The influence of vehicle dynamics on pavement life

Element 1 of the OECD DIVINE international coordinated research programme was an accelerated pavement test undertaken at the Canterbury Accelerated Pavement Testing Indoor Facility (CAPTIF) in Christchurch, New Zealand in which parallel wheel paths on the same pavement were subjected to vehicle loads which were identical statically, but very different dynamically. Throughout the test extensive measurements were conducted on both the pavement and the vehicles. These included pavement material properties, the dynamic wheel forces applied, the longitudinal and transverse pavement profiles, tensile strains in the asphalt layer, vertical strains in the basecourse and subgrade layers, pavement deflections and cracking. In this paper, the changes in these various measured parameters throughout the test are analysed and presented. The correlation of dynamic loading patterns and construction variability with changes in profile, rutting and cracking are investigated. The effect of dynamic loading on the development of pavement distress and ultimately pavement life is estimated.