ADAPTATION OF SUPERPAVE ASPHALT CONCRETE MIX DESIGN PROCEDURE

Highways in Jordan are typically designed and constructed to last at least twenty years. However, it is not uncommon to see flushing; rutting and cracking in asphalt pavements well before that period, especially in areas exposed to harsh environmental conditions and heavy traffic loadings. The superior performance asphalt pavements (SUPERPAVE) system was developed to give highway engineers the tools they need to design asphalt pavements that will perform better under extremes of temperatures and heavy traffic loads. This research was established to study the possibility of adopting SUPERPAVE mix design procedure in Jordan using prevailing traffic and environmental conditions. In this study, a map showing the different temperature zones available in Jordan was developed. A comparison study was carried out utilizing local materials to design asphalt mixes using both Marshall and SUPERPAVE mix design procedures. It was found that SUPERPAVE mix design procedure recommended, for the local environmental and loading conditions, lower asphalt content than that predicted by Marshall Mix design procedure.