20/02/2025
Improved moduli back-calculation of the upper layers in asphalt pavements
Dynatest Senior Pavement Engineer, Umberto Pinori and Technical Support Technician, Albert Navarro has in collaboration with Professor, Eyal Levenberg, from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) developed a new solution to increase the quality of the bearing capacity evaluation using a Falling Weight Deflectometer and a Fast Falling Weight Deflectometer.
The study was motivated by the need for improved moduli back-calculation of the upper layers in asphalt pavements.
Senior Pavement Engineer Umberto Pinori
The study was presented at TRB in Washington, 8th of January 2024.
Read the full study!
The full study and the results have now been published in the Journal of Transportation Engineering published by The American Society of Civil Engineers.
Adding an extra geophone!
The improvement was achieved by modifying the Falling Weight Deflectometers design to host an extra geophone at a nontraditional offset of 100mm, i.e., within the loading plate.
Adding an extra geophone at 100 mm from the center of the load, inside the load plate, the deflection basin is collected with more accuracy to improve the back-calculation results.
This new feature will provide significant value for users testing thin top asphalt layers or similar materials.
The result showed that the deflection basin is collected with more accuracy to improve the backcalculation results. In case of thin layer asphalt, assuming a theorystress distribution of 45°, the deflection recorded by the second geophone, placed at 200mm, is not influenced by the first layer.
By introducing the 100mm geophone it is possible to have two geophones recording the influence of the first layer in the pavement deflection, adding key elements to increase the
quality of the back-calculation process.
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