PAVEMENT DESIGN AND

ANALYSIS

Lecture 2
CE-860 PAVEMENT DESIGN AND
ANALYSIS

INTRODUCTION (Cont..)

Dr. Wasim Kayani

Spring Semester 2017

Heavy Duty Truck Single Axle
Tandem Truck Single Axle
 WHEEL CONFIGURATION

1. Trucks
 2 Axle Truck – 4 Tired

 2 Axle Truck – 6 Tires

 3 Axle Truck – 6 Tired

 3 Axle Truck – 10 Tired

 WHEEL CONFIGURATION

2. Tractors-Trailer Unit

 3 Axle – 6 Tired
 3 Axle – 10 Tired
 4 Axle – 8 Tired
 4 Axle – 14 Tired
 5 Axle – 10 Tired
 5 Axle – 18 Tired
 AXLE CONFIGURATIONS
An axle is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or
gear

Single Axle With Single Wheel Tandem Axle

(Legal Axle Load = 6t) (Legal Axle Load = 18t)

Single Axle With Dual Wheel

(Legal Axle Load = 10t)
Tridem Axle
(Legal Axle Load = 24t)
 TRUCK CONFIGURATION

2 Axle
2 AxleTruck
6 Tires ––1616t
Ton 5 Axle 18 Tires- 40 Ton
Truck – 40t

3 Axle 10 Tires – 24 Ton 2 Axle 4 Tires – 12 TonSemi

Articulated – 34t
Tractor or Prime Mover
Semi Trailer
Rigid truck with Trailer
 LIFT AXLE
Some trucks has lift axle (also known as an airlift
axle or drop axle), which may be mechanically raised or
lowered. The axle is lowered to increase the weight
capacity, or to distribute the weight of the cargo over
more wheels, for example to cross a weight restricted
bridge. When not needed, the axle is lifted off the ground
to save wear on the tires and axle, and to increase
traction in the remaining wheels.
 STANDARD AXLE

Single axle with dual wheels carrying a

load of 80 kN (8 tonnes) is defined as
standard axle

80 kN

Standard Axle
Tire
 TIRE IMPRINT

If the effect of the tire wall is ignored, the

contact pressure between the tire and
pavement must be equal to the tire
pressure. For low pressure tires, however,
the contact pressure under the tire wall may
be greater than at the center of the tire. For
high-pressure tire the reverse is true.
 TIRE IMPRINT
For most problems, however,
assumption is made that contact
pressure are uniform over the imprint
area. In the majority of the problems,
circular tire imprints are assumed.
 TIRE IMPRINT

 The tire imprint in case of aircraft is assumed

to be oval in shape and the dimensions are
calculated by the following formula:

L = [A/0.5227]0.5
Where

A = Area in in2 = P/p

P = Total load on tire (lbs)
p = Tire pressure (psi)
Aircraft Landing Gear
 AIR CRAFT TIRE CONFIGURATION

1. Nose Gear
(Carrying approximately 5 % of the gross load)
 Single Wheel

 Dual or Twin Wheel

 AIR CRAFT TIRE CONFIGURATION

2. Main Gear
(Carrying approximately 95% of the gross load)
 Single Wheel

 Dual or Twin Wheel

 Dual Tandem
Contact Pressure on Pavement
 Concept of Contact Area

Draw the most realistic contact area for a 18

Kips (80KN) single load with a tire pressure of
80 PSI (552 kpa). What are the other
configurations of contact area that have been
used for pavement design.
 Relationship between pavement
serviceability and age

 The primary factor overriding most design

decisions is that of functional failure,
however it is also necessary that the
proposed design pavement structure
should also be able to resist structural
failure during design life.
 Relationship between pavement
serviceability and age

 Newly constructed pavement serviceability is

almost 5.
 With passage of time and traffic applications
the serviceability decrease.
 After year y, with and without routine
maintenance the level of serviceability & the
rate of reduction in serviceability is different.
 Relationship between pavement
serviceability and age

