LAYING DOWN THE SURFACE

Vespucci Airport in Florence, Italy, recently had its runways resurfaced and widened. This article describes the paving equipment used in this project. In order to expedite the project, the airport was closed to all air traffic during its 24-hour reconstruction. This made the selection of a reliable, high production paver critical. The paver that was chosen was paired with a mechanical screed to provide a paving width of up to 9m. The unit has a versatile tracking system with two rubber shoe crawlers that allow the machine to fit a wide range of applications from soggy, loose soils to more traditional applications. The final mat had to be a perfectly uniform surface with no pits, tears or seams, so ultrasonic sensors were used to control the feed system while an electronic temperature control system automatically maintained the smoothing plate temperatures to the operator's exact specifications. Two types of asphalt were put down: a 0-18 binder, laid down at a speed of 12 m/min and a split mastic asphalt, laid down at a speed of 9 m/min, at thicknesses between 5 and 10 cm each.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/oclc/25073860
• Corporate Authors:

  Route One Publishing Limited

  19/21 High Street
  Sutton, Surrey SM1 1DJ,   England 
• Publication Date: 2004-11

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Photos;
• Pagination: p. 39-40
• Serial:
  • World Highways/Routes du Monde
  • Volume: 13
  • Issue Number: 9
  • Publisher: Route One Publishing Limited
  • ISSN: 0964-4598
  • Serial URL: http://www.worldhighways.com

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Airport runways; Asphalt pavements; Binders; Case studies; Mastic asphalt; Pavers; Paving; Resurfacing; Screeds; Sensors; Temperature control (Structures)
• Geographic Terms: Italy
• Subject Areas: Aviation; Highways; Maintenance and Preservation; Pavements; Terminals and Facilities; Vehicles and Equipment; I61: Equipment and Maintenance Methods;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00986627
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Feb 9 2005 12:00AM