1. Question: What are the component parts of the following pavements?

Show
with the help of sketches.
a) Flexible Pavement
b) Rigid pavement
Answer:
a) FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

TYPICAL FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT CROSS SECTION

DIFFERENT LAYERS OF BITUMINOUS (FLEXIBLE) PAVEMENT as Per IRC

37-2012

b) RIGID PAVEMNT

TYPICAL RIGID PAVEMENT SECTION

2. Question: Discuss the function of each part: -

a) Subgrade
b) Sub Base
c) Base Course
d) Wearing Course
Answer:
A) SUBGRADE: It is finished & compacted surface of earthwork on which a
road pavement rests.
FUNCTIONS:
1. To bear ultimately the entire load of pavement including the load of
traffic transmitted through the pavement.
2. To provide an adequate & uniform support to the road pavement.
B) SUB-BASE: It is a layer of granular material provided in between the
subgrade & base course in road pavement. It consists cheaper material
like burnt clinker & natural gravel.
FUNCTIONS:
1. To improve the bearing capacity of the subgrade.
2. To improve drainage & to check capillary rise of a sub soil water.
3. To eliminate frost heave in frost affected area.
4. To prevent subgrade material from working up into the base course.
C) BASE COURSE: It is a layer of boulders or bricks in single or double layers
provided over the sub base or immediately over the subgrade in the
absence of sub base in a road pavement.
FUNCTIONS:
1. To withstand high shearing stresses imposed upon it due to impact of
traffic on wearing course.
2. To act as foundation for road pavement & to transfer the wheel loads
coming over the pavement to the sub base & subgrade lying
underneath.
D) WEARING COURSE: It is the top most layer of road pavement directly
exposed to traffic.
FUNCTIONS:
1. To distribute the traffic load safely to the base course.
2. To act as an impervious layer so that the surface water may find its
access to base course.
3. To prevent dust nuisance.
4. To withstand abrasion caused due to movement of traffic.
5. To provide a smooth riding surface

3. Question: Compare flexible & rigid pavements & also discuss how the load
distribution takes place in each case.
Answer:
S.N

POINTS OF

FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

RIGID PAVEMENT

O.
1.
2.
3.
4.

COMPARISON
Initial cost
Life span
Thickness
Joints

Initial cost is low

Life span is small
Thickness is more
Joints are not required

5.

Skill &
Supervision

Moderate skill & less

supervision is required

6.

Repair work

7.

Subgrade

8.

Feasibility of
providing
underground
works
Opening To
traffic after
construction

Their repair work is

easy
A reasonably good
subgrade is required
It is easy to locate or
repair underground
pipes below in these
pavements.
They can be opened to
traffic shortly after
construction

9.

10.
11.

Durability
Temperature
effect

12.

Resiliency

13.

Behaviour
with
subgrade
settlement

They are less durable

Stresses are not
induced due to
temperature variation.
They are more resilient
to traffic load
They adjust according
to any deformation of
subgrade without
rupture

14.

Traffic
suitability

They are suitable for all

type of traffic

15.

Corrugations

16.

Tractive
resistance
Night
visibility
Effect of
loading

They develop
corrugations
They offer more
tractive resistance
Black top provides poor
night visibility
They adjust
themselves to normal
loading by
underground elastic
deformation
Maintenance cost is
high

17.
18.

19.

Maintenance
cost

Initial cost is high

Life span is long
Thickness is less
Joints are essentially
required.
High degree of skill &
more supervision is
required
Their repair work is
difficult.
A good subgrade is not
required
It is very difficult to
provide or repair
underground pipes
below the pavements
They require cuing
after construction &
thus cause delay in
opening to traffic
They are more durable
Heavy stresses are
induced due to
temperature variation.
They are less resilient
to traffic load
They dont adjust
according to any
deformation of
subgrade without
rupture
They become noisy
under iron wheel
traffic
They do not develop
corrugations
They offer less tractive
resistance
It provides good night
visibility
They tend to act as
beam or cantilever &
resist deformation

Maintenance cost is
low

LOAD DISTRIBUTION IN FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT

The flexible pavement layers transmits the vertical or compressive stresses to

the lower layers by grain to grain transfer through the points of contact in the
granular structure. A well compacted granular structure consisting of strong
graded aggregate can transfer the compressive stresses through wider area and
thus forms a good flexible pavement layer. The vertical compressive stresses are
maximum on the pavement surface directly under the wheel load & is equal to
the contact pressure under the wheel load. Due to the ability to distribute the
stresses to a large area in the shape of truncated cone, the stresses get
decreased at lower layers.

