abstract: Crumb rubber use in asphalt mixtures using wet process technology has been in practice for years in the United States with good performance history; however, it has some drawbacks that include the need for special blending equipment, high rubber-binder temperatures, and longer waiting time at mixing plants. Pre-treated crumb rubber technologies are emerging as a new method to produce asphalt rubber mixtures in the field. A new crumb rubber modifier known as Reacted and Activated Rubber (RAR) is one such technology. RAR (industrially known as “RARX”) acts like an Enhanced Elastomeric Asphalt Extender to improve the engineering properties of the binder and mixtures. It is intended to be used in a dry mixing process with the purpose of simplifying mixing at the asphalt plant. The objective of this research study was first to perform a Superpave mix design for determination of optimum asphalt content with 35% RAR by weight of binder; and secondly, analyse the performance of RAR modified mixtures prepared using the dry process against Crumb Rubber Modified (CRM) mixtures prepared using the wet process by conducting various laboratory tests. Performance Grade (PG) 64-22 binder was used to fabricate RAR and CRM mixtures and Performance Grade (PG) 70-10 was used to fabricate Control mixtures for this study. Laboratory tests included: Dynamic Modulus Test, Flow Number Test, Tensile Strength Ratio, Axial Cyclic Fatigue Test and C* Fracture Test. Observations from test results indicated that RAR mixes prepared through the dry process had excellent fatigue life, moisture resistance and cracking resistance compared to the other mixtures. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering 2018

Hot mix asphalt pavements require adequate compaction to achieve the required density to resist rutting. The amount of energy required to achieve the optimum degree of compaction depends on the type of gradation, bitumen content, filler type and shape, type of compaction equipment etc. In this study, the net energy required to reduce the specimen volume (size) after each gyration of the superpave gyratory compactor is used as the compaction energy index (CEI) to measure the compactability of the samples. Samples with different filler types and content are used for the analysis. Effect of fillers on the viscosity of the mastic has been studied previously. Viscosity of mastics in return affects the compactability of the mix in general. In this regard this paper tries to study the effect of fillers on the compaction of hot mix asphalt with the help of the superpave gyratory compactor. Moreover, resistance of the asphalt mix samples against rutting is evaluated using the simple performance test. In this test, the sample is subjected to a hydraulic loading while strain transducers attached to the sample measure the displacement. A computer program receives the displacement data at various frequencies and calculates the dynamic modulus and flow number which are used for the evaluation of the pavement performance.     :

No description available.

Os pavimentos asfálticos brasileiros são projetados para durar, em média, 10 anos, contudo, em muitos casos, com poucos meses passados da abertura ao tráfego, começam a apresentar problemas que comprometem seu desempenho. Supõe-se que parte principal deste problema resida no fato de ser construído com revestimento asfáltico com espessura inferior às que são usadas nos países que nos servem de referência técnica, o que resulta em maiores esforços. Porém, além do aspecto estrutural, este trabalho aborda, principalmente, os efeitos na dosagem de misturas asfálticas, pois os critérios estabelecidos levam em conta o efeito do tráfego considerando estruturas com 15 cm ou mais de espessura do revestimento asfáltico. Portanto, a energia de compactação em laboratório considerada para a simulação do tráfego atuando em uma estrutura de pavimento com 15 cm de revestimento asfáltico não deve ser a mesma quando a espessura do revestimento for muito menor, pois as respostas estruturais, tensão e deformação, são muito diferentes nos dois casos, sendo as estruturas mais esbeltas submetidas a maiores solicitações do tráfego, o que deveria ser considerado quando da dosagem de misturas asfálticas em laboratório, particularmente no Brasil. Há outros agravantes, como a concentração de tensões associada à maior pressão de enchimento dos pneus e o tráfego de veículos com excesso de carga por eixo. O objetivo deste trabalho é propor uma tabela com faixa de valores do número de giros de compactação de misturas asfálticas, para diferentes níveis de tráfego, adaptada da tabela do Superpave e corrigida segundo critérios de análise de danos equivalentes em função da espessura de revestimento. Além da análise estrutural, teórica, foi desenvolvido um trabalho laboratorial, com misturas asfálticas dosadas pelo método Superpave, considerando-se todos os níveis de tráfego e os respectivos número de giros de projeto do compactador giratório. As misturas asfálticas foram projetadas para o teor ótimo de ligante correspondente a um volume de vazios de 4%. Os corpos de prova foram compactados segundo sete níveis de energia de tráfego, conforme estabelecido no método Superpave, com determinação de propriedades volumétricas (VAM, Vazios do Agregado Mineral, RBV, Relação Betume-Vazios, e TF, Teor de Fíler) e mecânicas (MR, Módulo de Resiliência, e RT, Resistência à Tração). Os resultados foram comparados pelos testes estatísticos não paramétricos U de Mann-Whitney e KS (Kolmogorov-Smirnov), que avaliam se duas amostras possuem distribuições de valores similares ou não. As propriedades volumétricas (VAM, RBV e TF) variaram significativamente com a energia de compactação, sendo que seus valores médios diminuíram com o aumento da energia de tráfego, enquanto que as propriedades mecânicas (MR e RT) apresentaram aumento de valor com o aumento da energia do tráfego de projeto, ainda que, em energias contíguas, tenha havido pequena diferença. Foi constatado maior influência da temperatura de realização de ensaios de MR e RT para os maiores níveis de energia de tráfego, ou seja, há maior diminuição de MR e RT com o aumento da temperatura para as misturas produzidas com um maior número de giros. Foi realizada análise estrutural com o programa ELSYM5, considerando-se diferentes espessuras de revestimentos asfálticos e propriedades semelhantes às das misturas asfálticas projetadas. Os resultados permitiram análises de vida de fadiga e de danos equivalentes, sob diferentes esforços, decorrentes de redução na espessura do revestimento ou de sobrecargas do tráfego. A vida de fadiga apresentou tendência de aumento com o nível de tráfego considerado para dosagem da mistura asfáltica, mas com tendência assintótica. O aumento da carga por eixo e da pressão de enchimento de pneus, quando associados à redução de espessura dos revestimentos asfálticos, pode levar a uma redução na vida de fadiga em cerca de 60 vezes, para pavimentos flexíveis, e em cerca de 10 vezes, para pavimentos semirrígidos. Na tentativa de amenizar os possíveis problemas que afetam o desempenho de nossos pavimentos, o número de giros usado no compactador giratório para projetar misturas asfálticas deve aumentar em cerca de 20% a 50% em pavimento flexível e de 4% a 30% em pavimento semirrígido, dependendo da energia de tráfego considerada em projeto, do tipo de estrutura selecionada e dos carregamentos veiculares aferidos. / Brazilian asphalt pavements are designed to last, on average, 10 years, however, in many cases, with only a few months after opened to traffic, they begin to present problems that compromise their performance. It is assumed that the main part of this problem resides in the fact that they are constructed with surface layers with thickness inferior to those that are used in the countries that serve as technical reference, which results in greater efforts. However, in addition to the structural aspect, this work mainly addresses the effects on the dosage of asphalt mixtures, since the established criteria take into account the effect of traffic considering structures with 15 cm or more of thickness of the asphalt layer. Therefore, the compaction energy in the laboratory considered for the simulation of the traffic acting on a pavement structure with 15 cm of asphalt layer should not be the same when the thickness of the surface layer is much smaller, since the structural responses are very different, with the leaner structures being submitted to higher traffic efforts, which should be considered when dosing asphalt mixtures in the laboratory, particularly in Brazil. There are other aggravating factors, such as the concentration of stresses associated with the higher tire inflation pressure and the traffic of overloaded vehicles. The objective of this work is to propose a table with a range of values of the number of gyrations for compaction of asphalt mixtures, for different levels of traffic, adapted from the Superpave table and corrected according to criteria based on analysis of equivalent damages as a function of the asphalt surface layer thickness. In addition to the structural analysis, a laboratory work was developed, with asphalt mixtures