Mechanistic-empirical analysis of asphalt pavement fatigue cracking under vehicular dynamic loads

Vehicle-pavement interaction causes dynamic loads and accelerate pavement deterioration. The study provides a methodology to consider dynamic loads in mechanistic-empirical (M-E) pavement design and analysis. The dynamic load coefficients were found increasing as pavement roughness increased or axle loads decreased. The impulse response method was adopted to calculate tensile strains of asphalt layer under random loads. The relative ratios of fatigue life due to dynamic loads were calculated and fitted as a function of axle type, load magnitude, and international roughness index (IRI). The accumulative fatigue damage ratio between dynamic and static loads was proposed for M-E pavement analysis. (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The study found that dynamic load coefficients increase as pavement roughness increases or axle loads decrease. The impulse response method was used to calculate tensile strains of the asphalt layer under random loads, and an accumulative fatigue damage ratio was proposed for M-E pavement analysis.