Flexible Pavement Design

5/20/2016
PAVEMENT DESIGN
The design procedure recommended by the American

Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials
(AASHTO) is based on the results of the extensive AASHO
Road Test conducted in Ottawa, Illinois, in the late 1950s
and early 1960s . The AASHO Committee on Design first
published an interim design guide in 1961 . It was revised in
1972 and 1981 . In 1984-85, the Subcommittee on Pavement
Design and a team of consultants revised and expanded the
guide under NCHRP Project 20-7/24 ; they issued the guide
in 1986 . The guide was revised in 1993 with practically no
change in the design method presented in this section .
SPRING 2016
BLOCK 5
FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT
DESIGN
AASTHO METHOD
Web Site:
http://www.academyoftransportation.com
Assist.Prof.Dr.Sedat ETN
Pavement performance
Design considerations for the

AASHTO Flexible Pavement Design
Structural Cracking, faulting, raveling, etc.
The following factors are considered in the pavement thickness

design.
Functional Riding comfort (measured in terms of roughness of

pavement.)
Pavement performance
Serviceability Performance: Measured by PSI Present Serviceability
Index with scale 0 to 5.
Traffic
Roadbed soils (subgrade material)
5 Just constructed
4.2 Initial PSI (pi)
Materials of construction
PSI
Environment
Terminal PSI (pt)
2.5 to 3.0 for major

highways
Drainage
Reliability
0 RoadAssist.Prof.Dr.Sedat
closed
ETN
2.0 for lower class

highways
1.5 for very special cases
5/20/2016
Design Variables
1.Time Constraints
To achieve the best use of available funds, the AASHTO design guide encourages
the use of a longer analysis period for high-volume facilities, including at least one
rehabilitation period. Thus, the analysis period should be equal to or greater than the
performance period.
2.Traffic
The design procedures are based on cumulative
expected 18-kip (80-kN) equivalent single-axle load
(ESAL).
3.Reliability
4.Serviceability
Reliability is a means of incorporating some degree of certainty into the

design process to ensure that the various design alternatives will last the
analysis period. The level of reliability to be used for design should
increase as the volume of traffic, difficulty of diverting traffic, and public
expectation of availability increase. Table 11.14 presents recommended
levels of reliability for various functional classifications.
Application of the reliability concept requires the selection of a standard
deviation that is representative of local conditions . It is suggested that
standard deviations of 0 .49 be used for flexible pavements and 0 .39 for
rigid pavements.
Initial and terminal serviceability indexes must be established to compute

the change in serviceability, PSI, to be used in the design equations .
The initial serviceability index is a function of pavement type and
construction quality.
Typical values from the AASHO Road Test were 4.2 for flexible
pavements and 4.5 for rigid pavements.
The terminal serviceability index is the lowest index that will be tolerated
before rehabilitation, resurfacing, and reconstruction become necessary.
An index of 2.5 or higher is suggested for design of major highways and
2.0 for highways with lower traffic.
Analysis Period : The analysis period is the period of time that any design strategy
must cover . In the past, pavements were typically designed and analyzed for a 20year performance period. It is now recommended that consideration be given to
longer analysis periods, because they can be better suited for the evaluation of
alternative long-term strategies based on life cycle costs. Table 11.13 contains
general guidelines for the length of the analysis period .
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ZR is the normal deviate for a given reliability R, and So is the standard

deviation . ZR can be determined from Table 11.15.
DESIGN EQUATION
1993 AASHTO Flexible Equation
PSI
log10
4.2 1.5 2.32 log M 8.07

10
R
1094
0.40
SN 15.19
Note: Equation is the final design equation for flexible pavements. Figure 11.25 is a
nomograph for solving this Equation .
Example:
Given W 18 = 5 x 106 , R = 95%, So = 0.35, MR = 5000 psi (34 .5 MPa), and PSI =
1.9, determine SN from Figure 11 .25 .
10
W 18 is the number of 18-kip (80-kN) single-axle load applications to time (t);

