Optimal Longitudinal Texture on Concrete Pavement to Reduce Lateral Vibration of Vehicles

Abstract

Since the mid-2000 s, longitudinal tinning has been applied to concrete pavements of expressways to improve the comfort and safety of road vehicle users. However, in certain longitudinal tinning sections, lateral vibrations occur during driving, which poses a safety hazard. This paper analyzes the cause behind this problem and proposes a longitudinal texturing specification that can minimize lateral vibration. To perform this analysis, the accelerations of driving vehicles and the degree of lateral vibration transmitted to panels in the vehicles were evaluated for each longitudinal texture applied in South Korea. Structural analysis was also conducted for the lateral force and moment according to the tire tread profile and longitudinal texturing specifications using the finite element method. In addition, field investigation, indoor drivability evaluation, and field application were performed to evaluate the optimal longitudinal texturing specification. The results indicate that the texture designated as 2 × 3 × 19 mm is the optimal longitudinal texture on hardened concrete pavement. However, because this specification is difficult to apply to fresh concrete, 3 × 3 × 16 mm is proposed as the optimal longitudinal texture owing to its excellent performance in the panel survey and in structural analysis.