Experimental Investigation of the Functional Performance of Pouring Semiflexible Pavement: Healing Capacity, Noise Reduction, and Electrical Conductivity

Abstract

The development of new functional pavement materials and the application of sustainable concepts in road construction have led to a dramatic change in functional roads. Pouring semiflexible pavement (SFP) has superior advantages over traditional concrete and asphalt pavements in terms of road performance and convenient construction. The purpose of this research is to investigate the feasibility of SFP in terms of healing capacity, noise reduction, and electrical conductivity. First, the self-healing properties of the cement-asphalt-aggregate (C-AS-A) interface are analyzed by pull-out test, and the cracking characteristics and crack-healing capacity of SFP are investigated by semicircular bending (SCB) test and X-ray computed tomography (CT), respectively. Subsequently, the noise reduction performance of SFP, asphalt mixture, and cement concrete are compared by tire vertical drop test. Finally, different conductive SFP materials including graphite powder, carbon fiber, and steel fiber are prepared and their resistivity and road performance are analyzed. The results show that the C-AS-A interface has a significant self-healing ability; the cracks in SFP mainly occur at the C-AS-A interface (accounting for 53.12%) at −10°C. Moreover, when heated with microwave radiation, the heating-healing ratio of the SFP specimen increases by 63.33% with the addition of steel fiber. Besides, the noise reduction capability of SFP material is between that of asphalt mixture and cement concrete. By combining graphite powder and carbon fiber, the electrical conductivity and road performances of SFP are significantly improved. The results provide references for further design and development of SFP with heating healing capacity, noise reduction ability, and electrical conductivity.