The heterogeneity and mechanical response of hot mix asphalt laboratory specimens

Senthilmurugan Thyagarajan*, Laith Tashman, Eyad Masad, Fouad Bayomy

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

60 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Many pavement distresses, including rutting, fatigue cracking and low-temperature cracking, are influenced by the air void distribution in hot mix asphalt (HMA). This study investigated the influence of the type of Superpave gyratory compactors (SGCs) and specimen preparation/geometry on air void distribution and its manifestation on mechanical response. X-ray computed tomography along with image analysis techniques was used to capture and characterise the air void distribution within HMA microstructure. The mechanical response was characterised using the dynamic modulus test and static creep test. An index called heterogeneity index was developed to quantify the air void distribution in vertical and lateral directions. The study revealed that laboratory compacted specimens are heterogeneous and there is a need to prepare laboratory specimens with homogeneous air void distribution for accurate interpretation of results. In addition, the study revealed that the type of the SGC used influenced the dynamic modulus of compacted HMA specimens.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)107-121
Number of pages15
JournalInternational Journal of Pavement Engineering
Volume11
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Apr 2010
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Air void distribution
  • Image analysis
  • Mechanical response
  • SGC
  • Specimen geometry
  • X-ray CT

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