Miners Rule

1. Introduction
Miners Rule (1945) is a cumulative damage concept being used widely to predict fatigue cracking
of a material. The amount of damage is defined by a damage ratio of the predicted load repetition at
each stress or strain level and the allowable load repetition.
D r , i=

N predicted at i stress level

N allowable

The damage of material occurs when the cumulative damage ratio between the predicted and the
allowable load repetitions is equal to 1.
m

Dr , damage =
i=1

N predicted at i stress level

=1
N allowable

2. Allowable Load Repetition of Asphalt and Concrete Pavement

2.1 Asphalt Pavement
The fatigue cracking is related to the tensile strain of the Asphalt pavement. And the
allowable load repetition of Asphalt pavement is defined as described in the following table:
N
1
2

Allowable Load Repetition

E
| )

N f =0.0796 ( t )3.291
N f =0.0 685 ( t )5.671 ( E1 )2.363
6

N f =5 10 ( t )

N f =1.66 10

10

1 4

N f =4.92 10
5
Note: E* is a dynamic modulus

3.0
4.32

( t )
4.76
( t )

Developer
Asphalt Institute
Shell
Thompson, 1987
Powell et al., 1984
Verstraeten et al., 1982

2.2 Concrete Pavement

The fatigue cracking is related to the ratio of stress and the modulus of rupture of concrete
pavement. And the allowable load repetition of concrete pavement is defined as described in the
following table:
N
1

Allowable Load Repetition

+ For 0.55:
Sc

log N f =11.73712.077
Sc

+ For 0.45< < 0.55:

Sc

( )

Developer
PCA (Packard and Tayabji, 1985)

Nf

4.2577

3.268

0.4325
Sc

+ For 0.45
Sc
N f unlimited
2
3
4
5