Indian Highways Vol.41 1 Jan 13

INDIAN HIGHWAYS
A REVIEW OF ROAD AND ROAD TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT

Volume 41
Number 1
January 2013
Contents
ISSN 0376-7256
Page
2-4
Editorial

5

10

Technical Papers
Approach For Harmonious Working
M.V. Sastry
A Comprehensive Approach to Sustainable Highway Development Strategies
Baban Ram and S.K. Chaudhary

15

16

21

Presentations
Presentation on Challenges in Financing in Road Sector Projects - Investors Perspectives and Possible Solutions
by Athar Shahab
Presentation on Area Based & Performance Procurement Systems with Asset Management Concept
by Ashok Kumar and Rajesh Rohatgi
Presentation on Mega Road Projects-Issues in Financing
by D.R. Santhana Krishnan

24

42

51

60

73

86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
Technical Papers
A Laboratory Study on Mastic Asphalt
Praveen Kumar and A.K. Shivkumar
Recycled Concrete Aggregate in Concrete Pavement Construction-An Innovative Approach For Sustainable Development
V.V.L. Kanata Rao, Surya Maruthupandian and Lakshmy Parameswaran
Design and Construction of Modified Retaining Structures
Ram Asra Khural
Geotechnical Investigation of Shedi Soil Blended with Pond Ash, Lime and Coir
A.U. Ravi Shankar, Prashant S.K. and Chandrashekar, A
Automated Detection and Measurement of Cracks from Monochrome Video Clips Captured By Road Network Survey Vehicle
Huidrom Lokeshwor, Lalit K. Das and S.K. Sud
Circular Issued by Ministry
Tender Notice of NHs Bareilly
Tender Notice of NHs Chennai
Tender Notice of NHs Kanpur
Tender Notice of NHs Madurai
Tender Notice of NHs Madurai
Tender Notice of NHs Tirunelveli
New/Revised Publications now Available on Sale
The Indian Roads Congress

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Edited and Published by Shri Vishnu Shankar Prasad on behalf of the Indian Roads Congress (IRC), New Delhi. The responsibility of the
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and liability for any statement of opinion, originality of contents and of any copyright violations by the authors. The opinions expressed in the
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From the Editors Desk
Roads for Economic Upturn

