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  Materials and Construction »

  FDR for Urban/Suburban Street Applications

  Idea Submitted by:

  Mark Maloney

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  City of Shoreview

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Mark Maloney

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  LRRB Research

  Current Minnesota-based research is needed to help practitioners implement full depth reclamation (FDR) as a cost effective rehabilitation strategy for asphalt streets in urban/suburban settings. This research could/should build on the previous work of Pavement Rehab Selection (2008-06) and Basic Asphalt Recycling Manual (BARM). The research should include examination of effects of potential base stabilization agents ...more »

  Current Minnesota-based research is needed to help practitioners implement full depth reclamation (FDR) as a cost effective rehabilitation strategy for asphalt streets in urban/suburban settings. This research could/should build on the previous work of Pavement Rehab Selection (2008-06) and Basic Asphalt Recycling Manual (BARM). The research should include examination of effects of potential base stabilization agents and other considerations important in the context of urban/suburban street environment with curb and gutter, utilities, etc.

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  Submitted by mmaloney 1 day ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  PCC Pavement Thickness Variation Mapping

  Idea Submitted by:

  Luke Johanneck

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  Materials & Road Research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Curt Turgeon

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  MnDOT Research

  It is commonly believed that PCC thickness is one of the most important characteristics for concrete pavements. If thickness is not uniform, locations of thickness deficiency may reduce pavement life, while excessive thickness increases pavement cost without substantial benefits. Currently, PCC thickness information is limited to core measurements taken at approximately 1000 ft spacing. Until recently, there has not been ...more »

  It is commonly believed that PCC thickness is one of the most important characteristics for concrete pavements. If thickness is not uniform, locations of thickness deficiency may reduce pavement life, while excessive thickness increases pavement cost without substantial benefits. Currently, PCC thickness information is limited to core measurements taken at approximately 1000 ft spacing. Until recently, there has not been an efficient way to collect comprehensive and reliable information on concrete thickness variation nondestructively.

  In this study comprehensive thickness variability assessments will be conducted using ultrasonic tomography and 3-D GPR technologies on several existing PCC pavements prior to rehabilitation as well as on several newly constructed PCC pavements and overlays. For existing pavements, the thickness variability will be compared with observed surface distress maps.

  The following questions will be answered:

  1) Is there a correlation between thickness deficiency and the amount of observed distress?

  2) Is there a difference in thickness variability in newly constructed pavements as compared to old pavements?

  3) Are the current thickness QA/QC procedures sufficient?

  The expected benefits of this study are:

  1) If the thickness deficiencies are correlated with distresses, an improved QA/QC protocol will help prolong pavement life. Otherwise, recommendations for decreasing concrete thickness can be justified.

  2) Detailed thickness variation information will provide important feedback to MnDOT contractors allowing them to reduce thickness variation. This will help contractors avoid placing excessive concrete thickness and thus reduce cost and carbon footprint of concrete pavements.

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  Submitted by luke.johanneck 5 days ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Implementing Recycled Unbound Materials during Pvmt Construction

  Idea Submitted by:

  CTS Research Council

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  CTS

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  John Siekmeier

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  MnDOT Implementation

  Existing national, state, and MnDOT policies encourage the responsible use of recycle materials during pavement design and construction. MnDOT led a transportation pooled fund (TPF) project, which was created to resolve uncertainty and facilitate greater acceptance of recycled materials during pavement design and construction. That TPF project “TPF-5(129) Recycled Unbound Materials, Contract No. 89264, Work Order ...more »

  Existing national, state, and MnDOT policies encourage the responsible use of recycle materials during pavement design and construction.

  MnDOT led a transportation pooled fund (TPF) project, which was created to resolve uncertainty and facilitate greater acceptance of recycled materials during pavement design and construction. That TPF project “TPF-5(129) Recycled Unbound Materials, Contract No. 89264, Work Order No. 2” makes the following conclusion. “Recycled asphalt pavement (RAP_ and recycled concrete aggregate (RCA_ pass all necessary standards for being a suitable base course material. They are structurally and mechanically comparable, if not superior, to many natural aggregates. Resilient moduli of RAP and RCA are higher than the natural aggregates used as a control material, hydraulic properties are similar if not superior to that of natural aggregate, and they withstand the extreme effects of climate very similarly as natural aggregate. It is noted, however, that some RAP may be sensitive to temperature change that may lead to rutting. This aspect needs to be considered in design.

  Derek Tompkins, Craig Taylor, Mark Maloney, John Siekmeier, Roger Olson, Mihai Marasteanu, and Mike Sheehan prioritized this ida at the CTS Research Council. Mike or Mark could be a potential LRRB Champion.

