LECTURE 2 FACTORS AFFECTING PAVEMENT DESIGN AND STRESSES IN PAVEMENTS

2.1 Factors Affecting Pavement Design

Various environmental factors must be considered in pavement design. The loading due to
traffic is considered in terms of the magnitude and repetitions of traffic loads. Thus, a pavement
with an apparently good surface when the road was first opened to traffic could deteriorate
under ' repeated traffic loadings if the design neglected such repeated wheel loads or if
maintenance has not been properly carried out. Some of the factors governing pavement design
are discussed below:

A good design must embody all the above factors

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2.1.1 WHEEL LOAD

(a) Magnitude of wheel load and tyre pressure

The load from the wheel is transmitted to the pavement through tyres. The wheel load from a
rubber tyre is distributed on a large area, depending upon the tyre pressure. The tyre pressures
on commercial vehicles vary from 0.5 to 0.7 MN/m2 (70 - 100 psi). A value of 0.5 MN/m2 is
typical. Tyre pressures are much more important in the design of airfield pavements. A much
higher tyre pressure, in the range between 1.0 and 1.5 MN/m2 (150 – 200 psi) is used in airfield
design. The spacing of axles also affects the stresses induced. Tandem axles are common on
modern road transport vehicles. The AASHO Road test has shown that an 18,000 lb single axle
load is equivalent in its damaging effect to a 32,000 lb tandem axle load. Similarly, a single load
of 22,400 lbs had about the same damaging effect as a 40,000 lb tandem axle load. Repetition
of wheel loads is very important in causing pavement distress. It is, therefore, necessary to
select the design and assess the total number of repetitions of axle loads during the pavement
life.

(b) Equivalent standard axle

A difficulty arises in assessing the number or repetitions of loads since the traffic consists of a
mixture of axle loads of varying magnitudes. Some vehicles are heavy while some are not.
Some have a large number of axles. The standard procedure to deal with this problem is to
express the traffic in terms of an equivalent number of standard axles. To allow for comparison
of the relative damaging effect of various axle loads, a standard axle of 8.2t (18,000 lbs) was
adopted following the AASHO Road Test conducted between 1959 and 1960 in the USA. Other
axle loads can be converted to equivalent standard axles using the following approximate
equation

For the factor n, the fourth power rule applies in causing structural damage (but n = 4.5 is used
in Kenya). The rule can be stated thus: The structural damage caused by an axle load varies as
the fourth power-of its ratio to the standard axle load.

Thus, the equivalence of a 120 kN axle is;

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EXAMPLE

The results of a one-day axle load survey of trucks on a road are tabulated in Table Eg1.
Determine the number of repetitions of a standard 80 kN axle in a year

The numerical problem solved above demonstrates that the axle loads which are small in
magnitude, say up to 3 tonnes do not have any significant effect on the structural design. Thus
passenger cars and light vans do not contribute to the failure of pavements. On the contrary,
extremely heavy axle loads, even though few in number, contribute to the failure. Apart from the
fourth power rule, standard tables are available, which have been deduced from the AASHO
Road Test as illustrated in Table 2.2 below.

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Table 2.2 Equivalence factors and damaging power of different axle loads

(c) Design traffic loading

The lateral placement of wheel loads affects design significantly. If the tendency of the traffic is
to follow a certain fixed position across the pavement, the strip under the wheel loads gets
severely loaded whereas the remaining portion of the pavement gets less loads. Theoretically,
therefore, pavements can be made of varying thickness depending upon the lateral placement
of vehicles.

In actual practice, however, this is not done and a uniform pavement thickness is provided. In
airport run-ways, the central one-third of paved width is principally used, and edges can be
made with lesser thickness.

The current Kenyan practice on the distribution of commercial traffic is as under:

(i) Single carriageway roads of width less than 7m.

Since traffic tends to be more channelised it is assumed that the central section of the road is
used by 70 to 80% of the commercial vehicles. The sum of standard axles in both directions is
used to allow for the overlap.

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(ii) Two-lane single carriageway roads of width greater than 7m

In the case of roads with width larger than 7m, traffic is less channelized, tending to wander
over the carriageway. The practice is to use 80% of traffic in both directions for single
carriageway roads.

Note that the AASHTO design defines single carriageway road widths up to 7.5m wide as
medium, while those above are considered wide roads. For wide single carriageway roads, the
design should be based on the sum of standard axles in the most heavily trafficked direction.

(iii) Dual carriageway roads.

