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Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability

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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Urban and Rural Development".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 January 2025) | Viewed by 17888

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Laura Moretti

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Guest Editor

Department of Civil, Building and Environmental Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, 00184 Rome, Italy
Interests: pavements; road materials; life cycle analysis; risk analysis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Paolo Peluso

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

Department of Civil Building and Environmental Engineering, Sapienza University of Rome, 00185 Rome, Italy
Interests: road pavements; road materials; environmental impacts; risk analysis; operating speed analysis

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years we have witnessed unstable climate change, with consequent negative effects on global warming and major natural changes. The anthropological use of soil is one of the main causes of this phenomenon, as man has encouraged increasing atmospheric temperatures with the strong urbanization of natural areas. It follows that the approach commonly taken by humans involves high energy consumption and, consequently, increases pollution. One strategy to reduce the negative environmental impact caused by human actions is to follow the development and deployment of environmentally friendly technologies and policies in order to reduce their environmental impact and associated energy consumption. These positions stimulate technicians to research technologies that guarantee eco-friendly and sustainable solutions based on real and effective results. The above sustainable approach is applicable to the design of road pavements, especially in the urban area, characterized by settlement areas with different functions, for each of which it would be possible to identify the best technology. The choice would be executed with a strategy that considers the economic onerousness and focuses attention on the environmental impact of the work during the entire cycle of life, from the extraction of the raw materials to the dismission of the engineering work. The identification of innovative solutions, characterized by material production systems with low environmental impact or the design of sustainable road pavement, as well as the replacement of existing surface layers, are actions aimed at mitigating the ongoing climate change.

This Special Issue, “Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability”, addresses the most important topics in very frontiers and how they could be implemented.

Dr. Laura Moretti
Dr. Paolo Peluso
Guest Editors

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Keywords

pavements
sustainable materials
maintenance strategies
alternative materials
cool pavements
energy
environment
climate

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

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27 pages, 9365 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Effectiveness of a Series of Road Humps on Home Zone Streets: A Case Study

by Stanisław Majer and Alicja Sołowczuk

Sustainability 2025, 17(2), 644; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17020644 - 15 Jan 2025

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 953

Abstract

Traffic calming measures are implemented more and more often in residential districts as part of home zone sustainability projects. For economic reasons, road humps are the most commonly used traffic calming measures to slow down the traffic within the home zone. Prefabricated units or concrete pavers are the materials of choice for their construction. The studies carried out so far on many different road hump types covered the effect of height, approach/departure ramp inclination(s), and intervals between successive humps on the final speed and the safety of road traffic. The impacts of braking before and acceleration after passing a hump on the pavement and the effect of the associated shocks on the riding comfort of both drivers and passengers and vehicle suspension were also investigated. What is missing in the available literature is information on the slowing effect of road humps depending on the longitudinal gradient of the street and the street’s landscaping. This article is intended to fill this gap by presenting the results of speed surveys carried out on three selected two-way streets located in home zones with different longitudinal gradients and a few humps of different designs that are placed at different intervals. Speeds were measured both before and after each of the successive humps. The “after” speeds were found to depend not only on the hump type and parameters but also on the direction of travel, vertical alignment of the street, parking location, and orientation of the parking space relative to the road axis. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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18 pages, 6833 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Thermal Characteristics and Temperature Distribution of Asphalt Mixtures Containing Residues from Municipal Solid Waste Incineration

by Ling Xu, Mohsen Alae, Yinfei Du, Giuseppe Loprencipe, Paolo Peluso and Laura Moretti

Sustainability 2023, 15(21), 15612; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152115612 - 4 Nov 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2255

