Effect of Asphalt Pavement Base Layers on Transverse Shrinkage Cracking Characteristics

Abstract

Transverse shrinkage cracking is considered to be one of the main factors leading to the degradation of sustainable service performance for asphalt pavement, but the effect of base layers on it is rarely studied. To investigate the effect of asphalt pavement base layers on transverse shrinkage cracking characteristics, this study analyzed and evaluated it through the test section data. The transverse shrinkage cracking test section data of four different asphalt pavement base layers were compared, and the variation characteristics of transverse shrinkage cracking under the influence of the base layer types and temperature were analyzed. Based on the conventional characteristics, the concept and calculation method of cracking area ratio (CAR) was proposed, and its rationality and accuracy were proved by calculation. It has been found that the CAR can reflect the longitudinal shrinkage performance of asphalt pavement. The shrinkage rate of a semi-rigid base is larger, while the shrinkage performance of a flexible base is better, and the shrinkage performance of the whole pavement is not affected by a small amount of cement. The research provides a practical basis for improving the anti-cracking performance of asphalt pavement and helps to enhance its sustainable service performance.

Performance Zoning of Asphalt Pavement and Performance Grade (PG) of Asphalt Binder in Karamay: A Case Study of Xinjiang, China

“…The climatic factors that affect the performance of asphalt pavements include high temperature, low temperature, water, fatigue, and aging [8,9]. Asphalt pavements are prone to rutting lesions under high-temperature driving loads [10], fatigue cracks under intermediate temperatures [11], experiencing prolonged repetitive driving loads, and transverse cracks under low-temperature cold environments [12,13], all of which seriously affect driving safety. The rise of pavement temperature due to global climate change over recent years creates higher requirements for the high-and low-temperature performance of asphalt roads [14].…”