Bituminous Material and Pavement Design

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF ARTS, ENVIRONMENT & TECHNOLOGY
Highway Engineering A
BITUMINOUS MATERIAL
Native asphalts, have been utilised since 3500 B.C. in buildings and road construction. Their main
uses have been as an adhesive, waterproofing agents and mortars. Native asphalts occur when
petroleum rises to the earths crust and the volatile oil evaporates, leaving pools or lakes. The best
known of these is the Trinidad Lake deposits, which were used extensively for road-making in the
UK in the 50s and 60s.
In 1869 the first flexible pavement was built in London using tar mixed with aggregate, which
became known as Tar Macadam after its inventor. Tar is produced during the carbonisation of coal
in the production of coke. Two types are produced depending on the temperature of the process.
High temperature tars are produced during the manufacture of coke for the iron and steel industry
(about 1000C) and low temperature tars are produced during the production of smokeless fuel
(about 700C). Tars are categorised by their viscosity using the standard tar viscometer.
Tars are more temperature susceptible than bitumen and mixes using tar will be softer at higher
temperatures and stiffer at lower temperatures than mixes using equivalent bitumen grades. A
major advantage of tar is that it is less susceptible to softening by oil based products such as diesel
or petrol and can thus be used successfully on service areas, lorry parks and airfield taxiways where
fuel spillage would cause damage to bitumen based products.
With the invention of the automobile the petroleum industry developed, a bi-product of which was
bitumen. This material generally replaced native asphalt and tar as the material of choice for
flexible pavement construction.

PETROLEUM BITUMEN
Petroleum bitumen is a hydrocarbon binder which is
characterised by being:
Black or very dark brown
Sticky
Thermoplastic
It has good adhesion, waterproofing and weatherproofing
properties, which means that it finds extensive uses in
construction generally and in the manufacture of paving mixes
specifically. A key property of bitumen is its viscosity.
Viscosity is the resistance to flow and the viscosity of binders
decreases as the temperature increases.

PETROLEUM BITUMEN
Petroleum bitumen is
obtained during the
separation of crude oil by
fractional distillation.
The resulting bitumen is
modified during
production to give a
range of properties for
use in construction.

PENETRATION GRADE BITUMEN
Penetration grade bitumens are relatively stiff and are graded
by their penetration as determined by the penetration test.
This test involves a standard load (100g) being applied for a
standard time (5secs) to a needle which penetrates a bitumen
sample at a standard temperature (25oC).
The penetration is measured in tenths of a millimetre and the
smaller the penetration figure, the stiffer the bitumen. Thus,
25 pen bitumen is stiffer and more viscous than a 50 pen
bitumen. Penetration grade bitumen can be modified by the
use of additives such as polymers which can, for example,
increase adhesion or stiffness of the bitumen.

PENETRATION GRADE BITUMEN

CUTBACK BITUMEN
Cutback bitumens are penetration grade bitumens which are
blended with lower viscosity oils thus making the bitumen less
viscous. Bituminous mixtures containing cutback bitumens
can be used at lower temperatures and are more workable
over longer periods of time.
Curing of cutback bitumen occurs when the cutting agent
evaporates, leaving the bitumen behind. By changing the
cutting agent, the rate of curing can be altered. This is
illustrated in Rate
the following
table.Cutting Agent
of Curing
Slow
Diesel or Creosote
Medium
Kerosene
Fast
Gasolene

CUTBACK BITUMEN
The viscosity of cutback bitumen is measured using the
standard tar viscometer where, under standard temperature
conditions, the time is measured in seconds for 50ml of
bitumen to flow through a standard orifice. A cutback bitumen
of 200 secs viscosity is stiffer than one with a viscosity of 100
secs.
f crude oil by fractional distillation. The resulting bitumen is modified during production to give a range of properties for use in constructio

BITUMEN EMULSIONS
An alternative to the use of cutback bitumen is to use penetration
grade bitumen in the form of an emulsion. All emulsions are
dispersions of one liquid into another. The particles within a
dispersed liquid are extremely small, mostly only a few microns in
diameter, and are prevented from joining together by the
presence of a third substance known as the emulsifier. Bitumen
emulsions are normally of the oil-in-water type in which the oil or
bitumen phase constitutes between 30% and 80% by mass.
These bitumen emulsions are generally fluid when used either

cold or at relatively low temperatures. After application, the water
is lost and a continuous film of bitumen is deposited on the
pavement or stone. This action is known as breaking or setting.

BITUMEN EMULSIONS
Emulsifiers concentrate at the surface of the bitumen particles as
their molecules have two parts, one of which is attracted to water,
the other to bitumen. These emulsifiers carry an electrical charge.
If the charge is +ve, the emulsifier is cationic and the resulting
emulsion is anionic, since it results in electro-positively charged
bitumen particles.
If the charge is -ve, the emulsion is cationic, with negatively
charged bitumen particles.
Since the stone surface can also carry an electrical charge, the
type of emulsifier used can have a significant effect on the
behaviour of the emulsion in contact with stone.