designed by the Superpave method, considering all traffic levels and the respective number of gyrations of the gyratory compactor. The asphalt mixtures were designed for the optimum binder content corresponding to an air void of 4%. The test specimens were compacted according to seven traffic energy levels, as established in the Superpave method, with determination of volumetric properties (VMA, Voids in Mineral Aggregates, VFA, Voids Filled with Asphalt, and DP, Dust Proportion) and mechanical properties (MR, Resilient Modulus, and TS, Tensile Strength). Results were compared by Mann-Whitney and KS (Kolmogorov-Smirnov) non-parametric statistical tests, which evaluate whether two samples have distributions of similar values or not. The volumetric properties (VMA, VFA and DP) varied significantly with the compaction energy, and their mean values decreased with increasing traffic energy, while mechanical properties (MR and TS) increased with increasing energy of the design traffic, although, in contiguous energies, there was little difference. It was observed a higher influence of the temperature of MR and TS tests for the higher levels of traffic energy, that is, there is a greater decrease of MR and TS with the temperature increase for the mixtures produced with a greater number of gyrations. Structural analysis was performed with the ELSYM5 program, considering different thicknesses of asphaltic coatings and properties similar to those of the projected asphalt mixtures. The results allowed fatigue life and equivalent damages analyzes under different stresses due to reduction of the thickness of the surface layer or traffic overloads. Fatigue life showed a tendency to increase with the level of traffic considered for mixture design, but with an asymptotic tendency. The increased axle load and tire inflation pressure, when associated with the reduction of the thickness of the asphalt layer, can lead to a reduction in fatigue life by about 60 times for flexible pavements and by about 10 times, for semi-rigid pavements. In an attempt to soften the possible problems affecting the performance of our pavements, the number of gyrations used in the gyratory compactor to design asphalt mixtures should increase by 20 to 50% in flexible pavement and from 4% to 30% in semi-rigid pavement, depending on the traffic energy considered in design, the type of structure selected and the measured vehicle loads.

Os pavimentos asfálticos brasileiros são projetados para durar, em média, 10 anos, contudo, em muitos casos, com poucos meses passados da abertura ao tráfego, começam a apresentar problemas que comprometem seu desempenho. Supõe-se que parte principal deste problema resida no fato de ser construído com revestimento asfáltico com espessura inferior às que são usadas nos países que nos servem de referência técnica, o que resulta em maiores esforços. Porém, além do aspecto estrutural, este trabalho aborda, principalmente, os efeitos na dosagem de misturas asfálticas, pois os critérios estabelecidos levam em conta o efeito do tráfego considerando estruturas com 15 cm ou mais de espessura do revestimento asfáltico. Portanto, a energia de compactação em laboratório considerada para a simulação do tráfego atuando em uma estrutura de pavimento com 15 cm de revestimento asfáltico não deve ser a mesma quando a espessura do revestimento for muito menor, pois as respostas estruturais, tensão e deformação, são muito diferentes nos dois casos, sendo as estruturas mais esbeltas submetidas a maiores solicitações do tráfego, o que deveria ser considerado quando da dosagem de misturas asfálticas em laboratório, particularmente no Brasil. Há outros agravantes, como a concentração de tensões associada à maior pressão de enchimento dos pneus e o tráfego de veículos com excesso de carga por eixo. O objetivo deste trabalho é propor uma tabela com faixa de valores do número de giros de compactação de misturas asfálticas, para diferentes níveis de tráfego, adaptada da tabela do Superpave e corrigida segundo critérios de análise de danos equivalentes em função da espessura de revestimento. Além da análise estrutural, teórica, foi desenvolvido um trabalho laboratorial, com misturas asfálticas dosadas pelo método Superpave, considerando-se todos os níveis de tráfego e os respectivos número de giros de projeto do compactador giratório. As misturas asfálticas foram projetadas para o teor ótimo de ligante correspondente a um volume de vazios de 4%. Os corpos de prova foram compactados segundo sete níveis de energia de tráfego, conforme estabelecido no método Superpave, com determinação de propriedades