stop. The streak pattern essentially shows the temperature
differential across the width of the pavement. A typical
magnitude of the transverse irregular segregations
observed from the four field projects was around 10°C
(18°F), which was not regarded as a serious level of temper-
ature segregations.
To further investigate the effects of temperature segrega-
tion observed immediately behind the paver on the quality
and performance of the pavements, IR-bar measured ther-
mal profiles from the four projects were grouped into 13.9°
C (25°F) incremental drop from their corresponding target
laydown temperatures. Table 3 lists the severity groups and
their temperature ranges. Following this classification,
‘‘Low” to ‘‘High” severity temperature segregated areas
were identified from the IR-bar measured thermal profiles.
In the identified temperature segregated areas, field core
samples were then obtained within one week after the com-
pletion of the construction. A minimum of three cores per
severity level was required for density measurements. When
the number of coring spots for a severity level was less than
118 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121

200

170 ~60 m

Temperature (°C)
140

110
10 °C
80
LA30
50
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200

170
~60 m
Temperature (°C)

140

110
23 °C
80
LA1058
50
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200

170 ~50 m
Temperature (°C)

140

110
10 °C
80
US165
50
0 500 1000 1500 2000
200
~60 m
170
Temperature (°C)

140

110
20 °C
80
LA1053 BC
50
0 500 1000 1500 2000
Distance (meter)

Fig. 4. Magnitudes and periods of cyclic temperature segregation.

three, that severity level was skipped. Cores were retrieved
from the center of a wheel path.
5.2. Density variations
Fig. 6 shows the density test results of field core samples.
For LA30, medium severity temperature-segregated sam-
ples clearly showed higher air voids than the control sam-
ples. A t-test between the two means resulted in a p-value
of 0.02, and thus, it is reasonable to believe the medium
severity temperature segregation significantly reduced the
density of the pavement. For LA1058, both low and med-
ium severity temperature segregated samples showed 1.9%
and 1.6% higher air voids than the control samples. ‘‘Con-
trol vs. low severity” and ‘‘control vs. medium severity” t-
tests returned p-values of 0.06 and 0.18, respectively.
Therefore, the impact of temperature segregation on the
density of LA1058 pavement was not clearly evident. For
US165, a progressive increase of air voids from low severity
to high severity samples is shown on the bar chart. How-
ever, t-test results showed disapproval on the significance
of the differences with p-values of 0.45, 0.30, and 0.16 for
‘‘control vs. low,” ‘‘control vs. medium,” and ‘‘control vs.
high severity,” respectively. For LA1053 BC, medium
 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121 119

175°C

LA30 155 °C 112 °C

145 °C
95 °C 0 m 5m 10 m
175°C

124 °C 98 °C
LA
1058

95 °C 0 m 5m 10 m
175°C

107 °C
163 °C
US
165
219 °C

95 °C 0 m 5m 10 m
175°C

96 °C
US
165 158 °C

95 °C 0 m 5m 10 m

Fig. 5. Temperature segregation after the paver stops.

Table 3 14
Temperature segregation severity levels. 0 -25 -50 -75 -100
12
Temperature group Severity level Temperature range
10
Air Voids (%)

0 None Target ± 6.9 °C

8
25 Low (Target13.9 °C) ± 6.9 °C
50 Medium (Target27.8 °C) ± 6.9 °C 6
75 High (Target41.7 °C) ± 6.9 °C 4
100 Very high (Target55.6 °C) ± 6.9 °C
2
0
severity temperature segregated samples were identified,
LA30 LA1058 US165 LA1053 BC LA1053
which showed slightly higher air voids than the control (@roller)
samples. However, the difference was not statistically sig- Projects
nificant based on the t-tests between the mean air voids.
Fig. 6. Density test results.
The p-value of ‘‘control vs. medium severity” was 0.40.
In the meantime, additional temperature segregated tional samples were labeled as ‘‘LA1053(@roller)” in Fig. 6
samples were obtained in LA1053 from the earlier dis- and grouped into the severity levels by their corresponding
cussed ‘‘breakdown roller-delayed” mat areas. These addi- temperatures measured just before the compaction. The
120 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121

6.0
1
y = 0.00x2 - 0.04x 0 -25 -50 -75 -100

Change in Air Voids (%)

5.0
R² = 0.39
0.8
4.0

SCB Jc (kJ/m2)
0.6
3.0

2.0 0.4

1.0 0.2
0.0
0
-60 -40 -20 0
LA30 US165 LA1053 BC
Change in Temperature (°C)
Projects

Fig. 7. Relationship between temperature segregation and air voids. Fig. 8. Fracture resistance test results measured by SCB Jc.

severity levels of these additional samples were from med-

ium to very high as shown in the last series of bar charts in 0.2
Fig. 6. Interestingly, the medium and high severity samples

