Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297

DOI 10.1007/s10706-008-9241-0

ORIGINAL PAPER

Analysis of Flexible Pavements Reinforced with Geogrids

Hema Siriwardane Æ Raj Gondle Æ Bora Kutuk

Received: 17 January 2008 / Accepted: 12 September 2008 / Published online: 23 October 2008
Ó Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2008

Abstract Effectiveness of glass fiber grids as a Keywords Flexible pavements  Glass grid 
reinforcement of the asphalt layer in a flexible pave- Finite element method  Reinforcement
ment system was investigated. The study involved both
laboratory experimental work and computer analysis Nomenclature
of pavement sections. Twenty flexible pavement t Thickness of asphalt layer
sections (with and without glass fiber grids) were rc Radius of contact surface
constructed and tested in the laboratory as a part of the P Total load on the tire
experimental study. The laboratory-scale pavement pc Tire inflation pressure
sections were instrumented with pressure cells, dis- D Diameter of contact area
placement gages, and strain gages. Test sections were [K] Global stiffness matrix
subjected to 1,000,000 load applications at a frequency {r} Global displacement vector
of 1.2 Hz. Static loading tests were conducted at {R} Global load vector
intervals of 100,000 load applications. In thirteen U Strain energy density
experiments, glass fiber grids were used as reinforce-  Y
X; Body forces in x- and y-directions
ment in the asphalt layer. Several computer analyses of  
Tx ; Ty Surface tractions in x- and y-directions
flexible pavement sections were performed by using S Portion of the body on which the surface
the finite element method (FEM). The laboratory data traction is applied
were compared with results obtained from the com- u, v Nodal displacements in x- and y-directions
puter analyses. Results from this study show that glass e Strain vector
fiber grids can be used to improve the performance of r Stress vector
flexible pavement systems. It was also observed that r0 Initial stress vector
the inclusion of glass fiber grid in the asphalt layer Pi Load acting at node ‘i’
provided resistance to crack propagation. Overall, the [C] Constitutive matrix
flexible pavement sections reinforced with glass fiber {Q} Element load vector
grids showed better performance under laboratory test {q} Element displacement vector
conditions.

H. Siriwardane (&)  R. Gondle  B. Kutuk
Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering,
West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
e-mail: Hema.Siriwardane@mail.wvu.edu
1 Introduction
Flexible pavements have been frequently used to
construct highways and roads in the United States,

