The Effect of Utilization of Geogrids on Reducing the Required Thickness of Unpaved Roads

Abstract

The inadequacy of many existing roads due to rapid growth in traffic volume provides a motivation for exploring alternatives to existing methods of constructing and rehabilitating roads. The use of geosynthetics to stabilize and reinforce paved and unpaved roadways offers one such alternative. Many studies were conducted to evaluate the improvements associated with geogrid reinforcement of pavements. It is widely believed that geogrid reinforcement of roadways can extend the pavements service life and/or reduce the pavements structural thickness. This paper examines a method to compare traditional pavement structure designs, absent of geosynthetics, to pavement structure designs incorporating geosynthetics. At first, a specific unpaved road structure design is presented with recommended corresponding traditional road structure components. The road structure is then re-examined incorporating newly developed, reengineered geogrid. Finally, related costs with this particular design are outlined, analyzed and compared. In this case, cost savings achieved by using geogrid are substantial.

Five-Year Performance Evaluation of Geogrid Reinforcement in Low-Volume Unpaved Roads Using Dynamic Cone Penetrometer, Plate Load Test and Roadway Sensing

“…This increase in stiffness associated with aggregate interlock is well-studied and has even been incorporated into a mechanistic pavement analysis by Kwon and Tutumluer [13]. Many studies have been conducted comparing the effects of geotextiles and geogrid, including Zhang and Hurta [14] and Tabatabaei and Rahman [15]. Full-scale tests have been performed, such as Tang et al who investigated geosynthetics under full-scale truck axle loads, and Hufenus et al who performed a full-scale field test on unpaved roads over soft subgrade [16][17][18].…”