 After year y1 major maintenance application

(resurfacing), serviceability is brought back to
original level.
 This process continues throughout the life of the
pavement.
 Typical PSI vs. Traffic (Time)

p0
Serviceability (PSI)

p0 - pt

pt

Time
17th and 18th centuries.
 MODERN ROADS
(17th & 18th Centuries)
TRESAGUET ROAD
(1775)
 CROSS-SECTION
TRESAGUET ROAD (1775)

 The subgrade was prepared in level

 Layer of large foundation stone with large
kerb stones at edges
 Base coarse about 8cm of compacted small
broken stones
 Top wearing coarse 5cm at edges, thickness
increased towards center for providing
surface drainage
 Sloping shoulders with side drain
 Total thickness about 30cm
 MODERN ROADS
(17th & 18th Century)

TELFORD ROAD
(1803)
 CROSS-SECTION
TELFORD ROAD (1803)
 Level subgrade
 Large foundation stones of thickness 17-22cm
 Two layers of angular broken stones compacted
thickness of 10-15cm
 Lime mortar concrete instead of kerb stones at
pavement edges
 Top wearing coarse of 4cm thick gravel as
binding layer
 MODERN ROADS
(17th & 18th Century)
MACADAM ROAD
(1827)
 CROSS-SECTION
MACADAM ROAD (1827)
 The subgrade is compacted with cross
slope
 Sub-base of broken stone 5cm size were
compacted to uniform thickness of 10 cm
 Base coarse of strong broken stone 3.75cm
size compacted to 10cm uniform thickness
 Top layer of stone 2cm size compacted to
thickness of about 5cm
 Total thickness approximately 25cm
 MODERN ROADS
(17th & 18th Century)
MACADAM ROAD (Rural Road)
Concept of Axle Load

32000 32000
 Problem
A 5–axle truck traveling on an interstate
highway has the following axle characteristics:
Distance between the front single axle and he
set of tandem axles=20 ft
Distance between the first set of tandem axle
and the back set of tandem axles= 48 ft
If the overall gross wt of the truck is 79500 lbs,
determine whether this truck satisfies federal
weight regulations?
(20th Century)
EVOLUTION OF PAVEMENT DESIGN
METHODOLOGY

 Pavement design:
1) Mix design of material
2) Thickness design of structural layers
 Pavement design philosophy:
1) Empirical
2) Mechanistic ( Theoretical , Analytical, Structural)
3) Mechanistic-Empirical
 DESIGN APPROACHES

 Road Note 29 (TRRL, UK 1960, 1970,

Empirical)

 Road Note 31

 The Asphalt Institute Manual Series

 AASHTO Guide for Design of Pavement

Structures
 ROAD NOTE 29

 A guide to the structural design of

Pavements for new roads …TRRL, UK 1960,
1970,
 Empirical Approach: study performance of
experimental sections built into in-service
road network
 Foundation soil CBR .. Upto 7 %
 Traffic.. Upto 100 Million Eq. Standard Axles
 Specification of material given in table-4
 Design life..20mm rutting or severe cracking
 ROAD NOTE 29
 Performance data interpreted in light of structural
theory, mathematical modeling of pavement
behavior, simulative testing of road materials and
pavements
 The Structural Design of Bituminous Roads.. TRRL
Laboratory Report 1132 published in 1984
 Structural design criteria:
1) Critical stress and strain
2) Permissible strains induced by standard 40 KN
wheel load at pavement temperature of 20o C
 ROAD NOTE 31
 A guide to the structural design of bitumen-
surfaced roads in tropical and sub-tropical
countries ( Overseas Edition 1962,1966,1977)
 For traffic upto 30 MSA in one direction, for >30
MSA use TRRL 1132 with calibration to local
conditions
 subgrade strength by CBR method
 6 Sub-grade strength classes(2,4,7,14,29,30+)
 8 Traffic classes (0.3.0.7,1.5,3.0,6.0,10,17,30)
 Design charts for 8 type of road base/surfacing
material
THE ASPHALT INSTITUTE (MS-1)
 Pavement is represented as multi layered elastic
system.
 Initially developed from data of AASHO Road test
 Experience, established theory and test data are
used to evaluate two stress strain conditions.
 Roadbed soil strength characterized by Mr
AC by Modulus of Elasticity and Poisson’s ratio.
 Thickness Design charts are developed for criteria
for max tensile strains at the bottom of the asphalt
layer and max vertical compressive strains at the
top of the subgrade layer.
THE ASPHALT INSTITUTE (MS-1)

