Effect of using geosynthetics on reflective crack prevention

Abstract

In order to overcome reflective cracks, different techniques have been developed in the past, the most important of which is the use of geosynthetic materials. It has been proven in many studies carried out in this field that using geosynthetics can delay reflective crack initiation and reduce the speed of propagation. In this research, a laboratory simulation was performed on the cracked pavement with five types of geosynthetics. Each type was tested by tensile force. According to the stress strain graph, the secant modulus was achieved. Five types of geosynthetic-reinforced asphalt beams were tested under cyclic loading and a comparison of the results showed the effect of using geosynthetics and its modulus on increasing the loading cycles required for crack initiation and propagation. The results further showed that the pavements with thicker overlays are much more sensitive to the geosynthetics modulus. Moreover, crack growth rate, displacement at the bottom of the overlay, vertical displacement of the overlay and number of load cycles before failure were dependent on the geosynthetic modulus, and their relationship was studied. In this research, the effect of thickness on the above-mentioned parameters was also investigated.

Keywords::

• reflective cracks
• geosynthetics
• asphalt pavement
• secant modulus
• overlay

Notes

^1. Email: [email protected]

^2. Current address: Department of Civil Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran. Email: [email protected]

^3. Email: [email protected]