Comparison of Fatigue Cracking Performance of Asphalt Pavements Predicted by Pavement ME and LVECD Programs

Mechanistic–empirical pavement design has received significant attention from the pavement community as the method for designing asphalt pavements in the future. Currently available software for mechanistic–empirical pavement design includes the AASHTOWare Pavement ME Design (Pavement ME) program. The Pavement ME program allows users to predict pavement distresses by applying layered elastic theory for the mechanical responses and using empirical models for the distress predictions. The layered viscoelastic pavement design for critical distresses (LVECD) program, which employs three-dimensional viscoelastic finite element analysis with moving loads, can also be used to predict the fatigue and rutting performance of pavements. The LVECD program employs the simplified viscoelastic continuum damage (S-VECD) model as the material model for the fatigue performance predictions of asphalt mixtures under complex loading and environmental conditions. This paper examines and compares the performance of 33 pavement sections from five research projects located in the United States, Canada, and South Korea by using both the Pavement ME and LVECD computer programs. To verify the results obtained from these two programs, the simulations were compared with the field performance data. In terms of ranking, the LVECD simulations provided better agreement with the field performance data than did the Pavement ME simulations. One of the main reasons for the better predictions obtained by the LVECD program is that its fatigue performance predictions depend on the mixture properties of all the layers, whereas the Pavement ME program considers the fatigue properties of only the bottom layer mixture.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.3141/2590-06
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/9780309441285
• Authors:
  • Wang, Yizhuang
  • Norouzi, Amirhossein
  • Kim, Y Richard
• Publication Date: 2016

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 44-55
• Monograph Title: Pavement Management, Volume 2
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board
  • Issue Number: 2590
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Asphalt pavements; Computer programs; Fatigue cracking; Mechanistic-empirical pavement design; Pavement design; Pavement performance
• Geographic Terms: Canada; South Korea; United States
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01594531
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9780309441285
• Report/Paper Numbers: 16-6649
• Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
• Created Date: Mar 24 2016 11:48AM