Michigan DOT project #OR09086A extending the life of asphalt pavements

761723031Research report; Oct. 07, 2009-April 30, 2011.PDFTech ReportRC-1544ConcreteAsphalt pavementsAdmixturesRecyclingWaste managementAdditivesMichiganApplied Pavement Technology, Inc.Von Quintus, Harold L.Perera, RohanApplied Pavement Technology, Inc.Michigan. Dept. of TransportationNTL-HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION-MaterialsNTL-HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION-Pavement Management and PerformanceNTL-HIGHWAY/ROAD TRANSPORTATION-Construction and MaintenanceUS Transportation CollectionThe goal of this project was to identify common features of good and poorly performing asphalt pavements. The types of asphalt pavements included in the study were grouped into four categories: new construction, crush & shape with HMA surface, mill & resurface, and HMA overlay. Deterioration relationships were used to identify roadway segments with good and poor performance based on three performance indicators: distress index (composed of multiple distresses), rut depth, and smoothness. In general, rut depth and smoothness were not the causes of premature pavement rehabilitation--the distress index was found to be the primary reason for poor performance. Longitudinal and transverse cracking were found to be the primary cause of poor performance. As such the study recommended four mitigation strategies to reduce the occurrence of these distresses--implementation of a longitudinal construction joint specification, biased sampling and testing based on the use of infrared camera during construction, revisions to the mixture design procedure (volumetric properties, number of gyrations, & fundamental performance test), and expanded use of higher quality wearing surfaces