volumétricas (VAM, Vazios do Agregado Mineral, RBV, Relação Betume-Vazios, e TF, Teor de Fíler) e mecânicas (MR, Módulo de Resiliência, e RT, Resistência à Tração). Os resultados foram comparados pelos testes estatísticos não paramétricos U de Mann-Whitney e KS (Kolmogorov-Smirnov), que avaliam se duas amostras possuem distribuições de valores similares ou não. As propriedades volumétricas (VAM, RBV e TF) variaram significativamente com a energia de compactação, sendo que seus valores médios diminuíram com o aumento da energia de tráfego, enquanto que as propriedades mecânicas (MR e RT) apresentaram aumento de valor com o aumento da energia do tráfego de projeto, ainda que, em energias contíguas, tenha havido pequena diferença. Foi constatado maior influência da temperatura de realização de ensaios de MR e RT para os maiores níveis de energia de tráfego, ou seja, há maior diminuição de MR e RT com o aumento da temperatura para as misturas produzidas com um maior número de giros. Foi realizada análise estrutural com o programa ELSYM5, considerando-se diferentes espessuras de revestimentos asfálticos e propriedades semelhantes às das misturas asfálticas projetadas. Os resultados permitiram análises de vida de fadiga e de danos equivalentes, sob diferentes esforços, decorrentes de redução na espessura do revestimento ou de sobrecargas do tráfego. A vida de fadiga apresentou tendência de aumento com o nível de tráfego considerado para dosagem da mistura asfáltica, mas com tendência assintótica. O aumento da carga por eixo e da pressão de enchimento de pneus, quando associados à redução de espessura dos revestimentos asfálticos, pode levar a uma redução na vida de fadiga em cerca de 60 vezes, para pavimentos flexíveis, e em cerca de 10 vezes, para pavimentos semirrígidos. Na tentativa de amenizar os possíveis problemas que afetam o desempenho de nossos pavimentos, o número de giros usado no compactador giratório para projetar misturas asfálticas deve aumentar em cerca de 20% a 50% em pavimento flexível e de 4% a 30% em pavimento semirrígido, dependendo da energia de tráfego considerada em projeto, do tipo de estrutura selecionada e dos carregamentos veiculares aferidos. / Brazilian asphalt pavements are designed to last, on average, 10 years, however, in many cases, with only a few months after opened to traffic, they begin to present problems that compromise their performance. It is assumed that the main part of this problem resides in the fact that they are constructed with surface layers with thickness inferior to those that are used in the countries that serve as technical reference, which results in greater efforts. However, in addition to the structural aspect, this work mainly addresses the effects on the dosage of asphalt mixtures, since the established criteria take into account the effect of traffic considering structures with 15 cm or more of thickness of the asphalt layer. Therefore, the compaction energy in the laboratory considered for the simulation of the traffic acting on a pavement structure with 15 cm of asphalt layer should not be the same when the thickness of the surface layer is much smaller, since the structural responses are very different, with the leaner structures being submitted to higher traffic efforts, which should be considered when dosing asphalt mixtures in the laboratory, particularly in Brazil. There are other aggravating factors, such as the concentration of stresses associated with the higher tire inflation pressure and the traffic of overloaded vehicles. The objective of this work is to propose a table with a range of values of the number of gyrations for compaction of asphalt mixtures, for different levels of traffic, adapted from the Superpave table and corrected according to criteria based on analysis of equivalent damages as a function of the asphalt surface layer thickness. In addition to the structural analysis, a laboratory work was developed, with asphalt mixtures designed by the Superpave method, considering all traffic levels and the respective number of gyrations of the gyratory compactor. The asphalt mixtures were designed for the optimum binder content corresponding to an air void of 4%. The test specimens were compacted according to seven traffic energy levels, as established in the Superpave method, with determination of volumetric properties (VMA, Voids in Mineral Aggregates, VFA, Voids Filled with Asphalt, and DP, Dust Proportion) and mechanical properties (MR, Resilient Modulus, and TS, Tensile Strength). Results were compared by Mann-Whitney and KS (Kolmogorov-Smirnov) non-parametric statistical tests, which