For divided carriageways, the slow-traffic lanes will carry 80 - 90% of the commercial vehicles
as long as the flow in the direction considered. In this case the design should be based on 80%
of the sum of standard axle loads in the most heavily trafficked direction. The distribution factor
may be reduced by 20 per cent for each additional lane.

(d) Design life

In order to calculate the number of repetitions of the wheel loads, information is also needed on
the design life and traffic growth rate. In the Kenyan practice, the design philosophy is generally
guided by "stage-construction" for low volume roads and in cases where resources constraints
prevail. As per this practice, the road is built in stages and its specifications made to match at
each period of its life with the traffic. Arterial/primary roads are now designed for a 20 year
period. Other roads may be designed for a shorter period of say 10 to 15 years, with
strengthening or upgrading scheduled at the end of the design period of when traffic demand
reaches a prescribed level. The rate of growth of traffic is determined from past trends or on the
basis of growth of other sectors of the economy (e.g. growth of GNP, agricultural output, motor
vehicles, diesel consumption etc.). The rate in Kenya on National Highways varies from 8 to 15
per cent per annum. In the absence of any detailed studies, a rate of 7'5 per cent per annum is
commonly adopted.

The equation used for calculating the cumulative number of standard axles is as under

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2.1.2 Climatic Factors

(a) Surface Drainage

Surface drainage is another important environmental feature which the designer must
incorporate in the design. Many road pavements are known to have deteriorated because of
flooding which normally results from inadequate drainage. Subsurface drainage also forms part
of design and normally requires that the sub-base layer of the pavement is free-draining to take
into account, for example, the rise in level of the water table.

Pavements suffer damage due to frost heave and loss of sub-grade support during the thawing
period. When the water which is tapped in soil pores freezes under low temperature conditions,
suction force builds up, causing migration of water into the freezing zone. Ice lenses grow, and
they displace the pavement surface causing frost heave. When frost melts during thawing water
causes the subgrade materials to become soft and lose their bearing power. Precipitation in the
form of rainfalls also causes softening of sub-grade. Adequate drainage of soil and pavement
layers is thus very important for pavement performance.

If the design is to take account of drainage, it is necessary for the designer to understand the
rainfall pattern and the catchment area involved. These aspects are considered adequately
under Drainage Design.

(b) Temperature

Temperature is another environmental factor important in design, especially for road materials
whose strength is affected significantly by changes in temperature. In the case of flexible
pavements, the performance of the bituminous layers will be a function of the pavement
temperature, as strength properties such as stiffness will decrease with increase in temperature.
In the case of concrete pavements, a decrease in temperature can lead to tensile stresses
developing in the concrete slab. Differential stresses can also develop as a result of
temperature gradients.

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2.2 Stresses and Deflections in Pavements

2.2.1 Flexible Pavements: General Principles

 In the design of flexible pavements, the pavement structure usually is considered as a

multi-layered elastic system, with the material in each layer characterized by certain
physical properties that may include the modulus of elasticity, the resilient modulus, and
the Poisson ratio.
 It is assumed initially that the subgrade layer is infinite in both the horizontal and vertical
directions, whereas the other layers are finite in the vertical direction and infinite in the
horizontal direction.
 The application of a wheel load causes a stress distribution which can be represented as
in figure 2.1 shown below

Stress distribution within a flexible pavement

 The maximum vertical stresses are compressive and occur directly under the wheel
load. These decrease with an increase in depth from the surface.
 The maximum horizontal stresses also occur directly under the wheel load but can be
either tensile or compressive as shown in Figure 2.1(c). When the load and pavement
thickness are within certain ranges, horizontal compressive stresses will occur above the
neutral axis whereas horizontal tensile stresses will occur below the neutral axis.
 The temperature distribution within the pavement structure, as shown in Figure 2.1(d),
will also have an effect on the magnitude of the stresses.
 The design of the pavement therefore generally is based on strain criteria that limit both
the horizontal and vertical strains below those that will cause excessive cracking and
excessive permanent deformation.

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  These criteria are considered in terms of repeated load applications because the
accumulated repetitions of traffic loads are of significant importance to the development
of cracks and permanent deformation of the pavement.
 The availability of highly sophisticated computerized solutions for multi-layered systems,
coupled with recent advances in materials evaluation, has led to the development of
several design methods that are based wholly or partly on theoretical analysis. Several
design methods have been used for flexible pavements
 Figure 2.2 below shows the stresses/strains in a bituminous highway pavement slab
under a moving wheel load

Critical stresses/strains in a bituminous highway pavement slab.

