NDT-EVALUATION OF SEASONAL VARIATION OF SUBGRADE RESPONSE IN ASPHALT PAVEMENTS

Several environmental variables affect pavement behavior and performance. These variables include: (i) subgrade moisture content, (ii) temperature, (iii) solar radiation and atmospheric conditions, and (iv) site geological conditions. The first two classes of variables tend to receive primary consideration in many pavement design procedures because temporal variations of these parameters are known to be significant. However, the ability to consider these effects in pavement design has been severely limited primarily due to lack of field data. This paper discusses the effects of moisture and temperature on subgrade structural response of asphalt pavements as evaluated by the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD).