The Effect of The Bearing Capacity of Sub-Grade Soil on The Thickness and Cost of The Superstructure of Chip Seals

Abstract

applied for preventative treatment of an existing road or to overlay low-trafficked roads. The thickness of the superstructure of a chip seal pavement is directly related to the bearing capacity of sub-grade soil. The bearing capacity of soil is represented by Resilient Modulus (MR) for the design of the thickness of layers. This study has focused on the effect of the bearing capacity of sub-grade soil on the thickness and cost of superstructures of chip seals. In addition, linear regression analysis was performed to investigate the relationship between the bearing capacity of the subgrade soil and the thickness of the superstructure. Two-dimensional numerical modeling was performed with the layer thicknesses found according to the resilient modulus. It was indicated that there was a strong correlation between the bearing capacity of sub-grade soil and the thickness of superstructures of chip seals with high R-square values. An increase in the bearing capacity of the subgrade resulted in a decrease in the thickness of the superstructures of the chip seal. So, it has importance in the aspect of economical to select the most proper soil that will be used in the superstructure of chip seals by taking care of the environment and conditions. In addition, Plaxis 2D modeling shows that a double-chip seal has less deformation and better bearing capacity than a single-chip seal.