STRUCTURAL DESIGN OF AIRPORT ASPHALT PAVEMENTS WITH HIGH GROUNDWATER LEVEL

When airport pavements are constructed on the ground with a high groundwater level, not only subgrade but base course might be submerged. When heavy loads applied repeatedly to the pavement in the submerged condition, much severer damages will be caused. Therefore, the structural design method for airport asphalt pavements under this condition is developed in this study. First, the mechanical properties of both asphalt concrete and soil materials were examined in laboratory tests. Then, the bearing capacities of several experimental pavements under various groundwater conditions were evaluated. Finally, the structural design procedure was developed by the use of the multi-layer linear elastic theory.