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Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Materials".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2022) | Viewed by 31866

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Don Cameron

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Guest Editor

UniSA STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics), University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Interests: geotechnical engineering; dealing with problem soils (expansive clays & collapsing soils); testing methods; influence of trees on clay soils; pavement engineering (subgrades & unbound granular material); alternative recyecled aggregates for pavements & inorganic additives
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Special Issue Information

The purpose of this Special Issue is to bring together recent advancements that have been made towards providing sustainable trafficable pavements around the world. There are countless kilometres of road and industrial pavements, sealed or unsealed, consisting of bound or unbound granular material, which enable safe transport of goods and people. The thickness of the pavement depends largely on the native soil (or subgrade), material and equipment available for pavement construction, vehicle loads and prediction of traffic over the required design life. Considerable natural and imported resources are consumed in the construction of pavements. As the granular materials in the pavement structure are traditionally produced by quarries, there is excellent opportunity to substitute waste materials, provided these materials do not impact on the environment and can do the job required adequately. Waste streams are reduced, as is the dependence on finding sources of sound rock. There are further “sustainable” opportunities to recycle existing degraded materials by employing additives in a pavement milling operation.

What is able to be done to make pavements more sustainable can depend on the existing regulations of a country. Some countries have a wealth of experience on sustainable pavement engineering, which is not readily available and needs to be shared.

Smart pavement technology is relatively new. Sensors can be embedded to monitor pavement condition and to enable early intervention of repairs. Asphalt can be laid with material which can lead to self-healing of cracks or to improved electrical conductivity so that the asphalt can be warmed more efficiently to reduce the need for de-icing.

There have been some recent studies on energy harvesting from pavements which could be of considerable benefit if systems can be successfully implemented. There is currently a call for papers on this theme in Sustainability with a deadline of 30 September 2021.

Many questions have been raised about sustainable pavement engineering by local, state and federal governments, and this is your opportunity to provide answers to these questions in this special publication. Papers need to consider the scope of sustainable pavement solutions and possible limitations of each solution. Case studies of field performance over time are welcomed, as laboratory-based studies can be limited.

Contributions will be considered on a wide range of related topics, including:

Waste materials and waste combinations in pavement materials;
Performance of granular material recycled or re-worked with waste material;
Additives and stabilizers and stabilization processes;
Self-healing pavement seals;
Sustainability of concrete in pavements;
Permeable pavements;
Smart pavement implementation and asset management;
Limitations of potential sustainable pavement solutions;
Life cycle costing of sustainable pavement solutions;
Improved design and ground investigation practice.

Dr. Don Cameron
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

aggregates
asphalt
concrete
waste material
recycling
additives
sustainability
life cycle
smart pavements

Published Papers (10 papers)

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Research

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22 pages, 5012 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Study of Foam Bitumen Preparation for Effective Recycling of Pavement Layers

by Haiying Cheng, Zhun Luo and Nd Seliverstov

Sustainability 2022, 14(15), 9375; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14159375 - 31 Jul 2022

Viewed by 1150

Abstract

Foamed asphalt recycling technology can effectively recover waste asphalt pavement materials and achieve the sustainable utilization of resources. This technology’s core equipment is asphalt foaming equipment. Since the asphalt foaming device’s fault data are uncertain, this work proposes a method for evaluating the device’s reliability, combining triangular intuitionistic fuzzy numbers, trapezoidal intuitionistic fuzzy numbers, and expert knowledge. Using the proposed evaluation method, the failure probability of the asphalt foaming device and the importance of the bottom event were calculated. The obtained model results were found to be consistent with the actual collected data, verifying the reliability and validity of the model. Furthermore, the asphalt viscosity is one of the key factors affecting the asphalt foaming recycling technology. In this work, the influence of different viscosities on the asphalt foaming mechanism was investigated using a theoretical analysis. Then, a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis method was employed to simulate the different viscosity asphalt foaming processes, aiming to identify the most suitable one for the production of high-quality foam asphalt in the foaming asphalt viscosity range. Finally, experiments were carried out to verify the results of the analysis. The results show that the asphalt foaming device’s failure probability was around 7.512 × 10⁻², and the best foaming asphalt viscosity was in the range of 0.3~0.5 Pa·s. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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19 pages, 2965 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

The Combined Effect of Ultraviolet Irradiation and Temperature on Hot Mix Asphalt Mixture Aging

by Ahmed Abouelsaad and Greg White

Sustainability 2022, 14(10), 5942; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14105942 - 13 May 2022

