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    <title>Transport Research International Documentation (TRID)</title>
    <link>https://trid.trb.org/</link>
    <atom:link href="https://trid.trb.org/Record/RSS?s=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" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
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    <language>en-us</language>
    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
    <docs>http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss</docs>
    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
    <image>
      <title>Transport Research International Documentation (TRID)</title>
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      <link>https://trid.trb.org/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Development of a Laboratory Testing Framework to Estimate Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement Binder Performance Grade without Solvent Extraction and Recovery</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772592</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This study introduces a laboratory testing framework for estimating the performance grade (PG) of asphalt binders in reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) without using solvent extraction and recovery. The study was conducted in two phases: Phase I aimed to identify suitable performance tests for assessing RAP binder stiffness using laboratory-prepared artificial RAP, and Phase II focused on validating these selected tests for estimating binder PG of field RAP. In Phase I, the indirect tensile asphalt cracking test (IDEAL-CT), high-temperature indirect tensile test (HT-IDT), and Dongre workability test were conducted on artificial RAP samples prepared with different asphalt binders and laboratory aging conditions. Among these, the IDEAL-CT and HT-IDT exhibited a strong exponential correlation with the extracted RAP binder PG and were subsequently evaluated in Phase II for their feasibility and accuracy in estimating binder PG for three distinct field RAP sources using the proposed testing framework. The framework required the preparation of three re-mixed RAP samples for each source, prepared by mixing the post-ignition aggregates with three asphalt binders of known PG at the same asphalt content as the field sample. All the re-mixed and field samples underwent IDEAL-CT and HT-IDT testing, with results analyzed to determine the estimated PG of the field RAP binder. Using indirect tensile test (IDT) strength from HT-IDT and peak load (Pₘₐₓ) from IDEAL-CT, the framework produced reliable PG estimations for two out of three field RAP sources, highlighting its promise as a non-hazardous alternative to solvent extraction and recovery for RAP binder quality characterization.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Thu, 03 Sep 2026 09:08:04 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772592</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Performance of Cement-Treated Aggregate (CTA) and Full-Depth Reclamation (FDR) Bases for Semi-Rigid Pavement Design</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772642</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Cement-treated aggregate (CTA) and cement-stabilized full-depth reclamation (CS-FDR) are both used to increase pavement foundation stiffness, distribute wheel loads, reduce stresses transmitted to underlying layers, and support asphalt-surfaced pavement systems. Although both are cementitiously stabilized base materials, they are produced and constructed in fundamentally different ways. CTA is generally plant-produced from virgin materials while CS-FDR is produced in place by pulverizing existing bound and unbound pavement materials and stabilizing the reclaimed blend with cement. Consequently, CS-FDR may contain variable quantities of existing materials depending on original construction uniformity. CTA is expected to be more uniform, but Virginia experience has also shown that transport, placement, moisture loss, grading, and compaction can produce substantial field variability.

This is important as Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) begins the use of semi-rigid pavement analysis in AASHTOWare Pavement ME Design. Cement stabilized layers require material properties that represent their strength and stiffness rather than treating them as conventional unbound aggregate. 

Laboratory characterization and stiffness testing of field placed materials is necessary to describe properties of these materials for design, but laboratory testing alone is not sufficient. Repeated loading can produce progressive stiffness loss and damage even when a stabilized layer does not reach a clearly defined binary failure state. Accelerated pavement testing provides the necessary link between material properties and full-scale performance. Laboratory results can be interpreted with FWD-backcalculated stiffness, rutting and surface-distress progression, measured structural response, and post-loading forensic observations. 

