Geotechnical Aspects of Pavements

After participating in this course, you will be able to:

• Identify challenges associated with the design and construction of modern pavement systems, including roadway embankments
• Assess the geotechnical inputs needed for the design of pavements and embankments
• Evaluate and select appropriate remediation measures for pavement subgrades and embankment foundations
• Develop alternatives for addressing foundation and subgrade problems during design and construction
• Complete the design procedures of an asphalt pavement system

Description
The course covers the latest methods and procedures to address the geotechnical issues in pavement design, construction, and performance. These methods can be applied to new construction, reconstruction, and pavement rehabilitation projects. The content includes geotechnical assessment, testing and characterization of in-place and constructed subgrades, and designing and constructing pavement subgrades and unbounded materials for paved roads.

The course is designed to cover the elements of the empirical and mechanistic-empirical design approaches. It will cover asphalt pavements, including granular layers and HMA mixes, specifications, and main aspects of construction.

Who Should Attend
Civil Engineers • Managers • Owners of Highways • Ministry of Transportation Personnel • Pavement Design Engineers • Transit System Engineers • Infrastructure Project Managers • Geotechnical Engineers • Consulting Engineers • Specification Writers • Quality Assurance Managers • Construction Engineers • Technicians and Technologists

Part 1 - Geotechnical Engineering for Pavement Engineers

Background
Soil types, mass-volume relationships, grain size distribution, index properties, USCS/AASHTO classification, total vs. effective stress, load distribution

Water and Soils
Capillarity, shrinkage/swelling, freeze-thaw, frost heave, permeability/hydraulic conductivity, seepage flow (one- and two-dimensional), constant and falling head tests

Consolidation and Settlement
Components of settlement, time-rate, laboratory consolidation (oedometer) tests, compressibility characteristics, pre-consolidation pressure, over-consolidation ratio, secondary consolidation (creep)

Strength and Stiffness of Soils
Cohesive/frictional components of shear strength, undrained vs. drained strength, field and laboratory testing, repeated loading effects, modulus and resilient modulus

Ground Improvement
Deep vs. shallow methods, stabilization, geosynthetics, compaction, equipment, and procedures

Applications and Case Studies
Embankments, excavations, dewatering/drainage, ground improvement for stability and settlement mitigation

Part 2 - Pavement Engineering

Pavement Investigation
Geotechnical investigation, visual inspection, drainage, laboratory testing, non-destructive testing

Subgrade and Granular Layers in Pavement Structure
Requirements for subgrade, testing including CBR and Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD), compaction requirements, standard and modified Proctor tests; granular layers - objectives, material types, granular base and subbase

Hot-Mix Asphalt
Asphalt cement (AC) - performance grading testing, advanced testing (MSCR, DENT, Ash, Extended BBR); compatibility of AC and aggregates, stripping; other HMA materials, characteristics; HMA mix design methodologies - Marshall and Superpave - basics, volumetrics, procedures

Pavement Design and Performance
Empirical and mechanistic-empirical including AASHTO MEPDG; the concept of Equivalent Single Axle Loads (ESAL); inputs - subgrade soil, traffic, climate, materials, other; design analysis and performance models and analysis; specifications; the importance of drainage

Construction
Introduction: subgrade preparation, granular layers, HMA production, delivery and placement, joint construction; Quality Control/Quality Assurance testing and acceptance

Questions and Answers, Feedback on Achievement of Learning Outcomes

Concluding Remarks and Final Adjournment