Recently, the Texas Department of Transportation began using Permeable Friction Course (PFC), a 5 cm overlay of porous pavement that is applied over conventional pavement. PFC was initially developed because it allows water to drain off the surface of roads much more rapidly, thus reducing visual impairment due to splash and spray as well as reducing the risk of hydroplaning. While investigating the water quality of stormwater runoff, researchers at the University of Texas discovered that PFC caused a reduction in many common stormwater pollutant concentrations. Monitoring of stormwater at one site has been ongoing for 5 years without any indication of a decline in water quality. A second location provided paired samples to analyze the particle size distribution. Results show a significant reduction in the mass of particles commonly associated with heavy metals and nutrient loads. A third location was chosen based on tests indicating it to have a lower hydraulic conductivity relative to other locations. The paired samples provided a comparison of runoff quality at a site believed to be heavily clogged. The results show PFC continues to produce significantly lower runoff pollutant concentrations despite the decreased hydraulic conductivity. / text

Permeable friction course (PFC) is a porous asphalt pavement placed on top of a regular impermeable roadway. Under small rainfall intensities, drainage is contained within the PFC layer; but, under higher rainfall intensities drainage occurs both within and on top of the porous pavement. This dissertation develops a computer model—the permeable friction course drainage code (PERFCODE)—to study this two-dimensional unsteady drainage process. Given a hyetograph, geometric information, and hydraulic properties, the model predicts the variation of water depth within and on top of the PFC layer through time. The porous layer is treated as an unconfined aquifer of variable saturated thickness using Darcy’s law and the Dupuit-Forchheimer assumptions. Surface flow is modeled using the diffusion wave approximation to the Saint-Venant equations. A mass balance approach is used to couple the surface and subsurface phases. Straight and curved roadway geometries are accommodated via a curvilinear grid. The model is validated using steady state solutions that were obtained independently. PERFCODE was applied to a field monitoring site near Austin, Texas and hydrographs predicted by the model were consistent with field measurements. For a sample storm studied in detail, PFC reduced the duration of sheet flow conditions by 80%. The model may be used to improve the drainage design of PFC roadways. / text

This paper presents the results of a study on the effectiveness of porous overlays on urban highways. Permeable Friction Course (PFC) is a layer of porous asphalt applied to the top of conventional asphalt highways at a thickness of around 50 mm. PFC is often installed for safety and noise benefits, and is being seen as an emerging technology for meeting environmental requirements for stormwater discharge. The first objective of the study was to determine the impact of porous asphalt on the quality of stormwater runoff on highways with a curb and gutter drainage system. The quality of highway stormwater runoff was monitored before and after the installation of PFC on an eight-lane divided highway in the Austin, Texas area for 2 years. Observed concentrations of total suspended solids from PFC are 92% lower than those in runoff from the conventional pavement. Concentration reductions are also observed for nitrate/nitrite and total amounts of phosphorus, copper, lead, and zinc. The data shows that the results with curb and gutter are consistent with past results where runoff sheet flowed onto vegetated shoulders. The effect of two different binder compositions is also compared, showing an increase in zinc when recycled rubber is used. The second objective focuses on the drainage capabilities of PFC. While porous overlays can reduce stormwater accumulation on roadways, capacity at high rainfall intensities is limited. Installing subgrade underdrains within PFC could further improve stormwater conveyance. This research attempts to model the hydraulic profile of runoff as it approaches an underdrain with varying flow rates and grades. The results could assist TxDOT in the sizing and configuration of drains based on rainfall intensity and roadway geometry. / text

