Characterisation of the climatic temperature variations in the design of rigid pavements
Kristina Bayraktarova, Lukas Eberhardsteiner, David Zhou, Ronald Blab
Abstract
The design of rigid pavements in Austria is currently based on a catalogue of standard structures, which can be chosen depending on traffic-related parameters. This approach does not allow the consideration of real material characteristics, detailed traffic load information, local climate conditions, and other boundary conditions. To overcome these limitations, a new mechanistic-empirical pavement design method for rigid pavements (MEPDR) has been developed. The focus of this paper is laid on the proper characterisation of climatic boundary conditions and their impact on the design results. To simulate the actual temperature distribution within a concrete slab, a temperature prediction model was proposed and validated with measured weather data. Furthermore, representative temperature gradients were established using the proposed model and surface temperature data from measuring stations distributed over the Austrian highway pavement network. Additionally, the effect of these temperature gradients on the design life of a typical pavement structure was demonstrated using the MEPDR.