HAUL TRUCKS

 Three basic types of trucks are used to haul the asphalt concrete from the plant to the
job site:
 dump trucks
 live bottom trucks
 bottom-dump trucks.

 Dump trucks and live bottom trucks transfer the mix directly into the paver hopper.

 Bottom-dump trucks place a windrow of material upon the pavement ahead of the
paver and can only be used with pavers that have an elevator for lifting the mix from the
-pavement and transferring it to the spreader box of the paver.

 Regardless of the type of truck used, the trucks should be insulated and covered to
reduce heat loss during transportation.

 Before the trucks are loaded, the bed is coated with an approved release agent.

 In the past, heavy fuel oil like kerosene was used for this.
 However, this contaminates the asphalt binder and is no longer permitted.
ASPHALT DISTRIBUTORS
 When applying an asphalt prime, tack, or seal coat, a. spirally designed distributor truck
is utilized.

 It is critical that the asphalt heater and, pump be well maintained.

 All gauges and measuring devices such as that (: pump tachometer, measuring stick,
thermometers, wheel must be properly calibrated.

 Spray bars and nozzles should be clean and set at the proper height above the surface
receiving the application.

 The factors that affect uniform application are

 The asphalt spraying temperature
  The liquid pressure across the spray bar length
 The angle of the spray nozzles
 The nozzle height above the surface
 The distributor speed

 Asphalt distributors have insulated tanks for maintaining asphalt temperature and are
equipped with burners for heating the asphalt to the proper application temperature.

 Either independently powered or PTO-driven discharge pumps are used to maintain

continuous and uniform pressure for the full length of the spray bar.

 The spray bar nozzles must be set at the proper angle, usually 15 to 30° from the
horizontal axis of the spray bar.

 This is so that the individual spray fans do not interfere or intermix with one another.
The height of the nozzle above the surface determines the width of an individual fan, To
ensure the proper lap of the fans, the nozzle (spray bar) height must be set and
maintained.
Windrow Elevators
 The windrow elevator was developed to address transfer and truck queuing effects on
mat quality.

 Elevators can also improve production by eliminating the paver to truck mating. Pavers
with integral windrow pickup elevators are available, but a separate elevator unit
attachable to the front of a regular paver is the most common approach.

 By using an attachment, there is the flexibility of using the paver in both direct load and
windrow situations. The flight system of the elevator continuously lifts the mix into the
hopper from the windrow.
  For efficient operation, the amount of material in one longitudinal foot of windrow
cross section must equal the amount required for one longitudinal foot of mat cross
section.

 Minor quantity variations are accommodated by the surge capacity of the paver hopper.
Conventional windrow machines have limited width and can only handle narrow rows of
material.

Material Transfer Devices

 Some contractors use material transfer devices to improve paving quality.

 A material transfer device can receive multiple truckloads of asphalt mix, remix the
material, and deliver it to the paver hopper.

 Material transfer devices offer several advantages over direct transfer between the
haul truck and the paver. By holding several loads of asphalt concrete, the transfer
device reduces surge loading of the paver.
 This enables the paver to continuously operate while the haul trucks transfer the
asphalt concrete to the transfer device.
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Screed
 The "floating" screed is free to pivot about its pin connections.

 This pin connected two-arm arrangement enables the screed to be self-leveling and
gives it the ability to compensate for irregularities in the underlying surface.

 The paver's ability to level out irregularities is controlled by the tractor's wheelbase
length and by the length of the screed towing arms.

 Greater lengths of these two components mean smooth transitions across irregularities
and therefore a smooth pavement surface.

 However, there are factors that can cause the sensor-regulated screed height to vary:
 The screed angle of attack
 The head of asphalt in front of the screed
 The paver speed