Cited by 19 | Viewed by 2140

Abstract

Reliable accelerated simulation of asphalt aging is of significant interest to asphalt researchers and pavement practitioners alike. However, current laboratory aging protocols are either based on binder aging rather than mixture aging or use dry ovens to heat asphalt mixtures, omitting the important effects of UV radiation. Binder aging cannot take into account the interactions between the binder and aggregate phases during aging, while the omission of UV radiation ignores an important catalyst in the aging process. In this study, a comparison of the effect of conventional thermal oven aging to the combined effect of heat and ultraviolet irradiation on the resilient modulus and surface texture of dense-graded asphalt field cores and gyratory-compacted samples was undertaken. Significantly higher rates of modulus increase with aging time were measured for the samples aged by both heat and ultraviolet irradiation. The gyratory-compacted samples showed more realistic results in terms of surface texture compared to the field cores, likely due to the extraction of field cores from a small area of pavement that was subjected to concentrated pneumatic tyre rolling, which was not representative of typical asphalt construction. It was concluded that using aging indices, calculated as the ratio of the aged value to the initial value, is recommended for asphalt aging investigations. The findings of this study highlight the significance and importance of developing aging protocols that combine heat, ultraviolet irradiation, and any other environmental factors that may affect the aging behaviour of asphalt mixtures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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22 pages, 2291 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

A Review of Current Design and Construction Practice for Road Kerbs and a Sustainability Analysis

by Hasan Momotaz, Md Mizanur Rahman, Md Rajibul Karim, Asif Iqbal, Yan Zhuge, Xing Ma and Peter Levett

Sustainability 2022, 14(3), 1230; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031230 - 21 Jan 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 9444

Abstract

Kerb is an integral part of road infrastructure and performs several important functions, including providing stability to the edges of the road and providing effective drainage. Their performance can significantly influence the behaviour and service life of a road. The design conditions, construction materials and their sustainability can be important to assess from an asset management and sustainable construction point of view even though this area has been paid limited research attention in the past. This paper reviews the available literature on the design and construction considerations for kerbs and critically analyses them with a special focus on sustainable construction practice. The different materials commonly used around the world for the construction of kerb in terms of their properties, failure and available design guidelines have been discussed along with their management practice. Special situations, such as expansive soil movement and tree root-related problems, have also been considered, and the current guidelines for designing in such situations have also been discussed. A carbon footprint and sustainability analysis has been conducted on the current practice of using natural aggregate concrete and compared against several potential alternatives. The review of the design process indicated that the current practice relies on over-simplified design procedures and identified scopes for improvement, especially with the incorporation of mechanical behaviour of the material being used in construction. The carbon footprint and sustainability analysis indicated that the use of alternative materials could result in significant savings in the kerb construction industry’s carbon footprint. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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20 pages, 2779 KiB

Open AccessArticle

On Site Improvement of Fines-Rich Unbound Granular Materials with Hydrophobic Polymer and Lime

by Cameron Hopkins, Donald Cameron and Md Mizanur Rahman

Sustainability 2021, 13(23), 13479; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132313479 - 6 Dec 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2069

Abstract

Many roads that were initially designed for relatively low traffic volumes need re-surfacing or partial replacement of the unbound granular material to satisfy current traffic demand. Significant research efforts based on laboratory studies have been seen in the literature to characterize the suitability of virgin materials, which is relatively expensive and unsustainable. Therefore, the object of this study is the in situ recycling of existing materials in two road sections by improving their properties with a suitable additive. A hydrophobic synthetic polymer was chosen for two trials due to the high plasticity of fines of the in situ materials and a high chance of water intrusion in the low-lying plains in Adelaide. The extensive laboratory characterization shows that hydrophobicity is imparted in capillary rise tests, improved drainage in permeability tests, and greater matric suction at the same moisture content. Furthermore, the unconfined compressive strength was increased. The repeated loading triaxial testing showed higher stiffness and lowered permanent strain to withstand higher traffic volume. In general, in situ recycling is adaptable and considered to be cheaper and sustainable. The estimated current costs and carbon footprints are presented for re-construction and in situ recycling with dry powder polymer, or solely with lime, to help construction planning. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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15 pages, 11053 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Seasonal Performance Evaluation of Pavement Base Using Recycled Materials

by Yang Zhang, Bora Cetin and Tuncer B. Edil

Sustainability 2021, 13(22), 12714; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132212714 - 17 Nov 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1721

