Granular Base Stabilization with Emulsion in Las Vegas, Nevada

Washington Avenue in the City of Las Vegas was distressed such that reconstruction was needed. However, reconstruction is a timely and costly process, especially on a busy city street. An alternate method, base stabilization with asphalt emulsion, was evaluated and chosen for its structural capacity and its ability to save time and money. The pavement was evaluated using ground penetrating radar (GPR) and falling weight deflectometer (FWD). Trenches were cut for obtaining samples for mix design. The mix design evaluated an asphalt emulsion designed specifically for granular base stabilization (GBS). The pavement design and FWD testing determined that the stabilization process with an overlay met the load requirements of the project. The project proceeded by milling off the existing four or six inches (100-mm or 150-mm) of asphalt pavement, lowering utilities, grading the remaining aggregate base, blending water to the recommended moisture content from the mix design with a reclaimer, and injecting asphalt emulsion with the same reclaimer. After compaction and fine grading, the stabilized base was allowed to cure for four to eleven days, and a 5-inch (125-mm) hot mix asphalt (HMA) overlay was placed in two lifts. The city saved an estimated $322,661 by using GBS, approximately 30 percent savings, which allowed additional network rehabilitation to be constructed. Furthermore, construction time was shortened from 120 days to 40 days, 3000 fewer loads were trucked on and off the project, and 23,432 square yards (19,592 square meters) of waste were not generated. The impact on nearby businesses was reduced.

• Corporate Authors:

  Transportation Research Board

  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC  United States  20001
• Authors:
  • Finberg, Chris
  • Quire, Dan
  • Thomas, Todd Wayne
• Conference:
  • Transportation Research Board 87th Annual Meeting
  • Location: Washington DC, United States
  • Date: 2008-1-13 to 2008-1-17
• Date: 2008

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: DVD
• Features: Figures; Photos; References; Tables;
• Pagination: 129
• Monograph Title: TRB 87th Annual Meeting Compendium of Papers DVD

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Asphalt emulsions; Base course (Pavements); Falling weight deflectometers; Granular bases; Ground penetrating radar; Mix design; Overlays (Pavements); Pavement design; Pavement layers; Soil stabilization
• Geographic Terms: Las Vegas (Nevada)
• Subject Areas: Construction; Geotechnology; Highways; Pavements; I50: Construction and Supervision of Construction;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01088441
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: 08-2343
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Feb 25 2008 2:32PM