Load Distribution In Rigid Pavement

Rigid pavement possess noteworthy flexural strength. The stresses are not
transferred from grain to grain to the lower layers as in case of flexible
pavements. The rigid pavement has the slab action and is capable of
transmitting the wheel load stresses through wider area below. The rigid
pavement doesnt get deformed to the shape of the lower surfaces as it can
bridge the minor variations of lower layer.

4. Question: Describe C.B.R test on soil subgrade. Discuss its limitations.

Answer: C.B.R. Test California Bearing Ratio Test: The strength of the
subgrade is an important factor in the determination of the thickness required for
a flexible pavement. It is expressed in terms of its California Bearing Ratio,
usually abbreviated as C.B.R.. The results obtained by these tests are used in
conjunction with empirical curves, based on experience, for the design of flexible
pavements. The test is arbitrary and the results give an empirical number,
expressed usually in per cent, which may not be directly related to fundamental
properties governing the shear strength of soils, such as cohesion and angle of
internal friction. However, attempts have been made recently to correlate CBR
value with the bearing capacity and plasticity index of the soil.
The California bearing ratio (CBR) is defined as the rate of the force per unit
area required to penetrate a soil mass with a standard circular plunger of 50 mm
diameter at the rate of 1.25 mm/min to that required for the corresponding
penetration of a standard material.
The standard material is crushed stone and the load which has been obtained
from a test on it is the standard load, this material being considered to have a
CBR of 100%.The CBR value is usually determined for penetrations of 2.5 mm
and 5 mm. Where the ratio at 5 mm is consistently higher than that at 2.5 mm,
the value at 5 mm is used. Otherwise, the value at 2.5 mm is used, which is
more common. The CBR test is usually carried out in the laboratory either on
undisturbed samples or on remoulded samples, depending upon the condition in
which the subgrade soil is likely to be used. Efforts shall be put in to simulate in
the laboratory the pressure and the moisture conditions to which the subgrade is
expected to be subjected in the field.
Preparation of test specimen: The test may be performed on undisturbed
specimens or on remoulded specimens which may be compacted either statically
or dynamically.
Undisturbed specimens shall be obtained by fitting to the mould, the steel
cutting edge of 150 mm internal diameter and pushing the mould as gently as
possible into the ground. When the mould is sufficiently full of soil, it shall be
removed by under digging. The top and bottom undersurfaces are then trimmed
to give the desired length to the specimen.
If the specimen is loose in the mould, the annular cavity shall be filled with
paraffin wax thus ensuring that the soil receives proper support from the sides of
the mould during the penetration test. The density of the soil and the water
content of the soil must be determined by one of the available standard
methods.
Remoulded specimens must be prepared in such a way that the dry density
and water content correspond to those values at which the CBR value is desired.
The material shall pass a 20-mm IS sieve. Allowance for larger material shall be
made by replacing it by an equal amount of material which passes a 20 mm IS
sieve but is retained on 4.75 mm IS Sieve.
Statically compacted specimens may be obtained by placing the calculated
mass of soil in the mould and pressing in the displacer disc, a filter paper being