Abstract

As a sustainable substitute for non-renewable mineral resources and solid waste landfilling, municipal solid waste incineration residues (MSWIRs) are useful in road pavements. This study investigates the thermal characteristics and temperature distribution of flexible pavements containing MSWIRs with hollow microsphere structures. First, the volumetric properties of asphalt mixtures containing MSWIR fillers were measured. The effects of MSWIRs on the mixture’s physical characteristics were investigated in terms of thermal conductivity, specific heat capacity, and thermal diffusivity. A three-dimensional finite element model incorporating surface thermal conditions was established and validated to analyze the internal temperature distribution and heat transfer behavior within the asphalt. Finally, the high-temperature conditions of summer were simulated in an indoor irradiation test to evaluate the risk of heat islands in urban areas. The results showed that the mixture containing MSWIRs exhibited a higher specific heat capacity (from 0.8385 to 0.9554 J/(kg·K)) and lower thermal conductivity (from 1.4356 to 1.1362 W/(m·K)) than the reference mixture with limestone filler. Therefore, it contributed to a lower heat flux distribution within the pavement. However, the increase in asphalt surface temperature caused by MSWIRs may exacerbate the urban heat island effect in the summer, which should be considered before using road materials containing MSWIRs. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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16 pages, 7873 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Photoluminescent Applications for Urban Pavements

by Adriana H. Martínez, Teresa López-Montero, Rodrigo Miró and Ricard Puig

Sustainability 2023, 15(20), 15078; https://doi.org/10.3390/su152015078 - 20 Oct 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2885

Abstract

Photoluminescent materials used on street and road pavements could absorb solar energy during the day and emit it at night, which will save energy and improve visibility with a consequent improvement in road safety. The aim of this study is to evaluate the luminance of different photoluminescent applications for pavements (bituminous mixes, mortars, and paints) in which strontium aluminate and glass beads were used. Sunlight was simulated with two bulbs, one LED and one UV bulb, inside a measuring apparatus specially developed for this work. The luminance of the different designed solutions was determined at different time periods after their excitation. The results obtained showed that luminescent paints can reach higher luminance than bituminous mixes and mortars. The colour of the base surface on which the paints are applied had a great influence on the obtained luminance, which increases with the aluminate and glass beads content. Among all the solutions evaluated, the paint made with 60% aluminate and 6% glass beads, spread on a white surface, allowed the highest luminance values to be obtained. This study leads to the conclusion that it is possible to achieve a good photoluminescent level while economising on the amount of materials necessary. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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16 pages, 16284 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Anti-Aging Effect in Biochar-Modified Bitumen

by Clara Celauro, Rosalia Teresi and Nadka Tz. Dintcheva

Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10583; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310583 - 5 Jul 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2352

Abstract

Increasing environmental awareness has led to a great research effort towards the formulation of increasingly sustainable pavements, mainly by developing bituminous mixtures incorporating waste materials. Furthermore, some waste materials have been proved to be useful for enhancing the performance of road bitumen and bituminous products, so their use is a potential solution for ensuring environmental, economic, and also technical benefits. Amongst the different wastes to be used for bitumen modification, a possible one is that obtained via the pyrolysis of biomass, named biochar. In the research reported here, a selected biochar was added to bitumen to verify the possibility of improving bitumen performance in terms of photo-oxidation resistance, which is a major problem in urban areas where black flexible pavements contribute to the urban heat island effect. Different biochar amounts were selected, and two different aging methods were performed: short-term aging and UVB aging resistance; they were monitored using rheological and spectroscopic analysis. The structural changes in bitumen in terms of carbonyl and hydroxyl accumulation were observed at various UV irradiation times. All the experimental data indicate that the use of biochar can have a positive effect on the UV resistance of bitumen, lowering its photo-oxidation tendency. This may lead to reductions in use of natural, non-renewable materials, since intervention maintenance may be scheduled at longer terms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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13 pages, 5969 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Mixed Design Optimization of Polymer-Modified Asphalt Mixtures (PMAs) Containing Carton Plastic Packaging Wastes

by Riccardo Monticelli, Antonio Roberto, Elena Romeo and Gabriele Tebaldi

Sustainability 2023, 15(13), 10574; https://doi.org/10.3390/su151310574 - 5 Jul 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2437

