National Concrete Pavement Technology Center

Project description

Base stabilization additives are used to increase the strength and stiffness of road foundations in weak and susceptible soils. Numerous additives exist for improving performance of aggregate base layers, however, most independent studies have focused on non-proprietary additives. Additives are being used to stabilize base/subbase/subgrade layers, but engineering methods for pavement thickness design need to be better defined. In particular, determining granular equivalency (GE) factors for various proprietary geomaterial stabilizers will benefit Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) and county engineers by establishing design parameter values and a means for comparing additive effectiveness and cost. The proposed research has three main goals: (1) evaluate the performance of selected proprietary additives by conducting laboratory and field tests; (2) prepare pavement designs and construction specifications based on the test results; and (3) analyze the benefits of additives in terms of pavement construction cost savings and long-term service life.