evaluate whether two samples have distributions of similar values or not. The volumetric properties (VMA, VFA and DP) varied significantly with the compaction energy, and their mean values decreased with increasing traffic energy, while mechanical properties (MR and TS) increased with increasing energy of the design traffic, although, in contiguous energies, there was little difference. It was observed a higher influence of the temperature of MR and TS tests for the higher levels of traffic energy, that is, there is a greater decrease of MR and TS with the temperature increase for the mixtures produced with a greater number of gyrations. Structural analysis was performed with the ELSYM5 program, considering different thicknesses of asphaltic coatings and properties similar to those of the projected asphalt mixtures. The results allowed fatigue life and equivalent damages analyzes under different stresses due to reduction of the thickness of the surface layer or traffic overloads. Fatigue life showed a tendency to increase with the level of traffic considered for mixture design, but with an asymptotic tendency. The increased axle load and tire inflation pressure, when associated with the reduction of the thickness of the asphalt layer, can lead to a reduction in fatigue life by about 60 times for flexible pavements and by about 10 times, for semi-rigid pavements. In an attempt to soften the possible problems affecting the performance of our pavements, the number of gyrations used in the gyratory compactor to design asphalt mixtures should increase by 20 to 50% in flexible pavement and from 4% to 30% in semi-rigid pavement, depending on the traffic energy considered in design, the type of structure selected and the measured vehicle loads.

O desempenho dos pavimentos de concreto asfáltico depende das propriedades e proporções relativas dos seus principais componentes, ou seja, dos agregados minerais, do cimento asfáltico e do volume de vazios. O desempenho das misturas asfálticas de graduação densa é predominantemente influenciado pelas características de forma, angularidade e textura superficial dos agregados finos, que condicionam a estabilidade das misturas. O ensaio de Angularidade do Agregado Fino (FAA), adotado pelo Superpave para avaliar e quantificar a forma, a angularidade e a textura superficial das partículas, tem levantado muitas dúvidas quanto à sua adequabilidade. O objetivo deste trabalho é verificar se o ensaio FAA é capaz de classificar os agregados finos, identificando materiais com melhores condições para utilização em misturas asfálticas. Para tanto, são realizados, além de ensaios de angularidade do agregado fino, análise visual da forma, angularidade e textura superficial, ensaios de cisalhamento direto em amostras de agregado fino e ensaios Marshall em amostras de misturas asfálticas produzidas com diferentes agregados finos. Os resultados obtidos nas análises visuais indicam que o ensaio FAA não é capaz de separar os efeitos de angularidade e de forma das partículas. Os resultados dos ensaios de cisalhamento direto demonstram que um agregado fino com maior FAA não apresenta, necessariamente, uma maior resistência ao cisalhamento. Os resultados do ensaio Marshall também não demonstram correlação da estabilidade com os valores de FAA. Todos os resultados obtidos revelam que o ensaio FAA não é capaz de classificar adequadamente os agregados finos e, desta forma, não é capaz de identificar agregados que proporcionam misturas asfálticas com melhor desempenho / The performance of hot-mix asphalt (HMA) pavements depends on the properties and proportions of the major components, i.e., mineral aggregates, asphalt cement and air voids. The performance of dense asphalt mixtures is influenced mainly by fine aggregate characteristics, such as shape, angularity and surface texture. The Fine Aggregate Angularity test (FAA), adopted by Superpave to evaluate and quantify the shape, angularity and surface texture of fine aggregate particles, has lead a lot of doubts regarding its suitability. The objective of this work is to verify if the FAA test is really able to classify fine aggregates and identify the good ones to be used in asphalt mixtures. Thus, FAA test, visual analysis of shape, angularity and surface texture, direct shear test with samples of fine aggregates and Marshall test with samples of asphalt mixtures produced with different fine aggregates are performed. The results obtained in the visual analyses indicate that the FAA test is not able to separate the effects of angularity from the effects of shape. The results of the direct shear test demonstrate that a fine aggregate with a higher FAA doesn't present, necessarily, a larger shear strength. The values of the Marshall test doesn't demonstrate correlation between Marshall stability and FAA values. All the results show that the FAA test is not able to classify fine aggregates appropriately and, therefore, is unable to identify aggregates that provide mixtures with better performance

