A Laboratory Study to Predict the Rutting and Fatigue Behavior of Asphalt Concrete Using the Indirect Tensile Test

Abstract

Abstract Rutting, fatigue, moisture susceptibility, and thermal cracking are the primary distresses of asphalt pavement. Currently several test methods are used to predict the rutting and fatigue behavior of asphalt concrete. This study uses the indirect tensile (IDT) test to evaluate both the rutting and fatigue behavior of asphalt. Recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) and virgin aggregate are blended at different percentages (0 %, 20 %, 40 %, 60 %, 80 %, and 100 %) to produce mixes with a variety of fatigue and rutting performance. The IDT rutting test was performed by running high temperature IDT flow time and strength tests. In addition, flow number tests were performed using an asphalt mixture performance tester (AMPT). A strong correlation is observed between the high temperature IDT flow time/strength and flow number from AMPT. The test results show that IDT tests can be used to predict the rutting behavior of asphalt concrete at high temperatures. To characterize fatigue, cyclic IDT and monotonic fracture energy tests were performed at intermediate temperatures. At intermediate temperatures, good correlation is found between the fatigue life obtained from cyclic IDT test results and the fracture energy obtained from monotonic fracture test results. Based on the laboratory test results, the IDT test can be used to evaluate both the fatigue and rutting behavior of asphalt concrete. Considering that IDT testing has been used to characterize thermal cracking and moisture susceptibility, the IDT test has the potential to serve as a single performance test for fatigue, rutting, thermal cracking and moisture damage. Validation of the findings with more materials and field performance are recommended.