The impact of climate, load, and materials on the performance and deterioration of general aviation airports in Illinois

There are over 70 publicly owned airports in Illinois, the majority of which serve only general aviation (GA) aircraft having gross maximum weights less than 30,000 lbs. Although less visible than the larger air carrier, reliever, and commercial airports found near metropolitan centers, the smaller GA airports provide a valuable service to many communities. This dissertation examines Illinois GA pavement performance and the impact that load, climate, and materials/construction factors have on the formation and propagation of distress in GA pavements.The research conducted includes a review of relevant construction specifications and records, an analysis of statewide climatic factors and their influence on pavement material behavior, state-of-the-art structural and materials modeling and testing, and the analysis of pavement performance and distress data. In most instances, loading at GA airports was not found to be a critical distress factor while climate and materials/construction factors were considered most influential. A deterioration rate (DR) approach was used to establish pavement longevity trends for three common pavement types in three climatic zones. PCC pavement sections were further divided using the slab length over the radius of relative stiffness ratio to account for differences in pavement performance due to slab size effects.Significant overall differences in the DR for asphalt concrete (AC) surface pavements were not observed. The DR for PCC pavements was highly affected by slab size. Sections constructed with smaller slabs were found to have significantly lower DRs that those constructed with larger slabs. PCC sections constructed with smaller slab sizes also had lower DRs than AC sections.In AC surfaced pavements, the predominant distress types were longitudinal and transverse cracking and paving lane cracking. Distress in PCC pavements was closely linked to slab size, with larger slabs demonstrating greater amounts of distress at higher severities.As a result of this study, a better understanding of the distress mechanisms afflicting GA pavements has been obtained, potentially leading to improved material selection, design, and construction of GA pavements in the State of Illinois.U of I OnlyETDs are only available to UIUC Users without author permissio