Way to unleash the Indias Potential to become Worlds Growth Centre
Dear Readers,
Wishing all the Readers a Very Happy & Prosperous New Year 2013.
It is generally forgotten that road construction is a noble profession. It is not just a commercial
undertaking operating on the laws of demand and supply enabling the agency to charge the user
fee but in reality does a noble duty of connecting people with each other, with essential services
and facilities like educational institutions, lifesaving hospitals, etc. Therefore, the road building in
essence is a service oriented profession which helps in building strong society and nation.
Roscoe Pound touched the essence of the matter: Historically there are three ideas involving in a
profession:- Organization, learning and a spirit of public service. These are essentials, the remaining
idea that of gaining the livelihood is an incidental. But in todays age and time the basic truths are
just forgotten.
Does the structural constraint in the road sector directly impact the economy? To simplify this important
aspect, lets talk about inflation which is directly related to supply, productivity & demand. The
structural constraints have an impact on productivity, capacity and supply and therefore, consequently
on the inflation. The structural constraints in crucial road transport sector impacts the competitiveness
edge of a private/public service yield as well as sustainable profit margin not only at domestic level
but also at international level. For example, the structural supply constraints remain intractable in the
absence of increase in production. The same is also applicable for sluggish demand scenario.
However, with increasing supply/demand (or both) involves improving entire process channel:Extension and expansion of inputs, service, market organizations & logistic requirements for storage,
communication network & services, delivery logistics & timely transportation, etc. In areas of weakness
in the process channel or inability to deliver may cost irreparable setback to the envisaged projected
goal/target. The road transportation system within the ambit of overall communication service is a
basic enabler for effectiveness and efficiency. Increase in supply is facilitated once the transportation
road infrastructure is in place. In short, inflation is likely to continue unless supply increases through
improvement in production capacity, production and timely transportation. In all these the efficient
road connectivity plays a pivotal role and more emphasis required to be given if higher economic
growth is targeted.
So shape the growth direction of the economy with the better roads. In the current economic scenario,
the vitality of the dynamics of the roads needs to be understood to overcome the growth deceleration.
The road sustains social and economic activities and generally user take it granted that roads to be
in a good condition at all times. However, as it is constantly under traffic loads and severe weather
conditions, road are being damaged day by day and without a good care it may collapse like other living
creatures. Therefore, the road building process, procedures and intricacies needs to be demystified.
The vibrancy effect of highway sector on the other sectors of economy needs to be felt. The aptitude
of the Indian economy to grow on sustainable basis at a higher GDP growth rate need not be seen with
a cynical mindset. Is it not surprising that for about two decades the vehicle growth rate as witnessed
2
INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013
EDITORIAL
is about 9.9 CAGR. This only points towards the inherent economic strength of the country. The road
transport sector as a whole is not only a facilitator but also a pusher for the entire service sector and
today the service sector has become a major component in the GDP growth rate.
Usually, the road building has not been visualized in terms of poverty reduction strategy or
empowerment of people by inclusively inclusion of them in development and growth story. In this
direction government have also initiated the programme of providing better road connectivity in the
tribal areas. The tribal belts are struggling for a change towards betterment and to become inclusive
part of the growth & development story of India. Besides, this initiative also may help in opening up
opportunity of creating new markets as well as avenues of availability of new resources for different
sector of economy. The cascading growth impact on the economy from the road construction activity
requires a realistic assessment.
It is not that the road construction activities are not mired with delays & controversies, especially in
regard to litigations, land acquisition complexities, shifting of utility service etc. However, there is a
need to adopt an out of box approach to overcome the problems being faced in the road construction
activities. Normally most of the people look outwards when they faced the problem. This approach
has a major repercussion, as the opportunities to look inside to improve/correct the deficiencies are
missed out.
The inner constraints if not addressed, to in a timely manner leads to poor growth, achievement
and progress. So what is require, is to realize the complete value and potential of the road sector to
the economy by blending the technical wisdom, experience, expertise, technologies etc., along with
adoption of new models of channelization of resources for inclusive participation of the public at
large. Measures inducing confidence in the public that they are stakeholders in the road development
activities in real sense may need some attention. Poor road infrastructure, traffic jams, inadequate
road side facilities inconvenience etc., leads to anger and resentment.
Does it mean that the responsibilities towards social and economic issues are not properly addressed?
Are such situations are avoidable by timely interventions. Are the apt futuristic planning concepts
based actions were resorted to? Think, think & think.
The better road connectivity in the Indian scenario have led to creation of semi-urban and semi-rural
areas in addition to already existing rural & urban areas. Not much thought have been given for
addressing to their transportation needs. Better & assured road connectivity also restricted migration
of people in search of employment. And it transforms into more journeys by road and (also by train).
This creates an optimal condition for economy on move. This is what the country requires. The
positive aspect of road sector activities leading to growth in tourism sector, employment generation,
decentralization, etc., perhaps makes it one of the biggest employment creating sector.
The rose is not without a thorn, the lotus is not without mire. The need of the hour is to strike the right
note. The completion of highway projects needs to be accomplished to avoid time and cost overrun.
The cause of delay in one project especially in mega/big-ticket project should be analyzed to take
remedial measures for subsequent projects. Due consideration may be given to limiting aspects like:tendency to launch projects without proper preparations in place, poor shelf life of DPRs leading
to higher risk/unviability of projects during implementation, poor land records, inadequate detailed
site assessment, poor traffic records/growth/demand data, low coordination among the concerned
departments/agencies etc.
EDITORIAL
Therefore, like any other economic development activity, the highway projects also require due risk
assessment and analysis as well as identification of possible mitigation measures. If the same is given
a go-by, then opportunity to maximize the returns through optimization of resources may be missed.
Can we think of giving ratings for road developmental projects - [bankable ratings (for financing) is
most common] Developmental plan rating and Construction & Operation plan ratings may to some
extent create embedded sustainability in the project model.
Despite uncertainties in the global economy at present, Indias growth story remains credible as its
fundamental strength remains strong. The road sector considering its resultant economic benefits to
other sectors of economy further strengthens the scope of strengthening the economic foundation and
providing more resilience to the economy. However, some thought may also be given as to what the
other sectors of economy getting benefitted from the good roads are contributing towards the road
sector. Some percentage of Corporate Sector Responsibility (CSR) fund may also be channelized for
research/pilot/pioneering projects in the road sector to create win-win situation.
Lets, therefore, have a unique map to move on the road to peace, prosperity and growth through good
& efficient road network in the country.
Let us involve all sectors and stakeholders in road construction activities so as to develop an exemplary
service model to the mankind peace, prosperity and growth coupled with social harmony with
social development and optimally utilizing the resources including three dimensional developments
in relation to land resources.
The issues, concerns and challenges to road sector are many. However, the need is to consolidate
and move forward with simultaneous increase in capabilities and capacities, etc. Can through PPP
projects in road sector we address the Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) of people. Can we think of
moving to 5 Ps concept with inclusive peoples participation in PPP projects? Can we move towards
the concept of saleability of PPP projects in road sector? The sale profit so accrued can be shared
by the government, public and private sector. Can we think of increasing the lenders confidence in
the soundness of project and its projection with better debt: equity ratio? Such concepts may help in
optimally managing the management of PPP projects in road sector.
The current economic environment have thrown up unique opportunities for effecting structural shift.
Let us join our efforts, as road infrastructure development is a progressive activity of today which
assures brighter future of tomorrow.
John Maynard Keynes said The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping
from old ones
Place: New Delhi
Dated: 26-12-2012
Vishnu Shankar Prasad

Secretary General
TECHNICAL PAPERS
APPROACH FOR HARMONIOUS WORKING

M.V. Sastry*
FAMILY-KEY ELEMENT FOR

HAPPINESS AND PROGRESS
For a healthy society and a pleasant life, harmonious

family is the root. Family is the foundation for us, for
the society we live in and to the world at large. For
our successes and failures, as also happiness, house/
family is the support. If the family is harmonious, our
lives will be pleasant. For the institution of family to
run smoothly, the marital relationship between the
husband and wife should be strong. While husband is
the head of the family, the wife runs it skillfully with
patience. Her role is pivotal and is the centre point for
the enlargement of the family. She has to treat well the
relatives that come, take care of the earnings of the
husband, spend economically and preserve something
for the future. Love, understanding, belief, friendship,
mutual dependence, sharing are all a part of this
relationship. Both should share the burden of the work
equally. The philosophy of Ardhanareeswara signifies
the happiness that comes out of friendship, closeness,
presence in front, assistance, loving attitude, security,
protection, thinking of each other and mutual harmony
between the two. With goals of job, acute competition
and hectic life style, as years advance after marriage,
the distance between them increases, small differences
escalate into big ones. It is for the couple to realize the
importance of love (which is a great experience) and
take steps before the situation goes out of control.
2.
PREVENTION IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN

