ABSTRACT

Knowledge of critical strains during the asphalt pavements’ life is an inherent process within pavement structural assessment. Highway agencies need this knowledge to effectively manage potential maintenance activities. Conventional practice includes mechanistic analysis of data collected in-situ. Contrariwise, developing models or algorithms for strain prediction bypasses the time-consuming processes of back-analysis and strain analysis and contributes towards a more efficient assessment. This research deals with adaptability issues of empirical equations suggested in the international literature for the estimation of tensile strains at the bottom of asphalt concrete (AC) layers. For this purpose, non-destructive testing data collected from a trial section of a heavy-duty highway is utilised. Moving forward with the research, new models are developed for AC strain estimation considering the effect of AC temperature on the developed strains. From a statistical view, the high R² values indicate acceptable goodness of fit for the new equations. These results outline the feasibility of using the developed equations to ensure time and cost savings towards the acceleration of pavement evaluation processes. Besides, these results motivate future research to consider variable pavement structures, material and climatic conditions during model development, since the use of existing equations elsewhere may not be a rational approach.

摘要

了解沥青路面使用寿命期间的临界应变是路面结构评估中的一个固有过程。公路机构需要这些知识来有效管理潜在的维护活动。常规做法包括对原位收集的数据进行机械分析。相反，开发应变预测模型或算法可以绕过耗时的反向分析和应变分析过程，有助于更有效的评估。本研究涉及国际文献中建议的经验方程的适应性问题，用于估计沥青混凝土 (AC) 层底部的拉伸应变。为此，使用了从重型公路试验路段收集的无损检测数据。随着研究的推进，考虑到交流温度对发展应变的影响，开发了交流应变估计的新模型。从统计的角度来看，高 R^{2 个}值表示新方程的拟合优度可接受。这些结果概述了使用开发的方程来确保节省时间和成本以加速路面评估过程的可行性。此外，这些结果促使未来的研究在模型开发过程中考虑可变的路面结构、材料和气候条件，因为在其他地方使用现有方程可能不是一种合理的方法。