The U.S. millitary often has need for the construction of pavements in remote areas to handle relatively low volumes of traffic. Typically, these pavements are needed quickly and the materials available for their construction are limited to those that are locally available. Due to these constraints, the materials used for these pavements typically include soil and aggregates that would be considered substandard under normal construction circumstances. In order to study the structural capacity and durability of various pavement cross sections, engineers at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station constructed a test section that included eitght different full-scale test items. these test items were constructed with various thicknesses and combinations of clay, silt, dense-graded gravel with fines, and dense-graded crushed limestone. Each test item was subjected to traffic under two moisture conditions: once as-constructed (dry) and once after permitting moisture to migrate into the structures from the pavement edges (wet). While subjecting the test items to traffic, pavement surfaces were monitored for permanent deformation. Materials beneath the pavements surfaces were monitored for strength and moisture content. Results from these tests demonstrate a useful application for geosynthetics. These results also provide guidance on design parameters that affect structural capacity. Losses in structural capacity, caused by water migrating into the pavement structures, were demonstrated. These effects can be critical for swampy areas and for tropical areas with heavy, seasonal rainfall.
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