placed between the disc and the soil. The pressing may be stopped when the top
of the displacer disc is flush with the rim of the mould.
Dynamically compacted specimens may be obtained by using the standard
metal rammer in accordance with IS: 2720 (Part VII)1983Determination of
water contentdry density relation using light compaction or IS: 2720 (Part
VIII)-1983Determination of water content dry density relation using heavy
compaction. The mould with the extension collar attached shall be clamped to
the base plate. The spacer disc shall be inserted over the base plate and a disc
of coarse filter paper placed on the top of the spacer disc. After compacting the
soil into the mould, the extension collar shall be removed and the top of the
sample struck off level with the rim of the mould by means of a straight edge.
The perforated base plate and spacer disc shall be removed for recording the
mass of the mould and the compacted soil. A disc of coarse filter paper shall be
placed on the perforated base plate, the mould and the compacted soil shall be
inverted, and the perforated base plate clamped to the mould with the
compacted soil in contact with the filter paper.
In both cases of compaction, if soaking of the sample is required, representative
samples of the material shall be taken both before compaction and after
compaction for determination of water content. If the sample is not to be soaked,
representative sample of the material after the penetration shall be taken for the
determination of the water content.
Test procedure: The mould containing the specimen, with the base plate in
position, shall be placed on the lower plate of the loading machine. Surcharge
weights, sufficient to produce a pressure equal to the weight of the base material
and the pavement, shall be placed on the specimen. If the specimen has been
soaked previously, the surcharge shall be equal to that used during the soaking
period. The annular weight above which the slotted weights are placed prevents
the upheaval of the soil into the slots of the weights. The plunger shall be seated
under a load of 39.2 N (4 kg) so that, full contact is established between surface
of the specimen and plunger. The dial gauges of the proving ring and those for
penetration are set to zero. The seating load for the plunger is ignored for the
purpose of showing the load penetration relation. Load shall be applied such that
the rate of penetration is approximately 1.25 mm/min. Load readings shall be
recorded at penetrations of 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5, 4.0, 5.0, 7.5, 10.0 and 12.5
mm. The maximum load and penetration shall be recorded if it occurs for a
penetration of less than 12.5 mm. The plunger shall be raised and detached from
the loading machine. About 0.5 N (50 g) of soil shall be collected from the top 30
mm layer of the specimen and the water content determined as per IS: 2720
(Part-II)-1973. The presence of any oversize particles shall be verified which may
affect the results if they happen to be located directly below the penetration
plunger.
The penetration test may be repeated for the reverse end of the sample as a
check.

CALIFORNIA BEARING RATIO TEST SETUP

Load-penetration curve
Load vs penetration curve is plotted. This curve will be mainly convex upwards
although the initial portion of the curve may be concave upwards due to surface
irregularities. A correction shall then be applied by drawing a tangent to the
upper curve at the point of contra flexure. The corrected curve shall be taken to
be this tangent plus the convex portion of the original curve with the origin of
penetrations shifted to the point where the tangent cuts the horizontal
penetration axis as illustrated below

LOAD vs PENETRATION CURVES FOR CBR TEST

CBR value: Corresponding to the penetration value at which the CBR is desired,
corrected load shall be taken from the load penetration curve and the CBR
calculated as follows:

CBR=

PT
100
PS

PT = Corrected unit (or total) test load corresponding to the chosen penetration
from the load-penetration curve, and
PS = standard unit (or total) load for the same depth of penetration as for PT
taken
The CBR values are usually calculated for penetrations of 2.5 mm and 5 mm.
Generally, the CBR value at 2.5 mm penetration will be greater than that at 5
mm penetration and in such a case the former shall be taken as the CBR value
for design purposes. If the CBR value corresponding to a penetration of 5 mm
exceeds that for 2.5 mm the test shall be repeated. If identical results follow, the
CBR corresponding to 5 mm penetration shall be taken for design.
The CBR value shall be reported correct to the first decimal place .

STANDARD LOAD TABLE FOR C.B.R. TEST

Use of CBR : Design curves have been developed by different authorities for
determining the appropriate thickness of construction above subgrade materials
of known CBR for different wheel loads and traffic conditions. This approach is
one of the popular ones for the design of flexible pavements. Typical design
charts developed by the Road Research Laboratory, London, which are also used
in India,

DESIGN CHARTS FOR FLEXIBLE PAVEMENTS - CBR METHOD

CURVE
A
B
C
D
E
F
G

NUMBER OF VEHICLES /DAY (>3t)

0-15
15-45
45-150
150-450
450-1500
1500-4500
Over 4500

USE OF CBR IN DESIGN OF FLEXBLE PAVEMENT

LIMITATIONS: The main Limitation of the CBR test is that it does not correctly
simulate the shearing forces imposed on sub-base and subgrade materials as
they support highway pavements. For example, it is possible to obtain a
relatively high CBR value for a soil containing rough or angular coarse material
and some amount of troublesome clay if the coarse material resists penetration
of the piston by keeping together in the mould. When such a material is used in
highway construction, however, the performance of the soil may be poor, due to
the lubrication of the soil mass by the clay, which reduces the shearing strength
of the soil mass.