CURE.
They should keep in view: Married people are more

happy compared to those who remain alone. Selfrespect and contentment towards life are also much
more and pressure is less. But those are not to that

extent in those who do not have steady/harmonious
relationships. By marriage, they get benefit from
steadiness, discipline, social status. To make it a
success:
1)
Both should proceed forward jointly as per

a plan. Both should share work at home. If
both are working, engaging a maid for house
work and washing clothes, and if needed and
affordable, somebody for cooking could be
considered. They should go to super market on
weekends.
2)
One should try to adjust to the other as it is,

as far as possible. Trying to change the other
forcibly against the will is detrimental.
3)
One should not think that he/she should have

the upper hand always. Differences of opinion
should be reasonable and should not make the
other feel as a loser. Shouting loudly, talking
in a way that it hurts the other is taboo. After a
quarrel, who ever may be at fault, should ask for
forgiveness. Talking when one is upset or angry
should be avoided. Looking at greenery for a
few minutes will uplift the spirits. The greatest
intoxication is that of the EGO. The worst
madness is that of ANGER. Do not carry your
differences to the bed room. Communication
Channels should always be kept open.
4)
Giving and taking respect should be mutual.
5)
Each should look appealing to the other with

a pleasant disposition. Both should share
humor and happy moments. Touch, hugging
etc. increase nearness, gives happiness and
alertness.
Retd. DG (RD), Former Vice-President IRC and Past Chairman ING/IABSE
TECHNICAL PAPERS
6)
7)
Happiness displayed should be natural and

not artificial. There should be integrity. Try
to enhance the sense of humour in you. If you
are able to laugh at yourself, it is a powerful
constructive feeling that will pave the way for
happiness.
Adjustment on the part of both and mutual
assistance are essential. Be it steps or thoughts,
they should be together. If one can think that
he/she is for the other, the journey of the couple
will be pleasant and happy till the end.
Being able to share each others opinions, respecting

each others weaknesses is important. Welcome
newness. Humour increases love and attraction. When
individuality and freedom become united, marriage
relationship becomes worthwhile.
3
THINGS THAT WILL ASSURE SUCCESS
We have to manage our mind for success. Things that

will assure success are:
1)
Goal-setting and actualization (Write them

down and work for them)
2)
Time management (Do more work in shorter

time. Working sharper is needed)
3)
Excellent relationships.
4)
Stress management (Normally we use logical

left brain. By practicing relaxation techniques,
we start using the unutilized right brain too and
this enhances our potential)
5)
Communication skills (Get your thoughts and

ideas across to those who matter)
6)
Assertive behaviour (Develop ability to say

NO)
7)
Positive mental attitude (Tick off the occasional

downswings and believe in looking at the
positive future that lies ahead)
8)
Enthusiasm (Feel genuinely enthused about

everything that you do)
9)
Networking (Better chances of knowing people

who work in responsible positions)
10)
Mind management (Use both sides of brain.

Balance comes between practical aspects of
daily life and creative experiences provided by
the sub-conscious)
THOUGHTS
DESTINY
CAN
CHANGE
OUR
We are the builders of our own destiny. Law of Karma

tells: As you sow, so shall you reap. Thoughts, are
forces, the building blocks of life. With thoughts,
we are making our destiny. Every good thing that
you do, can change your destiny. Thoughts lead to
action. Action when it is repeatedly performed forms
a habit. It is your habits that form your character. It is
your character that determines your destiny. William
James said: The greatest discovery of any generation
is that a human being can alter his life by altering his
attitude.
5
LIFE TIPS
Ups and downs are common in life. Difficultiesconveniences, having-not having, sweetnessbitterness, happiness-sorrow; all peep into the life, be
they haves or have-nots. Every situation determines
the shape of life. We search for solutions when we
face problems. Those solutions remain as lessons of
experience. If you have the courage to welcome the
issues/challenges, you can be said to have the strength
and skill to lead the life. Failure is the stepping stone
for success. You have to make continuous efforts to
correctly plan the life. Some tips to ensure success
are:
1)
Know about yourself (A conscious person will

start thinking about this and when you find a
reply, life starts)
2)
Meaning for life (Observe surroundings and

relationships. Question for whose sake and for
what purpose you are living. The responses
determine the direction of life and ultimately
the objective)
TECHNICAL PAPERS
3)
Where did you start your life (childhood, youth,

middle age, old age. One of these four makes
a person think and makes him walk towards
life. Starting life at youth is preferable, then
it enables one to welcome different types of
experiences).
4)
Where are you? (If you know your present

position you can plan to reach the destination,
you can update, recharge yourself, enhance
competitive spirit and take steps that you dont
slip)
5)
Getting inspiration for life (On the way, you

come across several lives. Getting updated with
new things and moving forward with that new
spirit will lead to better life)
6)
Does the work give you satisfaction/

contentment? (The satisfaction that you get
from work not only makes you happy but also
gives you dynamic spirit. To be successful, not
only effort but also correct path is required. To
lead a peaceful life, you should be able to know
whether that is giving you real satisfaction)
7)
Societal relationships (The happiness you get

from the relations with the society gives more
strength to life)
8)
Strength-weaknesses (know about them in you.

