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Performance evaluation of geosynthetic reinforced flexible pavement using full-scale accelerated loading tests

An accelerated traffic load testing was conducted on full-scale test lane sections to evaluate the benefits of using geogrids to enhance the performance of pavement constructed over soft subgrade. Six full-scale test lane sections were constructed, among which two sections were reinforced by one or two layers of triaxial geogrids, two sections were reinforced by one layer of high strength geotextile with different base layer thickness, and the remaining two sections were the control sections. The test sections were instrumented by a variety of sensors to measure the load- and environment-associated pavement response and performance. Results of the full-scale testing on the pavement test sections demonstrate the benefits of using geosynthetics in reducing the permanent deformation in the pavement structure. The benefit of geosynthetics on the resilient properties of pavement is more distinguishable at higher load level. It was also found that the geosynthetic placed at the base-subgrade interface was able to improve the performance of both subgrade and base layers; by placing an additional layer of geogrid at the upper one-third of the base layer, the performance of base layer was further enhanced.