Reliability Analysis of Cracking and Faulting Prediction in the New Mechanistic–Empirical Pavement Design Procedure

Abstract

Reliability analysis is an important part of the mechanistic–empirical pavement design guide (M-E PDG). Even though mechanistic concepts provide a more accurate and realistic methodology for pavement design, a practical method to consider the uncertainties and variations in design and construction is needed so that a new or rehabilitated pavement can be designed for a desired level of reliability (performance as designed). Several methods, ranging from closed-form approaches to simulation-based methods, can be adopted to perform reliability-based design. However, some methods may be more suitable than others, given the complexities of the design procedure. A formal definition of reliability within the context of the M-E PDG, as well as two reliability analysis approaches considered for incorporation into the design procedure for evaluating the reliability of the rigid pavement design for cracking and faulting, was evaluated. A Monte Carlo–based simulation was combined with the damage accumulation procedure for rigid pavement distress prediction. This approach is recommended for future improvements of the procedure. The development of the reliability analysis procedure implemented into the M-E PDG also was documented. It was demonstrated that although the adopted approach is not as sophisticated as a Monte Carlo–based one, it still represents a step forward compared with AASHTO-93 reliability analysis.