MR is the effective roadbed soil resilient modulus.
SN is structural number of pavement, which was computed as:
SN = a1D1+ a2D2m2+ a3D3m3
in which
a1 , a2, and a3 are layer coefficients for the surface, base, and subbase,
respectively,
D1 , D2 , and D3 are the thicknesses of the surface ,base, and subbase,
respectively.
m2 is the drainage coefficient of base course and m 3 is the drainage
coefficient of subbase course .
log10 W18 Z R So 9.36 log10 SN 1 0.20
The chart is most convenient for determining SN,

because the solution of SN by Design Eq. is
cumbersome and requires a trial and error process . If
W18 is the unknown to be determined, the use of
Design Eq. is more accurate.
Example
12
11
Given R = 95%, SN = 5, So = 0 .35, MR = 5000 psi (34 .5

MPa), PSI = 1.9, determine W 18 by Design Eq.
5/20/2016
Step 1
Effective Roadbed Soil Resilient Modulus
Relative Damage
the AASHTO design guide keeps the coefficient and defines
the relative damage uf as:
Determine the average uf.

value and obtain Mr from the
chart or the equation of uf. .
uf = 1 .18 X 108MR-2.32
Step 2
Step
3
Assist.Prof.Dr.Sedat
ETN
13
Environment
Temperature and rainfall
affect the level of strength of the
subgrade, reflected on the value
of resilient modulus. AASHTO
developed a chart that helps you
to estimate the effective roadbed
soil resilient modulus using the
serviceability criteria (in terms
of relative damage, uf.)
The bar on the right is used

twice: Once to read uf value for
each months sample Mr, then to
read annual average Mr using the
average uf value.
14
Structural Number
SN is structural number of pavement, which was computed as:
SN = a1D1+ a2D2m2+ a3D3m3
in which
a1 , a2, and a3 are layer coefficients for the surface, base, and subbase,
respectively,
D1 , D2 , and D3 are the thicknesses of the surface ,base, and subbase,
respectively.
m2 is the drainage coefficient of base course and m3 is the drainage coefficient of
subbase course .
Layer Coefficient The layer coefficient a, is a measure of the relative

ability of a unit thickness of a given material to function as a structural
component of the pavement . Layer coefficients can be determined
from test roads or satellite sections, as was done in the AASHO Road
Test, or from correlations with material properties, as was shown in
Figures 7 .13, 7 .15, and 7 .16 .
15
16
5/20/2016
AsphaltConcrete Surface Course

Figure 11 .27 or (20.17) is a chart relating the layer coefficient of a dense-graded HMA to its
resilient modulus at 70F (21C) . The layer coefficient a l for the dense-graded HMA used in
the AASHO Road Tests is 0 .44, which corresponds to a resilient modulus of 450,000 psi (3 .1
GPa).
0.44
Figure 7 .15 or (20.16) shows the charts that can be used to estimate
the layer coefficient (a2 ) for untreated, bituminous-treated, and
cement-treated base courses . In lieu of Figure 7 .15a, the following
equation can also be used to estimate (a2) for an untreated base
course from its resilient modulus E2 :
a2= 0.249 (log E2)-0.977
The layer coefficient a2 for the granular base material used in the
AASHO Road Test is 0 .14, which corresponds to a base resilient
modulus of 30,000 psi (207 GPa) .
Structural number of the AC

surface, a1
= Resilient modulus, Mr
17
Materials of construction (Base course), a2
18
The resilient modulus of untreated granular materials

depends on the stress state , as indicated by Eq 3.8
and rewritten here as:
E2= K1
Base!
Structural number of
the base course, a2
Typical values of Kl for base materials range from 3000 to 8000 ; those
of K2 range from 0 .5 to 0 .7 . Values of Kl and K2 for each specific base
material should be determined using AASHTO Method T274 . In the
absence of this information, the values shown in Table 11 .16 can be
used.
Use CBR, R-value, or Mr

to find a2 values
The resilient modulus of the base course is a function not only of Kl

and K2 , but also of the stress state . Values for the stress state
within the base course vary with the roadbed soil resilient modulus
and with the thickness of the surface layer. Typical values of are
shown in Table 11.17 . Given K1 , K2, and , E2 can be determined from
Eq. above .
20
19
5/20/2016
Granular Subbase Course Figure 7.16 or (20.15)

provides the chart that may be used to estimate layer
coefficient
(a3) of granular subbase courses. The
relationship between a3 and E3 can be expressed as:
a3= 0.227 (log E3-0.839)
21
As with granular base courses, values of Kl and K2 for

