Review of Pavement Design and Analysis by Yang H. HuangPavement Design and Analysis0-13-142473-4$118.00

Abstract

It is a challenging task to cover all major functional areas of pavement systems engineering in a single text. The author acknowledges these constraints and focuses on his intended subject matter: design and analysis of pavements, while coverage is kept limited on the other functional areas of performance, evaluation, maintenance and rehabilitation, and management. In Chapter 1, the author provides an introduction to the text by presenting an interesting historical evolution of pavement systems and discusses various pavement types, road tests, and design factors. Chapters 2 and 4 contain analytical techniques for analyzing stresses and strains/deflections in flexible and rigid pavements, respectively, while Chapters 3 and 5 discuss the KENLAYER and KENSLABS computer programs that could be used for such analysis. As a prelude to the chapters on pavement design, chapters 6–10 discuss the vital topics of traffic estimation, materials characterization, drainage design, pavement performance, and reliability. Within these sections, the author shows how to estimate expected traffic volume and loading on pavements. Also, various ways of characterizing subgrades and pavement materials for design purposes are discussed. A good job is made of presenting and interpreting laboratory test results, but the text could give more coverage to field tests such as the dynamic cone penetrometer test for investigating subgrade quality. The author also provides a clear treatment of the issues involved in drainage design, but gives a rather limited discussion of pavement condition assessment. Statistical reliability concepts and probabilistic methods, which are very appropriate given the highly stochastic nature of