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and many existing pavements have been treated with
bituminous or asphalt materials (Asphalt Institute
1989). Due to excessive traffic loads, many existing
pavements have already reached the end of their
service life. As a result, surface treatment methods
and the use of new pavement reinforcement materials
have been explored to improve the performance and
service life of flexible pavements. Asphalt overlays
have been used to improve the performance of
deteriorating pavements in the past. The application
of geosynthetic materials in highway repair work has
become popular in recent years due to their high
strength, durability, and ability to relieve stresses by
reinforcing the pavements (Barksdale 1991; Koerner
1994; Kwon et al. 2005). Several research studies on
the use of geosynthetic or steel reinforcements for
improving pavement performance have been reported
in the literature (Baek and Al-Qadi 2006; Cleveland
et al. 2003; Kwon et al. 2005; Perkins and Cuelho
2007; Shuler and Hermelink 2004).
In the past, various types of geosynthetic materials
like geotextiles and geogrids have been used to
improve the pavement performance, which provided
some reinforcing benefits. Previous studies (Lytton
1989; Barksdale 1991; Cleveland et al. 2003; Kwon
et al. 2005) have shown that geotextiles provided less
resistance against lateral movements than that pro-
vided by glass fiber grids. The stiffness of the fabric
material reinforcing the hot mix asphalt (HMA) layer
needs to be greater than that of the surrounding HMA
(Lytton 1989; Barksdale 1991). High tensile strength
and elastic stiffness of glass fiber grids have made them
an attractive choice for reinforcing pavement systems.
There is limited published information available on
glass fiber grid reinforcement inside the hot mix
asphalt in a pavement system (Button and Lytton
1987). Designing a flexible pavement reinforced with
glass fiber grid and evaluating the effectiveness of
reinforced pavement performance is a complex prob-
lem requiring considerable research and study. This
paper presents the results of an investigation on the
effectiveness of glass fiber grids as a reinforcement of
the HMA layer in a flexible pavement system.
The major objective of this research was to
determine the influence of glass fiber grids as
reinforcement within the asphalt layer on the perfor-
mance of a pavement section. Influence of the glass
grid reinforcement in 76 and 152 mm thick asphalt
sections was investigated in the laboratory. Three
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Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297
different types of glass grids were considered. The
study involved both laboratory experimental work
and computer analyses of pavement sections.
2 Experimental Work
As a part of the experimental work, twenty flexible
pavement sections, with and without glass fiber grids
were constructed and tested in the laboratory. The
pavement sections were built in a rectangular container
with dimensions of 1.2 m 9 1.8 m 9 0.8 m. The cross-
section of a typical pavement section is shown in Fig. 1.
The laboratory pavement sections were instrumented
with pressure cells, dial gages and strain gages.
Pavements must be designed adequately to carry
traffic loads over the lifetime of the system. Usually,
the design thicknesses are based on the estimated
number of load applications over the life-span. In this
study, test sections were subjected to 1,000,000 load
applications at a frequency of 1.2 Hz to simulate
traffic with a single axle load of 80 kN. A circular
loading plate was used to apply the wheel load on the
laboratory pavement sections. The following equa-
tions were used to determine the dimensions of the
loading plate to simulate the effects of a wheel load
(Yoder and Witczak 1975):
sffiffiffiffiffiffiffi
P
rc ¼ ð1Þ
pc p
D ¼ 2rc ð2Þ
where rc is the radius of contact surface, P is the total
load on the tire, pc is the tire inflation pressure and D
Loading Plate
Dial gage
Geogrid
Asphalt
Layer
Gravel
Subgrade
Pressure
Cell
Fig. 1 Cross-section of a pavement reinforced with glass fiber
grid
Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297 289

is the diameter of contact surface. In this study, the Wheel Load

thickness of the loading plate was 25 mm and the Loading Plate
152 mm
Dial Gauge
diameter of the loading plate was 305 mm.
Laboratory test section consisted of hot mix HMA
t
asphalt (HMA), granular base, subgrade soil and a Glass Grid
glass fiber grid as shown in Fig. 1. A geotextile was 216 mm Gravel
used between the gravel base and the subgrade soil in Geosynthetic
all of the experiments. In this study, a layer of hot
Pressure Cell
mix asphalt was used as the base layer as shown in
Fig. 1. The maximum size of the aggregate in the mix Subgrade