Abstract

Using recycled pavement materials to construct new pavement base is currently an important construction strategy bringing improved sustainability. This study investigates the long-term performance of pavement bases constructed with recycled concrete aggregate (RCA), reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), and blends with natural aggregates in a seasonal frost region. The stabilization effect of fly ash on RAP was studied as well. In situ falling weight deflectometer (FWD) tests were routinely conducted to provide seasonal deflection data, which were used to back-calculate the layer modulus. Seasonal changes in the base layer modulus along with the pavement ride quality were monitored. One of the two lanes at the test sections was consistently subjected to traffic loading, whereas the other one was not. Findings from this field research indicated that after undergoing over 8 years of naturally seasonal freeze-thaw conditions, 100% RCA, 50% RCA, plus 50% natural aggregates, and 100% RAP, presented improved performance over 100% natural aggregates. However, 50% RAP blended with 50% natural aggregates performed comparably to natural aggregates only, and fly ash did not provide considerable improvement on the long-term performance of 50% RAP plus 50% natural aggregate base. Seasonal climatic variations turned out to affect pavement performance more critically than traffic loading. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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16 pages, 38054 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Influence of a Field-Aged Asphalt Binder and Aggregates on the Skid Resistance of Recycled Hot Mix Asphalt

by Nathanyawat Sedthayutthaphong, Peerapong Jitsangiam, Hamid Nikraz, Suriyavut Pra-ai, Sarintip Tantanee and Korakod Nusit

Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10938; https://doi.org/10.3390/su131910938 - 1 Oct 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2303

Abstract

The application of asphalt hot mix recycling is one challenge in sustainable road pavement research. In addition to the vast amount of research on the performance of recycled asphalt–concrete, the research on the frictional resistance of recycled hot mix asphalt is still limited. The effects of aged asphalt and aged aggregates on the skid resistance of recycled hot mix asphalt were investigated in this research. The aged asphalt and aged aggregates were carefully extracted from the field-reclaimed asphalt pavement, and the engineering and mechanical properties of aged and virgin aggregates were measured. The degradation of recycled hot mix asphalt was simulated using an accelerated polishing machine to mimic road surface abrasion. Accordingly, the initial and final skid resistances of the recycled hot mix asphalt were determined and correlated with the properties of the aged asphalt and aggregates. The initial skid resistance of recycled hot mix asphalt decreased with reductions in penetration and ductility of the blended asphalt. However, the changes in the blended asphalt properties contributed only small variations to the final skid resistances of the recycled hot mix asphalt. The gradations of recycled hot mix asphalt correlated only with the final skid resistances. The aggregate gradations controlled the characteristics of the final skid resistance since the covered binder was partially polished off from the road surface at this stage. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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27 pages, 7564 KiB

Open AccessArticle

A Simplified Mechanistic-Empirical Flexible Pavement Design Method for Moderate to Hot Climate Regions

by Ahmed S. El-Ashwah, Sherif M. El-Badawy and Alaa R. Gabr

Sustainability 2021, 13(19), 10760; https://doi.org/10.3390/su131910760 - 28 Sep 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3131

Abstract

Flexible pavement structure design is a complex task because of the variability of design input parameters and complex failure mechanisms. Therefore, the aim of this study is to develop and implement a simplified Mechanistic-Empirical (M-E) pavement design method based on the 1993 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO), the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) 9-22, and NCHRP 1-37A and 1-40D projects. This simplified methodology is implemented into a computer code and a user-friendly software called “ME-PAVE”. In this methodology, only two equivalent temperatures, as per the NCHRP 9-22 project, are estimated to adjust the dynamic modulus of the asphalt layer(s) for Asphalt Concrete (AC) rutting and AC fatigue cracking prediction instead of using the hourly climatic data, as in the AASHTOWare Pavement ME. In ME-PAVE, the structural responses at critical locations in the pavement structure are determined by a Finite Element Module (FEM), which is verified by a Multi-layer Elastic Analysis (MLEA) program. To ensure that the simplified methodology is practical and accurate, the incorporated transfer functions in the proposed simplified methodology are calibrated based on the Long-Term Pavement Performance (LTPP) data. Based on statistical analyses, the built-in FEM results exhibit very similar trends to those yielded by MLEA, with a coefficient of determination, R² of 1.0. For all practical purposes, the proposed methodology, despite all simplifications, yields acceptable prediction accuracy with R² of 0.317 for the rut depth compared to the current practices, NCHRP 1-37A and 1-40D (R² = 0.399 and 0.577, respectively); while the prediction accuracy for fatigue cracking with R² of 0.382 is comparable to the NCHRP 1-40D with R² of 0.275. Nonetheless, the standard error for both distresses is in good agreement based on the investigated data and the developed methodology. Finally, the conducted sensitivity analysis demonstrate that the proposed methodology produces rational pavement performance. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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18 pages, 6234 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Impact Resistance and Sodium Sulphate Attack Testing of Concrete Incorporating Mixed Types of Recycled Plastic Waste

by Mahmoud Abu-Saleem, Yan Zhuge, Reza Hassanli, Mark Ellis, Md Mizanur Rahman and Peter Levett

Sustainability 2021, 13(17), 9521; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13179521 - 24 Aug 2021

