This study utilized Illinois DOT (IDOT) mechanistic-empirical (M-E) technology and Mn/ROAD mainline pavement section data and information to verify/refine/modify IDOT M-E analysis and design concepts and procedures for full-depth asphalt concrete (FDAC) and conventional flexible pavements (CFP). The Mn/ROAD mainline flexible pavements include eleven CFP and three FDAC pavement sections. Four different granular materials were used in the conventional flexible pavements. A fine-grained soil subgrade (R-value of about 12) is present throughout the mainline. Laboratory material testing results, field distress measurements, and FWD test data were used to study pavement deflection response and performance (rutting and asphalt concrete fatigue). The study demonstrated that the IDOT M-E analysis and design procedures for FDAC and CFP sections are adequate. The ILLI-PA VE structural model adequately predicts the pavement responses. The use of bi-linear (arithmetic) subgrade model and the "theta" granular material model ILLI-PA VE inputs closely replicate CFP field FWD deflection responses. The effect of granular material quality on CFP deflection response is very limited. The ILLI-PAVE FWD backcalculation algorithms are adequate for estimating the moduli of asphalt concrete and sub grade soils.

This study utilized Illinois DOT (IDOT) mechanistic-empirical (M-E) technology and Mn/ROAD mainline pavement section data and information to verify/refine/modify IDOT M-E analysis and design concepts and procedures for full-depth asphalt concrete (FDAC) and conventional flexible pavements (CFP). The Mn/ROAD mainline flexible pavements include eleven CFP and three FDAC pavement sections. Four different granular materials were used in the conventional flexible pavements. A fine-grained soil subgrade (R-value of about 12) is present throughout the mainline. Laboratory material testing results, field distress measurements, and FWD test data were used to study pavement deflection response and performance (rutting and asphalt concrete fatigue). The study demonstrated that the IDOT M-E analysis and design procedures for FDAC and CFP sections are adequate. The ILLI-PA VE structural model adequately predicts the pavement responses. The use of bi-linear (arithmetic) subgrade model and the "theta" granular material model ILLI-PA VE inputs closely replicate CFP field FWD deflection responses. The effect of granular material quality on CFP deflection response is very limited. The ILLI-PAVE FWD backcalculation algorithms are adequate for estimating the moduli of asphalt concrete and sub grade soils.

This study utilized I DOT mechanistic-empirical (M-E) procedures and Mn/ROAD low-volume road (LVR) data and information to verify/refine/modify analysis and design concepts and procedures for L VR flexible pavements. The Mn/ROAD L VR flexible pavements include conventional flexible, full-depth asphalt, surface-treatment and aggregate-surface sections. Laboratory test results, field distress measurements, and FWD test data were used to study the affect of granular material quality on pavement performance and deflection response. The results from the rapid shear tests, permanent deformation tests and field rutting measurements show that granular material rutting potential can be characterized by a rapid shear triaxial test at 15-psi confining pressure. For conventional flexible pavements, granular material quality did not affect the pavement deflection response, but material quality effects were significant for aggregate-surface and surface-treatment pavements. ILLI-PAVE predicted pavement responses were fairly accurate for sections with thicker asphalt concrete surfaces. The FWD deflection basin parameter AUPP (Area Under Pavement Profile) can be used to predict the strains at the bottom of AC layer. Effect of subgrade type on pavement response and performance was studied. Sandy subgrades showed little or no change in pavement structural response due to spring-thaw effects. For the cohesive subgrade sections, moisture changes and spring-thaw effects increased surface deflections. The study showed that the lOOT LVR flexible pavement mechanistic-empirical design concepts and procedures are valid and adequate.

This report documents the development of a mechanistic-empirical (M-E) flexible pavement thickness design method for use in Minnesota. The report includes a comprehensive literature review of the state of the practice. The Minnesota Road Research Project (Mn/ROAD) served as the primary source of data, in addition to information from the literature, during the development of the method.

Sustainable and resilient critical infrastructure systems is an emerging paradigm in an evolving era of depleting assets in the midst of natural and man-made threats to provide a sustainable and high quality of life with optimized resources from social, economic, societal and environmental considerations. The increasing complexity and interconnectedness of civil and other interdependent infrastructure systems (electric power, energy, cyber-infrastructures, etc.) require inter- and multidisciplinary expertise required to engineer, monitor, and sustain these distributed large-scale complex adaptive infrastructure systems. This edited book is motivated by recent advances in simulation, modeling, sensing, communications/information, and intelligent and sustainable technologies that have resulted in the development of sophisticated methodologies and instruments to design, characterize, optimize, and evaluate critical infrastructure systems, their resilience, and their condition and the factors that cause their deterioration. Specific topics discussed in this book include, but are not limited to: optimal infrastructure investment allocation for sustainability, framework for manifestation of tacit critical infrastructure knowledge, interdependencies between energy and transportation systems for national long term planning, intelligent transportation infrastructure technologies, emergent research issues in infrastructure interdependence research, framework for assessing the resilience of infrastructure and economic systems, maintenance optimization for heterogeneous infrastructure systems, optimal emergency infrastructure inspection scheduling, and sustainable rehabilitation of deteriorated transportation infrastructure systems.

The U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory is developing a mechanistic pavement design procedure for use in seasonal frost areas. The procedure was used to predict pavement performance of some test sections under construction at the Mn/ROAD facility. Simulations were conducted in three phases, investigating the effects on predictions of water table position, subgrade characteristics, asphalt model, and freeze season characteristics. The procedure predicted significantly different performance by the different test sections and highly variable results depending on the performance model applied. The simulated performance of the tests sections also was greatly affected by the subgrade conditions, e.g., density, soil moisture, and water table depth. In general, predictions for the full depth asphalt sections indicate that they will not fail due to cracking, but two of the three criteria for subgrade rufting indicate failure before the five or 10 year design life of the sections. Conventional sections are predicted not to fail due to subgrade rutting; however, sections including the more frost susceptible bases in their design are predicted to fail due to asphalt cracking relatively early in their design life, and sections with nonfrost susceptible bases are predicted to fail towards the end of the design life.