Pavement life-cycle cost and asphalt binder quality: Theoretical and experimental investigation

Quality control/quality assurance tests can be used to demonstrate that an as-constructed pavement has characteristics different from the contracted specifications of the as-designed pavement because the bitumen employed was of insufficient quality. Many different issues affect asphalt binder quality. Such problems can significantly increase the pavement life-cycle cost, which means that a pay adjustment (PA) is needed. Unfortunately, the quantitative analysis of this issue is very complex. The objectives of this study were to model the dependence of the pavement life-cycle cost on asphalt binder quality and to determine the quantitative relationship between bitumen viscosity and the PA for a given class of boundary conditions. In addition to modeling this problem theoretically, experiments and simulations were carried out through the use of the Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide. We then derived the consequences of these effects on life-cycle cost by using a specific life-cycle cost model. Our results demonstrate that asphalt binder viscosity can strongly affect the expected pavement life and the PA, and thus needs to be taken into account in contract and construction management.