Sawing and Sealing Joints in Bituminous Pavement to Control Cracking

The purpose of this project is to evaluate the ability of placing joints to control random asphalt pavement cracking. Asphalt pavements are subjected to thermal stresses due to extreme low temperatures in the northern climate. Sawing joints into new asphalt pavements at regular intervals may help control the location of thermal cracking in flexible pavements. Sawed joints are easier to fill initiallly and maintain in the future. Early sawing and sealing joints into the pavement controls the infiltration and reduces the stripping of asphalts. The objectives of this study are to: (1) determine the effectiveness of sawing and sealing joints in bituminous paving to control random cracking; (2) determine the optimum spacing of the sawed joints; (3) evaluate the sealant; and (4) evaluate the construction practices used in the sawing and sealing.