MINISTRY OF HIGHER EDUCATIONS

KANDAHAR UNIVERSITY
ENGINEERING FACULTY
CIVIL DEPARTMENT

PAVEMENT DESIG AND ANALYSIS

CHAPTER 5
Flexible Pavement Design

AASHTO METHOD

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 AASHTO Method
History of AASHTO Flexible Pavement Design:

• Based on the results of the extensive AASHO Road Test conducted in

Ottawa, Illinois (late 1950’s).

• 1961 the AASHO Committee on Design first published an interim guide.

• 1972 the guide was revised.

• 1981 the guide was revised again.

• 1986 the guide was revised and expanded.

• 1993 the guide was revised again.

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
History of AASHTO Flexible Pavement Design:

• The design method is based on empirical regression

equations.

• Traffic loading must be converted to ESALs.

• The method does not include the loss of serviceability due

to the environmental effects (roadbed swelling and frost
heave).

• All revisions retained the basic algorithms developed in the

1961 guide
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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
History of AASHTO Flexible Pavement Design:

Expansion of the guide included:

• Incorporation of Reliability
• Resilient Modulus replacement of
the Soil Support Value
• Layer Coefficients based on Resilient
Modulus
• Incorporation of Drainage

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
AASHTO ’93 Flexible Pavement Design Variables:

• Time (Design Life)

• Traffic (Total Design Life ESAL)
• Reliability (“Safety Factor”)
• Serviceability (∆PSI)
• Soil Resilient Modulus (Seasonal Variation)

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Time (Design Life):
• Performance Period:
-Period of time that the initial pavement structure
will last before it requires rehabilitation.
-The period of time which the pavement deteriorates
from the initial serviceability to the terminal
serviceability.
-Designer or Government Agency selects the
duration.

• Analysis Period:
-Time period that competing alternatives are
compared over in a life cycle cost analysis (LCCA).
-Must include the initial pavement service life plus
one rehabilitation (WisDOT uses 50 yrs).
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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Time (Design Life):
• Analysis Period:
-Time period that competing alternatives are
compared over in a life cycle cost analysis (LCCA).
-Must include the initial pavement service life plus
one rehabilitation (WisDOT uses 50 yrs).

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Traffic (Total Design Life ESAL):
• The cumulative expected ESAL.
• The design life or performance period is the cumulative
duration.
Total Design Life ESAL Calculation
m
ESAL = ( p i Fi )(ADT)0 (T)(A)(G)(D)(L)(365)(Y)
i =1

pi: percentage of total repetitions for the ith group

Fi: EALF for the ith load group
(ADT)0: average daily traffic at the start of the design period
T: percentage of trucks in the ADT
A: average number of axles per truck
G: growth factor
D: directional distribution factor
L: lane distribution factor
Y: design period in years
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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…

OR:

In statistics and probability theory, the standard deviation (SD)

(represented by the Greek letter sigma, σ) measures the
amount of variation or dispersion from the average

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Reliability (“Safety Factor”):
ZR = standard normal deviate:

The standard normal table value corresponding to a desired

probability of exceedance level.

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Reliability (“Safety Factor”):
• Incorporates some degree of certainty into the design
process to ensure that the various design alternatives will
last the analysis period.
Reliability Standard Normal
(%) Deviate(ZR)
Recommended
50 0.000
Functional level of reliability
60 -0.253
Classification Urban Rural
70 -0.524
Interstate / Freeways 85-99.9 80-99.9
Principal Arterials 80-99 75-95 75 -0.674
Collectors 80-95 75-95 80 -0.841
Locals 50-80 50-80 85 -1.037
90 -1.282
95 -1.645
Suggested Standard Deviation (S0) = 0.35 98 -2.054
99 -2.327
99.9 -3.090
99.99 -3.750

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 AASHTO Method
Reliability (“Safety Factor”): Cont’d…

So = combined standard error of the traffic prediction and

performance prediction.

• This variable defines how widely the two basic design inputs,
traffic and performance, can vary.

• structural design input values can vary from those initially

chosen and the equation must account for this somehow. The
more these values vary, the higher the value of So.

For instance, traffic may be estimated at 2,000,000 ESALs over

20 years. However, actual traffic may turn out to be 2,500,000
ESALs over 20 years due to unanticipated population growth.

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Serviceability (∆PSI):
• Highways are for the comfort and convenience of the traveling public.
• Comfort is a subjective measure.
• There are physical characteristics of pavements which can be
measured objectively and then related to subjective evaluations.

• ∆PSI=PSIi – PSIt = P0 – Pt

PSIi: initial serviceability Index (immediately after construction)

(~ 4.2 for Flexible and 4.5 for Rigid Pavements)

PSIt: terminal serviceability (lowest acceptable level before

remedial action must be taken) dependent on roadway
classification.
(~ 2.5 for Major Highways and 2.0 for lower traffic Highways.)

