A multi-scale approach for near-surface pavement cracking and failure mechanisms

Details

• Creators:
  Ozer, Hasan ; Duarte, Carlos A. ; Al-Qadi, Imad L.
• Corporate Creators:
  NEXTRANS Center (U.S.) ; United States. Department of Transportation. University Transportation Centers (UTC) Program ; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
• Subject/TRT Terms:
  • Pavement cracking
  • Live loads
  • Rolling contact
  • Stresses
  • Flexible pavements
• Publication/ Report Number:
  USDOT-PU-4108-21574
• Resource Type:
  Tech Report
• Geographical Coverage:
  Illinois
• Edition:
  Final report
• Corporate Publisher:
  NEXTRANS Center (U.S.)
• Abstract:
  Near‐surface cracking is one of the predominant distress types in flexible pavements. The occurrence of ; near‐surface cracking, also sometimes referred to as top‐down cracking, has increased in recent years ; with the increased construction of relatively thick flexible pavements. However, understanding the ; mechanisms of near‐surface cracking and its integration into pavement design protocols remains a ; challenge. A mechanistic‐empirical approach requires a thorough understanding of the mechanisms of ; cracking on the surface or in the proximity of tires as well as an experimental characterization simulating ; field failure conditions. The analysis of this problem can become a very complex task due to multi‐axial ; stress states in the vicinity of tires. This study investigated the near‐surface response to non‐uniform tire ; contact stresses and analyzed the potential for occurrence of cracks near the surface in a typical ; relatively thick flexible pavement structure. The Generalized Finite Element Method (GFEM) was ; utilized to analyze the pavement structures in three‐dimensions (3‐D) considering the viscoelastic ; effects. This method provided a computational framework where arbitrary orientation of cracks in a ; finite element mesh is possible. The use of the GFEM in this problem was particularly intended for ; resolving the mixed mode fracture conditions which may emanate from the complex stress states in the ; vicinity of tires.
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• Format:
  PDF
• Funding:
  DTRT07-G-005
• Download URL:
  https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/18642/dot_18642_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.38 MB]
• Collection(s):
  University Transportation Centers ; US Transportation Collection
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:7166d02c586499404efbbd88751d9a7be4656d17fa0b0018b04c5209aea66a54098dbc8fb12890cdc97567df0d2b9ba979f0f63a2f02901144fca83e7f701e73