Field Performance and Design Recommendations for Full Depth Recycling in Texas
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Technical Report Documentation Page 1. Report No. 2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipient’s Catalog No. FHWA/TX-03/4182-1 4. Title and Subtitle 5. Report Date FIELD PERFORMANCE AND DESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS March 2003 FOR FULL DEPTH RECYCLING IN TEXAS 6. Performing Organization Code 7. Author(s) 8. Performing Organization Report No. Tom Scullion, Spencer Guthrie and Stephen Sebesta Report 4182-1 9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS) Texas Transportation Institute The Texas A&M University System 11. Contract or Grant No. College Station, Texas 77843-3135 Project No. 0-4182 12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address 13. Type of Report and Period Covered Texas Department of Transportation Research: Research and Technology Implementation Office September 2000 – August 2002 P. O. Box 5080 14. Sponsoring Agency Code Austin, Texas 78763-5080 15. Supplementary Notes Research performed in cooperation with the Texas Department of Transportation and the U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration. Research Project Title: Full Depth Recycling: Field Performance and Design Guidelines 16. Abstract In the early 1990s several Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) districts started using full depth recycling (FDR) techniques to rehabilitate their roadways. A variety of stabilizers were used including cement, lime, fly ash, and asphalt emulsions. Project 0-4182 was initiated to survey the performance of the initial FDR projects, to document what successes and problems have been identified, and to develop recommendations for those districts wishing to embark on FDR programs. In this project nondestructive testing (NDT) was conducted in six districts with both the falling weight deflectometer (FWD) and ground penetrating radar (GPR); visual condition surveys were completed and discussions were held with district and area office personnel. Although the majority of the pavements surveyed in this study were found to be performing well, several problems were documented. These problems include longitudinal cracking in sections built in East Texas on clay subgrades, bonding problems with primarily fly ash treated bases, and excessive cracking with some cement treated bases. To address each of these problems the TxDOT districts have developed new construction specifications and improved design criteria, which are documented in this report. Environmental factors also appear to play a big role in constructability and performance of emulsions and fly ash treated bases. Their performance has been good in west Texas and the panhandle, but they have not performed well in the high humidity/high rainfall areas of east Texas. The NDT in the project design phase to assist in the pavement design process and the heavy involvement of the district laboratory in selecting and controlling the stabilization process on a project- specific basis appear to be key factors in establishing a successful FDR program. Based on the results presented, consideration should be given to modifying current construction specifications. 17. Key Words 18. Distribution Statement Full Depth Recycling, Cement, Lime, Fly No restrictions. This document is available to the public Ash, Pavements, FWD through NTIS: National Technical Information Service 5285 Port Royal Road Springfield, Virginia 22161 19. Security Classif.(of this report) 20. Security Classif.(of this page) 21. No. of Pages 22. Price Unclassified Unclassified 188 Form DOT F 1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized FIELD PERFORMANCE AND DESIGN RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FULL DEPTH RECYCLING IN TEXAS by Tom Scullion Research Engineer Texas Transportation Institute Spencer Guthrie Graduate Assistant Research Texas Transportation Institute and Stephen Sebesta Assistant Transportation Researcher Texas Transportation Institute Report 4182-1 Project Number 0-4182 Research Project Title: Full Depth Recycling: Field Performance and Design Guidelines Sponsored by the Texas Department of Transportation In Cooperation with the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration March 2003 TEXAS TRANSPORTATION INSTITUTE The Texas A&M University System College Station, Texas 77843-3135 DISCLAIMER The contents of this report reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the data presented herein. The contents do not necessarily reflect the official view or policies of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) or the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation. The engineer in charge was Tom Scullion, P.E., (Texas, #62683). v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS TxDOT staff in many districts provided invaluable support to this project. In particular the authors acknowledge the following individuals: Darlene Goehl of the Bryan District, who was the project initiator and director; Gerald Freytag from Yoakum; Marty Smith from Childress; Stacey Young from Lubbock; Tom Nagel from Amarillo; and Billy Pigg from Waco. Special thanks go to the falling weight operators 5RJHU:HOOVIURP$PDULOOR&DUOWRQ Womack from Dallas, and Tracy House from Austin, who collected data on many miles of Texas highways. Ronald Hatcher, the laboratory supervisor from Childress, is acknowledged for his help in locating project design information and for providing an insight into how the Childress District does project-level testing. Lee Gustavus from Texas Transportation Institute (TTI) helped with all of the ground penetrating radar (GPR) data collection. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Figures ..............................................................................................................................viii List of Tables.................................................................................................................................. xi Chapter 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 2. Survey of District Experience......................................................................................5 Survey Responses................................................................................................................ 5 Summary of Findings from Survey Responses................................................................. 15 Chapter 3. District Field Performance Studies........................................................................... 17 Bryan District.................................................................................................................... 17 Lubbock District................................................................................................................ 26 Childress District............................................................................................................... 37 Amarillo District............................................................................................................... 47 Yoakum District................................................................................................................ 53 Waco District..................................................................................................................... 63 Chapter 4. Recommendations on Selecting Stabilizer Types ...................................................... 75 Overall Approach .............................................................................................................. 75 Selection Criteria............................................................................................................... 75 New Laboratory Design Approach for Level 3 Designs................................................... 78 Cored Specimens vs. Lab Specimens................................................................................ 81 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 82 Chapter 5. Conclusions and Recommendations........................................................................... 83 Conclusions ....................................................................................................................... 83 Future Work ...................................................................................................................... 89 References ..................................................................................................................................... 93 Appendix A Childress District’s Full Depth Recycled Sections ................................................. 95 Appendix B Amarillo District’s Full Depth Recycled Projects ................................................. 145 vii LIST OF FIGURES Figure Page 1. FDR on US 290 in the Bryan District ................................................................................. 1 2. Projects Completed in Last Five Years............................................................................... 6 3. Performance Problems ........................................................................................................ 7 4. Factors for Selecting Candidate Sections............................................................................ 8 5. Evaluations of Candidate Sections...................................................................................... 8 6. Types of Stabilizers............................................................................................................