Design and maintenance criteria for Saudi bituminous concrete mixes

Premature rutting has occurred on a number of highways recently built in Sa udi Arabia. The Ministry of Communications, in an effort to solve the probl em, has initiated a number of studies and started to replace affected pavem ents. The aim of this study is to identify possible factors which may relat e to rutting and to recommend maintenance and repair criteria for existing rutted pavements. The study covers nineteen sections of eleven major highwa ys. Results indicate a direct relationship between rutting and the percenta ge of air voids; the percentage of voids in mineral aggregate, the percenta ge of voids filled with asphalt, resilient modulus at 25 degrees C; and bit umen viscosity. These properties were used as bases for maintenance criteri a as well as criteria for the design of mixes to resist rutting on Saudi ro ads. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.