Abstract
This paper presents a simplified approach for predicting the allowable load repetitions of New Large Aircraft (NLA) loading for airfield runways based on Non‐Destructive Test (NDT) data. Full‐scale traffic test results from the Federal Aviation Administration's National Airport Pavement Test Facility (NAPTF) were used to develop the NDT‐based evaluation methodology. Four flexible test pavement sections with variable (unbound layer) thicknesses were trafficked using six‐wheel and four‐wheel NLA test gears until the test pavements were deemed failed. Non‐destructive tests using a Heavy Weight Deflectometer (HWD) were conducted prior to the initiation of traffic testing to measure the pavement surface deflections. In the past, pavement surface deflections have been successfully used as an indicator of airport pavement life. In this study, the HWD surface deflections and the derived Deflection Basin Parameters (DBPs) were related to functional performance of NAPTF flexible pavements through simple regression analysis. The results demonstrated the usefulness of NDT data for predicting the performance of airport flexible pavements serving the next generation of aircrafts.
Highlights
The impact of New Large Aircraft (NLA), such as the Boeing 777 aircraft, on existing and new airport pavements is an important issue facing the aviation industry today
Pavement surface deflections have been successfully used as an indicator of airport pavement life
The pavement surface deflections measured prior to trafficking were related to rutting performance of four flexible pavement test sections at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA’s) National Airport Pavement Test Facility (NAPTF)
Summary
The impact of New Large Aircraft (NLA), such as the Boeing 777 aircraft, on existing and new airport pavements is an important issue facing the aviation industry today. The increased wheel loads, higher tire pressures and complex landing gear configurations of the NLA have generated widespread concern about their impact on airport pavement life and performance and about their suitability for use in airports Recognizing this issue, the U.S Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA’s) National Airport Pavement Test Facility (NAPTF) was constructed to generate full-scale test data needed to verify/develop advanced airport pavement thickness design procedures. In a recent series of traffic tests conducted at NAPTF, four flexible pavement sections with variable granular subbase thicknesses (referred to as Construction Cycle 3 or CC3) were subjected to repeated loading of six-wheel and four-wheel New Large Aircraft (NLA) landing gears until the pavement sections were deemed failed. The pavement rutting performance (capacity) was defined in terms of number of load repetitions to reach specific rut depth levels based on wellknown pavement distress criteria
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