Laboratory Assessment of the Infiltration Capacity Reduction in Clogged Porous Mixture Surfaces

Abstract

Permeable pavements have been used widely across the world to manage urban stormwater. The hydrological behaviour of permeable surfaces is a complex process affected by many factors, such as rainfall intensity, rainfall duration, pavement geometrical conditions, and clogging level of the permeable surface, amongst others. This laboratory study was carried out to assess the influence of clogging level and rainfall intensity on the infiltration capacity of porous mixture surfaces used in Permeable Pavement Systems (PPS). Porous Concrete (PC) and Porous Asphalt (PA) mixtures with different air void contents (15%, 20%, and 25%) were subject to different clogging scenarios by using varying sediment loads (0, 500, and 1000 g/m 2 ). Permeability experiments were carried out for each clogging scenario through a new rainfall simulator specially developed, tailored, and calibrated for the laboratory simulation of a wide range of rainfall events. Permeability measurements were taken under all different scenarios as a result of the combination of the different rainfall events (50, 100, and 150 mm/h) simulated over the specimens of porous mixtures and the sediment loads applied to them. The results showed that the PC mixtures tested perform better than the PA ones in terms of infiltration capacity, showing less potential for clogging and being more easily cleaned by the wash-off produced by the simulated rainfall events.

Strength, Permeability, and Freeze-Thaw Durability of Pervious Concrete with Different Aggregate Sizes, Porosities, and Water-Binder Ratios

“…With the development of Chinese sponge city construction, PC will be widely applied in road structure [13]. Therefore, PC is of great significance for mitigating climate change, solving urban problems, and promoting the development of human society [14][15][16].The main properties of PC are strength, permeability, and durability. A porous structure is the key feature of PC, and porosity is the most important factor influencing mechanical strength, permeability, and durability.…”

“…With the development of Chinese sponge city construction, PC will be widely applied in road structure [13]. Therefore, PC is of great significance for mitigating climate change, solving urban problems, and promoting the development of human society [14][15][16].…”

Development of Test Equipment for Evaluating Hydraulic Conductivity of Permeable Block Pavements

“…The studies reviewed above demonstrate the wide variety of findings that are possible from different investigations related to the hydraulic properties of permeable pavements. While studies have shown that the pavement performance-in terms of clogging-is dependent on a number of parameters [9,13,[15][16][17]20,21], there are no established test procedures or standardized methods for evaluating the hydraulic capacity of a permeable pavement, especially in laboratory models [5,9]. This is particularly evident from the three pieces of literature widely reviewed here.…”

Investigation of Particle-Related Clogging of Sustainable Concrete Pavements

“…Many field and laboratory investigations have been made regarding the clogging dynamics of permeable pavements. The long-term performance associated with particle clogging is typically influenced by a wide range of factors and local conditions, including pavement type and design [22][23][24]. Laboratory assessments conducted by Andrés-Valeri et al [22] indicated that porous concrete pavement showed less clogging potential than porous asphalt pavement due to its higher infiltration capacity and recovery from clogging.…”

“…The long-term performance associated with particle clogging is typically influenced by a wide range of factors and local conditions, including pavement type and design [22][23][24]. Laboratory assessments conducted by Andrés-Valeri et al [22] indicated that porous concrete pavement showed less clogging potential than porous asphalt pavement due to its higher infiltration capacity and recovery from clogging. In another laboratory study [23] it was observed that particle clogging occurred on the surface for porous asphalt and on the geotextile for Hydrapave ® after 12 years of stormwater simulation, whereas Permapave ® showed no clogging even after 26 years.…”