was 25 mm and the fines-to-asphalt ratio for asphalt

152 mm
base was 1.0.
Unit weight of the granular material was found to (a) without simulated crack
be 17.7 kN/m3. The soil subgrade chosen for this Wheel Load
study was classified as A-4, according to AASHTO Loading Plate
152 mm
soil classification system. The soil had a Liquid Limit Dial Gauge Simulated Crack
(LL) of 22.75 and a Plasticity Index (PI) of 8.57. A HMA
laboratory CBR (California Bearing Ratio) value was t
Glass Grid
determined as 8% for the soil subgrade. The soil was Gravel
216 mm
compacted to an average unit weight of 20.6 kN/m3.
Geosynthetic
Glass grids used in this study were considered to
have good bonding characteristics with the asphalt Pressure Cell
due to their adhesive properties. Reinforcement using Subgrade
glass grids in the pavement section is expected to
perform better than other polymeric fibers because of 152 mm
its excellent bonding properties with asphalt and also (b) with simulated crack
due to low creep properties. Three different types of
Fig. 2 Experimental outline for pavement section (a) without
glass fiber grids (A, B and C) were used in the study.
simulated crack and (b) with simulated crack
Glass grid A represents the lightest grid while glass
fiber grid C represents the heaviest glass fiber grid.
Glass grid B has a weight between those of glass grid instrumented with pressure cells, displacement gages,
A and glass grid C. and strain gages. Test sections were subjected to
Loading experiments were conducted with and 1,000,000 load applications at a frequency of 1.2 Hz.
without reinforcement in the asphalt layer. In order to Static loading tests were conducted at intervals of
evaluate the influence of asphalt thickness on the 100,000 load applications. In thirteen experiments,
pavement performance, two different thicknesses the glass fiber grids were used in the asphalt layer.
were considered. Asphalt thickness of 76 mm was More details on the experimental program can be
considered to be the thin asphalt section and the found elsewhere (Kutuk 1998).
asphalt thickness of 152 mm was considered to be the
thick asphalt section in this study. Thin asphalt
sections were compacted in two layers of 38 mm in 3 Experimental Results
thickness, while the thick asphalt sections were
compacted in two layers of 76 mm in thickness. A Vertical subgrade stresses and surface displacements
crack was also simulated by introducing a void in the measured under different experimental conditions are
HMA layer having a thickness of 76 mm as shown in presented below to show the influence of asphalt
the Fig. 2. Twenty flexible pavement sections (with layer thickness and the glass reinforcement on
and without glass fiber grids) were constructed and pavement performance under laboratory conditions.
tested in the laboratory as a part of the experimental Figure 3 shows the influence of different glass grids
study. The laboratory-scale pavement sections were on vertical subgrade stress in a test section with a

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Loading Plate vertical stress in the subgrade is lower in the

pavement section with stronger glass grid for the
HMA second half of the loading history.
Influence of asphalt thickness on the vertical
Gravel Base subgrade stress is shown in Fig. 5. As shown in this
figure, the vertical subgrade stress at cell # 1 for the
thicker non-reinforced asphalt section (t = 152 mm)
is lower than that corresponding to the thinner non-
Pressure Cell # 1 Pressure Cell # 2 reinforced asphalt section (t = 76 mm). Figure 5 also
60 shows that inclusion of reinforcement within the
thinner asphalt section (t = 76 mm) results in a
Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

50 Pressure Cell # 1
40
30
20
10
0
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05
Number of Load Cycles
Fig. 3 Influence of different glass grids on vertical subgrade
stress
152 mm thick HMA layer. As can be seen from this
figure, the measured stresses fluctuate within a
narrow range. These results indicated that the influ-
ence of different glass fiber reinforcement on vertical
subgrade stress was not significant when the thick-
ness of asphalt layer was 152 mm. Figure 4 shows
the variation of vertical subgrade stress in a rein-
forced pavement section for different glass grids in a
doubly reinforced test section. In one case, heavier
glass grid was used as the reinforcement in the HMA
layer. Based on these results, it appears that the
slightly lower vertical stress for most part of the
loading. The glass grid reinforcement appears to
spread the circular load over a larger area in the lower
layers of the pavement section causing a slightly
Experiment # 3 (Grid - A) lower vertical subgrade stress.
Experiment # 2 (Grid - B) Within the experimental parameters considered in
Experiment # 7 (Grid - C)
this study, the vertical subgrade stress appears to be
6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06 more influenced by the thickness of asphalt layer than
the inclusion of reinforcement in the asphalt layer.
The thicker asphalt layer leads to lower vertical
subgrade stress. Reinforcement in the asphalt layer
also causes a slight but insignificant reduction in the
vertical subgrade stress.
Figure 6a shows the vertical subgrade stress for a
thinner reinforced test section (t = 76 mm) with and
without a simulated crack. The vertical subgrade
stress does not seem to be significantly influenced by
the inclusion of a simulated crack. Even though a
slight increase in the vertical stress was observed up
to 450,000 loading cycles as shown in Fig. 6a, the
vertical stress was similar for both cases (with and
without the simulated crack) for the rest of the
loading history.