One who reduces weaknesses becomes a strong
person. Strength is not weapons; it could be
physical or mental. Brighten the strengths in
you)
9)
What you want to achieve? (know that so that

you can reach the goal with speed overcoming
obstacles on the way)
10)
Love and respect yourself (such persons know

the value of life). Move forward with enthusiasm
and vigour, taking care to see that your family
and societal relationships do not get broken.
SPEAK SOFTLY
One should speak softly and clearly. Rude talking

should be avoided at all costs. While working, if
somebody talks rudely, being silent is better. By

replying rudely, atmosphere and relationships get
vitiated. At another time and in other context, it is
better to pointout politely that you were hurt by his
rude talk. Be it the boss in the office or members of the
family, it is necessary to convey the issue correctly.
When the husband talks like that and that too in the
presence of the children or others, it needs to be told
politely at another time that you got upset so that such
behavior is avoided in future. Similar action should
be taken for the children also. The sharpness in the
words and emotions in the face, although not realized
by those who do it, hurts the recipients who are in
front and are experiencing the result. That is why the
saying goes: If your talk is good, the village/town
will be good. What is spoken is like an arrow that has
been released which cannot be taken back. So, one
should think and be careful before talking. If despite
care, some words slip out, one should apologise at the
earliest so that the damage is minimized. As far as
possible, try to talk politely, pleasantly and softly.
7
APPRECIATION
Human relationships thrive on caring, sharing and

mutual appreciation. We rely on our loved ones, our
friends and those closest to us, for moral support
and encouragement. Human relationships need to
be nurtured. Think of friends, spouses and parents
as precious plants that need constant tending. When
tensions are rising and troubles are mounting, it
is people who are close to us that bear the brunt of
our stress. We are often courteous, polite and kind
to perfect strangers, but rude and brusque to our
own spouses and parents. Many relationships suffer
from sheer neglect and indifference. Even love has
a shelf life. There is nothing like warmth, love and
appreciation to revitalize relationships. All of us need
to take time to live-to appreciate all the good things
and wonderful people around us. This is sure to bring
us, and them, a good deal of happiness.
7
TECHNICAL PAPERS
8
MEDITATION TO BUILD POSITIVE

THINKING AND SELF ESTEEM
Step 1: Sit down comfortably on a chair with a straight

back, feet firmly placed on the ground, and hands
resting gently on your knees.
Step 2: Now close your eyes; take a deep breath.
Inhale slowly and deeply, till you feel your abdomen
and diaphragm expanding. Breathe out slowly; exhale
through your nostrils and if necessary, through your
mouth to ensure that your lungs have released all the
carbon dioxide. Breathe in-breathe out. Repeat four to
five times, till you feel completely relaxed.
Step 3: Feel the breath entering and leaving your
body. Be aware of your breath as a life force - vital,
positive, infusing you with new life and new energy
every time you breathe. Feel your interconnectedness
with the universe, five elements. As you breathe out,
throw out all the negative energy building up within
you and feel lighter.
Step 4: Visualize yourself seated at an executive table.
Before you is an IN tray. It is full of envelopes addressed
to you. Each one has a label: confidence, enthusiasm,
positive thinking, energy, love, friendship, success,
achievement, growth, maturity, wisdom, peace, and
prosperity your IN tray is full of all the positives
of life. Visualize yourself opening each envelope
carefully, and filing away their precious contents in
your personal folder. Your folder is now full of all the
good things of life.
Next visualize yourself turning to another tray marked
FOR DISPOSAL. In this tray are piled up all the
negatives that you really do not need. Pick up each
one, look at what it contains, tear and put the pieces
in the waste paper basket: diffidence, discouragement,
disappointment, frustration, lack of opportunity,
failure and so on.
Now your personal folder is free of all the negatives
and overflowing with the positives. Feel your sense of
self worth and self esteem.
8
Step 5: Hold the visualization of your self-worth and

self-esteem till it is completely internalized. Feel the
positive vibration around you.
Step 6: Rub the palms of your hand together and place
them gently on your eyes. Open your eyes slowly and
see yourself full of positive energy.
9
WHAT BRINGS PEACE
Nothing can bring man peace but himself; nothing

can bring him peace but the victory over his own
lower self, the triumph over his own senses and mind,
desires and cravings. Peace comes from prayer, japa,
kirtan, meditation, good and sublime thoughts and
understanding. Development of cosmic love, kindness,
forgiveness, understanding of the views of others,
selflessness, desirelessness, non-attachment, freedom
from I ness and mineness and cravings, devotion to
God, self-restraint, control of the mind and the senses
brings happiness and peace of mind. The foundation
of bliss is within oneself in the Immortal Atman or
the soul. Through sadhana man should attain the
knowledge of the self within.
Mother Teresa said:
-
Peace begins with a smile
Confidence is Gods gift. It comes from prayer.

The result of silence is prayer. The result of
prayer is confidence. The result of confidence
is love. The result of love is service. The result
of service is peace.
10
PRAYER
One is perfectly justified in approaching God and

asking for anything that may fulfill a need if that
request is wholehearted and sincere. The best way to
pray is to want a thing very much. Let your heart warm
with it, then relinquish it, and a veritable dynamo of
spiritual power will be released. Dr William H Boddy
said: Many of the highest values of life can never be
TECHNICAL PAPERS
received except by the soul that asks, asks trustingly,
lovingly, faithfully. The last stage of spiritual
progress: a stage where one feels that work is worship
of God. It is not necessary to ring the bells in a temple.
What is required, is to make our daily work into acts
of worship.
The satisfaction of doing a QUALITY job is
unprecedented. It requires that what is delivered
conforms to the requirement, quality control has
been exercised, there are inbuilt mechanisms in the
system/processes to prevent creeping in of errors,
the performance standard of zero defects is satisfied
and price of non-conformance is avoided. For this,

continuous improvement and quality control are the
watch words. Continuous improvement is nothing
but the development of ever better methods. Quality
control is the art of doing the obvious and doing it right.
Zero defects means confirming to the requirements the
first time, every time i.e. doing right each and every
time. This needs commitment and dedication towards
QUALITY at all levels of the organization. Vincent T
Lombardi said: The QUALITY of a persons life is in
direct proportion to their commitment to excellence,
regardless of their chosen field of endeavor
A Comprehensive Approach to Sustainable Highway

