Consideration of the permanent deformation of soils used in flexible pavement design

Abstract

The decreasing supply of soils with geotechnical parameters suitable for pavement designs are visible problems in our environment. In order to establish more efficient designs and adequate construction criteria, it is essential to understand the performance of materials. This is a study of the permanent deformation (PD) of soil used in pavement layers, obtaining prediction models of PD and modulus of resilience (MR), in addition to the design of pavement structures using mechanistic-empirical (CAP3D) and empirical (DNIT) methods. The multistage repeated load triaxial (RLT) test was used as well as numerical analyses of stresses and displacements using the CAP3D program. The results showed that both the test procedure and the prediction models performed satisfactorily in obtaining PD behavior. Moreover, designs using the methods adopted resulted in distinct structures, that is, thickness different from the granular pavement layers. It was concluded that the model and test procedure exhibit significant potential for characterizing and modeling the permanent deformation of granular materials.