CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Overview of Highway Pavement

A highway pavement is a structure consisting of superimposed layers of processed materials

above the natural soil sub-grade, whose primary function is to distribute the applied vehicle loads

to the sub-grade. A highway is a public road, especially a major road connecting two or more

destinations. Any interconnected set of highways can be variously referred to as a "highway

system", a "highway network". The pavement structure should be able to provide a surface of

acceptable riding quality, adequate skid resistance, favorable light reflecting characteristics, and

low noise pollution. The ultimate aim is to ensure that the transmitted stresses due to wheel load

are sufficiently reduced, so that they will not exceed bearing capacity of the subgrade.

(Dhanavath et al., 2017).

2.2 Pavement Types

There are two types of pavements generally recognized namely; flexible pavements and rigid

pavements. Herein, a synopsis shall be made with relevance to each pavement type by categories

and prime failures experienced.

a. Flexible Pavement

Flexible pavements are most commonly used for low to medium volume roads with

significant usage also found in high volume interstate highways and airfield runways,

taxiways and aprons subjected to heavy aircraft gear/wheel loads. As the demand for applied

wheel loads and number of load applications increases, it becomes very important to

properly characterize the behavior of subgrade soils and unbound aggregate layers as the

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foundations of the layered pavement structure. (Minkwan et al., 2009). According to Tom

and Krishna (2007), flexible pavements will transmit wheel load stresses to the lower layers

by grain-to-grain transfer through the points of contact in the granular structure. 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 of flexible pavements

normally has many layers. Hence, the design of flexible pavement uses the concept of

layered system. However, Arvo (2013) stated that flexible pavements suffer generally from

rutting which results from heavy traffic and severe environmental condition. Flexible

pavements are those having negligible flexural strength and are flexible in structural actions

under loads. (Arvind et al., 2012).

i. Categories of Flexible Pavement

According to Milind and Kadam (2016), there are mainly three categories of flexible

pavement as follows:

 Conventional layered flexible pavement: Conventional flexible pavements are layered

systems with high quality expensive materials placed in the top layer where stresses

are high, and low-quality cheap materials being placed in lower layers.

 Full - depth asphalt pavement: Full - depth asphalt pavements are constructed by

placing bituminous layers directly on the soil sub grade. This is more suitable when

there is high traffic and local materials are not available.

 Contained rock asphalt mat (CRAM): Contained rock asphalt mats are constructed by

placing dense/open graded aggregate layers in between two asphalt layers. Modified

dense graded asphalt concrete is placed above the sub-grade significantly reducing

the vertical compressive strain on soil sub-grade and also protects from surface water.

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ii. Failures of Flexible Pavement

As highlighted by Jacob (2004), the major flexible pavement failures are 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.

Rutting in flexible pavements is a major distress mode, relatively difficult to simulate in

computational analyses, mainly for the following reasons.

1. The constitutive relations of the materials are nonlinear and complex. Most pavement

materials are very difficult to characterize under repeated and moving loads.

2. The asphalt concrete material is viscoelastic and viscoplastic, i.e., strongly loading time

and temperature dependent. The other unbound materials like the base, subbase, and

subgrade are only slightly time dependent.

3. The temperature and moisture of the materials vary with every load repetition. Yet we

need to be able to predict the expected rut depth, for various materials, structures, traffic,

and environmental conditions.

b. Rigid Pavement

Rigid pavements have sufficient flexural strength to transmit wheel load stresses to a wider

area below. Compared to flexible pavement, rigid pavements are placed either directly on

the prepared sub-grade or on a single layer of granular or stabilized material. Since there is

only one layer of material between the concrete and the sub-grade, this layer can be called as

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base or sub-base course. (Tom and Krishna, 2007). In rigid pavement, loads are distributed

by slab action, and the pavement behaves like an elastic plate resting on a viscous medium.

