FHWA Demonstration Project for Enhanced Durability of Asphalt Pavements through Increased In-place Pavement Density, Phase 3

Federal Highway Administration2020PDFTech Reporthttps://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/78000/78000/78041/FHWA-HIF-20-003.pdfAschenbrener, T.Leiva, FabricioTran, Nam H.Hand, Adam J. T.Auburn University. National Center for Asphalt TechnologyUnited States. Federal Highway Administration. Office of Asset Management, Pavements, and ConstructionFederal Highway Administration (U.S.)United StatesIn place densityAir voidsCompactionDurabilityService lifeIn-place densityAir voidsField compactionDurabilityService lifeDTFH61-13-H-00027Tim AschenbrenerAchieving appropriate in-place density is critical to the long-term performance of an asphalt pavement as a small change in inplace density can significantly affect the pavement service life. Thus, a Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) demonstration project was created for \u201cEnhanced Durability of Asphalt Pavements through Increased In-place Pavement Density.\u201d The objective of this demonstration project was to determine the benefit of additional compaction and show that additional density could be obtained through improved techniques. Many States also added compaction equipment or made changes in the mix design process to obtain additional density. The FHWA Demonstration Project included three phases. Phase 1 was completed in 2017 with demonstration projects constructed in 10 States (Aschenbrener et al., 2017). Phases 2 and 3 were an extension of the Phase 1 effort. Phase 2 was completed in 2018 with demonstration projects constructed in eight States (Aschenbrener et al., 2019). This report documents activities and observations from Phase 3 of the demonstration project, including (1) a summary of a detailed literature review conducted in Phase 1, (2) success stories related to SHA density specifications started in Phase 2, (3) lessons learned from the three phases of the demonstration project, and (4) strategies to overcome obstacles to achieving higher in-place density.100