Due to their high performance, composite
pavements have been used by highway agencies as a cost-effective alternative
for high traffic volume roadways. In the NCDOT PMS, however, a function to
allow engineers to select the composite pavement as the optimal pavement
alternative for a project is lacking. The reason is that, historically,
composite pavements have been classified as conventional asphalt pavements in
North Carolina, even though these two types of pavements probably perform
differently.
This study was conducted to address this issue. Researchers
identified composite pavement sections in the PMS, developed distress models
and performance models for composite roadway families, and determined triggering
distresses and recommended appropriate treatments.
The findings of this study
will help NCDOT engineers to build a new composite pavement maintenance system
that can be added to its PMS. This new system, together with the existing
asphalt and JCP systems, can provide engineers with a wider selection of
pavement types and allow them to recommend appropriate treatments for
maintenance and rehabilitation activities.