This study therefore focused on the direct comparison of field-produced CTA and CS-FDR and on the development of Pavement ME inputs supported by laboratory, FWD, APT, and forensic evidence.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 13:15:30 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772642</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Modification of Hamburg Wheel-Tracking Test for Slow-Moving Heavy Traffic</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772193</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The Hamburg wheel-tracking test (HWTT) is widely used to evaluate rutting resistance and moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixtures. While effective for standard traffic conditions, the test has shown limitations in predicting rutting potential under slow-moving heavy traffic at intersections or border checkpoints, leading to premature rutting problems and increased maintenance costs. This study proposed a modified HWTT at 70 °C to better address slow-moving heavy traffic conditions typically at intersections, based on pavement rutting development simulations, the time–temperature superposition principle, and laboratory and field evaluations. Laboratory evaluations using twenty asphalt mixtures with various aggregate types, binder grades, and binder sources demonstrated that the modified HWTT provides more discriminating assessments of rutting potential of asphalt mixtures. Preliminary field validation with cores from severely rutted intersections indicated that the modified HWTT at 70 °C can effectively identify rut-prone mixtures, whereas the standard HWTT at 50 °C does not. The modified HWTT offers a potential practical tool for designing rut-resistant asphalt mixtures tailored for intersections and other locations with slow-moving heavy traffic. While this study establishes an initial framework for addressing the rutting problem under slow-moving heavy traffic conditions, additional field validation across a wider range of materials, binder types, and climatic conditions is needed.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 09:22:25 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2772193</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Durability performance of recycled aggregate porous concrete for pavement base applications under acid and sulphate exposure</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2703569</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The long-term durability of Recycled Concrete Aggregate (RCA)-based Porous Concrete (PC) remains a key limitation for its use in sustainable pavements, particularly under acid and sulphate exposure, and is insufficiently addressed in the existing literature. To address this gap, this study aims to optimise RCA-based PC through a systematic multi-parameter mix design considering RCA–Virgin Aggregate (VA) blending, fibre reinforcement (PET and steel), silica fume, and fine aggregate inclusion. Twenty-eight mixes were evaluated for density, void content, compressive strength, permeability, and durability under exposure to sulphuric acid (3% and 5% H2SO4) and magnesium sulphate (3% and 5% MgSO4). Results show that PC produced solely with RCA exhibits higher porosity, lower strength, and greater mass loss, due to a weak aggregate packing and a highly connected pore structure. The novelty of this study lies in the combined use of RCA–VA blending and supplementary fine materials to refine pore connectivity and enhance matrix densification. The optimised mix (M28) achieved a density of 1790 kg/m³ , a void content of 17%, a compressive strength of 7.45 MPa, a permeability of 0.574 cm/s, and a mass loss of less than 5%, demonstrating its suitability for pavement base and sub-base applications.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 09:21:34 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2703569</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Pre-swelling-induced surface property changes in waste crumb rubber for impact-absorbing pavement applications: A novel sustainable sidewalk solution</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2703547</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Limited compatibility between waste crumb rubber (WCR) and bitumen, along with swelling-induced instability, restricts dry-process WCR recycling in asphalt pavements. This study investigated whether epoxidized soybean oil (ESO) pre-swelling can improve the surface state and volumetric stability of WCR while retaining partial elasticity as flexible aggregates in cold-mixed impact-absorbing pavement with reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP). First, ESO diffusion and WCR expansion were evaluated under different temperatures and durations, followed by physicochemical, thermal, and rheological characterization. Subsequently, cold mixtures containing pre-swollen WCR, RAP, emulsified bitumen, and filler were prepared, and their volumetric stability, cross-sectional structure, indirect tensile strength (ITS), and indirect tensile stiffness modulus (ITSM) were assessed. Results show that WCR swelling exhibits logarithmic growth over time, with temperature exerting a stronger influence than size. Fine and coarse WCR reach equilibrium expansions of 4–24% and 1–14%, respectively, from 30 to 150 °C, consistent with ESO diffusion coefficients that are 4–7 times higher in fine WCR and over three orders of magnitude higher at 150 °C than at 30 °C. Pre-swelling was associated with lower contact angle, enriched oxygen-containing groups, and a softer viscoelastic response of WCR, suggesting improved surface affinity and reduced thermal sensitivity. Treatment at 150 °C for 2 h gave the best overall performance, increasing volumetric stability, ITS, and ITSM by 36%, 23%, and 62%, respectively. These findings support the waste-to-value use of WCR and RAP in safer urban slow-mobility pavements. However, ESO’s rejuvenation on RAP reduces mixture strength and requires control.