Interim Report on Experiments with Western Kentucky Bank Gravel in Bituminous Concrete

Experiments with Western Kentucky Bank Gravel as an aggregate in bituminous concrete were started in 1944 with a reconstruction project on the Paducah-Smithland Road (R.P. 32-1 SA & R.P. 32-l-SB), U.S. 60 & U.S. 68, in NcCracken County. Eight sections containing four different bituminous materials two different thicknesses of binder course, and variations in the surface course only with regard to a single grade of bitumen applied to Sections 5 to 8 inclusive, were provided in the plans. The pavement was inspected and photographs were taken in May, 1946, but no formal report was made on the experiment at that time. Another annual inspection was made on June 10 and ll of this year, and photographs as well as samples cut from the bituminous pavement in solid sections were taken as evidence of the condition of the project at this stage. Attempts were made to obtain cores for stability tests, but this proved impossible with the equipment available. All results of the inspection, sampling, and testing of materials from this project will be included in a later report on experimental bituminous test roads in different parts of the state; for the present, this report is made as a means of showing differences or similarities between Sections 1 and 5 of this project-- the two sections containing MC-5 in the bank gravel binder course