Cyclic Plate Load Testing of Geosynthetic-Reinforced Unbound Aggregate Roads

Abstract

A laboratory research program designed to investigate geotextile and geogrid reinforcement of the aggregate layer in unbound pavement sections was performed by the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center. The investigation's objective was to evaluate the performance of geosynthetic-reinforced aggregate road sections over a very soft subgrade. Standard construction materials were used to construct six aggregate road sections in a large steel box. Each instrumented road section was subjected to cyclic plate load tests to evaluate the performance of the model pavement sections under simulated truck traffic. The mechanistic response and permanent deformation of each instrumented pavement section were monitored periodically during each test. Analysis of the experiment data indicated that the geosynthetics improved the performance of the reinforced pavement sections compared with the unreinforced section in terms of improved load distribution and reduced permanent deformation or rutting. Additional information regarding the reinforcement mechanisms is summarized.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Henry

K. S.

, and Tingle

J. S.

. Pavement Base and Subgrade Mixing Due to Repeated Loading: A Literature Review. Proc., 56th Canadian Geotechnical Conference. Winnepeg, Manitoba, Canada, 2003.

Perkins

S. W.

, and Ismeik

. A Synthesis and Evaluation of Geosynthetic Reinforced Base Layers in Flexible Pavements: Part I. Geosynthetics International, Vol. 4, No. 6, 1997, pp. 549–604.

Douglas

R. A.

Repeated-Load Behaviour of Geosynthetic-Built Unbound Roads.

Canadian Geotechnical Journal, Vol. 34, No. 2, 1997, pp. 197–203.

Kelly

, Fairfield

, and Sibbald

. Geosynthetics for the Improvement of Unpaved Roads. Highways & Transportation, Vol. 42, No. 07/08, 1995, pp. 13–15.

Gregory

G. H.

, and Bang

. Design of Flexible Pavement Subgrades with Geosynthetics. Proc., 30th Symposium on Engineering Geology and Geotechnical Engineering, Boise, Idaho, 1994, pp. 569–582.

Douglas

R. A.

, and Valsangkar

A. J.

. Unpaved Geosynthetic-Built Resource Access Roads: Stiffness Rather than Rut Depth as the Key Design Criterion. Geotextiles and Geomembranes, Vol. 11, 1992, pp. 45–59.

Bauer

G. E.

, and Abdelhalim

A. O.

. The Performance of Geogrid Reinforced Road Bases. Construction & Building Materials, Vol. 1, No. 2, 1987, pp. 71–75.

2003 Specifier's Guide: Engineering Solutions for Roads, Soil, Water and Waste. Geotechnical Fabrics Report Vol. 20, No. 9, 2002, pp. 86 and 172.

Webster

S. L.

, Brown

R. W.

, and Porter

J. R.

. Force Projection Site Evaluation Using the Electronic Cone Penetrometer (ECP) and the Dynamic Cone Penetrometer (DCP). Technical Report GL-94-17. U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, Miss., 1994.

10.

Huang

Y. H.

Pavement Analysis and Design. Prentice Hall Publishers, Englewood Cliffs, N.J., 1993.

11.

Tingle

J. S.

, and Webster

S. L.

. Corps of Engineers Design of Geosynthetic-Reinforced Unpaved Roads. In Transportation Research Record: Journal of the Transportation Research Board, No. 1849, Transportation Research Board of the National Academies, Washington, D.C., 2003, pp. 193–201.

12.

Headquarters, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Use of Geogrids in Pavement Construction. Engineering Technical Letter 11101-189. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Vicksburg, Miss., 2003, pp. 1–23.