70 60

60
50
Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

50
40
40
30 Experiment # 12
30 (Without Reinforcement; t = 76 mm)
20 Average Values of Experiments # 11 and # 17
20 Experiment # 8 (Grid C in HMA; Grid C between
(With Reinforcement; t =76 mm)
Gravel Base and HMA)
10 10 Experiment # 4
Experiment # 9 (Grid A in HMA; Grid C between
Gravel Base and HMA) (Without Reinforcement; t = 152 mm)
0 0
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06 0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06
Number of Load Cycles Number of Load Cycles

Fig. 4 Variation of vertical subgrade stress for different glass Fig. 5 Influence of asphalt thickness and reinforcement on
grids in a doubly reinforced section vertical subgrade stress

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Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297 291

60 crack was higher than that corresponding to the non-

50
reinforced thick asphalt section (t = 152 mm).
Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

Based on the results shown in Fig. 6b, at 1,000,000

40
load cycles approximately 15% reduction in vertical
30 stress for non-reinforced thick asphalt section (Exper-
iment # 4) was possible in comparison to the average
20 Average Values of Experiments # 11 and # 17
(With Reinforcement; t = 76 mm; No Crack) vertical stress of the reinforced thin asphalt sections
10 Average Values of Experiments # 14 and # 15 (Experiments # 14 and # 15) with a simulated crack.
(With Reinforcement; t = 76 mm; Simulated Crack)
0
However, it is noteworthy that the non-reinforced
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06 thick asphalt section (t = 152 mm) exhibited higher
Number of Load Cycles displacements as discussed in a subsequent section.
(a) Influence of crack on vertical subgrade stress in Moreover, there were visual signs of severe rutting
reinforced test sections which may indicate failure in the non-reinforced
70 thick asphalt section (t = 152 mm). In other words,
60
the thin reinforced sections (with or without a
simulated crack) show higher vertical stress levels
Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

50
40
30
20
Experiment # 14 (Grid A; Simulated Crack; t = 76 mm)
Experiment # 15 (Grid A; Simulated Crack; t = 76 mm)
10 Average Values of Experiments # 14 and 15
Experiment # 4 (Without Reinforcement; t = 152 mm)
0 The cumulative displacements decreased with the
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05
Number of Load Cycles
(b) Comparison of a non-reinforced thick asphalt
section and a reinforced thin asphalt section with a
simulated crack
Fig. 6 Vertical stresses in reinforced and non-reinforced
pavement sections. (a) Influence of crack on vertical subgrade
stress in reinforced test sections. (b) Comparison of a non-
reinforced thick asphalt section and a reinforced thin asphalt
section with a simulated crack
Figure 6b shows a comparison of vertical subgrade
stress for a non-reinforced thick asphalt section
(Experiment # 4; t = 152 mm) with a reinforced
at cell # 1, but the displacements are higher in the
non-reinforced thick pavement section as shown later
in this paper.
Figure 7 shows the cumulative displacements for
reinforced and non-reinforced thick asphalt sections
where the thickness of the HMA layer was 152 mm.
1.E+06
inclusion of reinforcement within the asphalt layer.
An improvement of approximately 40% was
observed when the HMA layer was reinforced with
glass grid A. For thicker pavement sections, dis-
placements with lighter glass grids result in slightly
larger surface deformations in comparison to test
sections with heavier glass grids.
For the larger thickness (t = 152 mm), doubly
reinforced pavement sections improved the pavement
performance in comparison to a singly reinforced
pavement section as shown in Fig. 8. In general, glass
14
Cumulative Displacements (mm)

Without Reinforcement
12
thin asphalt section (Experiments # 14 and # 15; With Reinforcement (Glass grid A in HMA)
With Reinforcement (Glass Grid B in HMA)
t = 76 mm) that included a simulated crack. Results 10 With Reinforcement (Glass Grid C in HMA)

from Fig. 6b show that the vertical subgrade stress at 8

cell # 1 for a non-reinforced thick asphalt section
6
(t = 152 mm) was almost steady throughout the
4
loading history. The Experiment # 15 is a duplicate
of Experiment # 14 that corresponds to a thinner 2

reinforced asphalt section (t = 76 mm) with a sim- 0

ulated crack. The average of the stress for 0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06