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  Submitted by CTS Research Councils 10 days ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Implementing Contractor Quality Mgmt for Earthwork Compaction

  Idea Submitted by:

  CTS Research Council

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  CTS

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  John Siekmeier

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  MnDOT Implementation

  Earthwork is a significant portion of highway pavement construction and plays an important role in pavement performance. The contractor’s quality management program for earthwork compaction needs to include the responsible utilization of intelligent compaction (IC). IC delivers a modern approach to compaction by using rollers equipped with an integrated measurement system, a global position system, an onboard display ...more »

  Earthwork is a significant portion of highway pavement construction and plays an important role in pavement performance. The contractor’s quality management program for earthwork compaction needs to include the responsible utilization of intelligent compaction (IC). IC delivers a modern approach to compaction by using rollers equipped with an integrated measurement system, a global position system, an onboard display and a reporting system. Using IC rollers accelerate project completion and improve the quality of compaction operations resulting in longer lasting pavements and reduced maintenance costs.

  The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has selected the technologies that will be deployed as part of Every Day Counts (EDC) http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/everydaycounts/ EDC focuses on deploying innovations with proven benefits, which range from using IC to achieve higher quality longer lasting roadways to employing 3D modeling technology to increase productivity and efficiency for construction operations. In addition, several national projects, two administered by the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP), a third Transportation Pooled Fund (TPF) project and a fourth Strategic highway Research Program (SHRP2) project were created to resolve uncertainty, facilitate greater acceptance and quantify the benefits greater contractor participation during process control and the use of IC during process control.

  Intelligent Soil Compaction Systems

  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/nchrp_rpt_676.pdf

  Accelerated Implementation of Intelligent Compaction Technology

  http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/pavement/ic/pubs/hif12002.pdf

  Performance Specifications for Rapid Renewal (SHRP 2 R07)

  http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/trbnetprojectdisplay.asp?projectid=2171

  Modulus Based Construction Specification for Compaction of Earthwork

  http://144.171.11.40/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=2908

  Derek Tompkins, Craig Taylor, Mark Maloney, John Siekmeier, Roger Olson, Mihai Marasteanu, and Mike Sheehan prioritized this ida at the CTS Research Council. Mike or Mark could be a potential LRRB Champion.

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  Submitted by CTS Research Councils 10 days ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Bio-Fog Seal Evaluation

  Idea Submitted by:

  Ed Johnson

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  Materials & Road Research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Ed Johnson - MnDOT, Tim Plath - City of Eagan

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  LRRB Research

  Minnesota has successfully used asphalt-based fog seal surface treatments for many years as a preventive maintenance tool for bituminous pavements. In the last few years a number of products have been introduced as alternative surface sealers for streets, highways, shoulders, and recreation trails. It is proposed that a number of “bio”-sealers should be studied in laboratory and field evaluations in order to document ...more »

  Minnesota has successfully used asphalt-based fog seal surface treatments for many years as a preventive maintenance tool for bituminous pavements. In the last few years a number of products have been introduced as alternative surface sealers for streets, highways, shoulders, and recreation trails. It is proposed that a number of “bio”-sealers should be studied in laboratory and field evaluations in order to document their performance and effect on bituminous pavements. Bituminous shoulder sections less than 2 years old would be used for field test sections. The proposed project would seek LRRB funding.

  Field evaluation would include documentation of the installation, application rates, equipment type, location, and sampling of the product. Follow-up field reviews and photos would be used to rate skid resistance, cracking, appearance, emissions, permeability, and cost effectiveness.

  Laboratory work would be performed on field-sampled sealer products as well as treated and untreated bituminous cores. Percent solids and polymer would be evaluated for each sampled product. Slices of bituminous cores would be tested to evaluate effects on the mixture and depth of penetration. Applications over pavement markings would be evaluated for the effect on retroreflectivity and color change.

  Candidate “biosealer” products include Jointbond®, RePlay™, and Biorestor® and similar. Standard asphalt sealers such as CRS-2PD, and CSS-1Hd, GSB Gilsonite®, and Reclaimite® would also be included in the evaluation as control products.

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  Submitted by eddie.johnson 16 days ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Evaluation of Recycled Aggregates Test Section Performance

  Idea Submitted by:

  Bernard Igbafen Izevbekhai, P.E., Ph.D.

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  MnDOT Office of Materials & Roads Research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Maria Masten & Curtis Turgeon

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  MnDOT Research

  Over the years some test sections in the network have been paved using recycled concrete aggregates in the concrete. Performance variables of such sections have never been formally evaluated. It is necessary to ascertain if the mean-times-between repairs or maintenance in those sections are statistically different from those of other sections without recycled aggregate in the same or similar corridors. Other quantifiable ...more »

  Over the years some test sections in the network have been paved using recycled concrete aggregates in the concrete. Performance variables of such sections have never been formally evaluated. It is necessary to ascertain if the mean-times-between repairs or maintenance in those sections are statistically different from those of other sections without recycled aggregate in the same or similar corridors.

  Other quantifiable variables are expected to include the rate of texture or friction degradation as well as the frequency of occurence of freeze thaw and aggregate alkali reaction in those sections.