Development Strategies
Er. Baban Ram*, Dr. S.K. Chaudhary**
Abstract
Sustainable development as development that meets the needs of
the present without compromising the ability of future generations
to meet their own needs. There is a need presently to conserve our
limited resources and maintain existing ones in order to remain
sustainable many years from now, that is using, developing and
protecting resources at a rate and in a manner that enables people
to meet their current needs and also provides for future generations
to meet their own needs.
Spiralling oil prices (until recently) and the dwindling of natural
resources such as good-quality crushed aggregates and sand has
forced us to consider new strategies to effectively protect, manage
and sustain our highway pavements so that not only are they safe
to use, but can also be maintained effectively and last longer.
In the present paper author has made an attempt to present the
presently available techniques and technology that can be
incorporated into the various phases of the highway pavement life
(i.e. design, construction and maintenance/rehabilitation) in order
to develop a sustainable highway strategy. It briefly describes on
perpetual pavement design, life-cycle analysis, warm mix asphalt,
performance specifications and pavement recycling.
1.
DESIGN PHASE CONSIDERATIONS
a)
Perpetual Pavement Design
There have been a number of significant changes

in recent years that have made the design of new
pavements and the rehabilitation of existing pavements
very challenging for pavement engineers:

The amount of freight carried on the road

network (in truck tonne km) has increased
tremendously.
Allowable truck vehicle mass has been

increasing at about 10% each decade.
Truck tyre pressures have increased from about

550kPa to over 700kPa with the change from
cross-ply to radial tyres.
Apart from designing a long-lasting, durable pavement

to incorporate those changes, considerations must
also be made to reduce the use of materials and other
resources during the construction and maintenance
phase. Also, an alternative pavement design approach
must be considered to model the pavement structure
subjected to traffic loadings as accurately as possible, as
current empirical pavement design procedures (derived
from experience or observation) are inadequate to
incorporate those changes. A possible design solution
to these requirements is to use perpetual pavement.
Perpetual pavement is a term that describes longlife or durable pavements. Studies on pavement
performance records in the United States found that
many thick asphalt pavements have survived for over
40 to 50 years and still showing no sign of impending
structural distresses (bottom up fatigue cracking or
rutting deep in the pavement structure).
Rehabilitation of perpetual pavements is limited
only to repairing the deterioration that initiates at the
surface (i.e. a repair strategy of mill and replace the
surface layer or surface recycling).
Engineer-in-Chief cum Additional Commissioner cum Special Secretary, Road Construction Deptt, Bihar, Patna
**
Assistant Engineer, Road Construction Deptt., Bihar, Road Sub Division, Sakri, Darbhanga
10
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Fig. 1 Typical Section of a Perpetual Pavement
Perpetual pavements use multiple layers of durable

asphalt to produce a safe, smooth and long-lasting
road (Fig. 1). The pavement design begins with a
strong, yet flexible bottom layer that resists tensile
strain caused by traffic, and thus stops cracks from
forming at the bottom of the pavement.
A strong intermediate layer completes the permanent
structural portion, and a final layer of rut-resistant
HMA yields a surface that can last for many years
before scheduled restoration. Mechanistic design
procedures are used to design perpetual pavements
fundamental material properties (resilient modulus and
Poissons ratio) and predicted traffic loadings are taken

into account to determine pavement behaviour. The
provision of enough stiffness in the upper pavement
layers to preclude rutting and enough total pavement
thickness and flexibility in the lowest layer to avoid
fatigue cracking from the bottom of the pavement
structure is required in designing a perpetual pavement.
Monismith and Long have suggested that the limiting
tensile strain at the bottom of the asphalt layers should
be no greater than 60, and that, at the top of the sub
grade, the vertical strain should be limited to 200.
Asphalt thickness proposed in other design procedures
shows these strain levels to be reasonable.
Fig. 2 Example Illustration of Pavement Life-Cycle Expenditure Stream Diagram
11
TECHNICAL PAPERS
The advantages of perpetual pavement include the
following:

A perpetual pavement provides durable

and long-lasting roadway; expensive, timeconsuming, traffic-disrupting pavement.
Reconstruction or major repair is not required.
Easier and cost-effective maintenance;

scheduled surface restoration performed on
perpetual pavement saves time and money,
as the road structure is not removed for
reconstruction.
Asphalt in the perpetual pavement structure is

recyclable, providing further cost savings and
environmental benefits.
b)
Life Cycle Analysis
Life Cycle Cost Analysis (LCCA) is an engineering

analysis tool that allows alternative highway pavement
types and maintenance strategies for a project to be
evaluated throughout its life analytically; the most
cost-effective alternative is then selected based on
economic merit. The lifecycle costs of a road pavement
include the money spent on the initial construction of
the pavement, maintenance over its lifetime, and the
cost to users for their delay during maintenance and
reconstruction. For example, the life-cycle costs of hotmix asphalt pavements are normally compared to that
of concrete pavements for their design life, including
considerations of the proposed future maintenance
strategies for each pavement type. The steps for the
LCCA process are described as follows:

12
First, appropriate pavement design and

maintenance & rehabilitation alternatives are
defined for a given project. For each proposed
alternativeinitial construction or rehabilitation
activities, the necessary future rehabilitation
& maintenance activities and the timing of
those activities are then identified. From
this information, a schedule of activities is
constructed for each project alternative.
Next, activity costs, which include direct department

expenditures (e.g. construction and maintenance costs)
and also user costs (e.g. lost time to the public and
vehicle expenses), are estimated. A predicted schedule
of activities and their associated department and user
costs are combined to form a projected expenditure
stream for each project alternative (Fig. 2).

