Highway Engineering

Lecture Notes - 4th year - CE 534

Civil Engineering Department
Faculty of Engineering
University of Kufa - IRAQ
By: Dr. Firas H. A. Asad

2014 2015

Iraq: the cradle of civilisation

There is one country that is acclaimed for
almost single-handedly opening the
door for the world to the modern
civilisation we enjoy today.
The people of this land created the wheel and
the plough, they became the first bankers. This
nation has a rich culture of poetry and epic
literature and even the first written
alphabet was created here.
Mesopotamia - This country, which is known as
the Cradle of Civilisation, is not Greece or Rome,
not even Egypt - but Iraq.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-171806/Iraq-cradle-civilisation.html

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15
534 .

Highway Engineering CE 534

Course Instructor

Lecturer: Dr. Firas Hasan Alwan Asad

Ph.D (Traffic Engineering) University of Salford (UK) 2013.
M.Sc. (Highways and Airports) University of Technology (Iraq) 2001.
H.Dip. (Design of Buildings by Computer) University of Technology (Iraq) 1998.
B.Sc. (Civil Engineering) University of Kufa 1997.
Uni. email: firas.alwan@uokufa.edu.iq
U

Linked in: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/dr-firas-asad/71/777/352

Google scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=_b70E_YAAAAJ&hl=en
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Firas_Asad
Scribd: https://www.scribd.com/collections/15538729/Highway-Engineering
U

Course Description
It is a two courses class that covers
the fundamental elements of highway
engineering.
Highway engineering is the branch of
civil engineering that involves the
application of technological and
scientific principles to the planning,
location,
design,
construction,
operation and maintenance of roads,
bridges and tunnels.
The goal is to provide movement of
people and goods that is safe, rapid,
comfortable,
economical,
and
environmentally compatible.

Lecture 00

Dr.Firas Asad

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15

Course Objectives
The Highway Engineering subject is designed to deal with the process of locating,
designing, constructing and maintaining highways. There are two essential
objectives of this class; the first is to introduce highway engineering principles to the
undergraduate students. The second objective is to give the students the
opportunity of producing several aspects of geometrical and structural designs of
highways by performing examples so they can see how the principles and their
application come together in real-world road projects.

Student Learning Outcomes

The student will be able to:
1. Understand the importance of highway engineering subject;
2. Understand the geometric characteristics of highways ;
3. Calculate the earthwork volumes of cut and fill along the highway profile;
4. Understand the subgrade soil properties ;
5. Classify soil using standard classification schemes;
6. Understand soil compaction and strength;
7. Understand the concepts of surface and subsurface drainage ;
8. Study asphalt cement and aggregate properties;
9. Design asphalt mixture;
10. Understand the structural design of flexible pavement layers; and
11. Understand the design of rigid pavement thickness and joint types.

Course outline (Syllabus)

.534 .
Topic Title

Hrs.

Functional classification of highways

Traffic volume, design vehicle, speed, sight distance

Horizontal alignment

Pavement widening

Curve superelevation

Lecture 00

Dr.Firas Asad

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15

Vertical alignment

Speed change lanes

Cross-section elements of highways

Earthworks and Mass-haul Diagram

10

Embankment foundation

11

Soil classification

12

Soil stabilization

13

Aggregate gradation and combination

14

Asphalt cement properties

15

Asphalt paving mixtures properties and design

16

Flexible pavement design

17

Rigid pavement and joints

In addition to the weekly lectures, the course will also include several laboratory
sessions. The laboratory lessons are intended to complement the theoretical
lectures; they are listed below.
Lab. No.