BITUMEN MIXES
Typical Cross Section

BITUMEN MIXES
Bituminous mixtures are generally employed in the base, binder course and
surface course. These layers are a carefully proportioned mixture of aggregate,
bitumen and mineral filler, which is mixed together at temperature and laid on
the road in its hot state. The requirements of a bituminous mixture are:
Stiffness - to ensure that loads are spread through the pavement construction
to the underlying sub-base and sub-grade
Fatigue resistance - to prevent cracks occurring
Stability - to resist the deformation caused by the loads
Durability - to resist the effects of the weather
Workability - to ensure that the material can be laid and compacted correctly.

BITUMEN MIX BATCHING PLANT

BITUMEN MIXES
In the UK, two basic bituminous mixtures are used, these
being:
coated macadam
rolled asphalt
Both macadams and asphalts are produced in a variety of

forms depending on where the material will be used within the
pavement construction and the predicted traffic load. As a
very general statement, rolled asphalts are used mainly as
surface courses and macadams are used for the lower layers,
especially the base. There are many variations to this general
statement and it will not always hold true, especially in very
heavily trafficked situations.

COATED MACADAM
BS 4987 Specification for Coated Macadam for Roads and other
Paved Areas.
Binder courses and base materials are usually dense Macadams

consisting of a continuously graded aggregate mixed with binder.
The strength of the mix is derived partly from the interlock of the
aggregate particles and partly from the adhesion of the binder.
These dense Macadams will typically use a 100 pen binder.
BS 4987 contains specifications for a range of coated macadams

for pavement and footway construction. Details of delivery
temperatures, rolling temperatures and requirements for the laid
material are also included.

ROLLED ASPHALT
BS 594 Specification for Rolled Asphalt for Roads and other Paved Areas.
This material is a dense mixture of aggregate, sand, filler and binder. It

is a gap graded material, typically containing 30% of a coarse aggregate
which is held in a mortar of sand, filler and binder. The strength is
derived from the mortar and is highly influenced by the sand, which
comprises a major part of the mortar. Rolled asphalt will normally
contain 50 pen bitumen.
Rolled asphalt for surface courses are categorised into Recipe Mixes and
Design Mixes. The Design Mixes are based on a laboratory mix design
process and take into account the binder requirements of the
aggregates being used. This generally leads to more stable and
economical mixes and Design Mixes are now used extensively for
heavily trafficked rolled asphalt wearing courses.

CONSTRUCTION
Spreading of bituminous mixtures is generally undertaken using a paving
machine. This consists of a tractor unit and a screed unit. The tractor unit
may be pneumatic tyred or crawler track mounted. It supports a hopper
into which the truck dumps the mix and against which the truck wheels
bear as the paver pushes the truck along. The mix is transferred from the
hopper by a slat conveyor through control gates onto the pavement
where it is distributed by screw conveyors over the full width in front of
the screed. The screed unit comprises:
Levelling arms, hinge connected to the tractor unit at one end and
rigidly connected to the screed at the other end.
A screed plate with provision for heating.
A vibrating device (some use tamping devices).
Controls for adjusting thickness, camber and width.
The screed unit has a floating action as it slides along being supported by
the freshly placed mix. The thickness of the spread mix is changed by
adjusting the tilt of the screed plate.

CONSTRUCTION

CONSTRUCTION

CONSTRUCTION
Initial rolling should be started as soon after laying as is possible
and is carried out using steel wheeled rollers only. Vibratory rollers
are usually operated in the static mode for initial passes. On deep
lift work, pneumatic tyred rollers may be used.
Secondary rolling should follow immediately behind initial
rolling. Vibrating steel rollers, static steel rollers or pneumatic
tyred rollers (with tyre pressures between 500kN/m 2 and
600kN/m2) should be employed.
Final rolling is usually undertaken using a pneumatic tyred roller
with tyre pressures of between 600kN/m 2 and 700kN/m2. This
eliminates the roller marks and produces an even finish. The final
rolling must be completed whilst the mix retains some heat.

CONSTRUCTION
Twin Drummed Steel Wheeled Vibrating Roller

CONSTRUCTION
Pneumatic Tyred Roller

CONSTRUCTION
Temperature Control
Temperature control is essential for proper mix workability
during spreading and compaction. For normal bituminous
mixes the following temperatures should apply.