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 02 Sep 2026 09:21:34 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2703547</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Preparation of Bio-oil-Microwave Composite Activated Rubber Powder and Research on Its Asphalt Properties</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752668</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Rubber powder asphalt has shown positive effects in road engineering applications and environmental protection. However, its application is limited due to poor storage stability and segregation issues. This study developed a novel activation method combining bio-renewable oil components with microwave irradiation to improve the storage stability of rubber powder asphalt. By utilizing different bio-oils and microwave radiation durations, 26 variations of activated rubber powder-modified asphalt (ARA) were prepared, and the optimal activation method was selected using grey relational analysis (GRA). The results indicated that the optimal activation method involved using waste cooking oil with an oil-to-rubber ratio of 0.3 and a microwave radiation time of 4minutes. The bio-oil-microwave composite-activated rubber powder asphalt (W0.3+4) prepared using this activation method exhibits excellent storage stability, low-temperature crack resistance, and workability. However, the material showed compromised thermal stability at elevated temperatures. To address this limitation, polyphosphoric acid (PPA) was introduced as a chemical modifier to optimize the temperature resistance of the rubber-modified asphalt. The incorporation of PPA significantly improved the rheological properties of ARA, as evidenced by increased softening point and reduced penetration values, demonstrating enhanced thermal stability characteristics. Furthermore, the addition of PPA promoted an increase in the molecular weight of ARA, and its viscosity retention rate was significantly improved compared to conventional rubber asphalt (CRA), further enhancing the storage stability of ARA.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:31 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752668</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Damage Mechanism Investigation of a Prestressed Concrete Girder Considering the Strengthening Effect of Bridge Deck Pavement</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2625824</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Understanding the damage mechanism and destructive behavior of concrete girders is crucial for ensuring bridge safety. When designing bridges, the bridge deck pavement is often regarded as secondary dead load, and the combined effect between it and main girder is overlooked. However, during the service of bridges, the combined effect contributes to enhancing the flexural strength of the main girder objectively, which cannot be ignored during safety assessment of bridges or it may lead to inaccurate assessment and potential risks. In this study, the four-point flexural failure experiment and failure simulations of a decommissioned prestressed concrete girder were conducted to investigate the damage mechanism of concrete girders with a deck pavement. The bond strength model, describing bond and slip effect between the concrete girder and deck pavement, was updated based on the measured concrete roughness via high-precision three-dimensional (3D) scanning. The failure mode, deflection, strain, and crack development of the investigated girder, which were obtained from the experiments and simulations, revealed that the deck pavement significantly enhanced elastic stiffness by 27.7%, cracking load by 16.4%, and ultimate flexural strength by 9.0%. The established finite-element and bond strength models may provide a reference for the future damage mechanism evaluation and safety assessment of similar bridges.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:31 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2625824</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>A framework for predicting the performance of recycled asphalt pavement by integrating CTGAN and pre-trained tabular models: based on a real-world LTPP engineering case</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2762570</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This study aims to address the scarcity and limited interpretability of data for predicting the International Roughness Index (IRI) and rut depth of recycled asphalt pavements in practical engineering applications. Based on 1581 field records from the North American Long-Term Pavement Performance Database, a real-world case study framework was constructed. First, 5000 synthetic samples were generated using CTGAN to enhance data diversity. Second, nine machine learning models were constructed and optimized, with Bayesian hyperparameter optimization employed. Next, two validation strategies were implemented: one using real data for training and testing; and the other using synthetic data for training and real data for testing, to evaluate the model's transferability. Under the real-data strategy, the TabPFN model achieved an R² value of 0.9950 and an RMSE value of 0.0209 for IRI prediction. Using the synthetic-to-real-data strategy, performance was further improved, with an R²  value of 0.9993 and an RMSE of 0.0060 for IRI; and an R²  value of 0.9875 and an RMSE of 0.2650 for rut depth. Subsequently, external validation was performed using 983 independent field samples from Quebec and Saskatchewan, confirming the model's good generalization ability, with an R² value of 0.9993 for IRI and 0.9858 for rut depth. Finally, SHAP analysis identified traffic load and material properties as the main factors influencing pavement performance. The proposed framework provides a generalizable and practical solution for pavement performance prediction and supports maintenance decisions in data-constrained engineering scenarios.