Browsing by Author "de Solminihac, H"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Analysis of pavement serviceability for the AASHTO design method: The Chilean case
    (SPRINGER HEIDELBERG, 2003) de Solminihac, H; Salsilli, R; Kohler, E; Bengoa, E
    Serviceability is an indicator that represents the level of service a pavement provides to the users. This subjective opinion is closely related to objective aspects, which can be measured on the pavement's surface. This research aims specifically at relating serviceability results obtained by a 9-member evaluation panel, representing the general public as closely as possible, to parameters (particularly of roughness) measured with instruments on 30, 25, and 11 road sections of asphalt concrete, Portland cement concrete, and asphalt overlay, respectively.
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    Assessment of horizontal curves of an existing road using reliability concepts
    (CANADIAN SCIENCE PUBLISHING, 2005) Echaveguren, T; Bustos, M; de Solminihac, H
    Horizontal curves on road are commonly analyzed under design speed point of view, where it is assumed that the maximum speed of a vehicle in a curve is the design speed. The empirical evidence has demonstrated that when the design speed is low, the operating speed tends to be higher. This happens because of an available remaining lateral (or transverse) friction for speeds over design speed. This condition is determined by a speed limit, obtained from the demand and supply equilibrium of friction of a pavement. The difference between operating and design speeds is usually considered as the margin of safety of a horizontal curve on a road. In this study, a methodology to determine the margin of safety of an existing curve is proposed. The methodology is based on the reliability theory by which reliability of operational conditions can be analyzed by using a reliability index as a margin of safety. A case study for light vehicles is evaluated to determine high impact variables over reliability, such as, macrotexture, skid resistance, curve radius, and superelevation. The results obtained in this study demonstrated that curve radius, skid resistance, and macrotexture are variables with high impact over failure probability. In constrast, superelevation has little effect on the failure probability.
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    Calibration of structural cracking models for asphalt pavements: HDM-4 case
    (NATL INST SCIENCE COMMUNICATION, 2003) de Solminihac, H; Hidalgo, P; Salgado, M; Altamira, A
    The HDM-4 (Highway Development Management) models used for pavement management activities must be adapted to specific conditions of the country or region where they are to be used by adjusting certain calibration factors. This work presents results obtained from the calibration of structural cracking models in HDM-4 version 1.1, and comparing the results from equivalent HDM-III models. The "windows" methodology is used to reconstruct the distress performance curve of a specific road category based on the observation of conditions of diverse roads with similar characteristics (such as traffic, pavement structural capacity and climatic conditions) but different ages. Also, recommendations are made for calibrating performance models, as well as for establishing calibration factors for asphalt pavement structural cracking models more appropriate for Chilean roads. Although the results of the HDM-III and HDM-4 calibrated models have similar values, the HDM-4 version 1.1 cracking models are recommended due to their operational advantages.
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    Development of correlation equations between different measurements of skid resistance in pavements
    (NATL INST SCIENCE COMMUNICATION-NISCAIR, 2006) Bustos, M; Echaveguren, T; de Solminihac, H; Caroca, A
    Friction is an indicator of the safety level supplied by a pavement. It is obtained by skid resistance and texture measures performed with static and high performance devices. Because the physical principle applied by each equipment differs from one another, it is necessary to harmonize measures in order to compare them. From literature review different harmonization procedures are identified: equipment direct correlations, high scale harmonization experiments an statistical analysis of skid resistance measures. Harmonization based on direct correlations and statistical analysis has the disadvantage that they do not consider texture as a variable, making them applicable only under certain conditions. In this paper, a harmonization methodology is proposed based on the PIARC (the World Road Association) harmonization procedure. The proposed methodology has the advantage that a reduced amount of data is needed and also texture measures are considered. From the application of the methodology under data simulation it is concluded that under a certain texture range the correlation is almost linear. This range depends on the texture measurement device: as, when using accurate equipments non-linear distortions are deduced under low texture levels.
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    Evaluation of a mechanism for urban road maintenance by level of service
    (THOMAS TELFORD SERVICES LTD, 2003) de Solminihac, H; Lobo, E; Jimenez, N; Altamira, A
    The agency responsible for constructing and maintaining urban roads in Chile has initiated a pilot programme under which responsibility for the maintenance and preservation of urban roads falls within the scope of the private sector, which assumes the commitment to maintain roads in an adequate condition in exchange for a pre-established payment, called urban road maintenance by level of service. The purpose of the research described in this paper was to evaluate the implementation of contracts by level of service. This evaluation was based on comparing total costs (direct and indirect) with the traditional method, considering the savings in operating costs and the impact on users as well as the benefits. Statistical information was considered relating to types of structure, types of road, travel demand, level of road distress, threshold of intervention, construction, maintenance and operating costs, and impacts. Based on the results obtained, it is concluded that it is feasible to apply urban road maintenance contracts by level of service at both a technical and an economic level, and that such contracts should be applied for specific types of road, pavement conditions and types, and contract periods.
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    Functional distress modelling in Portland cement concrete pavements
    (NATL RESEARCH COUNCIL CANADA, 2003) de Solminihac, H; Bustos, MG; Altamira, AL; Covarrubias, JP
    Concrete is widely used as a construction material in pavements by public and private agencies that administer highway networks because of its high durability and capacity to resist large traffic loads and very rigorous climates. Nevertheless, these agencies have to estimate the evolution of pavement performance to plan and optimize the application of adequate maintenance activities, allowing the pavement to be maintained at an optimum service level throughout its lifetime. Predictive distress models of the incremental type, that is, models capable of predicting annual increments of different distress indicators in the pavement, could be very useful tools in the implementation of maintenance plans, with minimal need for previous data, especially with regard to information on cumulative traffic loads. This paper offers incremental models for distress prediction in jointed plain concrete pavements, related to joint problems such as faulting and spalling, which clearly affect the pavement ride quality. The equations obtained allow for not only the calculation of distress predictions in analyzing road maintenance policies, but also the adjustment of the original designs of these pavements, to minimize the occurrence and magnitude of distress problems.