2.2.2 Failure of Flexible Pavements

The major failures are basically;

 Cracks: fatigue cracking, rutting, and thermal cracking. The fatigue cracking of flexible
pavement is due to horizontal tensile strain at the bottom of the asphaltic concrete. The
failure criterion relates allowable number of load repetitions to tensile strain and this
relation can be determined in the laboratory fatigue test on asphaltic concrete
specimens. Rutting occurs only on flexible pavements as indicated by permanent
deformation or rut depth along wheel load path. Thermal cracking includes both low-
temperature cracking and thermal fatigue cracking

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  Deflection on flexible pavement: The wheel load acting on the pavement will be
distributed to a wider area, and the stress decreases with the depth. Taking advantage
of this stress distribution characteristic, flexible pavements normally has many layers.
Hence, the design of flexible pavement uses the concept of layered system. Based on
this, flexible pavement may be constructed in a number of layers and the top layer has to
be of best quality to sustain maximum compressive stress, in addition to wear and tear.
The lower layers will experience lesser magnitude of stress and low quality material can
be used. Flexible pavements are constructed using bituminous materials. These can be
either in the form of surface treatments (such as bituminous surface treatments generally
found on low volume roads) or, asphalt concrete surface courses (generally used on
high volume roads such as national highways). Flexible pavement layers reflect the
deformation of the lower layers on to the surface layer (e.g., if there is any undulation in
sub-grade then it will be transferred to the surface layer). In the case of flexible
pavement, the design is based on overall performance of flexible pavement, and the
stresses produced should be kept well below the allowable stresses of each pavement
layer.

2.3 Rigid Pavements

2.3.1 Stresses in Rigid Pavements

Stresses are developed in rigid pavements as a result of several factors, including

 The action of traffic wheel loads

 The expansion and contraction of the concrete due to temperature changes
 Yielding of the subbase or subgrade supporting the concrete pavement, and
 Volumetric changes.
 Stresses Induced by Bending

a)The action of traffic wheel loads

For example, traffic wheel loads will induce flexural stresses that are dependent on the location
of the vehicle wheels relative to the edge of the pavement, whereas expansion and contraction
may induce tensile and compressive stresses, which are dependent on the range of
temperature changes in the concrete pavement. These different factors that can induce stress in
concrete pavement have made the theoretical determination of stresses rather complex,
requiring the following simplifying assumptions.

1. Concrete pavement slabs are considered as unreinforced concrete beams. Any contribution
made to the flexural strength by the inclusion of reinforcing steel is neglected.

2. The combination of flexural and direct tensile stresses will inevitably result in transverse and
longitudinal cracks. The provision of suitable crack control in the form of joints, however,
controls the occurrence of these cracks, thereby maintaining the beam action of large sections
of the pavement.

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3. The supporting subbase and/or subgrade layer acts as an elastic material in that it deflects at
the application of the traffic load and recovers at the removal of the load.

The basic equations for determining flexural stresses in concrete pavements due to traffic wheel
loads were first developed by Westergaard. Although several theoretical developments have
been made since then, the Westergaard equations are still considered a fundamental tool for
evaluating stresses on concrete pavements. Westergaard considered three critical locations of
the wheel load on the concrete pavement in developing the equations. These locations are
shown in Figure 2.4 and are described as follows.

Figure 2.4 Critical Locations of Wheel Loads on Concrete Pavements

Case A. Load is applied at the corner of a rectangular slab. This provides for the cases when
the wheel load is applied at the intersection of the pavement edge and a transverse joint.
However, this condition is not common because pavements are generally much wider. Thus, no
equation is presented for this case.

Case B. Load is applied at the interior of the slab at a considerable distance from its edges.

Case C. Load is applied at the edge of the slab at a considerable distance away from any
corner.

The locations shown as Cases I, II, and III in Figure 2.4 are the critical locations presently used
for the relatively wide pavements now being constructed.

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b) Stresses Induced by Bending

The ability of rigid pavement to sustain a beamlike action across irregularities in the underlying
materials suggests that the theory of bending is fundamental to the analysis of stresses in such
pavements. The theory of a beam supported on an elastic foundation therefore can be used to
analyze the stresses in the pavement when it is externally loaded. Figure 2.3 shows the
deformation sustained by a beam on an elastic foundation when it is loaded externally.