Once the expenditure streams have been

determined for all the alternatives, the next
step is to calculate the total life-cycle costs for
each alternative. The projected activity costs
for a project alternative cannot simply be added
together to calculate total life-cycle cost as
money spent at different times have different
values to an investor. LCCA uses discounting
to convert anticipated future costs to present
current values so that the lifetime costs of
different alternatives can be directly compared.
The project alternatives can then be evaluated
based on their life-cycle costs.
CONSTRUCTION PHASE CONSIDERATIONS
a)
Warm Mix Asphalt
Technological improvements are currently being

explored by the hot-mix asphalt industry to reduce
asphalt production temperatures, thus reducing the
energy required to produce asphalt. Warm-mix asphalt
is distinguished from hot-mix asphalt mixtures by
the temperature regimes at which they are produced;
warm mix asphalts are generally produced in the
temperature range of 105C to 135C, compared to
the conventional hot mix asphalt which is typically
produced in the range of 140C to 170C.
Currently, at least three different processes are being
actively marketed:

a process that uses foamed bitumen
the use of an organic additive
TECHNICAL PAPERS

application of emulsion/chemical additive The

foamed bitumen mix approach utilises foaming
action (created by the addition of water) which
temporarily increases bitumen volume and
decreases asphalt viscosity, resulting in similar
workability at relatively lower temperatures
than conventional hot mixes.
Organic additive products are based on their unique

melting point characteristics. These additives provide
extra fluidity to the mixes at temperatures above
100C, where mixing and placement normally occur.
At service temperatures, it reportedly provides better
stability to the mixes. Emulsion application utilizes
emulsified binder in place of conventional bitumen
binder. Although bitumen emulsion mixes are
normally used in cold mix applications (i.e. produced
at ambient temperature), the Evotherm emulsion is
applied at higher temperatures (above 100C).
Due to this high temperature (which is still lower than
conventional hot mixes), the water in the emulsion
evaporates rapidly during the mixing and placing
process, resulting in hotmix-like end products.
Examples of warm-mix products available in the
market include foamed-mix based products (AsphaMin,WAM Foam and LEA), organic additive
products (Sasobit, Asphaltan B, CECABASE RT
92 and Licomont BS100) and finally the emulsion
application (Evotherm and WAM Emulsion).
Warm mix asphalt products have recently been gaining
attention due to the increasing emphasis on protecting
the environment.
By lowering the production temperature, a reduction
in fume emissions is possible (Fig. 3). In addition,
there are other potential benefits as follows :

cost savings by using less fuel for heating
cleaner working environment due to a reduction

in fumes and odour during production and
placement
safer working environment due to lower

temperatures during production and placement
the possibility of retaining the workability of the

mix after longer haulage (due to lower limit in
workable temperature and slower temperature

reduction rate)

the possibility of placement in cooler weather

(thus extending the construction season).
c)
Performance-Related Specifications
The specifications for the construction of pavements

can generally be classified into Method-Related
Specifications (MRS), End-Result Specifications
(ERS) and Performance-Related Specifications
(PRS). Highway departments/agencies worldwide are
moving beyond MRS/quality assurance specifications
that specify end product quality, to PRS that specify
quality in terms of desired performance over the long
term.
PRS are those in which the product pavement is directly
dependent upon its actual performance. Typical of
these specifications are warranty, limited warranty
and design build-operate contracts. Contractors are
held responsible for the product performance within
the context of what they have control over. The
contractor is given a great deal of leeway in providing
the product, as long as it performs according to
established guidelines. In this case, the contractor
assumes considerable risk for the level of service
the product provides by paying for or providing any
necessary maintenance or repair within the warranty
period.
There are two types of PRS models: performanceprediction models and maintenance-cost models.
Performance-prediction models predict when and to
what extent the pavement will experience distress
such as fatigue cracking or rutting. Maintenance-cost
models estimate a post-construction life-cycle cost,
that is, the cost of maintenance and rehabilitation
that will be necessary for the projected life of the
pavement. PRS can be used for the following:

to identify a relationship between key quality

characteristics and product performance.
to identify and specify an optimum level of

quality that represents the best balance of costs
and performance.
13
TECHNICAL PAPERS
to allow for more incentive for contractor innovations
and provide rational basis for adjusting contractor
pay when the quality is above or below desired
levels to provide a critical link between pavement
construction and pavement management systems.
improved local air quality
Reduction in road transport noise
protection of cultural heritage
reduced green house gas emissions
MAINTENANCE/REHABILITATION PHASE
CONSIDERATIONS
a)
Pavement Recycling
Pavement rehabilitation (including the recycling method),

compared to new road construction, is becoming more
important as the country develops and its road network
approaches maturity. As resources become scarcer and
environmental concerns becomes more widespread, it
is anticipated that pavement recycling will become more
important in the coming years.
Deteriorated asphalt pavements should be recycled,

rather than overlaying them with new asphalt concrete
material or reconstructing them (depending on the type
and seriousness of the distress) because of the following
reasons/advantages:

reduced cost of construction.
Conservation of aggregate, binders and transport

fuel (for new materials).
Preservation of existing pavement geometrics.
Preservation of the environment.
help to reduce reliance on landfills by reusing

existing materials instead of disposing them.
The Asphalt Recycling and Reclaiming Association