 Thickness Design charts are developed for criteria

for max tensile strains at the bottom of the asphalt
layer and max vertical compressive strains at the
top of the subgrade layer.
 Design charts in latest edition developed using
DAMA elastic –layered pavement analysis program
that modeled two stress strain conditions (
mechanistic based design procedure uses empirical
correlations)
Concept of Young, Shear and Bulk Modulus
Asphalt Institute Method
Asphalt Institute Method
Asphalt Institute Method
 AASHTO GUIDE FOR THE DESIGN OF
PAVEMENT STRUCTURES

 Approach : study performance of trial sections

constructed to a wide range of overall thickness
round a close loop trafficked by repetitions of
known axle loads
 Developed empirical model by regression analysis
from data of ASSHO Road Test
 Interim guide 1961,1972, 1986
 ASSHTO Guide for the design of Pavement
Structures (1986,1993)
 AASHTO – DESIGN
CONSIDERATIONS

 Performance period
 Analysis period
 Traffic ..Load Equivalence Values
 Reliability
 Serviceability
 Environmental Effects
 AASHTO GUIDE…………..contd.

 Log(W18)= Zr x So+9.36 log10 (SN+1)-0.20

+
 Structural design model/equation
log10[ΔPSI/4.2-1.5]
0.40 + 1094
( SN+1) 5.19
+ 2.32x log10 ( Mr) – 8.07
 SN = a1D1 + a2 D2 m2 + a3D3m3
 PAVEMENT RESPONSES

Flexible Pavements
Given Wheel Load

150 psi
Wearing C.
Base
Sub-base
3 psi Sub-grade

Load Distribution in Flexible Pavements

 PAVEMENT RESPONSES

 Load related responses:

1) Vertical ( compressive)stresses and strains
2) Shear stresses and strain
3) Radial (compressive or tensile) stresses and
strain
 Temperature induced responses:
1) Shrinkage stresses and strains (temp: cycling)
2) Low temperature cracking
3) Thermal cracking
 PAVEMENT RESPONSES
Critical responses:
1) horizontal tensile stress/strain at the bottom of
bound layers
2) Vertical compressive stress/strain at the top of
sub-grade

 Calculating responses:
1) Using equations
2) Graphical solutions
3) Elastic layer computer programs
 PAVEMENT PERFORMANCE
PREDICTION MODELS

 Performance prediction models are also

called distress models or transfer functions
 Models relate structural responses to
pavement distress
1) Fatigue cracking Model
2) Rutting Model
3) Thermal cracking Model
 DESIGN PARAMETERS

 Subgrade
 Loads
 Environment
 SUBGRADE

 Characterized by strength
and/or stiffness
 California Bearing Ratio (CBR)
 Measures shearing resistance
 Units: percent

 Typical values: 0 to 20

 Resilient Modulus (MR)

 Measures stress-strain
relationship
 Units: psi or MPa

 Typical values: 3,000 to 40,000

psi
 SUBGRADE

Some Typical Values

Classification CBR MR (psi) Typical Description
Gravels, crushed stone and sandy
Good ≥ 10 20,000 soils. GW, GP, GM, SW, SP, SM
soils are often in this category.
Clayey gravel and clayey sand, fine
Fair 5–9 10,000 silt soils. GM, GC, SM, SC soils are
often in this category.
Fine silty sands, clays, silts, organic
Poor 3–5 5,000 soils. CL, CH, ML, MH, CM, OL, OH
soils are often in this category.
 LOADS

 Load characterization
 Tire loads
 Axle and tire configurations
 Load repetition
 Traffic distribution
 Vehicle speed
 LOAD QUANTIFICATION

 Equivalent Single Axle Load (ESAL)

 Converts wheel loads of various magnitudes and repetitions
("mixed traffic") to an equivalent number of "standard" or
"equivalent" loads
 Based on the amount of damage they do to the pavement
 Commonly used standard load is the 18,000 lb (80 kN)
equivalent single axle load

