Implementation of Superpave Mix Design for Airfield Pavements
The Marshall mix design procedure was originally developed in the 1940’s for designing hot mix asphalt for airfield pavements. While this mix design procedure has performed well for airfield and highway pavements for over 50 years there is a need to adopt the new Superpave mix design procedure for airfield construction. The primary problem with the Marshall mix design process is that most state DOTs have begun using the Superpave design procedures. Since most asphalt work is done by the DOTs, it is becoming more difficult to find contractors and commercial laboratories having the proper accreditations with the Marshall mix design method. This problem will become much worse in the future. Another problem with the Marshall method of mix design is the higher variability of test results. Studies have shown that the Superpave gyratory compactor provides samples with lower overall variability than samples compacted using the Marshall pedestal and hammer. This lower variability should result in a more consistent design and should allow QC testing to better compare with QA testing. In order to utilize the Superpave mix design system for airfields, guidance is needed on selecting the proper grade of PG binder, aggregate gradation requirements, aggregate quality requirements, proper design compactive effort for various airfield applications, and design volumetric properties. The objectives of this paper will be to provide guidance on adapting the Superpave mix design system for airfields. This paper will specifically address (1) gradation bands, (2) consensus aggregate properties, (3) volumetric properties and (4) design gyration level. Results from the on-going Airfield Asphalt Pavement Technology Program (AAPTP) Project 04-03 will be utilized to address these various issues.
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- Record URL:
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Corporate Authors:
Federal Aviation Administration
800 Independence Avenue, SW
Washington, DC United States 20591 -
Authors:
- Cooley, L Allen
- Ahlrich, R C
- James, Robert S
- Prowell, Brian D
- Brown, E Ray
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Conference:
- 2007 Worldwide Airport Technology Transfer Conference
- Location: Atlantic City New Jersey, United States
- Date: 2007-4-16 to 2007-4-18
- Publication Date: 2007
Language
- English
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Features: References; Tables;
- Pagination: 15p
- Monograph Title: 2007 FAA Worldwide Airport Technology Transfer Conference: New Directions in Airport Technology
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Aggregate gradation; Airport runways; Mix design; Superpave; Volumetric analysis
- Uncontrolled Terms: Gyration levels; Volumetric properties
- Subject Areas: Aviation; Design; Pavements;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 01617381
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS, ATRI, USDOT
- Created Date: Nov 21 2016 1:43PM