Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design

College of Engineering 2024-2026

Highway and Transportation Engineering

Asst. Prof Dr Estabraq N. Ezat Asst. Prof Dr Rana A. Yousif

Asst. Prof Dr. Sady Abd Tayh

Lect. 6 Pavement Structural Design

Rigid Pavement Design
(AASHTOO Method)
Main Sources
- “AASHTO Guide for Design of Pavement Structures 1993”, AASHTO, American Association of
State Highway and Transportation Officials, U.S.A., 1993.
- Yaug H. Huang, “Pavement Analysis and Design”, Prentic Hall Inc., U.S.A., 2004.
- Nicholas J. Garber and Lester A. Hoel.”Traffic and Highway Engineering”, Fourth Edition.
- Yoder; E. J. and M. W. Witczak, “Principles of Pavement Design”, A Wiley- Interscience
Publication, John Wiley & Sons Inc., U.S.A., 1975.
- A.T. Papagiannakis and E. A. Masad “Pavement Design and Materials”, 2008, Published by
john Wiley & Sons, Inc.

AASHTO Method,
The design guide for rigid pavements was developed at the same time as that for
flexible pavements and was published in the same manual.
The design is based on the empirical equations obtained from the AASHO Road Test,
with further modifications based on theory and experience.

Design Equations
The basic equations developed from the AASHO Road Test for rigid pavements are
in the same form as those for flexible pavements, but with different values for the
regression constants. The equations were then modified to include many variables
originally not considered in the AASHO Road Test.

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College of Engineering 2022-2023
Highway and Transportation Engineering

In which

where 4.5 is the initial serviceability for rigid pavement at the AASHO Road Test,
which is different from the 4.2 for flexible pavements, and pt is the serviceability at
time t;
D = slab thickness in inches, which replaces SN for flexible pavements.
Using an equivalent 18-kip (80-kN) single axle load with L1 = 18 and L2 =1 and
combining Eqs. 11.29, 12.10, and 12.11 yields

in which Wt18 is the number of 18-kip (80-kN) single axle load applications to time t.
Equation 12.12 is applicable only to the pavements in the AASHO Road Test with
the following conditions:
modulus of elasticity of concrete Ec= 4.2 x 106 psi (29 GPa),
modulus of rupture of concrete Sc= 690 psi (4.8 MPa),
modulus of subgrade reaction k = 60 pci (16 MN/m3),
load transfer coefficient J = 3.2, drainage coefficient Cd = 1.0
Modified Equations To account for conditions other than those that existed in the
road test, it is necessary to modify Eq.12.12, using experience and theory. After
comparing stresses calculated from strain measurements on the Road Test pavements
with theoretical solutions, the Spangler equation for corner loading (Spangler,1942)
was selected for its simplicity by AASHTO (1972) to extend Eq.12.12 to other

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College of Engineering 2022-2023
Highway and Transportation Engineering

conditions. The Spangler equation is given as

in which
 is the maximum tensile stress in concrete in psi,
J is the load transfer coefficient,
P is the wheel load in lb,
al is the distance from corner of slab to center of load ,
ℓ is the radius of relative stiffness defined by Eq. 4.10 and rewritten as

in which Z = Ec /k
v is the Poisson ratio of concrete.
Assuming that al=10 in.(254 mm) and v = 0.2 and substituting Eq.12.14 into 12.13

Stresses were calculated for different combinations of Road Test variables by using
Eq. 12.15. The ratio between the calculated stresses and the modulus of rupture, /Sc,
was subsequently compared with axle-load applications. These comparisons indicated
that, for any given load and terminal serviceability level p t, the following relationship
similar to the general fatigue equation exists:

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Highway and Transportation Engineering

Letting Z = Ec/k = 4.2 x 106/60 = 70,000, Sc = 690, and J = 3.2;

adding a drainage coefficient Cd and a reliability term ZRSo;
replacing the term (4.5 - pt ) by PSI;
and removing the primes for simplicity, the final design equation for rigid pavements
becomes

Figure 12.17 is a nomograph for solving Eq. 12.21.

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Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design
College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

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Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design
College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

Example 12.6:
Given k = 72 pci (19.5 MN/m3),
Ec = 5 x 106 psi (34.5 GPa),
Sc = 650 psi (4.5 MPa),
J = 3.2,
Cd = 1.0,
APSI = 4.2 - 2.5 = 1.7,
R = 95%,
So = 0.29,
and Wt = 5.1 × 106 ,
determine thickness D from Figure 12.17 .

Solution
The required thickness D can be determined by the following steps:
1. Starting from Figure 12.17 a with k = 72 pci (19.5 MN/m 3 ),
a series of lines, as indicated by the arrows,
are drawn through Ec = 5 ×106 psi (34.5 GPa),
Sc = 650 (4 .5 MPa), J = 3.2, and Cd = 1 .0 until a scale of 74 is
obtained at the match line.

2. Starting at 74 on the match line in Figure 12.17b, a line is drawn

through PSI = 1.7 until it intersects the vertical axis.

3. From the scale with R = 95%, a line is drawn through Sc = 0.29 and
then through W18 = 5 .1 × 106 until it intersects the horizontal axis.

