Pavement Analysis with the Consideration of Unbound Granular Material Nonlinearity

Accurate pavement design and evaluation requires the execution of response analysis. Pavement materials’ behavior does not necessarily conform to the assumptions of the multi-linear elastic theory usually adopted during pavement analysis. In particular, the unbound granular materials located in the base and sub-base layers behave in a nonlinear elastic manner, which can be captured through advanced constitutive modeling of their resilient modulus. The finite element method enables us to code constitutive models and quantify potential variations in pavement responses because of different mechanistic assumptions. In this study, variations in response are investigated for a typical structure of a flexible pavement considering the nonlinear anisotropic behavior of the unbound materials together with their initial stress–strain state. To demonstrate the impact of their behavior on the outcome of pavement analysis, variable asphalt concrete layer thicknesses and moduli are assumed, such that they cover a large spectrum of roadways. It was found that pavement responses can be calculated up to 3.5 times higher than those retrieved from the conventional linear analysis. This comparison means that the alterative mechanistic modeling of the unbound granular materials can be proved to be more conservative (i.e., leading to higher strains) in terms of pavement design and analysis. From a practical perspective, this study alerts pavement scientists and engineers engaged in pavement design to a more reliable performance prediction, which is needed to bridge the gap between advanced modeling and routine analysis.