PUMPING OF HIGHWAY AND AIRFIELD PAVEMENTS-WITH DISCUSSION

A STUDY WAS MADE OF THE MECHANICS OF PUMPING OF RIGID PAVEMENTS. SURVEYS WERE MADE OF HIGHWAY PAVEMENTS IN INDIANA CONSTRUCTED WITH AND WITHOUT GRANULAR BASIS, AS WELL AS OF 15 AIR BASES. DATA OBTAINED FROM THIS STUDY INDICATE THAT PERFORMANCE OF RIGID HIGHWAY PAVEMENTS BUILT WITH GRANULAR BASES IS GREATLY INFLUENCED BY GRADATION OF THE GRANULAR BASE AS WELL AS AMOUNT OF TRAFFIC. CORRELATIONS ARE PRESENTED WHICH SHOW THAT PAVEMENT DISTRESS AS EVIDENCED BY RESTRAINT AND TRANSVERSE CRACKS IS DUE TO "BLOWING" OF BASES. THIS RESULTS ON ROADS CARRYING HIGH VOLUMES OF TRUCK TRAFFIC AND WHERE POORLY GRADED BASES ARE USED. BASE COURSES WITH DRAINS HAVE SHOWN BETTER PERFORMANCE THAN THOSE WITHOUT DRAINS, ALTHOUGH CONSTRUCTING POORLY GRADED BASES THROUGH THE SHOULDER FOR DRAINAGE WAS FOUND TO BE INEFFECTIVE FOR THOSE ROADS SURVEYED. PUMPING ON AIRFIELD PAVEMENTS WAS FOUND TO BE RESTRICTED PRIMARILY TO TAXIWAYS. THE ACTION IS PARTICULARLY APPARENT IN AREAS OF CHANNELIZED TRAFFIC AIRFIELDS SUPPORTING WHEEL LOADS IN EXCESS OF THE DESIGN AND WHEN PAVEMENTS ARE BUILT DIRECTLY ON PLASTIC CLAY-LIKE MATERIALS. PUMPING ON AIRFIELDS APPEARS TO BE A MINOR PROBLEM. IT WAS CONCLUDED THAT THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HIGHWAY AND AIRFIELD PAVEMENTS, WHEN COMPARING EXTENT OF PUMPING, IS IN THE REPETITION OF LOAD THE PAVEMENTS WILL RECEIVE DURING THEIR LIFETIMES. ALSO, AIRPORT PAVEMENTS ARE NOT SUBJECTED TO EDGE LOADING CONDITIONS TO THE SAME EXTENT AS HIGHWAY PAVEMENTS. /AUTHOR/

• Record URL:
  • https://onlinepubs.trb.org/Onlinepubs/hrbproceedings/36/36-030.pdf
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Vol 36, pp 388-432, 26 FIG, 9 TAB, 25 REF. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
• Authors:
  • Yoder, E J
• Discussers:
  • Fordyce, P
• Publication Date: 1957

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Thirty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board, Washington, D.C., January 7-11, 1957
• Serial:
  • Highway Research Board Proceedings
  • Volume: 36
  • Publisher: Highway Research Board

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Accelerated tests; Base course (Pavements); Concrete pavements; Defects; Drainage; Durability; Fans; Foundations; Load limits; Oversize loads; Overweight loads; Pavement distress; Pavements; Pumping (Pavements); Repeated loads; Rigid pavements
• Old TRIS Terms: Blowing; Foundation conditions
• Subject Areas: Highways; Hydraulics and Hydrology; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00207351
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: May 22 1972 12:00AM