Experiments # 14 and # 15 is shown in Fig. 6b. Number of Load Cycles

The average vertical stress corresponding to the thin Fig. 7 Cumulative Displacements for reinforced and non-
reinforced section (t = 76 mm) with a simulated reinforced thick asphalt sections

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14 14
Cumulative Displacements (mm)

Cumulative Displacements (mm)

Without Reinforcement Experiment # 4 (Without Reinforcement; t = 152 mm)
12 Singly Reinforced (Grid A in HMA) 12 Experiment # 14 (Glass Grid A in HMA; Simulated Crack; t = 76 mm)
Doubly Reinforced (Grid A in HMA; Grid C between Gravel Base and HMA) Experiment # 15 (Glass Grid A in HMA; Simulated Crack; t = 76 mm)
10 Doubly Reinforced (Grid C in HMA; Grid C between Gravel Base and HMA) 10 Average Values of Experiments # 14 and # 15

8
8
6
6
4
4
2
2
0
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06 0
Number of Load Cycles 0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06
Number of Load Cycles
Fig. 8 Influence of reinforcement on cumulative displace-
ments for a thick asphalt section Fig. 10 Performance of a non-reinforced thick asphalt section
and a thin reinforced asphalt section with a simulated crack
grid reinforcements reduced the cumulative displace-
ments in pavement sections tested in the laboratory.
thick non-reinforced section and a thin reinforced
This substantial decrease in the cumulative displace-
pavement section with a simulated crack. Even
ments illustrate that an improvement can be gained
though the non-reinforced thicker asphalt layer
by doubly reinforcing the pavement section by adding
causes lower subgrade stress than that corresponding
glass fiber grid between the gravel base and the hot
to thinner reinforced asphalt layer (Fig. 6b), the
mix asphalt in addition to the one inside the HMA.
measured displacements (Figs. 9 and 10) indicate
Approximately 60% improvement was observed in
that the thinner reinforced asphalt section performs
doubly reinforced test section in comparison to non-
slightly better than the non-reinforced thicker
reinforced test section in terms of cumulative
asphalt section.
displacements.
In a few experiments, failure (as indicated by large
Figure 9 shows the comparison of cumulative
displacements) was observed in non-reinforced pave-
displacements for a non-reinforced thick asphalt
ment sections with a simulated crack. Moreover,
section and a reinforced thin asphalt section. Mea-
there were visual signs of severe rutting which may
sured displacements show that the reinforced thin
indicate failure. However, no failures were observed
asphalt section performed better than the non-rein-
in any of the reinforced test sections with or without a
forced thick asphalt section.
simulated crack. Reinforcement in the HMA layer
Figure 10 shows the variation in cumulative
helps in reducing the crack propagation leading to
displacements with number of load cycles for a
failure.
Static loading tests were conducted at intervals of
12
100,000 load applications. For thicker pavement
sections, displacements with lighter glass grids result
Cumulative Displacements (mm)

Without Reinforcement; t = 152 mm

10 With Reinforcement (Glass Grid A in HMA); t = 76 mm in slightly larger surface deformations in comparison
8
to test sections with heavier glass grids. For the thin
pavement sections, surface deformations for the
6 reinforced test sections were slightly higher than that
4
of the non-reinforced test sections. This small differ-
ence was insignificant and may be caused by the
2
difference in the compaction effort. Even though this
0 difference was insignificant, observations have shown
0.E+00 2.E+05 4.E+05 6.E+05 8.E+05 1.E+06 that under static loading, non-reinforced pavement
Number of Load Cycles
sections with a simulated crack resulted in slightly
Fig. 9 Influence of reinforcement on cumulative displace- larger surface deformations than that of a non-
ments for a thin asphalt section reinforced pavement sections without any crack.