granular subbase courses can be determined from
the resilient modulus test (AASHTO T274) or estimated
from Table 11 .18 . Values of K1 , K2, , and E3 for the
subbase in the AASHO Road Test are shown in Table 11
.19 .
22
The layer coefficient a3 for the granular subbase in the AASHO Road Test is 0
.11 , which corresponds to a resilient modulus of 15,000 psi (104 MPa) .
23
Use CBR, R-value, or Mr to

find a3 values
Structural number of
the subbase, a3
24
5/20/2016
Definition of drainage quality and finding

recommended mi values
Drainage
The effect of drainage on the performance of flexible pavements
is considered with respect to the effect water has on the strength of
the base material and roadbed soil.
This effect is expressed by the drainage coefficient, mi. This
value is dependent on the drainage quality and the percent of time
pavement structure is exposed to moisture levels approaching
saturation.
Time required to
drain the
base/subbase layer to
50% saturation.
Step 1
If Fair and 30%

exposure, then mi
is 0.80.
Step 2
25
SELECTION OF LAYER THICKNESSES
Many combinations of layer thicknesses are acceptable, so

their cost effectiveness along with the construction and
maintenance constraints must be considered to avoid the
possibility of producing an impractical design . From a
cost-effective view - point, if the ratio of costs for HMA and
granular base is less than the corresponding ratio of layer
coefficients times the drainage coefficient, then the
optimum economical design is to use a minimum base
thickness by increasing the HMA thickness .
27
Minimum Thickness It is generally impractical and

uneconomical to use layers of material that are less than
some minimum thickness . Furthermore, traffic
considerations may dictate the use of a certain minimum
thickness for stability . Table 11 .21 shows the minimum
thicknesses of asphalt surface and aggregate base .
Because such minimums depend somewhat on local
practices and conditions, they may be changed if needed.
Once the design structural number SN for an initial

pavement structure is determined , it is necessary to select
a set of thicknesses so that the provided SN, as computed
by Eq. SN, will be greater than the required SN. Note that
Eq . SN does not have a single unique solution .
26
28
5/20/2016
2. Using E3 as MR, determine from Figure 11 .25 the

structural number SN2 required to protect the subbase, and
compute the thickness of layer 2 from
General Procedure The procedure for thickness design is usually started

from the top, as shown in Figure 11 .28 and described as follows :
29
3. Based on the roadbed soil resilient modulus MR,

determine from Figure 11.25 the total structural
number SN3 required, and compute the thickness of
layer 3 from
1. Using E2 as MR, determine from Figure 11 .25 the

structural number SN1 required to protect the base,
and compute the thickness of layer 1 from
30
31

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5/20/2016

The design procedure recommended by the American

Design considerations for the

Structural Cracking, faulting, raveling, etc.

The following factors are considered in the pavement thickness

Functional Riding comfort (measured in terms of roughness of

Terminal PSI (pt)

2.5 to 3.0 for major

2.0 for lower class

1.5 for very special cases

Reliability is a means of incorporating some degree of certainty into the

Initial and terminal serviceability indexes must be established to compute

ZR is the normal deviate for a given reliability R, and So is the standard

4.2 1.5 2.32 log M 8.07

W 18 is the number of 18-kip (80-kN) single-axle load applications to time (t);

log10 W18 Z R So 9.36 log10 SN 1 0.20

The chart is most convenient for determining SN,

Given R = 95%, SN = 5, So = 0 .35, MR = 5000 psi (34 .5

Effective Roadbed Soil Resilient Modulus

Determine the average uf.

The bar on the right is used

Layer Coefficient The layer coefficient a, is a measure of the relative

AsphaltConcrete Surface Course

Structural number of the AC

Materials of construction (Base course), a2

The resilient modulus of untreated granular materials

Use CBR, R-value, or Mr

The resilient modulus of the base course is a function not only of Kl

Granular Subbase Course Figure 7.16 or (20.15)

As with granular base courses, values of Kl and K2 for

Use CBR, R-value, or Mr to

Definition of drainage quality and finding

If Fair and 30%

SELECTION OF LAYER THICKNESSES

Many combinations of layer thicknesses are acceptable, so

Minimum Thickness It is generally impractical and

Once the design structural number SN for an initial

2. Using E3 as MR, determine from Figure 11 .25 the

General Procedure The procedure for thickness design is usually started

3. Based on the roadbed soil resilient modulus MR,

1. Using E2 as MR, determine from Figure 11 .25 the

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