Date of Award

2014

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Civil and Environmental Engineering

Department

Civil and Environmental Engineering

First Advisor

K. Wayne Lee

Abstract

An attempt was made to develop a sustainable Transportation Infrastructure Management System (TIMS) for a typical college campus and/or any low volume road network. First, a sustainable Pavement Management System (PMS) was developed using different Maintenance and Rehabilitation (M&R) techniques. MicroPAVERTM PMS software was utilized to analyze the present condition and to predict the future condition of pavement for the University of Rhode Island (URI) Kingston campus. Economic analysis was performed using the default rates of MicroPAVER for different M&R policies and compared with the ones used in one of typical municipalities, i.e., The City of Cranston, Rhode Island (RI).

Secondly, model input parameters were formulated for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Mechanistic-Empirical Pavement Design Guide (MEPDG) to use in RI, because having a strong initial pavement is essential for sustainable PMS. Superpave specifications were used to generate material parameters to design the Upper College Road as a model pavement structure. Then energy efficient and environment friendly M&R strategies were explored to introduce into the developed PMS, i.e., Cold In-Place Recycling (CIR) and Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA). A series of tests were conducted to predict their performances, e.g., thermal cracking, fatigue cracking and permanent deformation or rutting. Finally, a Geographic Information System (GIS) was used as a tool for automated drafting and data storage. Maps generated with different color coding will assist decision makers quicker and better interpretation.

The results of the present study can be used for any pavement networks particularly with low traffic volumes, e.g., cities and towns, and also have a reasonable potential to be used by any other larger agencies, e.g., State Department of Transportation (DOT).

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