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Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297 293

Also, it was observed experimentally that the ZZZ ZZZ

surface deformations for reinforced thin asphalt pp ¼ Uðu; vÞdV   þ YvÞdV
ðXu 
pavement sections (t = 76 mm) were smaller than R R
the surface deformations for non-reinforced thick ZZZ X
asphalt pavement sections (t = 152 mm) (see Figs. 9  ðTx u þ Ty vÞdS  ðPix ui þ Piy vi Þ ð3Þ
and 10). Even though there is a cost for the S1
reinforcement, a thin reinforced pavement section
where U(u,v) = strain energy density = (1/2)er, X
may be more cost effective than a thick non-
and Y are the body forces, Tx and Ty are surface
reinforced section. This is especially the case when
tractions or surface loading per unit area, S represents
it becomes necessary to stop crack propagation
the portion of the body on which the surface traction
through the asphalt layer.
is applied, u and v represent the nodal displacements,
e represents strain, r represents stress, and Pi denotes
the load acting at node ‘i’.
4 Computer Analysis
Equilibrium equations derived by minimizing the
potential energy functional, pp can be expressed as:
A number of methods have been used in the past for
the load-deformation analysis of pavements (Huang ½Kfqg ¼ fQg ð4Þ
1993). These methods include analytical methods
where
and numerical methods such as KENLAYER (Hu-
ang 1993) and the finite element methods (FEM). ½K ¼ Element
ZZZ stiffness matrix
KENLAYER (Huang 1993) computer program did
¼ fBgT ½CfBgdv;
not have a capability of including geosynthetic
V
material in the layered system. Details of the
methods of analysis can be found elsewhere in the [C] = Constitutive matrix (Desai and Siriwardane
literature. In this study, several computer analyses 1984)
were performed to analyze non-reinforced and
fQg ¼ Element
ZZZ load vectorZZZ
reinforced flexible pavements by using the FEM.
Glass grid was considered as a linear elastic material ¼ ½NT fXgdv
 þ ½NT fTgdS

since it has very low creep characteristics. The VZZZ S
results obtained from the computer analyses were  T
½B fro gdv þ fPg
compared with laboratory experimental results.
V
These analyses were used in investigating the effect
of glass fiber grid inside the asphalt layer on and {q} = displacement vector.
pavement response. Finite element method is a The global governing equations can be obtained by
powerful tool for solving complex problems like combining element stiffness as described elsewhere
reinforced flexible pavements. In the present (Cook et al. 2003). The system of equations becomes
research work, a well-known commercially available non-linear due to complex behavior at material
finite element package ‘ABAQUS’ was chosen to interfaces. In this study, the geosynthetic-asphalt
analyze non-reinforced and reinforced flexible pave- interface was modeled by using contact elements at
ments (ABAQUS 2006). Two-dimensional and the interface. The mathematical treatment of the
three-dimensional linear elastic analyses were per- contact elements is complicated and can be found
formed on non-reinforced and reinforced pavement elsewhere. When one component comes in contact
sections. Mathematical details of the finite element with another component in the pavement system, an
method can be found elsewhere (Cook et al. 2003) interface between the two components is formed.
and only a summary is included here due to space Shear and normal forces are generated between two
limitations. surfaces across their interface when they come in
By using the energy principles, the general contact. The nodal points in one contact surface
expression for potential energy can be expressed as (‘‘master surface’’) are constrained in their move-
follows (Cook et al. 2003): ments so that the master surface does not penetrate

