Comparison Analysis of Airfield Pavement Life Estimated from Different Pavement Condition Indexes

Abstract

An airfield pavement management system uses pavement condition indexes to evaluate pavement conditions for timely planning of maintenance and rehabilitation (M&R). Using the comprehensive Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) PAVEAIR database, this study aims to investigate the consistency of three pavement condition indexes: pavement condition index (PCI), structural condition index (SCI), and foreign object damage index (FOD). First, correlations between the PCI, SCI, and FOD were examined via regression analysis. Survival curves were then generated to compare the service life of airfield pavement estimated using different indexes. Observation results from survival curves were statistically verified by Cox proportional hazard models considering the effects of the pavement surface type, branch use, and any possible interactions between them. Results show that, among those categorized sections under most scenarios, Portland cement concrete (PCC) surfaced pavement sections have longer service life than asphalt concrete (AC) surfaced pavement sections, while apron sections have the shortest service life compared to runway and taxiway sections. However, if a pavement condition is evaluated by the FOD on the taxiway, the advantage of the PCC surfaced pavement section over the AC surfaced pavement section turns out to be the opposite. Meanwhile, for PCC surfaced pavement sections, if SCI is used to estimate the pavement service life, runway sections show a significantly shorter service life than apron and taxiway sections. Study findings indicate that the use of PCI, SCI, and FOD for the planning of M&R treatments in an airfield pavement management system may not be fully replaced by each other, although correlations were found.