Abstract

This study investigated the potential of reusing plastics derived from multilayered food carton recycling processes as a modifier for asphalt mixtures by dry process. Two types of plastics, one untreated and one pelletized, were added to a mixture containing neat asphalt binder using three different dry methods and in two different amounts (2 and 5% by weight of aggregates). The chemical and physical properties of the plastics were explored via differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and laser diffraction granulometry. The fracture behavior of the polymer-modified asphalt (PMA) mixtures was evaluated via superpave indirect tensile (IDT) testing at 10 °C and comparative analysis with the reference and a mixture composed of the same aggregate curve and a traditional styrene–butadiene–styrene (SBS)-modified asphalt binder. The role of the plastic during crack initiation and propagation was investigated via microscopic analysis. The results show that plastics derived from carton recycling processes can be successfully used as an additive in asphalt mixtures via the dry method due to the compatibility between their melting and mixing temperatures. The shape of the plastics influences the cracking propagation and resistance of the mixture. Finally, the presence of plastics in the mixture reduces the proneness to accumulate deformation (about 50% less than the reference ones) and increases the failure resistance, leading to a better cracking response at intermediate temperatures. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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11 pages, 1550 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Albedo of Pervious Concrete and Its Implications for Mitigating Urban Heat Island

by Yunan Lu, Yinghong Qin, Chan Huang and Xijun Pang

Sustainability 2023, 15(10), 8222; https://doi.org/10.3390/su15108222 - 18 May 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 3863

Abstract

Urban heat islands have become a growing concern in many cities around the world. Pervious pavements have been proposed as a potential solution to mitigate this effect, but their effectiveness in reducing surface temperatures is still uncertain. This experimental study aims to investigate the reflectivity of pervious concrete to determine whether pervious pavements are cooler than conventional pavements. To achieve this, five different Portland cement concrete mixes are used to create pervious concrete samples with varying porosity levels. The samples are sliced, and their spectral reflectance and albedo are measured and analyzed. The results showed that the albedo of dry pervious concrete decreases linearly with increasing porosity. Pervious concrete with a wet surface exhibits an albedo of approximately 0.15 which is independent of porosity. Additionally, fresh, dry pervious Portland concrete has an albedo ranging from 0.20 to 0.35, which is 0.10 to 0.20 lower than conventional fresh cement concrete. As a result of this low albedo, caution should be exercised when developing pervious concrete as a solution to combat the urban heat island effect, unless measures are taken to increase evaporation and offset the additional solar absorption resulting from the low albedo. Overall, these findings suggest that the use of pervious pavements alone may not be sufficient to reduce surface temperatures in urban areas. Future research should explore ways to increase the albedo of pervious pavements and develop effective strategies to mitigate the urban heat island effect. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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Review

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24 pages, 2756 KiB

Open AccessReview

Mitigation Strategies Based on Life Cycle Assessment for Carbon Dioxide Reduction in Asphalt Pavements: Systematic Review

by Diego Flores-Ruiz, Marco Montoya-Alcaraz, Leonel García, Manuel Gutiérrez and Julio Calderón-Ramírez

Sustainability 2025, 17(2), 695; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17020695 - 17 Jan 2025

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1320

Abstract

Expanding the road network is inevitable due to the accelerated economic growth of countries. However, the development of road infrastructure has generated considerable concern among society, governments, and environmental organizations. This concern mainly stems from the significant environmental effects and the omission of the sustainability of materials associated with road construction. Current literature suggests Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) as a solution to address greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental impacts of road infrastructure. This research uses the PRISMA-SCR methodology to identify strategies to mitigate environmental impact during the life cycle stages of asphalt pavements and emission-generating activities. This study identifies the critical life cycle stages responsible for the largest amount of emissions, highlighting “material extraction and production” and “transportation” as key areas of intervention. The results demonstrate how the incorporation of recycled materials (RAPs) and warm mix asphalts (WMAs) can reduce between 15% and 45% of total emissions. It is concluded that it is possible to develop asphalt pavement construction projects with a sustainability perspective, allowing not only to identify opportunities to optimize construction processes but also to establish a reference framework for transportation agencies to integrate more sustainable practices, including the reduction of emissions, the responsible use of non-renewable resources and proper waste management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Urban Pavement Design and Road Sustainability)

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