Durability of concrete pavement strengthened with asphalt layer with FRP fibres

Pavements made of cement concrete, used for road constructions, are damaged during use. This applies to both the pavements of rural and forest roads with very low traffic loads, as well as road pavements with high traffic loads. One of the most effective ways of repairing damaged concrete cement pavements is through placing an asphalt overlay on a concrete slab. In order to increase the fatigue life of the asphalt overlay, asphalt mixtures are modified with fibres. One technological solution is to use FRP (Fiber Reinforced Polymer), an innovative material with improved properties.

The aim of this paper is to assess the impact of asphalt overlays modified with a new type of fibres to strengthen the durability of weakened cement concrete pavement structures.

On the basis of the conducted analyses, it was shown that the use of an asphalt layer reinforcement increases fatigue life, for both 15 cm thick prefabricated slabs and a typical road pavement for average traffic made of 25 cm doweled and anchored concrete slabs. There was a significant increase in the fatigue life of the concrete pavement structure as a result of modifying the overlaid asphalt mixture with FRP fibres.