Synthesis of design and construction practices

 

ii

DISCLAIMER 

 

The project that is the subject of this report was done under contract for the Virginia 

Department of Transportation, Virginia Transportation Research Council.  The contents of this 

report reflect the views of the authors, who are responsible for the facts and the accuracy of the 

data presented herein.  The contents do not necessarily reflect the official views or policies of the 

Virginia Department of Transportation, the Commonwealth Transportation Board, or the Federal 

Highway Administration.   This report does not constitute a standard, specification, or regulation.  

Any inclusion of manufacturer names, trade names, or trademarks is for identification purposes 

only and is not to be considered and endorsement. 

 

Each contract report is peer reviewed and accepted for publication by Research Council 

staff with expertise in related technical areas.  The contractor performs final editing and 

proofreading of the report. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Copyright 2008 by the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

All rights reserved. 

 

iii

ABSTRACT 

 

Composite pavement systems have shown the potential for becoming a cost-effective 

pavement alternative for highways with high and heavy traffic volumes, especially in Europe.  

This study investigated the design and performance of composite pavement structures composed 

of a flexible layer (top-most layer) over a rigid base.  The report compiles (1) a literature review 

of composite pavement systems in the U.S. and worldwide; (2) an evaluation of the state-of-the-

practice in the U.S. obtained using a survey; (3) an investigation of technical aspects of various 

alternative composite pavement systems designed using available methodologies and 

mechanistic-empirical pavement distress models (fatigue, rutting, and reflective cracking); and 

(4) a preliminary life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) to study the feasibility of the most promising 

composite pavement systems. 

 

Composite pavements, when compared to traditional flexible or rigid pavements, have the 

potential to become a cost-effective alternative because they may provide better levels of 

performance, both structurally and functionally, than the traditional flexible and rigid pavement 

designs.  Therefore, they can be viable options for high volume traffic corridors.  Countries, such 

as the U.K. and Spain, which have used composite pavement systems in their main road 

networks, have reported positive experiences in terms of functional and structural performance.  

Composite pavement structures can provide long-life pavements that offer good serviceability 

levels and rapid, cost-effective maintenance operations, which are highly desired, especially for 

high-volume, high-priority corridors.   

 

Composite pavements mitigate various structural and functional problems that typical 

flexible or rigid pavements tend to present, such as hot-mix asphalt (HMA) fatigue cracking, 

subgrade rutting, portland cement concrete (PCC) erosion, and PCC loss of friction, among 

others.  At the same time, though, composite systems are potentially more prone to other 

distresses, such as reflective cracking and rutting within the HMA layer.  Premium HMA 

surfaces and/or reflective cracking mitigation techniques may be required to mitigate these 

potential problems. 

 

At the economic level, the results of the deterministic agency-cost LCCA suggest that the 

use of a composite pavement with a cement-treated base (CTB) results in a cost-effective 

alternative for a typical interstate traffic scenario.  Alternatively, a composite pavement with a 

continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) base may become more cost-effective for 

very high volumes of traffic.  Further, in addition to savings in agency cost, road user cost 

savings could also be important, especially for the HMA over CRCP composite pavement option 

because it would not require any lengthy rehabilitation actions, as is the case for the typical 

flexible and rigid pavements.   

 

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