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2762570</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Synthesis of Bio-binder from Used Cooking Oil to Produce Paving Mixtures with 100% Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2753198</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This study developed and assessed the synthesis of a bio-binder (BB) from used cooking oil (UCO) that was polymerized with maleic anhydride (MA). Then, the BB was used to blend with 100% reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) to produce paving mixtures for road applications. The BB was synthesized under various reaction temperatures and durations, and its rheological properties were monitored through the rotational viscosity test at 135 °C and 165 °C. Results indicated that both reaction time and temperature significantly influence viscosity, which should be monitored regularly during the reaction. The BB at 1.5% and 2.0% by weight of RAP was used to produce 100% RAP mixtures. Performance of these mixtures used as paving materials was evaluated for fracture cracking resistance, moisture susceptibility, rutting resistance, beam stiffness, beam fatigue life, and mechanistic analysis. They were also compared with 100% RAP with 0.75% untreated UCO and two conventional asphalt mixtures. All evaluated mixtures exhibited rut depths well below the 12.5-mm failure criterion after 25,000 wheel passes. The 100% RAP mixture with 2.0% BB had superior moisture resistance with a tensile strength ratio (TSR) of 96.0%, compared with the TSR of 66.4% for the 100% RAP mixture with untreated UCO. The 100% RAP mixture with 2.0% BB also had the best fatigue resistance among the studied mixtures based on beam fatigue test results and mechanistic analysis, which is a promising mixture for use as a binder course in the pavement structure.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2753198</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Mechanical responses of concrete bridge deck pavements with viscoelastic asphalt layers under multi-axle rolling tire loads</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752662</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Concrete bridge deck pavements with viscoelastic asphalt layers are subjected to coupled mechanical actions induced by rolling tire loads and bridge structural bending. This study develops a three-dimensional numerical framework to investigate their mechanical responses under multi-axle rolling tire loads. The viscoelastic behavior of the asphalt layers is represented using the VENoL constitutive model calibrated from laboratory dynamic modulus tests, while traffic loading is simulated by a four-axle truck with eight rolling tire contact patches. Four representative indicators characterize the pavement surface strain, the longitudinal strain at the asphalt base bottom, the tensile stress at the concrete deck top, and the longitudinal strain at the beam bottom. The results show a clear bending-dominated response pattern, in which the beam-bottom longitudinal strain is the most sensitive indicator of global structural deformation. Parametric analyses indicate that tire load magnitude has the strongest influence on response amplitude, whereas concrete stiffness, asphalt stiffness, and rolling speed have less pronounced effects. The proposed framework provides a mechanistically interpretable basis for evaluating the structural safety and durability of concrete bridge deck pavement systems under rolling traffic loading.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752662</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Deacidified waste cooking oil for asphalt rejuvenation: A multi-scale study of reinforcement mechanisms</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752642</link>
      <description><![CDATA[With the pressing demand for carbon-neutral infrastructure, the development of green and high-efficiency rejuvenators to restore aged asphalt performance and valorize waste resources has emerged as a central challenge in sustainable pavement engineering. This research evaluates the rejuvenation efficiency of virgin and modified waste cooking oils (WCO and MWCO) from the perspectives of macroscopic rheological performance, microstructural characteristics, and molecular interactions, while elucidating the multi-scale enhancement mechanism of MWCO. The high-temperature deformation resistance, intermediate-temperature fatigue resistance, and low-temperature crack resistance of the rejuvenated asphalts (RAs) were assessed using a dynamic shear rheometer, bending beam rheometer, and multiple stress creep recovery tests. Infrared spectrum and atomic force microscopy were combined to analyze the evolution of chemical functional groups and surface morphological features. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were conducted to reveal intermolecular interaction mechanisms through parameters such as radial distribution function (RDF), mean square displacement, and free volume fraction (FVF). The results indicate that MWCO exhibits superior rejuvenation performance compared to WCO. Specifically, MWCO reduced the high-temperature failure temperature of aged asphalt by 7.8 °C, restoring the performance grade from “E” to “S” at 64 °C, identical to the virgin binder. In terms of low-temperature cracking resistance, MWCORA achieved a creep rate of 0.31 at −24 °C, satisfying the SHRP specification, whereas WCORA failed to meet this criterion, demonstrating superior stress relaxation capacity. Spectroscopic analysis confirms better compatibility between MWCO and aged asphalt, along with a more pronounced reduction in oxygen-containing groups (carbonyl index reduced by 38.5% for MWCORA vs. 25.0% for WCORA). Additionally, MWCO more effectively refined the massive bee-like structures and reduced surface roughness. MD simulations demonstrate that MWCO reduced the RDF peak height at 1.11 Å from 9.21 (aged asphalt) to 8.70, merely 0.06 higher than virgin asphalt (8.64), indicating nearly complete restoration of molecular packing order, while significantly enhancing molecular mobility (diffusion coefficient increased by 72.4% compared to aged asphalt) and FVF.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2752642</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Waste-to-road innovation: Performance and sustainability assessment of recycled PET-modified cold-mix asphalt</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2743146</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The increasing accumulation of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) waste has created significant environmental challenges and motivated the search for sustainable recycling strategies in pavement engineering. While recycled PET has been widely investigated in hot-mix asphalt, its application in cold-mix asphalt (CMA) remains limited because of the distinct curing mechanisms and emulsion-based binder systems involved. This study presents a comprehensive experimental investigation of recycled PET-modified CMA, integrating mechanical performance evaluation, fracture characterization, microstructural analysis, and preliminary illustrative economic and environmental screening. Recycled PET particles obtained from post-consumer plastic bottles were incorporated into CMA mixtures at contents ranging from 0 to 10% by aggregate mass using the dry process. The mixtures were evaluated using Marshall stability, indirect tensile strength (ITS), moisture susceptibility, Hamburg Wheel Tracking, Semi-Circular Bend (SCB) fracture testing, stress–strain analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results showed that PET significantly enhanced the mechanical and durability performance of CMA mixtures. Marshall stability increased from 6.40 kN for the control mixture to 16.07 kN at 6% PET, while maximum ITS, tensile strength ratio, and fracture resistance were achieved at 8% PET. SEM analysis revealed a denser and more homogeneous microstructure at moderate PET contents, whereas FTIR confirmed that the PET–binder interaction was predominantly physical in nature. However, excessive PET content increased the mixture stiffness and reduced the deformability. Overall, PET contents between 6% and 8% provided an optimum balance between strength, moisture resistance, rutting resistance, and fracture performance. The findings demonstrate the potential of recycled PET as a sustainable modifier for cold-mix asphalt applications and contribute to the development of environmentally sustainable and high-performance pavement materials with improved performance. The economic and environmental screening presented is based on laboratory-scale performance indicators and simplified cost and emission factors and does not constitute a complete life-cycle assessment.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:28 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2743146</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Experimental and numerical investigation of fatigue-damage evolution in SMA and AC mixtures based on S-VECD and phenomenological modeling</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2733760</link>
      <description><![CDATA[In this work, dynamic-modulus and uniaxial, tensile fatigue tests are conducted on asphalt concrete-13 (AC-13) and stone mastic asphalt-13 (SMA-13) asphalt mixtures commonly used in bridge-deck pavements. The fatigue-damage evolution is analyzed using the simplified viscoelastic continuum damage (S-VECD) theory and a phenomenological approach. The Williams–Landel–Ferry principle is applied to construct the master curves of dynamic modulus and phase angle, and the C–S damage characteristic curve (C: pseudo-secant modulus and S:internal state variable), failure-criterion parameter DR, and apparent damage capacity (Sapp) are determined. The results reveal that SMA-13 exhibits a high dynamic modulus and low phase angle across the entire temperature–frequency domain. Its C–S curve consistently lies above that of AC-13, indicating stronger damage resistance and better fatigue performance. Based on these findings, a strain-driven phenomenological fatigue-damage model is developed and implemented in a finite-element framework, to couple the pavement-stiffness degradation with the structural response. Numerical results indicate that the principal tensile strain at the top of the bridge-deck pavement layer is significantly larger than that at the bottom, with damage showing pronounced localization. In addition, higher temperatures markedly accelerate damage evolution. Further analyses under different equivalent loading cycles reveal the influence of pavement-stiffness degradation on the stress amplitude of critical weld details in the underlying steel bridge-deck plate.