SHRP A-003A has developed test methods and equipment for evaluation of permanent deformation and fatigue of bituminous mixtures: the repetitive simple shear test at constant height (RSST-CH) of 15 cm diameter and 5 cm height cores; the repetitive flexural bending of 38.1 x 7.5 x 5 cm beams. In this paper results from investigations into the effects of laboratory specimen preparation variables on test results obtained from the SHRP A-003A proposed mixture analysis equipment is presented. The following aspects are considered: (1) impact of compaction variables on permanent shear deformation and fatigue test results; (2) effects of compaction method on aggregate and air void structures; (3) the importance (3) the importance of compaction method and cut and uncut surfaces on air void content measurement; (4) effects of cut and as-molded surfaces on RSST-CH results; and (5) comparison of RSST-CH results for specimens prepared using different laboratory compaction methods and field compacted specimens.
Samenvatting