Experimental and Numerical Investigation on Effect of Modified Grading Curve on Macrotexture and Mechanical Performances of Asphalt Mixture

Abstract

To ensure the safety of road users, and in view of the direct contact of vehicles with the surface layer, an in-depth characterization of road pavements would be necessary. For this, the use of porous mixtures has obvious advantages in reducing the flow and infiltration of water into the soil. The main purpose of this study aims to improve the macrotexture and the adhesion of the wearing course, while keeping the level of mechanical performance within the allowable range. That is why artificial grading curve composed of several sub-fractions (twelve in this case) was developed. The volumetric technique by the patch test 13036-1 (Mean Texture Depth) was used to evaluate the macrotexture of mixtures. In addition gyratory compactor was used to determine workability, to evaluate intrinsic characteristic and moisture susceptibility, we performed Duriez test, and Nottingham University to estimate indirect tensile stiffness modulus. The results demonstrated that the use of modified grading curve mixtures improves the performance of the road surface (macrotexture) and keeping their mechanical proprieties. However, a model was developed using fuzzy logic approach aiming to predict compactness and stiffness modulus (SM) of asphalt mixtures as a function of air voids (V a ) and Mean Texture Depth (MTD). The results observed that the values obtained by the developed models are acceptable comparing to experimental results