Rigid pavements are constructed by Portland cement concrete (PCC) and should be

analyzed by plate theory instead of layer theory, assuming an elastic plate resting on viscous

foundation. Plate theory is a simplified version of layer theory that assumes the concrete

slab as a medium thick plate which is plane before loading and to remain plane after

loading. Bending of slab due to wheel load and temperature variation results to tensile and

flexural stress. Stress condition of rigid pavement is analyzed by using finite element

analysis. (Yu, 1983). The cement concrete pavement slab can as well serve as a wearing

surface and also as an effective base course. Therefore, the rigid pavement structure consists

of a cement concrete slab, below which a granular base or subbase course may be provided.

(Arvind et al., 2012).

According to Mohd and Harwalkar (2019), concrete pavements, often called rigid

pavements, are made up of Portland cement concrete and may or may not have a base course

between the pavement and subgrade. As a general rule, the concrete, exclusive of the base,

is referred to as the pavement. The concrete pavement, because of its rigidity and high

modulus of elasticity, tends to distribute the applied load over a relatively wide soil area;

thus, the major portion of the structural capacity is supplied by the slab itself.

i. Categories of Rigid Pavement

There are mainly four categories of rigid pavement according to Milind and Kadam (2016).

They are as follows:

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  Jointed plain concrete pavement (JPCC): Jointed plain concrete pavement is plain

cement concrete pavements constructed with closely spaced contraction joints.

Dowel bars or aggregate interlocks are normally used for load transfer across joints.

They normally have a joint spacing of 5 to 10m.

 Jointed reinforced concrete pavement (JRCP): Although reinforcements do not

improve the structural capacity significantly, they can drastically increase the joint

spacing to 10 to 30m. Dowel bars are required for load transfer. Reinforcement’s

help to keep the slab together even after cracks.

 Continuous reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP): Complete elimination of joints

are achieved by reinforcement in continuous reinforced concrete pavement.

 Pre-stressed concrete pavement (PCP): Pre-stressed concrete pavements are made up

of pre-stressed concrete.

ii. Failures of Rigid Pavement

Traditionally, fatigue cracking has been considered as the major or only failure 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, this is caused during

the downward movement of slab under heavy wheel loads. Other major types of distress in

rigid pavements include faulting, spalling, and deterioration.

2.2 Causes of Pavement Failure

According to Tarawneh and Sarireh (2013), road deterioration is common in developing

countries. Keeping roads in good condition is the most cost-effective way to save highways.

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Also, climate conditions were seen to have an effect on road deterioration, vehicle operating

costs, road safety and the environment (Anyala et.al. 2011).

Adeoti (2004), examined the method of road maintenance in Nigeria. To do so, Adeoti defined

and analyzed the causes of structural failure of highway pavement and suggested some factors;

action of weather, rain and heat, unstable ground conditions and poor drainage, poor construction

material and methods adopted, poor workmanship and inadequate maintenance.

However, understanding the causes for pavement deterioration failures is an essential step

towards minimizing risks to have a good road performance. Osadebe et al (2013), Ndefo (2012),

Osuolale et al (2012), Oluwatobi (2010), Adams and Adetoro (2014), Agbonkhese et al (2013),

and Momoh et al (2008), identified the major causes of failure on Nigerian roads are as follows:

i. Inadequate Preliminary Geological Investigation: This is mostly common in local

government roads and some state roads. The in-situ tests required to be carried out

on the subgrade are not always done. The effect of this is either poor design as a

result of the use of assumed geotechnical data or road construction without design.

There is the need for the adequate testing of the subgrade soil which is the

foundation used for road construction. Unfortunately, this is not always done due to

lack adequate laboratory facilities and trained laboratory manpower for the jobs.

ii. Poor Design of Roads: A good road design should not only cater for the present

traffic and drainage need but should project and forecast for the possible increase in

Traffic. Due to inadequate projection, most roads today are overloaded and are

failing because they were not designed to carry the traffic loads, they are subjected

to.

