Design of Optimal Perpetual Pavement Structure

Abstract

In this study, combinations of layer, stiffness, and thickness that produce an optimal perpetual pavement are determined for implementation on New Mexico State highways. Using a number of trial designs in the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG), pavement performances are determined and analyzed for a 50-year design life. The required thickness of a perpetual pavement varies from 10 to 15 in. (0.254 to 0.381 m) for moderate to high truck traffic roads. One example is a pavement that has a 3 in. (76.2 mm) surface layer containing a fine asphalt mix and a 7 in. (177.8 mm) intermediate layer that uses a coarse asphalt mix. This perpetual pavement carries up to 180 million equivalent single axle loads (ESALs) over its 50-year design life. Low bottom-up fatigue cracking (