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 14:02:27 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2733760</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Climate Representativeness of a Typical Meteorological Year for Long-Term Temperature Predictions in Rigid Pavements</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2714337</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Climatic conditions play a crucial role in determining the performance and service life of jointed plain concrete pavements (JPCPs). A significant climatic factor contributing to the development of stresses is temperature. Daily and seasonal temperature variations generate nonlinear temperature profiles in portland cement concrete (PCC) slabs, resulting in thermal stresses. The equivalent linear temperature difference (ΔT) through the slab leads to curling, which can cause cracks under vehicular loading. Additionally, the nonlinear temperature component of these distributions generates self-equilibrating eigenstresses, significantly contributing to total pavement stresses and fatigue damage. Traditionally, in mechanistic–empirical pavement design, hourly nonlinear temperature profiles are generated using historical weather data spanning several years, a time-intensive process. This study proposes an alternative approach using typical meteorological years (TMYs), which represent multiple years of weather data as a single year. TMYs were generated for two time periods, 1962–1991 and 1992–2021, for 24 Indian cities using the Sandia method. A one-dimensional finite-element model was used to compute PCC temperature profiles. The ΔT and eigenstresses evaluated using the TMYs and the full historic weather data were compared for both top-down and bottom-up cracking. Statistical comparisons indicate that TMYs represent mean climatic conditions well but do not account for extreme values. Furthermore, statistically significant differences in ΔT and eigenstresses between the two time periods highlight the importance of selecting an appropriate time frame for JPCP design to account for climate change.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 09:10:11 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2714337</guid>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Analysis of Airport Runway Pavement Reliability Considering Temperature Variation: The Case of São Paulo–Congonhas International Airport</title>
      <link>https://trid.trb.org/View/2714336</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Airport pavement design methods typically rely on standard documents, such as those provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which assume general climatic conditions. Nonetheless, the temperature between different regions tends to influence the behavior of the pavements, which impacts how stress and strains are distributed within the pavement structure and influence pavement performance and reliability. Furthermore, global warming has required specific analyses of the behavior of infrastructures, such as pavements, regarding the choice of materials and performance needed to make pavements more resilient. This study aims to perform a reliability analysis for a pavement designed by traditional methods combined with the temperature variation, considering the case of São Paulo–Congonhas International Airport (CGH). It analyzed temperature variations across the four seasons. The procedure includes designing pavement, considering the airport’s traffic mix, and performing a Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) to verify the pavement structure’s reliability under temperature variation. The study shows that the total cumulative damage factor computed through MCS is 79% lower than the value obtained using the FAA method. Considering the pavement temperatures at CGH, all aircraft tend to cause less damage than expected. Furthermore, the pavement designed could withstand traffic 2.5 times greater at 95% reliability and 5.0 times greater at 50% reliability when considering temperature variation. These numbers indicate that in Brazilian airports where fatigue is the primary design criterion, the FAA Rigid and Flexible Iterative Elastic Layered software overestimates the damage and consequently increases pavement construction costs. These results suggest that the airport pavement design method requires calibration for Brazilian climatic conditions to improve fatigue damage prediction, especially for airports where fatigue is the primary failure criterion. The limitations of this study should be acknowledged to inform future research. The pavement temperature equation applied is deterministic, assuming fixed values for albedo, wind speed, and atmospheric transmission. Future research should assess the suitability of this equation for Brazilian regions, particularly in relation to actual measured temperatures at pavement depth. In this study, pavement reliability was evaluated considering only temperature variations; factors such as precipitation and variability in pavement thickness were not included, although they may affect pavement performance. Additionally, fatigue tests under different asphalt temperatures were not conducted, and a standard stiffness value for asphalt material was used to assess fatigue behavior. Future studies by the authors will aim to calibrate the performance equations and address these limitations.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 01 Sep 2026 09:10:11 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://trid.trb.org/View/2714336</guid>
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