Influence of tyre configuration on pavement response and predicted distress

Abstract

The Federal Highway Administration conducted controlled loading tests on the U.S. Route 23 Test Road in hot weather conditions in Ohio, including two dual and two wide-base configurations. This paper is to reveal the influence of tyre configuration on pavement and provide some suggestions on tyre configuration from the perspective of reducing pavement damage. The raw strains were adjusted to common temperature, lateral offset distance and nominal speed for consistent comparison. MEPDG fatigue cracking and rutting models were used to predict damage brought by different tyres to pavement sections. The results indicate that newer generation of wide-based tyres with wider interface with pavement could be road-friendly, inducing similar or even less damage than the conventional dual tyres. At the same time, certain conventional dual tyres, which are commonly used in the current market, might cause larger damage to the pavement than other tyres in certain environmental and loading conditions.