(ARRA) define four different types of recycling method:
(1)
Hot in-place recycling
(2)
Hot mix recycling,
(3)
Cold in-place recycling and
(4)
Full depth reclamation.
The term linear quarry is used to describe existing road

pavements which contain materials that are to be recycled
into new pavement layers; much like a quarry which
supplies the aggregate materials for new roads. The in-situ
reuse of existing pavement materials during reconstruction
not only reduces the requirement for new materials but
also does away with the need for the associated transport
movements.
Some of the environmental outcomes which are associated
with pavement recycling are as follows:

reduced resources consumption
protected biodiversity in the road corridor and any

adjacent land and roadways
14
CONCLUSION
The need to maintain existing highways and preserve our
resources has led to innovations in the analytical techniques
and technological processes that can be incorporated in all
phases of highway design, construction and maintenance.
A sustainable highway pavement strategy can, therefore,
be implemented using these innovations in the life-cycle of
highway pavements, provided that the relevant stakeholders
(i.e. government agencies, contractors and consultants) are
fully committed in implementing the strategy.
REFERENCES
1.
WCED, (1987), Our Common Future. Report of the World

Commission on Environment and Development, Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
2.
TRB (2001), Perpetual Bituminous Pavements,

Transportation Research Circular No. 503, December
2001, Washington DC: Transportation Research Board
3.
ERES (2003), Life Cycle Cost Analysis of SMA

Pavements and SMA Application Guidelines, Madison:
ERES Consultants.
4.
Choi, Young (2007), Warm Mix Asphalt Review, Austroads

Technical Report AP-T91/07, Sydney: Austroads.
5.
Newcomb, David E. (2001, May/June). Performance

Related Specifications Development. Hot Mix Asphalt
Technology, 49-51.
6.
Kandhal, Prithvi S. and Mallick, Rajib B.(1998), Pavement

Recycling Guidelines for State and Local Governments,
Publications No. FHWA-SA-98-042, Washington: Federal
Highway Administration, Department of Transportation.
7.
Austroads (2006), Asphalt Recycling, Austroads Technical

Report AP-T66/06, Sydney: Austroads.
1. presentation on Challenges in Financing in Road

Sector Projects-Investors Perspectives
and Possible Solutions
By Athar Shahab, CEO, M/s Uniquest Infra Ventures, Made During the Seminar on
Recent Trends in Highway Development
Infrastructure A Macro View
Challenges that remain
The Last Five years..

FY 08 FY 12 (est)
The Project Development Challenge
Others
17%
Power
32%
Oil&Gas
6%
Quality of Pre-bid Studies
~ 55,000MW added
(o/w about half was
from private sector)
Total investments
~ USD 400 bn
Railways
10%
Land Acquisition
Ports & Airports

4%
Roads
14%
Telecom
17%
17,600 km of PPP road

bids awarded
No of mobile
connections rise from
261 mn to ~915 mn
Share of Private Sector is 37%. In terms of PPP investments, India is the largest market in the world ahead of
Brazil, Russia and China
1
Why do investors like roads ?
Scope DPR or Feasibility?

Is the time given adequate?
Is historical data available on traffic, pavement quality
Is lowest cost the way to appoint consultants?
Contractors need physical possession of land, notifications not enough
Expectations are rising, greater public engagement necessary
Sensitivity to public interest during finalisation of alignment
Change of alignment/scope mid
mid-way
way during execution
Communication with affected landowners during pre-bid studies
Launching bids before acquisition of land creates major challenges during execution
Utility shifting
Correct
C
t id
identification,
tifi ti extent
t t off relocation,
l ti costt estimation
ti ti
Clear rules of engagement at state level
Delegation of powers to Regional Offices
RoB Approvals
Forest Clearance
Large pipeline
Indias road building programme is the biggest with a large PPP component
No serious infrastructure p
player
y can afford to ignore
g
the opportunity
pp
y
Relative ease of construction
Relative ease of operation

Greater certainty of cash flows
The design principles, construction technologies and methodologies are well

established
Most road projects are expansion of existing highways with established patterns
of traffic
Relative lack of competition
Tolls are set by government, escalation are formulaic and automatic
Traffic growth linked to GDP growth
No dependence on large users
Challenges that remain

The Execution Challenge
What has worked well
An alternate model for project development and execution

NHAI at the centre and several copies in the states
Triumph of outsourcing
Massive build up of private sector capacities
Extensive use of external consultants
Design, engineering and project management
Construction, operation, maintenance and tolling
Broad acceptance of user pays principle

Leveraging of scarce government resources
Private financing of road projects
Risk issues from project development stage have a major impact on project schedule
Lack of competent contractors/sub-contractors
Significant gap between bids and execution, adverse impact of rising commodity prices
Mid-stream changes to scope/alignment
Increasingly difficult to mobilize adequately skilled human resources
The
h O&M
& Challenge
h ll
Lack of adequately experienced vendors with credible tack record
Plethora of exemptions
Public resistance to tolling
tolling, lack of state support
The Financing Challenge

