Instrumentation of heavy-duty asphalt slabs for wheel tracking experiment

Laboratory testing equipment for asphalt mixtures with three different functionalities is introduced. The rotary compactor and wheel tracker (RCWT) not only achieves realistic contact areas of actual pneumatic tyres but can also compact heavy-duty laboratory asphalt mixtures to the desirable density and conduct simulated wheel tracking tests (WTTs). The RCWT is able to replicate stone mastic asphalt full-scale site rollers. The simulated WTT, with actual pneumatic tyres, reproduced the non-uniform contact stresses as well as other non-linear and viscoelastic behaviours of the tyre–pavement interaction. Furthermore, the instrumentation system with fully calibrated sensors and data acquisition set-up captured all the crucial factors – including the temperature inside the asphalt mixture mat, vertical load, rutting depth and vertical compressive strain at the bottom of the asphalt layer – effectively and continuously.