Application of Laser Macrotexture Measurement for Detection of Segregation in Asphalt Pavements

Abstract

Numerous efforts have been made in recent decades to determine segregation in asphalt pavements. The visual inspection method is considered a basic and widely used method to detect segregation. Also, pavement surface texture measurement has frequently been used to determine segregation. The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) has recently developed the Florida Texture Meter (FTM) to measure pavement texture. In this study, the validity of using FTM measurements for the detection of gradation and thermal segregation was investigated. Eleven recently constructed sections with various mix gradations were selected. In each section, 25 segregated and nonsegregated spots were identified by visual inspection, and their textures were measured by FTM. Results were classified using the 2-sigma method based on the visual inspection output. In order to minimize the probability of identifying nonsegregated pavement as segregated, the threshold between segregated and nonsegregated measurements was determined using only nonsegregated measurements. Results indicated that FTM is a promising tool to detect segregated areas.