Pavement Preservation Journal, Winter 2015, Vol. 8, No. 4
Aaron B. Smith and Thomas Hales, S.E.
Utah Department of Transportation researchers are attempting establish a correlation between friction testing devices, with the potential of eventually benefiting surface courses and the drivers who use them.
Because pavement friction is an important component to safe roads, Utah DOT personnel asked researchers at Brigham Young University and Raba Kistner Infrastructure to determine whether the frictional properties of aggregates used in asphalt surface treatments can be predicted, and correlated to laboratory testing.
Twelve pavement sections scheduled for resurfacing – ranging from 3 to 12 years old in age – were selected in Salt Lake, Sevier and Emery counties. They consisted of open graded surface course (OGSC), chip seal, and stone matrix asphalt (SMA) surfaces.
Each site then was tested with five different surface friction measuring devices.
Each pavement section was tested for frictional properties using the lock-wheel skid trailer, British Pendulum Tester, and Dynamic Friction Tester (DF-Tester). In addition, each pavement section was tested for pavement texture using the sand patch method and Circular Texture Meter (CT-Meter).
During a 12-month period, each site was monitored three separate times. Samples of the aggregates used in the road surfaces also were obtained and tested in the laboratory.
The DF-Tester and CT-Meter had not previously been used in Utah before. Through a loan program set up through the Federal Highway Administration, the two devices were sent to Utah on a two month loan.