4. A horizontal line is drawn from the last point in Step 2, a vertical line
from that in Step 3. The intersection of these two lines gives a D of
9.75 in. (246 mm), which is rounded to 10 in. (254 mm).
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College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

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Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design
College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

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Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design
College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

Example 12.7:
Same as Example 12.6, except that D is given as 9.75 in. (246 mm). Determine W18
by using Eq. 12 .21.

Solution :
For R = 95%,
from Table 11 .15, ZR = -1.645.

From Eq. 12.21,

log W18 =-1.645  0.29 + 7.35 log(9.75 + 1) – 0.06 + log(1.7/2 .7)/[1 + 1.624 107/(9
.75 + 1) 846] +(4.22 – 0.32  2.5) log{[(650  1.0)/(215.63 3.2)][(9.75 ) 0.75 –
1.132]/[(9 .75 ) 0.75 – 18 .421(5  106/72) 0.25]}
= - 0.477 + 7.581 – 0 .06 – 0 .195 – 0 .088= 6.761,
or W18 = 5.8 106 , which checks well with the 5.2  10 6 obtained from the chart .

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Modulus of Subgrade Reaction

The property of roadbed soil to be used for rigid pavement design is the modulus of
sub-grade reaction k, rather than the resilient modulus MR.
It is therefore necessary to convert MR to k. As with MR, the values of k also vary
with the season of the year, and the relative damage caused by the change of k needs
to be evaluated.

Correlation with Resilient Modulus:

There is no unique correlation between the modulus of sub-grade reaction for liquid
foundation and the resilient modulus for solid foundation. Any relationship between k
and MR is arbitrary and depends on whether stresses or deflections are to be
compared and on whether the loads are applied at the interior, edge, or corner of the
slab.

Without Sub-base:
If the slab is placed directly on the sub-grade without a sub-base, AASHTO
suggested the use of the following theoretical relationship based on an analysis of a
plate-bearing test:

Here, k is in pci and MR is in psi. This equation gives a k value that is too large.

Equation 12.22 was based on the definition of k using a 30-in. (762-mm) plate. The
deflection wo of a plate on a solid foundation can be determined by Eq.2.10. The
modulus of sub-grade reaction, which is defined as the ratio between an applied
pressure q and the deflection wo, can be expressed as

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Highway and Transportation Engineering

in which v is the Poisson ratio of the foundation and a is the radius of the plate .
If v = 0.45 and a = 15 in. (381 mm), then Eq.12.23 becomes

Equation 12.24 is more exact solution compared to Eq. 12.22, which is an

approximate solution using the average surface deflection under a flexible loaded
area as wo (AASHTO 1985).Equations 12.22 and 12.24 give a k value that is too
large because k is inversely proportional to α ,as indicated by Eq.12.23.
To correlate k with MR, a very large plate should be used.

With Sub-base:
If sub-base exists between the slab and the sub-grade, the composite modulus of sub-
grade reaction can be determined from figure 12.18.
The modulus is based on a sub-grade of infinite depth and is denoted by k∞. The
chart was developed by using the same method as for a homogeneous half-space,
except that the 30-in. (762 -mm) plate is applied on a two-layer system. Therefore, the
k values obtained from the chart are too large and do not represent what actually
occurs in the field.

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College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

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Mustansiriyah University Pavement Structural Design
College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

Example 12.8:
Given
a subbase thickness DSB of 6 in. (152 mm),
a subbase resilient modulus ESB of 20,000 psi(138 MPa),
a roadbed soil resilient modulus MR of 7000 psi (48 MPa),
determine the composite modulus of subgrade reaction k∞, .

Solution:
The composite modulus of subgrade reaction can be determined as follows :

1. In Figure 12.18, a vertical line is drawn upward from the horizontal scale with a
subbase thickness DSB of 6 in. (152 mm) until it reaches a point with a subbase
modulus ESB of 20,000 psi (138 MPa).

2. The same line is drawn downward until it intersects the curve with a roadbed
soil resilient modulus MR of 7000 psi (48 MPa),

3. the line is turned horizontally until it intersects the turning line.

4. A horizontal line is drawn from the point in Step 1, a vertical line from the
point on the turning line in step 2.

5. The intersection of these two lines gives a k∞ of 400 pci (108 MN/m3 ) .
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Rigid Foundation at Shallow Depth

Equation 12.22 and Figure 12.18 are based on a subgrade of infinite depth.

If a rigid foundation lies below the subgrade and the subgrade depth to rigid
foundation DSG is smaller than 10ft (3 m), then the modulus of subgrade reaction must
be modified by the chart shown in Figure 12.19.

The chart can be applied to slabs either with or without a subbase.

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College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

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College of Engineering 2021-2022
Highway and Transportation Engineering

Example 12 .9:
Given MR=4000 psi (27.6 MPa), DSG = 5 ft (1.52 m), and k∞= 230 pci (62.4 MN/m3),
determine k.

Solution:
In Figure 12.19,
1. a vertical line is drawn from the horizontal scale with a MR of 4000 psi (27.6 MPa)
until it intersects the curve with a DSG of 5 ft.

2. The line is turned horizontally until it reaches a point with a k∞ of 230 pci (62.4
MN/m3)

3. then vertically until a k of 300 pci (81.4 MN/m3) is obtained.

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