Erosion of asphalt as a result of automobile tire studs impacts

The main objective of the presented research is to develop a model in order to predict fracture of asphalt road surface impacted by an automobile tire stud. As a result of the analysis it is demonstrated that the critical automobile speed leading to creation of fracture in asphalt does depend on combination of asphalt mean elastic modulus and special dynamic strength characteristics responsible for the incubation process of microcracking caused by impacts. It is shown that in certain conditions smaller elastic moduli combined with bigger ductility of compound and increased dynamic strength can result in greater threshold car velocities giving brittle damage to asphalt. At the same time larger elastic moduli can provide better performance of asphalt layer undergoing quasistatic loading (slow heavy traffic). One of the practical solutions to maximize durability of highways is to use different asphalt mixtures in right (slower) and left (faster) traffic lanes. This can be, for example, achieved by addition of plasticizers into asphalt mixture used to cover high-speed traffic lanes. FEM simulation is giving a quantitative prediction of critical vehicle velocities leading to initiation of fracture in asphalt.