Topics

Moisture Content and Specific Gravity of subgrade

Atterberg Limits

Grain Size Distribution of soil and subbase

Soil Compaction

CBR of subgrade soil

Field Measurement of Dry Unit Weight and Moisture Content

Penetration and softening point of asphalt cement

Ductility and flash point of asphalt cement

Thin film oven test of asphalt cement

10

Aggregate properties

11

Aggregate gradation

12

Marshall mix design

Lecture 00

Dr.Firas Asad

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15

Course Materials (Recommended reading list)

1- Yoder, E. and Witczak, M. (1975). Principles of Pavement Design (2nd ed.).
New York: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
2- American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)
(1993). Guide for Design of Pavement Structures 1993. Washington, D.C.:
AASHTO.
3- Wright, P. (1996). Highway Engineering. New York: John wiley and Sons, Inc.
4- OFlaherty, C. (2002). Highways (4th ed.). Oxford: Butterworth Heinemann.
5- Khisty, C. and Lall, B. (2003). Transportation Engineering: An Introduction. New
Jersey: Prentice-Hall International, Inc.
6- State Commission of Roads and Bridges (SCRB), (2003). General Specification for
Roads and Bridges. Republic of Iraq, Ministry of Housing and Construction,
Department of Planning and Studies, Baghdad.
7- American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)
(2004). A Policy on Geometric Design of Highways and Streets. Washington, D.C.:
AASHTO.
8- American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO)
(2004). Standard Specifications for Transportation Materials and Methods of
Sampling and Testing (25th ed.). Washington, D.C.: AASHTO.
9- Huang, Y. (2004). Pavement Analysis and Design. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
10- State Corporation for Roads and Bridges (SCRB), (2005). Highway Design Manual.
Republic of Iraq, Ministry of Reconstruction & Housing, Planning and Designs
Department, Baghdad.
11- Mannering, F., Kilareski, W. and Washburn, S. (2005). Principles of Highway
Engineering and Traffic Analysis (3rd ed.). John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
12- Garber, N. and Heol, L. (2009). Traffic and Highway Engineering (4th ed.). Canada:
Cengage Learning.
. : . .(1986) . , 13
. : . .(2001) 14

Lecture 00

Dr.Firas Asad

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15

Grading Units
First Semester Exam
First Semester Quizzes and Homework
Laboratory
Second Semester Exam
Second Semester Quizzes and Homework
Laboratory
Final Exam

15%
5%
5%
15%
5%
5%
50%

Total

100%

Typical Grading
Grade
Excellent
Very Good
Good
Fair
Pass
Poor

Range
90-100%
80-89%
70-79%
60-69%
50-59%
<50%

Course Units
Course
Code
CE 534

Lecture 00

Teaching Hours
1 Semester
2nd Semester
st

Subject
Highway
Engineering

Units

Lecture

Lab.

Tutorial

Lecture

Lab.

Tutorial

Dr.Firas Asad

Highway Eng.

Opening Lecture

14 15

Table 1: Highway Engineering Strategies for Achieving Outcomes and Assessment

Methods
Strategies for Achieving
Assessment
Outcomes
Methods
Two lectures in class to describe
highway network and functional
1
Introduction
classification
Six lectures to discuss the
The geometrics
Quiz #1
geometric design of highway ,
characteristics of highway;
2
design of vertical and horizontal
cross section elements,
H.W. #1
curves
vertical and horizontal curves
Learning Outcome

The earthwork volumes of

cut and fill along the highway
profile

Two lectures to discuss

earthwork, areas and volumes

Quiz #2

Three Lectures to describe

AASHTO classification and
compaction of subgrade soil

Quiz #3

Subgrade properties ;
classifying soil; understand
soil compaction and strength
of soil
Understanding the concept
of surface and subsurface
drainage

A Lecture to describe the

concept of drainage of rain on
pavement

Studying asphalt cement and

aggregate properties;

Four Lectures to highlight

asphalt paving technology and
properties and also aggregate
gradation and properties

Design of asphalt paving

mixture by Marshall method

Three Lectures to design of

asphalt mixture and determine
mixture properties

H.W. #5

Study the structural design of

flexible pavement layers;
8
and
Design of rigid pavement
thickness and joint types.

Four Lectures to learn how to

design of flexible and rigid
pavements

Quiz #7

Lab #1

H.W. #2
Lab #2-6
Quiz #4
H.W. #3
Quiz #5
H.W. #4
Lab #7 -11
Quiz #6
Lab #12

===================================
Lecture 00

Dr.Firas Asad