Development Of Performance-related Specifications Research Articles

Development of performance related specifications for chip seal treatments

ABSTRACT Road agencies are increasingly incorporating performance-related specifications (PRS) in construction contracts to specify quality in terms of parameters related to desired long-term performance. PRS provides a means to account for the value lost or gained by the variances of the designed performance parameters from the specified target values. The use of PRS for pavement preservation treatments (e.g. chip seals) has been generally non-existent. The objective of this paper is to establish a step-by-step procedure for formulating chip seals PRS guidelines. The percent embedment (PE) of aggregates into emulsified asphalt was selected as the acceptance quality characteristic (AQC). Chip seal specimens with varying percent embedment levels were prepared using aggregate and emulsion types in Michigan. Aggregate loss and bleeding were selected as performance indicators. Laboratory tests were conducted to compute PE, aggregate loss and bleeding for the chip seal specimens. Relationships were developed between quality measures, service life, and pay factors. The expected pay curves were developed based on quality measures and were used to establish acceptable and unacceptable quality levels. The pay factors were evaluated to ensure fair payments for the quality of work produced. The work presented will provide the general guidelines for developing PRS for chip seal projects.

Performance-Related Specifications for Highway Construction

This paper examines the development of performance-related specifications (PRS) in highway construction. Toward that purpose, it attempts to answer questions on what performance-related specifications are and how they differ from traditional specifications. In addition, the advantages and disadvantages of using performance-related specifications are discussed.

Development of Performance-Related Specifications for Hot-Mix Asphalt Pavements Through WesTrack

The primary objective of the FHWA-sponsored WesTrack project is to further the development of performance-related specifications for hotmix asphalt construction. This objective is being achieved, in part, through the accelerated loading of a full-scale test track facility in northern Nevada. Twenty-six hot-mix asphalt test sections constructed to meet the criteria set forth in a statistically based experiment design are providing performance data that will be used to improve existing (or develop new) pavement performance prediction relationships that better account for the effects that “off-target” values of asphalt content, air-void content, and aggregate gradation have on such distress factors as fatigue cracking, permanent deformation, roughness, raveling, and tirepavement friction. The concept of the planned new performance-related specification and how it will incorporate the modified pavement performance prediction models are described. The current plan for assessing contractor pay adjustments (i.e., penalties and bonuses) based on data collected from the as-constructed pavement is also discussed.