PSI = ƒ(traffic, environment)

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 AASHTO Method
Loss of Serviceability: Cont’d…

• The total loss of serviceability can be

computed with the following equation:
▪ PSI = PSITRAFFIC + PSISWELL/FROST HEAVE

where
✓PSI = total loss in serviceability
✓PSITRAFFIC = serviceability loss due to ESALs
✓PSISWELL/FROST HEAVE = serviceability loss due to
swelling and/or frost heave of roadbed soil
• The effects of frost heave and swelling can be
reduced by replacement or treatment of soil.
• PSI is to be used in design equations.
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 AASHTO Method
Loss of Serviceability: Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

Original 1961:

Gt =  (logWt − log  )  = 0.40 + 0.081( L1 + L2 ) 3.23

( SN +1) 5.19 L2 3.23

log  = 5.93 + 9.36 log(SN + 1) − 4.79 log( L1 + L2 ) + 4.33 log L2

where:

Gt = log  ( 4.2 − pt )
( 4.2 −1.5 )
 Using 4.2 as the initial serviceability value

Wt = axle load application at end of time t

pt = serviceability at end of time t
L1 = load on one single axle or a set of tandem axles
L2 = axle code, 1 for single; 2 for tandem axle
SN = structural number of pavement

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

1972 Revision:

4 .2 − p
log( 4.2−1.5t )
log( ESAL) = 9.36 log( SN + 1) − 0.2 + 0.4+ 1094 + log( R1 ) + 0.372( S − 3.0)
( SN +1 )5.19

where:
ESAL = Total Life Flexible ESAL’s
SN = Structural Number
pt = Terminal Serviceability Index
R = Regional Factor
S = Soil Support Value

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

1986 Revision (1993 equation is the same)

4.2 − pt
log( )
logW18 = Z R S 0 + 9.36 log( SN + 1) − 0.20 + 4.2 −1.5
0.4 + 10945.19
+ 2.32 log M R − 8.07
( SN +1)

where:
W18 = Total Life Flexible ESAL’s
ZR = normal deviate for reliability R
S0 = standard deviation
SN = Structural Number
pt = Terminal Serviceability Index
MR = effective roadbed soil resilient modulus

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

1972 Structural Number Equation

SN = a1D1 + a2D2 + a3D3

1986 Structural Number Equation

SN = a1D1 + a2D2m2 + a3D3m3

Where:

ai = layer coefficient for layer i

Di = layer thickness for layer i
mi = drainage coefficient for layer i

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…
1986 Structural Number Equation
SN = a1D1 + a2D2m2 + a3D3m3

SN: is an abstract value that expresses the structural

strength of the overall pavement .

Layer Coefficient: represents the strength of the

material (Characteristics of Materials).

Drainage coefficient: is a value assigned to a

pavement layer that represents its relative loss of
strength due to drainage characteristics and
exposure to moisture saturation.
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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

Actual ESALS Allowable ESALS

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 AASHTO Method
Design Equations: Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Examples: Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…

Soil Resilient Modulus(Seasonal Variation):

• The effective roadbed soil resilient modulus is an
equivalent modulus that would result in the same
damage if seasonal modulus values were actually
used.

uf = 1.18 x 108 MR-2.32

Uf = Relative Damage

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Structural Number (SN):

SN = a1D1 + a2D2m2 + a3D3m3

• Layer Coefficients (ai)
• Drainage Coefficients (mi)
• Minimum Layer Thicknesses (Di)

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Structural Number (SN):

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 AASHTO Method
Layer Coefficients (ai) Cont’d…

Asphalt Surface Course:

a1 = 0.44
Untreated and Stabilized Base Courses:

a2 = 0.249(log E2) – 0.977

Granular Subbase Course:

a3 = 0.227(log E3) – 0.839

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 AASHTO Method
Layer Coefficients (ai) Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Layer Coefficients (ai) Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Layer Coefficients (ai) Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Layer Coefficients (ai) Cont’d…

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Drainage Coefficients (mi):
• The quality of drainage is measured by the
length of time for water to be removed from
bases and subbases and depends primarily on
their permeability.

• The percentage of time during which the

pavement structure is exposed to moisture levels
approaching saturation depends on the average
yearly rainfall and the prevailing drainage
conditions

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Drainage Coefficients (mi)

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Minimum Layer Thicknesses (Di)
Practical Design
Thickness Increments
HMA: ¼”
Base: ½” or 1”

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…
Minimum Layer Thicknesses (Di):
General Procedure:

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 AASHTO Method
Cont’d…

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