Implementation of ultra high pressure water cutting for treatment of flushed chip seals in the US

Abstract

This paper discusses implementation of ultra-high pressure (UHP) water cutting as a pavement maintenance strategy based on the first large-scale application of UHP water cutting for treatment of flushed chip seals in the USA. Data are from 13 field sites located in four different climatic regions in Texas. Production rates and treatment costs are sensitive to the UHP water cutter equipment, road surface condition, environmental factors and other variables. Production rates for UHP water cutting under Texas road conditions ranged from 490 m²/h to 1560 m²/h, average 830 m²/h, for treatment of light to heavy flushing. Turn-key unit costs for UHP water cutting varied from US $1.77/m² to US $2.08/m² for an average savings of 41% as compared to the cost of typical Texas maintenance solutions for treatment of flushed chip seals. Overall, UHP water cutting shows positive results in terms of treatment effectiveness, durability and production considerations.

Keywords:

• ultra high pressure
• water cutter
• flushing
• pavement maintenance
• chip seal
• implementation
• water blasting
• striping removal
• airport rubber removal

Acknowledgements

The authors gratefully acknowledge the UHP contractor's technical and management staff who participated in this research including Bob Beadling, Jim Windich and Jeff Parks. Further, the authors thank the Texas Tech University graduate students and research associates who performed much of the field testing and data analysis including Andrew Tubb, Timothy Wood, Rod Henderson, Jake Blessen, John Papa and Conrad Lovejoy. We also thank all the TxDOT, Rampart, Shima and TechMRT professionals who assisted with this project in the field, shop, lab and office.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The authors thank the Texas Department of Transportation for sponsoring the UHP water cutter implementation research study from which results are reported herein.