Figure 2.3 Deformation of a Beam on Elastic Foundation

The stresses developed in the beam may be analyzed by assuming that a reactive pressure (p),
which is proportional to the deflection, is developed as a result of the applied load. This
pressure is given as

P=ky

c) Stresses Due to Temperature Effects

The tendency of the slab edges to curl downward during the day and upward during the night as
a result of temperature gradients is resisted by the weight of the slab itself. This resistance
tends to keep the slab in its original position, resulting in stresses being induced in the
pavement. Compressive and tensile stresses therefore are induced at the top and bottom of the
slab, respectively, during the day, whereas tensile stresses are induced at the top and
compressive stresses at the bottom during the night. Under certain conditions these curling
stresses may have values high enough to cause cracking of the pavement. They also may
reduce the subgrade support beneath some sections of the pavement, which can result in a
considerable increase of stresses due to traffic loads over those pavements with uniform
pavement support. Studies have shown that curling stresses can be higher than 200 lb/in2 for 10
ft slabs and much higher for wider slabs. One of the main purposes of longitudinal joints is to
limit the slab width by dividing the concrete pavement into individual slabs 11 or 12 ft wide.

Tests have shown that maximum temperature differences between the top and bottom of the
slab depend on the thickness of the slab, and that these differences are about 2.5° to 3°F/inch
thickness for 6 to 9 in. thick slabs. The temperature differential also depends on the season,
with maximum differentials occurring during the day in the spring and summer months. Another
factor that affects the temperature differential is the latitude of the location of the slab. The
surface temperature of the pavement tends to be high if the angle of incidence of the sun’s rays
is high, as in areas near the equator

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2.3.2 Failure criteria of rigid pavements

 Traditionally fatigue cracking has been considered as the major, or only criterion for rigid
pavement design. The allowable number of load repetitions to cause fatigue cracking
depends on the stress ratio between flexural tensile stress and concrete modulus of
rupture. Of late, pumping is identified as an important failure criterion. Pumping is the
ejection of soil slurry through the joints and cracks of cement concrete pavement,
caused during the downward movement of slab under the heavy wheel loads.
 Other major types of distress in rigid pavements include faulting, spalling, and
deterioration.

a) Pumping of Rigid Pavements

Pumping is an important phenomenon associated with rigid pavements. Pumping is the

discharge of water and subgrade (or subbase) material through joints, cracks, and along the
pavement edges. It primarily is caused by the repeated deflection of the pavement slab in the
presence of accumulated water beneath it. The mechanics of pumping can best be explained by
considering the sequence of events that lead to it.

 The first event is the formation of void space beneath the pavement. This void forms
from either the combination of plastic deformation of the soil, due to imposed loads and
the elastic rebound of the pavement after it has been deflected by the imposed load, or
warping of the pavement, which occurs as a result of temperature gradient within the
slab.
 Water then accumulates in the space after many repetitions of traffic load. The water
may be infiltrated from the surface through joints and the pavement edge. To a lesser
extent, groundwater may settle in the void. If the subgrade or base material is granular,
the water will freely drain through the soil. If the material is fine-grained, however, the
water is not easily discharged, and additional load repetitions will result in the soil going
into suspension with the water to form a slurry.
 Further load repetitions and deflections of the slab will result in the slurry being ejected
to the surface (pumping). Pumping action will then continue, with the result that a
relatively large void space is formed underneath the concrete slab.
 This results in faulting of the joints and eventually the formation of transverse cracks or
the breaking of the corners of the slab. Joint faulting and cracking is therefore
progressive, since formation of a crack facilitates the pumping action.

Visual manifestations of pumping include:

• Discharge of water from cracks and joints

• Spalling near the centerline of the pavement and a transverse crack or joint
• Mud boils at the edge of the pavement
• Pavement surface discoloration (caused by the subgrade soil)
• Breaking of pavement at the corners

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 b) Design Considerations for Preventing Pumping

A major design consideration for preventing pumping is the reduction or elimination of

expansion joints, since pumping is usually associated with these joints. This is the main reason
why current design practices limit the number of expansion joints to a minimum. Since pumping
is also associated with fine-grained soils, another design consideration is either to replace soils
that are susceptible to pumping with a nominal thickness of granular or sandy soils, or to
improve them by stabilization. Current design practices therefore usually include the use of 3 to
6 in. layers of granular sub-base material at areas along the pavement alignment where the
subgrade material is susceptible to pumping or stabilizing the susceptible soil with asphalt or
Portland cement. The American Concrete Pavement Association method of rigid pavement
design indirectly considers this phenomenon in the erosion analysis.

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