Development and Validation of Performance Prediction Models and Specifications for Asphalt Binders and Paving Mixes

Book excerpt: A result of the Strategic Highway Research Program's asphalt research is the development of performance-based specifications for asphalt binders and mixtures to control 3 distress modes: rutting; fatigue cracking; and thermal cracking. The SHRP A-005 project developed detailed pavement performance models to support these binder and mixture specifications and performance-based mixture designs. This report documents the findings of this extensive research effort and provides supporting data for the performance-based specifications and mixture design procedure called SUPERPAVE. The A-005 contract developed and used a sophisticated, mechanistic-based pavement performance model to define the relationships between asphalt binder and mixture properties and pavement distress. A comprehensive pavement performance model was developed that predicts the amount of fatigue cracking, thermal cracking and rutting in asphalt concrete pavements with time, using results from the accelerated laboratory tests. The pavement performance models for each distress were also used to confirm the relevant binder and mixture properties established by other SHRP contractors. The model has 3 parts: a mixture evaluation model; a pavement response model; and a pavement distress model.