Geogrid-Reinforced Low-Volume Flexible Pavements: Pavement Response and Geogrid Optimal Location

Abstract

This article discusses the geogrid’s potential to reduce granular base shear flow. Researchers have previously acknowledged the geogrid’s potential to enhance the performance of roadways, but this study goes further to (1) investigate the effectiveness of a geogrid when it is used to reinforce low-volume conventional flexible pavements constructed on low-strength subgrade and (2) to specify the optimal location for installing a geogrid in a low-volume pavement system. To quantify the effectiveness of a geogrid in flexible pavements, nine low-volume pavement design sections were constructed at the University of Illinois Advanced Transportation Research and Engineering Laboratory (ATREL). A total of 173 instruments were embedded in the pavement layers during construction to measure pavement responses. The test sections were then loaded using an accelerated loading system, and the pavements’ responses to conventional dual-tire loading were measured. This paper reveals how various pavement designs responded when exposed to the same loading conditions, specifically that the geogrid contribution to enhancing low-volume pavements is through reducing the longitudinal and transverse shear deformation in unbound layers. The study also determined the optimal location for installing geogrid in pavements.