TRANSPORTATION

ENGINEERING II
Resilient Behavior of Unbound
Granular Material

 Proper characterization of the

mechanical response of unbound
aggregate materials is a crucial factor
in the
design and
rehabilitation of pavement structures.

Among the many parameters that

exist today for characterization, the
resilient modulus appears to be the
most suitable.

 Due to the non-linear behavior of

granular materials, their resilient
moduli appear to be influenced by
several factors. Some of them are
Deviator stress
Confining Pressure
Soil Dry Density
Soil Moisture Content

(1) Deviator Stress

(3 & 3) Confining Pressure

Major Principle Stress

Major Principle Stress = 1
1 = c + a

Where
c = Confining Pressure
a = Axial Stress

Deviator Stress
Deviator Stress = q
q = 1- c

Where
a = q , i.e.,
Axial Stress is equal to the deviator
stress.

Mean Normal Stress

Mean Normal Stress = P
P = (1+ 2+ 3) / 3

Where
3 = c
Put 2= 3
P=(1+ 23) / 3

 The new 2002 AASHTO Guide for

Pavement Design advocates the use
of the resilient modulus parameter for
the characterization of granular
materials used as base and sub-base
layers in flexible pavements.
This mechanistic parameter is known
to be influenced by the material
physical conditions and the state of
stress the material is subjected to.

 The resilient modulus is a key

element in the design and
rehabilitation of pavement structures.
It was introduced by the American
Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials (AASHTO) in
the design of pavements in 1986.
It closely simulates the in-situ
conditions in terms of traffic and
environmental loading.

 Suitability of resilient modulus is due

to the ability to closely simulate the
material in-situ conditions under
traffic loading.
The resilient modulus, Mr, is a
mechanical property of the material
that describes its stress strain
relationship under dynamic loading
and specified physical conditions.

 In repeated tri-axial load tests, Mr, is

defined as the ratio of the peak cyclic
deviator stress to the recoverable
measured axial strain as given in
equation below.
M r = d / r

 Under cyclic loading, unbound

granular materials exhibit
elastoplastic behavior, characterized
by increases in stiffness and
permanent deformation with load
repetitions.
The repeated load tri-axial apparatus
was developed in order to investigate
the mechanical behavior of unbound
pavement materials.

 The apparatus aims to simulate traffic

loads by subjecting a cylindrical
specimen to repeated cyclic stresses.