FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT DESIGN

FOR
RURAL ROADS

Objectives of pavement design

To provide a stable surface under wheel loads

To provide good riding surface
To have durability
To have cost effectiveness

Categories of Low volume rural roads

Gravel/Aggregate-surfaced roads (Unpaved

Roads);
Flexible Pavements (Paved Roads); and
Rigid Pavements

Subgrade
What is Sub-grade?

The sub grade is the prepared and

compacted soil layer forming the
foundation of the pavement system.
The top 300mm thickness of an
embankment is considered as subgrade.

Pavement Components

Strength of subgrade
Strength of subgrade soil shall be
determined by conducting laboratory
CBR test.
The CBR test sample is prepared at
100 percent standard proctor density
at optimum moisture content.

California bearing ratio

The California bearing ratio (CBR) is a penetration test
for evaluation of the mechanical strength of subgrades
layer.
It was developed by the California Department of
Transportation before World War II.
The test is performed by measuring the pressure required
to penetrate a soil sample with a plunger of standard area.
The measured pressure is then divided by the pressure
required to achieve an equal penetration on a standard
crushed rock material.

Standard Proctor Test

5-kg sample of air dried soil passing the 19 mm IS test
sieve shall be taken.
The sample shall be mixed thoroughly with a suitable
amount of water depending on the soil type.
The moist soil shall be compacted into the mould, in 3
layers of approximately equal mass,
Each layer being given 25 blows from the 2.6-kg
rammer dropped from a height of 310 mm above the
soil.

Proctor mould

CBR Test Equipment

Typical Presumptive Design CBR Values

Description

IS soil
Classification

Typical
soaked
CBR value
(%)

Clay and Silt

CH, MH

Silty clay and

Sandy Clay
Clayey Sand and
Silty Sand

ML,MI,CL and 4 - 5
CI
SC and SM
6 - 10

*2 - 3

Road New / Upgradation

Road

Density

Moisture
content

New

100 % MDD
(PD)

Optimum
moisture

Upgradation

100 % Field
density

Field
moisture

Dynamic cone penetration Test

DCPT Test
Measures the penetration of a standard cone when driven by
a standard force, the reported DCP value being in terms of
the penetration of the standard cone, in mm per blow shows a
typical DCP.
The standard steel cone with an angle of 60O has a diameter
of 20 mm.
The standard 8 kg drop hammer slides over a 16 mm dia
steel rod with a fall height of 575 mm.

DCP CBR relation

Pavement Design
For the pavement design we need
1. Subgrade CBR and
2. Design Traffic