Rebound and residual in situ pavement displacements measured during NAPTF performance testing

Abstract

The FAA's National Airport Pavement Test Facility (NAPTF) was constructed to generate full-scale test data needed for the development of advanced airport pavement design procedures. In this paper, the comparative effects of six-wheel Boeing 777 (B777) and four-wheel Boeing 747 (B747) simulated landing gear loading on the multi-depth deflectometer (MDD) responses of two NAPTF low-strength subgrade flexible test sections are discussed. The results showed that the major contribution to surface rebound MDD displacements was the subgrade layer in both the test sections. Transverse response distributions showed that, in the vicinity of wheel loads, the net average residual MDD displacement was contractive, whereas at small offsets away from the wheel loads, the displacement was dilative which led to a continuous contractive/dilative permanent deformation pattern. The majority of the surface residual response came from the structural layers above the subgrade.

Keywords:

• Multi-depth deflectometer (MDD)
• NAPTF
• Airport flexible pavement
• Resilient response

Acknowledgements

This paper was prepared from a study conducted in the Center of Excellence for Airport Technology (CEAT). Funding for the CEAT is provided in part by the Federal Aviation Administration under Research Grant Number 95-C-001. The CEAT is maintained at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr Patricia Watts is the FAA Program Manager for Air Transportation Centers of Excellence and Dr Satish Agrawal is the Manager of the FAA Airport Technology R & D Branch. The authors gratefully acknowledge the contributions of Dr Franco-Gomez Ramirez, Technical Director, EPSA-LABCO, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Special thanks to Dr. Navneet Garg of SRA International Inc.; Dr David Brill and Dr Gordon Hayhoe of FAA Airport Technology Branch for their help in conducting this study.

The contents of this paper reflect the views of the authors who are responsible for the facts and accuracy of the data presented within. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views and policies of the Federal Aviation Administration. This paper does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation.

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Additional information

Notes on contributors

Marshall R. Thompson

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