O desempenho dos pavimentos de concreto asfáltico depende das propriedades e proporções relativas dos seus principais componentes, ou seja, dos agregados minerais, do cimento asfáltico e do volume de vazios. O desempenho das misturas asfálticas de graduação densa é predominantemente influenciado pelas características de forma, angularidade e textura superficial dos agregados finos, que condicionam a estabilidade das misturas. O ensaio de Angularidade do Agregado Fino (FAA), adotado pelo Superpave para avaliar e quantificar a forma, a angularidade e a textura superficial das partículas, tem levantado muitas dúvidas quanto à sua adequabilidade. O objetivo deste trabalho é verificar se o ensaio FAA é capaz de classificar os agregados finos, identificando materiais com melhores condições para utilização em misturas asfálticas. Para tanto, são realizados, além de ensaios de angularidade do agregado fino, análise visual da forma, angularidade e textura superficial, ensaios de cisalhamento direto em amostras de agregado fino e ensaios Marshall em amostras de misturas asfálticas produzidas com diferentes agregados finos. Os resultados obtidos nas análises visuais indicam que o ensaio FAA não é capaz de separar os efeitos de angularidade e de forma das partículas. Os resultados dos ensaios de cisalhamento direto demonstram que um agregado fino com maior FAA não apresenta, necessariamente, uma maior resistência ao cisalhamento. Os resultados do ensaio Marshall também não demonstram correlação da estabilidade com os valores de FAA. Todos os resultados obtidos revelam que o ensaio FAA não é capaz de classificar adequadamente os agregados finos e, desta forma, não é capaz de identificar agregados que proporcionam misturas asfálticas com melhor desempenho / The performance of hot-mix asphalt (HMA) pavements depends on the properties and proportions of the major components, i.e., mineral aggregates, asphalt cement and air voids. The performance of dense asphalt mixtures is influenced mainly by fine aggregate characteristics, such as shape, angularity and surface texture. The Fine Aggregate Angularity test (FAA), adopted by Superpave to evaluate and quantify the shape, angularity and surface texture of fine aggregate particles, has lead a lot of doubts regarding its suitability. The objective of this work is to verify if the FAA test is really able to classify fine aggregates and identify the good ones to be used in asphalt mixtures. Thus, FAA test, visual analysis of shape, angularity and surface texture, direct shear test with samples of fine aggregates and Marshall test with samples of asphalt mixtures produced with different fine aggregates are performed. The results obtained in the visual analyses indicate that the FAA test is not able to separate the effects of angularity from the effects of shape. The results of the direct shear test demonstrate that a fine aggregate with a higher FAA doesn't present, necessarily, a larger shear strength. The values of the Marshall test doesn't demonstrate correlation between Marshall stability and FAA values. All the results show that the FAA test is not able to classify fine aggregates appropriately and, therefore, is unable to identify aggregates that provide mixtures with better performance

Cracking is one of the most severe distress modes of asphaltpavements. Thus characterising the fracture resistance properties of asphaltmixtures is the key issue for improving the performance relatedmixture design. The present master thesis project addresses the implementationof the theoretical framework, which is used to characterise thefracture resistance of mixtures based on the SuperPave indirect tensiletest (IDT). An open source Matlab-based software for analysing resilientmodulus, Poisson’s ratio, creep parameters and fracture resistance parametershas been developed. The software analyses the the IDT results, toestimate mixture’s fracture resistance based on hot mix asphalt FractureMechanics. Predictions form the field specimens concerning the fractureresistance obtained from IDT are compared with observed field performance.