 Load Equivalency
 Generalized fourth power approximation

4
 load 
   relative damage factor
 18,000 lb. 
 TYPICAL LEFS

6
5.11
5
ESALs per Vehicle

1.85
2
1.35
1
0.0007 0.10
0
Car Delivery Truck Loaded 18-Wheeler Loaded 40' Bus Loaded 60'
Articulated Bus

Notice that cars are insignificant and thus usually ignored

in pavement design.
 LEF EXAMPLE
The standard axle weights for a standing-room-only loaded Metro articulated
bus (60 ft. Flyer) are:

Axle Empty Full

Steering 13,000 lb. 17,000 lb.
Middle 15,000 lb. 20,000 lb.
Rear 9,000 lb. 14,000 lb.

Using the 4th power approximation, determine the total equivalent damage
caused by this bus in terms of ESALs when it is empty. How about when it is
full?
 LEF Example

Empty
(13,000/18,000)4 = 0.272
(15,000/18,000)4 = 0.482
(9,000/18,000)4 = 0.063
Total = 0.817 ESALs
Full
(17,000/18,000)4 = 0.795
(20,000/18,000)4 = 1.524
(14,000/18,000)4 = 0.366
Total = 2.685 ESALs
Increase in total weight = 14,000 lb. (about 80 people) or 39%
Increase in ESALs is 1.868 (229%)
 TYPES OF RIGID PAVEMENT

 Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement (JPCP)

 TYPES OF RIGID PAVEMENT
 Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement (JRCP)
 TYPES OF RIGID PAVEMENT

 Continuously Reinforced Concrete

Pavement (CRCP)
 Types of Rigid Pavement
Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement:
are 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 has a joint spacing of 5 to 10m.
Jointed Reinforced Concrete Pavement:
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. Reinforcements help to keep the slab together even
after cracks.
Continuous Reinforced Concrete Pavement:
Complete elimination of joints are achieved by reinforcement.
PAVEMENT DESIGN APPROACHES

 EMPIRICAL APPROACH

 MECHANISTIC APPROACH

 MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL APPROACH
 EMPIRICAL APPROACH

 “An empirical approach is one which is

based on the results of experiments or
experience.”

 Generally, it requires a number of

observations to be made in order to
ascertain the relationships between input
variables and outcomes.
 EMPIRICAL APPROACH

 It is not necessary to firmly establish the

scientific basis for the relationships
between variables and outcomes as
long as the limitations with such approach
are reorganized.
 BENEFITS- EMPIRICAL

 It uses material properties that relates

better to actual pavement performance
 It provides more reliable performance
predictions
 It better defines the role of construction
 It accommodates environmental and aging
effects on materials.
LIMITATIONS….AASHO Procedure
LIMITATIONS….AASHO Procedure

 Current design traffic is far beyond

road test limits.

 Current design is > 100 million

 MECHANISTIC APPROACH

 Mechanics is the science of motion and the

action of forces on bodies. Thus, a mechanistic
approach seeks to explain phenomena only by
reference to physical causes.
 In pavement design, the phenomena are
the stresses, strains and deflections within a
pavement structure, and the physical causes
are the loads and material properties of the
pavement structure.
 MECHANISTIC APPROACH

 A method that involve numerical

capability to calculate the stress, strain,
or deflection in a multi-layered system,
such as a pavement, when subjected to
external loads, or the effects of
temperature or moisture.
 MECHANISTIC APPROACH

 A method that refer to the ability to

translate the analytical calculations of
pavement response to performance.

(Function of Traffic & Environment)

 MECHANISTIC SOFTWARE

 BISAR

 CHEVRON

 MICHPAVE
 MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL

 Along with this mechanistic approach,

empirical elements are used when defining
what value of the calculated stresses, strains
and deflections result in pavement failure.
MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL
MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL
 MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL

The basic advantages of a mechanistic-

empirical pavement design method over
a purely empirical one are:
 It can be used for both existing pavement
rehabilitation and new pavement construction
 It accommodates changing load types
 It can better characterize materials allowing
for:
 MECHANISTIC-EMPIRICAL

• Better utilization of available materials

• Accommodation of new materials
• An improved definition of existing layer
properties