Permeable friction course (PFC), or new generation open-graded friction course (OGFC) mixtures, are hot mix asphalt (HMA) characterized by high total air voids (AV) content (minimum 18 %) as compared to the most commonly used dense-graded HMA. The high AV content confers to PFC mixtures both high permeability and noise reduction effectiveness. These characteristics and the high values of surface friction exhibited by PFC mixtures, as compared to dense-graded HMA, lead to improvements in safety and the environment, which make PFC one of the safest, cleanest, and quietest alternatives currently available for surface paving. The main objective of this study was improving the current PFC mix design method and construction practices in terms of compaction control. Corresponding results were integrated in an improved mix design method that is based on the guidelines of the current mix design method used by the Texas Department of Transportation. The improved mix design included modified computation of the inputs required to determine mixture density (or corresponding total AV content). These changes led to a proposed modification of the density specification for mix design from 78-82 % to 76-80 %. In addition, the water-accessible AV content was proposed as a surrogate of the total AV content for mix design and evaluation. The improved mix design method also includes verification of drainability, durability, and stone-on-stone contact. Computation of the expected value of permeability (E[k]) and measurement of the water flow value were recommended, respectively, for verification of drainability in the laboratory (using specimens compacted in the Superpave Gyratory Compactor (SGC)) and in the field. The Cantabro loss test conducted in both dry- and wet-conditions was suggested for assessing mixture durability. Improved criteria were proposed for verification of stone-on-stone contact based on the evaluation of the AV content in the coarse aggregate fraction of the mixture. In addition, comparison of the internal structure of field-and laboratory-compacted mixtures supported recommendation of a field-compaction control. Recommendations to reduce the horizontal heterogeneity of AV encountered in PFC specimens included using road cores with a minimum 152.4 mm diameter and coring SGC specimens from 152.4 to 101.6 mm in diameter

Permeable Friction Course (PFC) is a layer of porous asphalt pavement with a thickness of up to 50 millimeters overlain on a conventional impervious hot mix asphalt or Portland cement concrete roadway surface. PFC is used for its driver safety and improved stormwater quality benefits associated with its ability to drain rainfall runoff from the roadway surface. PFC has recently been approved as a stormwater best management practice in the State of Texas. The drainage properties of PFC are typically considered to be governed primarily by two hydraulic properties: porosity and hydraulic conductivity. Both of these hydraulic properties are expected to change over the life of the PFC layer due to clogging of the pore space by trapped sediment. Therefore, proper measurement of the hydraulic properties can be problematic. Laboratory and field tests are necessary for accurately determining the hydraulic conductivity of the PFC layer in order to ensure whether the driver safety and water quality benefits will persist in the future. During testing, PFC experiences a nonlinear flow relationship which can be modeled using the Forchheimer equation. Due to the two-dimensional flow patterns created during testing, the hydraulic conductivity cannot be directly measured. Therefore, numerical modeling of the two-dimensional nonlinear flow relationship is required to convert the measureable flow characteristics into the theoretical flow characteristics in order to properly determine the isotropic hydraulic conductivity. This numerical model utilizes a new scalar quantity, defined as the hydraulic conductivity ratio, to allow for proper modeling of nonlinear flow in two-dimensional cylindrical coordinates. PFC core specimens have been extracted from three different roadway locations around Austin, Texas for the past four years (2007 to 2010). Porosity values of the core specimens range from 12% to 23%, and the porosity data suggest a statistical decrease over time due to trapped sediment in the pore space. A series of constant head tests used in the laboratory and a falling head test used in the field are recommended for measurement of PFC hydraulic characteristics using a modified Forchheimer equation. Through numerical modeling, regressions equations are presented to estimate the hydraulic conductivity and nonlinear Forchheimer coefficient from the measureable hydraulic characteristics determined during experimental testing. Hydraulic conductivity values determined for laboratory core specimens range from 0.02 centimeters per second (cm/s) to nearly 3 cm/s. Field measurements of in-situ hydraulic conductivity vary over a range from 0.6 cm/s to 3.6 cm/s. The results of this research provide well-defined laboratory and field methods for measurement of the isotropic hydraulic conductivity of PFC experiencing two-dimensional nonlinear flow and characterized by the Forchheimer equation. This methodology utilizes a numerical model which presents a proper solution for nonlinear flow in two-dimensions. / text