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2615

Abstract

Impact resistance, water transport properties and sodium sulphate attack are important criteria to determine the performance of concrete incorporating mixed types of recycled plastic waste. Nine mixes were designed with different combinations of the three plastic types; Polyethylene terephthalate (PET), High density polyethylene (HDPE) and Polypropylene (PP). The plastic partially substituted the coarse aggregate (by volume) at various replacement ratios; 10%, 15%, 20% and 30%. The impact resistance and water transport properties were evaluated for nine mixes while sodium sulphate attack test was performed for three mixes. The results showed that the addition of mixed recycled plastic in concrete improved the impact resistance. The highest impact resistance improvement was achieved by R8 (PET + HDPE + PP) at 30% replacement which was 4.5 times better than the control mix. Water absorption results indicated a slight increase in all plastic mixes while contradictory results were observed for sorptivity test. Analysis of sodium sulphate attack results showed that incorporating 30% mixed plastic reduced the sodium sulphate resistance slightly due to the collective effect of plastic entrapping of sulphate ions after 80 cycles. This study has shown some positive results relating to the impact performance of Mixed Recycled Plastic Concrete (MRPC) which enhances its use in a sustainable way. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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Review

Jump to: Research

32 pages, 8465 KiB

Open AccessReview

Waste Clay Bricks as a Geopolymer Binder for Pavement Construction

by Janitha Migunthanna, Pathmanathan Rajeev and Jay Sanjayan

Sustainability 2022, 14(11), 6456; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14116456 - 25 May 2022

Cited by 15 | Viewed by 2366

Abstract

Geopolymer binders that combine aluminosilicate materials (i.e., precursors) with alkali activators are a viable and environmentally friendly alternative to ordinary Portland cement. While fly ash, slag, silica fume, and metakaolin are the most extensively investigated precursor materials, recent studies demonstrate the feasibility of using low amorphous aluminosilicates (LAA) for geopolymer synthesis. Waste clay bricks (WCB) make an excellent LAA material for producing geopolymer binders, considering their chemical and mineralogical properties. Geopolymer binders with enhanced mechanical properties can be produced either by blending WCB with other aluminosilicate materials or by using WCB as the sole precursor, while providing appropriate production conditions, such as high-temperature curing. Until now, in pavement construction, WCB has been investigated only as a subbase material or as an aggregate for concrete. Since WCB is a potential geopolymer source material, it can also function as an alternative cementitious material (ACM), and stabilizing material in pavement construction. This work reviews the recent studies on producing WCB-based geopolymers, with the focus particularly on the properties of raw materials, activator types and their concentrations, curing conditions, blended geopolymer systems, and the mechanical properties of WCB-based geopolymer binders. Simultaneously, different pavement design requirements and currently available specifications for the use of geopolymer concrete were correlated to evaluate their feasibility as an ACM in pavement construction. Based on the current literature, WCB can be proposed as a suitable ACM to develop pavement-grade concrete and more promising results can be obtained by blending WCB with high-calcium sources, such as slag. Therefore, comprehensive studies on geopolymer concrete development, durability, and field performance are recommended. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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45 pages, 5138 KiB

Open AccessReview

Application of Glass in Subsurface Pavement Layers: A Comprehensive Review

by Salpadoru Tholkamudalige Anupiya. M. Perera, Jiasheng Zhu, Mohammad Saberian, Manlin Liu, Donald Cameron, Tariq Maqsood and Jie Li

Sustainability 2021, 13(21), 11825; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132111825 - 26 Oct 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3500

Abstract

Glass-based goods are produced and consumed in relative abundance, making glass a material that is found in most households, thereby leading to its accumulation in alarming quantities throughout the globe and posing an environmental challenge. This being said, glass has been widely acknowledged to possess a variety of desirable physiochemical properties, making it suitable for utilisation as an engineering aggregate. The properties include its non-biodegradable nature, resistance to chemical attack, low water absorption, hydraulic conductivity, temperature-dependent ductility, alterable particle gradation, and its availability in a multitude of forms/chemical compositions. Owing to these properties, glass has been employed in a myriad of civil engineering studies and field trials to assess its efficacy as an engineering aggregate and to provide sustainable management schemes for waste glass. These studies/trials have incorporated glass in many forms, including fine recycled glass (FRG), medium recycled glass (MRG), coarse recycled glass (CRG), glass powder, glass fibres, foamed glass, and glass-based geopolymers. Although the beneficial properties of glass can be exploited in numerous engineering endeavours, this review paper focuses on the possible application of glass to subsurface layers of pavements. In turn, the current study centres on research studies/trials presenting results on the physicochemical, mechanical, and durability aspects of pavement layers (base, subbase, and subgrade) containing pure glass samples or glass as percentage replacements in materials, including but not limited to unbound granular materials (i.e., recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) and crushed rock (CR)) and clay soils. Through the knowledge compiled in this review article, it is reasonable to state that glass shows solid potential as a road pavement material. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Roads and Airfields: Pavement Materials and Pavement Engineering)

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