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iii. Bad Supervision and Workmanship: A good pavement design with good detailing

without a good supervision by the designer (consultant) is equally useless as this

could lead to road failure. Supervision ensures that the road construction is rightly

executed and that good equipment and materials are used. Bad workmanship is

therefore the consequence of inadequate supervision. Quality control which includes

laboratory and in-situ tests on the filling, subbase and base materials, determination

of the thickness of pavement layers and so on are not done on many Nigerian roads.

While investigating the causes of road pavement failure on Port Harcourt – Enugu

express way, Osadebe et al. (2013), found out that in a section, there is a wide

variation in the surface course thickness along the carriage way and the specification

requirement for aggregate grading and void ratio was not met in more than 60% of

the sample test. Adams and Adetoro (2014) also discovered that in Ado-Ekiti –

Akure road, nearly all the soil materials used for the base course are not suitable

thus, failure of the road.

iv. Lack of Routine and Periodic Maintenance: One of the main problems of

highway development in Nigeria is maintenance. The roads are rarely maintained

and whenever maintenance is attempted it is done haphazardly. Road maintenance in

Nigeria has become politicized as maintenance is now mostly carried out during

campaigns or presidential tours. The effect of delayed maintenance is the spread of

road defect to areas bounding the failed section. This is mostly due to the ingress of

moisture from the failed section to the underlying layers of the road.

v. Bad Drainage: Drainage is an important feature in determining the ability of any

given road pavement to withstand the effects of traffic and environment. Poor

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 drainage conditions on road pavement are of adverse effects and causes failures in

different ways. Proper and well-maintained drainage systems provided to road

pavements will increase their life span but improper and not well-maintained

drainage systems cause failure of road pavements at its early age thereby drastically

reducing their service lifespan. Inadequate and blocked drainage system on Nigerian

roads had made pavement to be in saturated condition. That is why the water which

may have percolated into the lower layers is not able to drain out through the sides.

This results in potholes and cracks.

vi. Improper Use and Overloading of Roads: Improper use of roads is also a major

cause of failure. Exerting too much load on the road by overloading vehicles,

uncontrolled parking, spilling of petroleum products on asphaltic surfaces are few

examples. Also, major and minor roads now receive traffic loads they were not

designed against. After carrying out traffic survey on the Enugu – Port Harcourt

road, Osadebe et al., (2013) realized a high degree of overloading on the road which

is one of the major causes of pavement deterioration. This is also the case with many

other major and minor roads in the country.

vii. Inadequate Sanction for Highway Failure: Highway failures do not just happen.

They are caused either by government agencies, the contractors or the road users.

There have been records of failures on Nigerian highways. No body or agency has

ever been held responsible. Adequate sanctions and penalties are not placed on

agencies responsible for supervision and the contractor in cases of road failure.

When accidents occur in a bad road, the contractors and agencies involved are not

always sanctioned, though the accident may have been avertable or its fatality at

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 least reduced on good roads, and the blame is always placed on the driver. Also, road

users are not penalized for damage or misuse of roads. This has made the

supervisory agencies, contractors and road users to contribute in road failure without

fearing any consequence.

2.2 Soil Stabilization

Soil stabilization is the permanent physical and chemical alteration of soils to enhance their

physical properties. Stabilization can increase the shear strength of a soil and/or control the

shrink swell properties of a soil, thus improving the load bearing capacity of a sub-grade to

support pavements and foundations. Stabilization can be used to treat a wide range of sub-grade

materials from expansive clays to granular materials. Stabilization can be achieved with a variety

of chemical additives including lime, fly ash, and Portland cement, as well as by-products such

as lime-kiln dust (LKD) and cement-kiln dust (CKD). Proper design and testing is an important

component of any stabilization project. This allows for the establishment of design criteria as

well as the determination of the proper chemical additive and admixture rate to be used to

achieve the

desired engineering properties. Benefits of the stabilization process can include: Higher

resistance (R) values, Reduction in plasticity, Lower permeability, Reduction of pavement

thickness, Elimination of excavation - material hauling/handling - and base importation, Aids

compaction, Provides “all-weather” access onto and within projects sites. (Dhanavath et al.,

2017).

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