Change in SCB Jc (kJ/m2)

showed very similar air voids to that of the control sam-
ples, while only the ‘‘very high” severity group samples
showed significantly higher air voids, around 10.6%. The
observation may indicate that the temperature segregated
asphalt mat can still be compacted to the required density
as long as the mat temperature remains above a certain
level, for example, the cessation temperature, at which no
further densification of asphalt mat may occur regardless
of compaction efforts [18,14].
In summary, among the 10 temperature segregated sam-
ple groups, only two groups (i.e., LA30 medium severity
and LA1053 very high severity at roller) showed that den-
sity was significantly affected by temperature segregation.
Fig. 7 shows a scatter plot between the temperature dif-
ferentials and the change in air voids. A weak increasing
trend of change in air voids can be observed as the temper-
ature differential becomes larger. The R-square value of the
second-order polynomial trend line that passes through the
origin was about 0.39, which is not significantly high
enough to endorse the relationship between the tempera-
ture differential and the density differential in the asphalt
pavement. The observation may reflect the fact that the
density of asphalt pavement is not only dependent on the
temperature of freshly laid down mat of asphalt mixture
behind the paver, but it is also dependent on many other
influencing factors such as the mixture design, actual tem-
perature at compaction, total compaction efforts, and roller
operation practices.
5.3. Fracture resistance variation
A limited number of samples from LA30, US165, and
LA1053 were tested for fracture resistance evaluation using
the SCB test (Fig. 8). The Louisiana specifications [11]
requires a minimum Jc value of 0.5 kJ/m2 for asphalt mix-
tures designed for low volume roads. For LA30, control
and medium severity samples resulted in a Jc of 0.89 and
0.72 kJ/m2, respectively. However, t-test results did not
show that the difference was significant with a p-value of
0.36. For US165, low, medium, and high severity samples
0.1
y = 0.00x - 0.04 0.0
R² = 0.23
-0.1
-0.2
-0.3
-0.4
-60 -40 -20 0
Change in Temperature (°C)
Fig. 9. Relationship between temperature segregation and fracture
resistance.
all showed lower Jc values than that of the control samples.
The differences were also statistically significant with p-
values for all three comparison cases less than 0.004. For
LA1053, SCB tests were performed on the samples identi-
fied by the actual compaction temperature segregation.
Interestingly, the medium severity samples showed higher
average Jc values than the control (i.e., 0.63 vs. 0.50), while
the very high severity samples showed considerably lower
Jc value than the control (i.e., 0.21 vs. 0.50). The difference
between the control and the medium severity samples was
not statistically significant, while the difference between
the control and very high severity samples was statistically
significant with a p-value of 0.009.
Among the six temperature-segregated sample groups
compared to the corresponding control samples, four
groups (i.e., US165 low, medium, and high severity and
LA1053 very high severity at compaction) showed that their
fracture resistance was significantly affected by temperature
segregation. Fig. 9 shows a scatter plot between the temper-
ature segregation and the change in SCB Jc values. A weak
decreasing trend of change in SCB Jc value was observed as
the temperature differential gets larger. The R-square value
of the linear trend line was 0.23, which was not significantly
high enough to draw a conclusion on the relationship
between the temperature differentials and the change in
fracture resistance of asphalt pavements.
 M. Kim et al. / International Journal of Pavement Research and Technology 10 (2017) 112–121
6. Summary and conclusions
In this study, four Louisiana asphalt pavement rehabil-
itation projects were selected for investigating the effect of
temperature segregation on the quality and performance of
asphalt pavements. From the investigation, ‘‘cyclic” and
‘‘irregular” patterns of temperature segregations were
observed in all four field projects, although best practices
(e.g., the MTVs, surge bins, mixture insulations, etc.) have
been implemented to eliminate the segregations. It was also
found that only paver stops resulted in severe temperature
segregations near the cessation temperature. Field cored
temperature-segregated samples generally showed lower
densities than the control samples. However, the differences
were not statistically significant. Furthermore, one-to-one
correlation between the temperature differential and the
change in density was not evident. Results also showed that
temperature segregated samples generally had lower frac-
ture resistance than the control samples measured by the
SCB Jc values. Four out of six comparison cases showed
that the differences were statistically significant. However,
statistical correlation between the temperature differential
and the change in fracture resistance was not strong.
Monitoring the temperature profile of the asphalt mat
behind the paver in real-time is a notable leap on the qual-
ity control of asphalt pavement construction. Moreover,
the IR-bar system can provide both the highway agencies
and contractors a unique opportunity of jumping on top
of uncertainties encountered during the construction pro-
cess. Yet, in order to confidently implement IR technology
into construction specifications, further research is needed
to validate the impact of the temperature segregation on
the quality and performance of asphalt pavements.
Acknowledgements
This work was a part of LTRC 14-1B project and was
supported by the Louisiana Transportation Research Cen-
ter (LTRC) in cooperation with the Louisiana Department
of Transportation and Development (DOTD). The contri-
bution of staffs in the asphalt laboratory and the Engineer-
ing Material Characterization and Research Facility
(EMCRF) to this project is acknowledged.
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