LAUSR

Pavement analysis encompasses the use of different assumptions for material assessment that can in turn induce variations in the predicted pavement critical strains and affect the outcome of pavement evaluation. This research deals with the incorporation of mechanistic principles into asphalt pavements structural assessment, considering variable mechanical behavior (elastic and viscoelastic) for the Asphalt Concrete (AC) materials. A field experiment along a new asphalt pavement structure was performed including Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) and coring. The study focused on the tensile strains within the AC layers that usually trigger rehabilitation actions. For strain calculations, the standard practice of Multi-Layered Elastic Theory (MLET) and the rheological Huet-Sayegh model were both implemented into the analysis. Results indicated statistically significant discrepancies between elastic and viscoelastic calculations that may become considerable in terms of decision-making. Thus, pavement engineers should not proceed with the decision-making process based solely on a unique approach. In addition, the issue of performing a new pavement’s evaluation based on the desi gn assumptions was discussed. A substantial material differentiation pinpointed the need to extract cores in order to perform viscoelastic material characterization. Moving forward with a regression analysis, a practical approach was developed for viscoelastic strains prediction from NDT data in order to avoid extensive coring. Overall, the implementation of the framework at a new structure is grounded on that the methodology followed for pavement evaluation throughout its service life can predefine the way of decision-making in terms of consistently interpreting the analysis output and assessing future maintenance needs.