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into the second surface. These constrains make the

system of equations highly non-linear. While nodal
inter-penetration is constrained, there can be relative
sliding at the interface according to pre-defined
frictional characteristics. The relationship between
the shear and normal stresses across the interface is
expressed in terms of friction developed between the
two contacting surfaces. The coefficient of friction
primarily depends on the slip rate and contact
pressure between the contacting bodies. The contact-
ing bodies are free to slide over one another when no
Fig. 11 Finite element mesh for laboratory pavement section
shear forces are developed at the interface i.e., at
coefficient of friction equal to zero. In this study,
interfaces were assumed to have friction. The
frictional properties at the interface can be changed
to simulate actual conditions.
Results obtained from these finite element analy-
ses were compared to the results obtained from
laboratory experimental work. Both three-dimen-
sional and axi-symmetric finite element analyses
were performed. Three dimensional finite element
analyses for the reinforced and non-reinforced pave-
ment sections were carried out using ABAQUS Fig. 12 Vertical stress distribution for reinforced pavement
(ABAQUS 2006). All the layers except the glass sections
grid were modeled by using three-dimensional
deformable solid homogeneous elements. Glass grid
was modeled by using membrane elements. Table 1 Figure 12 shows the vertical stress distribution for
shows the material properties used in the finite a thin reinforced pavement section (t = 76 mm).
element analyses. Thickness of the asphalt layer was Observations show that the inclusion of a reinforce-
assumed to be 76 mm. Thickness of the glass grid ment layer spreads the circular load (wheel load) over
was assumed to be 2.5 mm. Four-noded quadrilateral a larger area in the lower layers of the pavement
membrane elements were used to mesh the glass grid. section slightly reducing vertical stresses. However,
Eight-noded linear brick elements were used to mesh this reduction is insignificant for the material prop-
all the other layers in the test set-up. Figure 11 shows erties used in the analysis.
the finite element mesh used in the analysis of the Figures 13 and 14 show the vertical deformations
pavement section. Sides of the box and the bottom of in the pavements sections for non-reinforced and
the box were constrained and a tire pressure of reinforced thin pavement sections (t = 76 mm),
551 kN/m2 was applied on the surface of the circular respectively. In this analysis, relative slip was not
loading plate. In some cases, frictional properties allowed between the HMA and the reinforcement
were assigned at the interface between the loading layer. Finite element results do not show a significant
plate and the HMA layer. influence of the reinforcement on vertical stresses and
displacements in thin asphalt sections. The computed
Table 1 Material properties used in the finite element analysis displacements under the loading show that the
Layer Elastic modulus, kN/m2 Poisson’s Ratio reduction in vertical displacement due to reinforce-
ment was about 1%, which is insignificant. This
HMA 1,860,300 0.35
indicates that the stiffness of the pavement section
Gravel 316,940 0.30
did not change significantly due to the reinforcement
Subgrade 41,340 0.30
used in the study. This could be due to the small
Glass grid 28,972,450 0.30
thickness of the reinforcement.

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Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297
Fig. 13 Vertical deformations in a non-reinforced thin pave-
ment section. (a) Top surface. (b) Gravel surface. (c) Subgrade
surface
The modeling method presented in this paper can
be used to study the influence of any type of
reinforcement such as geogrids and geotextiles that
are embedded in pavement sections. Moreover, the
influence of interface properties on the pavement
performance can be evaluated by using this model-
ing methodology with the use of contact/interface
elements employed in the present study.
In some cases, glass fiber grid was allowed to slip
within the asphalt layer. This was accomplished by
assigning proper properties for the interface between
the reinforcement grid and the HMA layer. Figure 15
shows the deformed shape of the glass fiber grid on
an exaggerated scale. The reinforcement grid under-
goes deformations that depend on the interface
properties at the grid-HMA interface. The interface
properties can have a significant influence on the
pavement performance. This study shows that such
complex behavior can be modeled by using contact
elements and the reinforcement layer can be modeled
with membrane elements.
295
Fig. 14 Vertical deformations in a reinforced thin pavement
section with no slip. (a) Top surface. (b) Geogrid surface.
(c) Gravel surface. (d) Subgrade surface
Three-dimensional analysis with contact interfaces
(contact surfaces) can be quite complex and takes a
significant amount of computational effort because of
the interface nonlinearities. Therefore, a two-dimen-
sional analysis was performed to explore its accuracy
in comparison to a fully three-dimensional analysis.
All the layers except the glass grid were modeled by
using two-dimensional deformable elements. Fig-
ure 16 represents the finite element mesh used for the
axi-symmetric case.
Figure 17 shows the vertical stress distribution
obtained from various computer analyses. As can be
seen from this figure, the vertical stress distribution
obtained from all these methods seems to be similar.
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296 Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297