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  Submitted by bernard.izevbekhai 1 month ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Use of Wicking Fabric to Prevent Frost Heave

  Idea Submitted by:

  Dr. Shongtao Dai

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  Office of materials and road research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Tim Andersen--pavement design engineer

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  Joint MnDOT/LRRB Research

  Frost heave and subsequent thaw cause extensive damages to pavement structures on some roads in Minnesota, particularly local roads. Three elements necessary for ice lenses and thus frost heave include frost susceptible soil, subfreezing temperatures, and water. Unfortunately, all three conditions are met in many places of northern regions. Removal of any of these three conditions can eliminate or at least minimize frost ...more »

  Frost heave and subsequent thaw cause extensive damages to pavement structures on some roads in Minnesota, particularly local roads. Three elements necessary for ice lenses and thus frost heave include frost susceptible soil, subfreezing temperatures, and water. Unfortunately, all three conditions are met in many places of northern regions. Removal of any of these three conditions can eliminate or at least minimize frost heave and thaw. Wicking fabric, a new type of geosynthetic, is made of special hydrophilic and hygroscopic 4DGTM Fibers with multichannel cross-sections, which have great potential for maximizing capillary action and water transport in an unsaturated environment. This product has been successfully used in Alaska to prevent “frost boils/soft spots” on a problematic highway. However, research is still needed to better understand its mechanism if it is used for regions different from Alaska for the following reasons: (1) The frost heave is strongly related to thermal gradient. For the same soil, the frost heave will be different if the thermal gradient is different. (2) Different soils have different features when interacting with the wicking fabric. (2) Local climatic conditions also have influence in the performance of the wicking fabric since they provide the driving force for water to transport.

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  Submitted by shongtao.dai 3 months ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  Design Guideline for Stabilization of Unpaved Shoulder

  Idea Submitted by:

  Shongtao Dai

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  Office of Materials and Road Research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Pavement Design Engineer: Tim Anderson

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  Joint MnDOT/LRRB Research

  Unpaved shoulders including aggregate, turf, and composite shoulders are commonly constructed in rural areas. Slow moving or oversized vehicles such as farm equipment including combines, tractors and grain wagons will likely drive on unpaved shoulders for temporary passing due to the vehicle size. The pooled fund study “The Effects of Implements of Husbandry “Farm Equipment “on Pavement Performance” conducted at MnROAD ...more »

  Unpaved shoulders including aggregate, turf, and composite shoulders are commonly constructed in rural areas. Slow moving or oversized vehicles such as farm equipment including combines, tractors and grain wagons will likely drive on unpaved shoulders for temporary passing due to the vehicle size. The pooled fund study “The Effects of Implements of Husbandry “Farm Equipment “on Pavement Performance” conducted at MnROAD has demonstrated that unpaved shoulder can easily fail under these type of heavy weighted and oversized vehicles. It is due to that traditional unpaved shoulders are often not designed to support the heavy vehicles. Common performance problems associated with unpaved shoulders are rutting, shear failure and drop-offs along the pavement edge. These problems are typically repaired and mitigated by placing more material followed with grading and compaction. This solution is considered temporary and does not address the factors causing the problem; therefore, the problem often recurs.

  Geosynthetics including geogrid and geocell can be used to stabilize unpaved shoulders. There have been a few successful trials in Wisconsin, Iowa, and Florida, demonstrating the benefits of geosynthetic stabilization. So far, however, there is no design guideline for the use of geosynthetics to stabilize unpaved shoulders. The proposed research will develop such a guideline based on a number of cyclic plate loading tests in laboratory on instrumented test sections.

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  Submitted by shongtao.dai 3 months ago

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  Materials and Construction »

  FDR reinforcement with geocells as pavement base layer

  Idea Submitted by:

  Shongtao Dai

  List your MnDOT Office,District,City, County, Univ. or Other:

  Office of Materials and Road Research

  Idea Champion - Who at MnDOT/LRRB? :

  Pavement design engineer/Local Engineer

  Project Type - MnDOT or LRRB / Research, Implementation or TRS:

  Joint MnDOT/LRRB Research

  FDR has been widely used as an effective base material in the state. However, FDR has its limitations; for example, it creeps under a sustained load due to the presence of asphalt binder. Therefore, different stabilization has been added to FDR to minimize creep of the material, such as emulsion, cement. However, recently geocells has been studied by other states, such as Kansas DOT to confine FDR or unpaved road base ...more »

  FDR has been widely used as an effective base material in the state. However, FDR has its limitations; for example, it creeps under a sustained load due to the presence of asphalt binder. Therefore, different stabilization has been added to FDR to minimize creep of the material, such as emulsion, cement. However, recently geocells has been studied by other states, such as Kansas DOT to confine FDR or unpaved road base materials to minimize its creep and increase pavement structure capacity. How to use geocells and what types of geocells should be used depends on local materials and needs to be well designed. This proposal involves to evaluate design method developed by the University of Kansas for Minnesota conditions or develop a design method for Minnesota conditions.

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  Submitted by shongtao.dai 3 months ago

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