Review of glass fibre grid use for pavement reinforcement and APT experiments at IFSTTAR

Reinforcement using an interlayer system has been demonstrated for more than four decades as a multi-purpose solution to improve performance, to extend service life and thus to reduce maintenance costs of road pavements. Among a large number of existing interlayer systems, glass fibre grids have shown effective use in pavement reinforcement with a hot mix asphalt overlay. Recently they have received increasing attention from the pavement community. However, as for other types of interlayer systems, the mechanisms underlying the effectiveness and proper installation of this type of reinforcement system are still not fully understood, and the choice of the most appropriate grid (e.g. mesh size, tensile strength) and its optimal location in the pavement system are mainly based on experience. This article presents firstly a literature review on the use of glass fibre grids in pavement reinforcement. Then some results of recent full-scale tests on the accelerated pavement testing facility of the IFSTTAR are presented. They confirm that glass fibre grid properly installed near the bottom of the asphalt layer improves significantly the fatigue life of the reinforced pavement. They also demonstrate the efficiency of glass grid use under only a thin asphalt overlay. Finally, first results obtained using an original instrumentation of glass grid strands by means of strain gages, to understand better the mechanical behaviour of the glass fibre reinforcement in a new pavement structure are described.

[1]  Hao Wang,et al.  Effects of Interface Conditions on Reflective Cracking Development in Hot-Mix Asphalt Overlays , 2010 .

[2]  J R Darling,et al.  FIBREGLASS GEOGRID PERFORMANCE EVALUATION FOR RETARDING REFLECTIVE CRACKING , 2000 .

[3]  A. Molenaar,et al.  Characterizing the Effects of Geosynthetics in Asphalt Pavements , 2012 .

[4]  S. Brown,et al.  A study of grid reinforced asphalt to combat reflection cracking , 2001 .

[5]  S. Joon LeeS.J. Lee,et al.  Mechanical performance and crack retardation study of a fiberglass-grid-reinforced asphalt concrete system , 2008 .

[6]  Malcolm L Steinberg GEOGRIDS AS A REHABILITATION REMEDY FOR ASPHALTIC CONCRETE PAVEMENTS , 1992 .

[7]  Vernon J Marks Glasgrid Fabric to Control Reflective Cracking , 1990 .

[8]  Salman Hakimzadeh,et al.  Development of fracture-energy based interface bond test for asphalt concrete , 2012 .

[9]  R. Leutner UNTERSUCHUNG DES SCHICHTENVERBUNDES BEIM BITUMINOESEN OBERBAU , 1979 .

[10]  F P Jaecklin,et al.  Asphalt reinforcing using glass fibre grid "Glasphalt" , 1996 .

[11]  Christiane Raab,et al.  Evaluation of Interlayer Shear Bond Devices for Asphalt Pavements , 2009 .

[12]  F. Canestrari,et al.  Repeated load test on bituminous systems reinforced by geosynthetics , 2009 .

[13]  Armelle Chabot,et al.  Full Scale Tests on Grid Reinforced Flexible Pavements on the French Fatigue Carrousel , 2012 .

[14]  A. D. Bondt Anti-reflective cracking design of (reinforced) asphaltic overlays , 1999 .

[15]  Eric W Brooks,et al.  Geosynthetic materials in reflective crack prevention. , 2007 .

[16]  J Penman,et al.  The use of geogrids to retard reflective cracking on airport runways, taxiways and aprons , 2008 .

[17]  António Gomes Correia,et al.  Design and Construction of Pavements and Rail Tracks : Geotechnical Aspects and Processed Materials , 2007 .

[18]  L. Francken,et al.  Prevention of Reflective Cracking in Pavements , 2004 .

[19]  Paolo Bianchini,et al.  Strain Measurement in Pavements with a Fibre Optics Sensor Enabled Geotextile , 2012 .

[20]  C. Chazallon,et al.  Measurement and Prediction Model of the Fatigue Behavior of Glass Fiber Reinforced Bituminous Mixture , 2012 .

[21]  P Hornych,et al.  The LCPC's ALT facility contribution to pavement cracking knowledge , 2008 .

[22]  J W Button,et al.  EVALUATION OF FABRICS, FIBERS AND GRIDS IN OVERLAYS. SIXTH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE, STRUCTURAL DESIGN OF ASPHALT PAVEMENTS, VOLUME I, PROCEEDINGS, UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, JULY 13-17, 1987, ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN , 1987 .

[23]  Arian H. De Bondt,et al.  20 years of research on asphalt reinforcement: achievements and future needs , 2012 .

[24]  Tom Scullion,et al.  Performance Report on Jointed Concrete Pavement Repair Strategies in Texas , 2004 .

[25]  H Rathmayer Reinforcement of Pavements with Steel Meshes and Geosynthetics , 2007 .

[26]  Christiane Raab,et al.  RILEM Interlaboratory Test on Interlayer Bonding of Asphalt Pavements , 2009 .

[27]  Lubinda F. Walubita,et al.  Modelling Tensile Strain Response in Asphalt Pavements , 2009 .

[28]  Mostafa A. Elseifi,et al.  Cost effective prevention of reflective cracking in composite pavements , 2009 .

[29]  R B Powell Installation and performance of a fiberglass geogrid interlayer on the NCAT Pavement Test Track , 2008 .

[30]  Robert L. Lytton,et al.  Guidelines for Using Geosynthetics with Hot-Mix Asphalt Overlays to Reduce Reflective Cracking , 2007 .

[31]  R. Lytton Use of geotextiles for reinforcement and strain relief in asphalt concrete , 1989 .

[32]  D. Bodin Modele d'endommagement cyclique: application à la fatigue des enrobés bitumineux , 2002 .

[33]  Rudolf Hufenus,et al.  Strength reduction factors due to installation damage of reinforcing geosynthetics , 2005 .

[34]  Michele Buonsanti,et al.  Theoretical and Computational Analysis of Airport Flexible Pavements Reinforced with Geogrids , 2012 .