160
Measured Stress # 1 at 500000 cycles (Experiment # 3)
140 Measured Stress # 1 at 500000 cycles (Experiment # 5)

Vertical Stress (kN/m2)

Predicted Stress # 1(Upper Bound)
120
Predicted Stress # 1 (Lower Bound)
100

80

60

40

20

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Applied Load (kN)

Fig. 18 Comparison of measured and predicted vertical

stresses in a thick asphalt section with reinforcement

Table 2 Assumed lower and upper bound values of elastic

modulus

Fig. 15 Deformed shape of the glass fiber grid within the Material Lower bound value Upper bound value
asphalt layer. (a) Undeformed glass fiber grid. (b) Deformed (kN/m2) (kN/m2)
glass fiber grid with no slip
Gravel 223,236 413,400
Subgrade 20,670 82,680
CL GLASS
Circular Loading Plate
0.000 GRID
HMA
0.076 0.076 m Therefore, it can be stated that a two-dimensional
analysis can be used to compute stress distribution in
Vertical Depth (m)

GRAVEL
BASE
0.216 m
a reinforced pavement section subjected to a single
0.292 load with reasonably good accuracy.
Figure 18 shows a comparison of experimentally
SUBGRADE
0.254 m
measured vertical stress with those obtained from the
KENLAYER program (Huang 1993), which is based
0.546
0 0.152 0.304 0.609 on the theory of elasticity. More details of this
Radial Distance (m) analysis can be found elsewhere (Kutuk 1998). While
keeping the material properties of glass grid and the
Fig. 16 Finite element mesh for axi-symmetric case
HMA unchanged, the material properties of the
gravel base and the subgrade were varied between a
lower bound and an upper bound values which are
0
shown in Table 2. The comparison between the
0.1
AXISYMMETRIC measured stresses and the computed values can be
3D FEA considered as reasonable.
Vertical Depth (m)

0.2

0.3
5 Discussion and Conclusions
0.4

Because of the need to extend pavement service life,

0.5
use of pavement reinforcements has received
0.6 increased attention during the last few decades.
0 100 200 300 400 500 600
Experimental and computational studies were per-
Vertical Stress (kN/m2)
formed to investigate the influence of synthetic
Fig. 17 Variation of vertical stress with depth grids in the hot mix asphalt (HMA) layer on the

123
Geotech Geol Eng (2010) 28:287–297
performance of pavements. Experiments were con-
ducted in a container in the laboratory. Numerical
modeling analyses were performed by using both
two-dimensional and three-dimensional finite ele-
ment models of the experimental setup.
The thicker asphalt layer leads to lower vertical
subgrade stress. Reinforcement in the asphalt layer
also causes a slight but insignificant reduction in the
vertical subgrade stress. Inclusion of a reinforcement
layer spreads the circular load over a larger area in
the lower layers of the pavement section slightly
reducing vertical stresses. Even though a non-rein-
forced thicker asphalt layer causes lower subgrade
stress than that corresponding to a thinner reinforced
asphalt layer, the measured displacements indicate
that the thinner reinforced asphalt section performs
better than the non-reinforced thicker asphalt section.
The computed vertical stresses from the finite
element analysis compare reasonably well with the
measured values at selected locations. In the three-
dimensional finite element analysis, the reinforcing
material was modeled as a membrane. The interface
properties between the reinforcing material and the
HMA layer have an influence on the computed
displacements and the stress distribution in the
pavement section. More computational modeling
work needs to be performed to study the influence
of interface properties and the influence of material
degradation (damage) due to repeated loading on the
pavement performance.
Acknowledgements The paper contains results from a
research project funded by the West Virginia Department of
transportation (WVDOT), Division of Highways through a
research contract to West Virginia University. The authors
acknowledge the support provided by WVDOT.
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