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Civil Engineering / Mustaque Hossain / The engineers from the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) often have to decide whether or not to accept non-conforming Superpave mixtures during construction. The first part of this study focused on estimating lives of deficient Superpave pavements incorporating nonconforming Superpave mixtures. These criteria were based on the Hamburg Wheel-Tracking Device (HWTD) test results and analysis. The second part of this study focused on developing accelerated mix testing models to considerably reduce test duration. To accomplish the first objective, nine fine-graded Superpave mixes of 12.5-mm nominal maximum aggregate size (NMAS) with asphalt grade PG 64-22 from six administrative districts of KDOT were selected. Specimens were prepared at three different target air void levels @ N[subscript]design gyrations and four target simulated in-place density levels with the Superpave gyratory compactor. Average number of wheel passes to 20-mm rut depth, creep slope, stripping slope, and stripping inflection point in HWTD tests were recorded and then used in the statistical analysis. Results showed that, in general, higher simulated in-place density up to a certain limit of 91% to 93%, results in a higher number of wheel passes until 20-mm rut depth in HWTD tests. A Superpave mixture with very low air voids @ N[subscript]design (2%) level performed very poorly in the HWTD test. HWTD tests were also performed on six 12.5-mm NMAS mixtures with air voids @ N[subscript]design of 4% for six projects, simulated in-place density of 93%, two temperature levels and five load levels with binder grades of PG 64-22, PG 64-28, and PG 70-22. Field cores of 150-mm in diameter from three projects in three KDOT districts with 12.5-mm NMAS and asphalt grade of PG 64-22 were also obtained and tested in HWTD for model evaluation. HWTD test results indicated as expected. Statistical analysis was performed and accelerated mix testing models were developed to determine the effect of increased temperature and load on the duration of the HWTD test. Good consistency between predicted and observed test results was obtained when higher temperature and standard load level were used. Test duration of the HWTD can thus be reduced to two hours or less using accelerated mix testing (statistical) models.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Civil Engineering / Mustaque Hossain / A Superpave asphalt mixture with 4.75-mm nominal maximum aggregate size (NMAS) is a promising, low-cost pavement preservation treatment for agencies such as the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT). The objective of this research study is to develop an optimized 4.75-mm NMAS Superpave mixture in Kansas. In addition, the study evaluated the residual tack coat application rate for the 4.75-mm NMAS mix overlay. Two, hot-in-place recycling (HIPR) projects in Kansas, on US-160 and K-25, were overlaid with a 15- to 19-mm thick layer of 4.75-mm NMAS Superpave mixture in 2007. The field tack coat application rate was measured during construction. Cores were collected from each test section for Hamburg wheel tracking device (HWTD) and laboratory bond tests performed after construction and after one year in service. Test results showed no significant effect of the tack coat application rate on the rutting performance of rehabilitated pavements. The number of wheel passes to rutting failure observed during the HWTD test was dependent on the aggregate source as well as on in-place density of the cores. Laboratory pull-off tests showed that most cores were fully bonded at the interface of the 4.75-mm NMAS overlay and the HIPR layer, regardless of the tack application rate. The failure mode during pull-off tests at the HMA interface was highly dependent on the aggregate source and mix design of the existing layer material. This study also confirmed that overlay construction with a high tack coat application rate may result in bond failure at the HMA interface. Twelve different 4.75-mm NMAS mix designs were developed using materials from the aforementioned but two binder grades and three different percentages of natural (river) sand. Laboratory performance tests were conducted to assess mixture performance. Results show that rutting and moisture damage potential in the laboratory depend on aggregate type irrespective of binder grade. Anti-stripping agent affects moisture sensitivity test results. Fatigue performance is significantly influenced by river sand content and binder grade. Finally, an optimized 4.75-mm NMAS mixture design was developed and verified based on statistical analysis of performance data.