FLEXIBLE PAVEMENT DESIGN
Typical Cross Sections

The major contributor to the strength of a pavement is the base.
The binder course forms an extension to the base in terms of its
strength contribution and also provides the regulating course so
that a constant thickness of surface course can be laid.
For flexible pavements, the thickness of these layers may be

assessed using the following design methods:
Design tables for example, Leeds City Council Street

Design Guide.
Transport and Road Research Laboratory, TRRL Laboratory
Report LR1132, The Structural Design of Bituminous Roads.
DoT Design Manual for Roads and Bridges, Volume 7,
Pavement Design and Maintenance, HD24/94.

LR1132 and HD24/94 have quite different design philosophies, the
fundamental process in each method is:
Determine an initial flow of heavy goods vehicles.
Determine a design life for the pavement.
Determine the growth rate for heavy goods vehicles over the design
life of the pavement.
Determine the equivalent number of standard axles for each heavy
goods vehicle.
Determine a total load carried by the pavement in millions of
standard axles (msa).
From the CBR determine the base thickness or base/capping
thickness.
From the total load to be carried by the pavement determine the
thickness of the bound (upper layers) of the pavement.

For the purposes of this course we will consider the approach
defined by LR1132, which is often employed by Local
Authorities. The method prescribed by the DoT Design Manual
for Roads and Bridges, Volume 7, Pavement Design and
Maintenance will be considered in Highways B.

LEEDS CITY COUNCIL HIGHWAY DESIGN GUIDE
The Design table employed by Leeds City Council is
street types as discussed in Lecture 1b Introduction
summarised below.
based on
and

The range of acceptable surfaces to carriageways specified by
Leeds City Council includes the following:
Hot rolled asphalt (HRA).

Hot or cold applied coloured surfacing (resin system).
Standard surface course materials using a coloured
binder and coloured aggregate or chippings.
Standard 80mm concrete-block paving surface
course.
Tegula or similar approved concrete-block paving
surface course.
Dense bitumen macadam (DBM).

Example designs for the bound pavement layers are detailed
in the table below, which shows the minimum design
thickness for a variety of alternative materials for various
street types. The pavement construction for any street types
or roads not included in the table shall be subject to sitespecific designs.

TRANSPORT AND ROAD RESEARCH LABORATORY,
LR1132
LR1132 is based on observations and measurements of full
scale road experiments over a 20 year period, supplemented
by structural analysis to rationalise and extend the data.
The analysis uses the elastic stiffness modulus of the various
pavement and foundation layers, to calculate the strains
developed within the structure. The strains are related to
pavement life.

TRANSPORT AND ROAD RESEARCH LABORATORY, LR1132
Estimation of Design Traffic
It has been shown that the total number of commercial vehicles, Tn, using the slow
lane over the design life of the road can be expressed in terms of the initial daily
flow, the growth rate and the proportion of vehicles using the slow lane as follows:
Where
Tn = Total number of commercial vehicles using slow lane.
Fo = Average annual daily flow (AADF) at opening
(from traffic survey data).
r = Growth rate for the road (Assume 0.02 unless more detailed information
is available).
n = Design life of the road.
P = Proportion of commercial vehicles using the slow lane
(assume P =1 for single carriageway and
P = 0.970-0.385(10-4)Fm for dual or 3 lane carriageway).

In order to convert this cumulative number of commercial vehicles to
equivalent standard axles, it must be multiplied by the number of
equivalent number of standard axles per commercial vehicle at the midterm of the design life. The factor is calculated from the following formula
which is based on the results of dynamic weighbridge measurements
carried out over a number of years. It gives an estimate of the vehicle
damage factor, D, for any mid-term year t based on the 24hr AADF of
commercial vehicles in that year Fm given that the base year is 1945, i.e.
the year 2010 corresponds to t = 65.
Where
t =
Fm =
D = Damage factor
mid term year counted from 1945
F0 (1+r)0.5n

LR1132
The cumulative traffic, expressed in million standard axles
(msa) used in the attached graph (Fig3) for roads with
bituminous base is given from the following formula.
N (msa) = Tn * D * 10-6

LR1132
Design Thickness

Example
Design a pavement using Transport and Road Research
Laboratory, LR1132, The Structural Design of Bituminous
Roads
Design Parameters
Single carriageway
CBR = 4%
Roadbase is Dense Bitumen Macadam (DBM)
AADF at opening = 740cv/d (assumed each way)
Design life = 20 years
Opening in 2014

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LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ARTS, ENVIRONMENT & TECHNOLOGY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

These bitumen emulsions are generally fluid when used either

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Fatigue resistance - to prevent cracks occurring

Stability - to resist the deformation caused by the loads

Durability - to resist the effects of the weather

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Both macadams and asphalts are produced in a variety of

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Binder courses and base materials are usually dense Macadams

BS 4987 contains specifications for a range of coated macadams

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

This material is a dense mixture of aggregate, sand, filler and binder. It

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

For flexible pavements, the thickness of these layers may be

Design tables for example, Leeds City Council Street

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

Hot rolled asphalt (HRA).

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

LEEDS METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY

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