Lenders unwilling to take pre-construction risks, seeking physical possession of 100% land,
availability of all clearances
Lenders are reaching their exposure limits
Long-term debt still a pipe dream, longer concession periods have little value
Lack of debt capital markets for infrastructure projects
Equity capital providers watching infrastructure with caution
Significant capacity addition, major boost to economy
15
Some sobering thoughts
PPP is not a panacea, private sector has finite abilities to assume risk
Private sector works for profit, has much higher cost of capital than
g
government
Can deliver value only if it assumes risks it can manage
Each days delay adversely affects capital providers
Spirit of Partnership
Partnership missing in PPPs
Needs fairness and trust
We levy tolls for crossing the gate, not for distance travelled
We charge uniform tolls but dont provide uniform service levels
Users unwilling to pay for traffic jams
Indian highways
g
y continue to have amongg the worst safetyy record
An opportunity like this comes but once in the life of a nation it is for us to
leave a legacy or leave a mess
Agenda for action
Build for the future, not just for the next 10 years
Invest in project development, dont short circuit preparation
Reject bids that are out of range
All disagreements need not escalate into disputes, all disputes
need not be settled by the Supreme Court
Comfort the capital providers. An adverse re-rating of the
sector doesnt help anyone
Help bring new capital, review legacy issues, if necessary
Focus on asset management for the long-term
Aggressively promote electronic tolling, thats the future
Engage the users; we exist for them. Value for money must be
delivered communicated and perceived
delivered,
2. presentation on Area Based & Performance

Procurement Systems with Asset Management Concept
By Dr. Ashok Kumar Sr. Highway Engineer and Rajesh Rohatgi Sr. Transport Specialist, World Bank
Area-wide
Area
wide Maintenance Contracts
Scope of contracts
1 Routine Maintenance (RM)
1.
Roadside jungle clearance, filling potholes, repairing minor
cracks, shoulder maintenance, etc that are required to be
carried
i d outt almost
l
t daily
d il
2. Periodic Renewal (PR)
More extensive operations such as applying a seal or renewal
surfacing coat required to be done periodically every few years
3 Special Repair (SR)
3.
Major restoration or reconstruction at stretches or application
of overlays to rectify structural deficiencies
Assam State Roads Project

By Ashok Kumar, Senior Highway Engineer, World Bank
4. Emergency Maintenance (EM)

Maintenance requiring road restoration arising out of sudden
unforeseen situations like damages from accidents,
accidents storms,
storms etc

Measurements and Payments
Assam has about 45,000 km of SH, MDR, and Rural Roads managed by
the Public Works Department
About 18,000 km added in recent years
Maintenance funding is increased from INR 220 million in 2002 to INR

3,280 million currently
The
h immediate
d
priority is to sustain the
h road
d assets
PWD has started a pilot on area-wide maintenance contract in Jorhat
district.
Area-wide contracts proposed to be rolled out to 5 more districts.
16
` Routine Maintenance
Monthly fixed payments
No measurements
` Periodic Maintenance
Payments made as per BOQ for the works
` Special Repairs
Payments
P
t made
d as per the
th BOQ
Deductions for Non-compliance
Training Requirements for Contractors
Service level Criteria: Road user services and comfort

% Payment reduction for Non
Compliance Length (Km)
Compliance Criteria
Potholes repairing & surface patching
20%
S f
Surface
d
depressions
i
&R
Ruts
t
10%
Crack sealing
5%
Surface Treatment
6%
Edge repair
5%
R li & stripping
Raveling
ti i
5%
Grading leveling of low shoulder
5%
Shoulder fillip
5%
Embankment and Batter repair
5%
S f
Surface
d
drain
i cleaning
l
i
5%
Hp/RCC culverts and pits cleaning (dervishes, jungles etc)
5%
River/ Stream Maintenance (Clearance of water way, etc)
7%
Grass control, cleaning & Grubbing
3%
Trees and shrub management
Sign Maintenance
3%
Distance Stones, gguidepost,

p
delineators etc.
2%
Bridge and Major Culvert Maintenance
5%
Minor Landscape clearance
2%
Overall concept of the contracts

Maintenance interventions and contract obligations
g
How to organize maintenance operations to meet
the contract obligations
New maintenance equipment, materials and
techniques
Data collection and reporting maintenance
operations
Billing
2%
Challenges
Special Features
What to deal with the badly deteriorated roads

Many of the roads are not in maintainable condition; What to do with
such roads till such time their full rehabilitation is taken-up
Petrol Maintenance Unit
How to develop maintenance oriented contractors
One truck, one foreman, 5 workers

equipment of routine maintenance
Material for patch and other repairs
Truck
T k iincludes
l d contract
t td
details
t il off th
the fi
field
ld
engineer and contractor
Contractor also provide transport for field staff
Deductions in payments if PMU and transport is
not provided
Suitable training in modern maintenance techniques, execution of

maintenance works, Use of modern equipment
How to shift the focus of the road agency from construction to

maintenance
How to bring more flexibility in the contracts
Add/delete the roads during contract execution, abnormal traffic
changes
How to ensure regular funding for such contracts

How to incentivize contractors
How to move from pilot stage to full scale implementation
Linkage with the budget cycle
Separating out Intervention Levels for Secondary Roads
Estimates are prepared in the last quarter of the FY
Sl.
Serviceability Indicator
Level I
Level 2
Level 3
TTendering
d i off works
k are iinitiated
i i d iin M
March
h off the
h FY previous
i
to
the implementation FYs.
1.
Roughness by Bump Integrator

(max. permissible)
3000 mm/km
4000 mm/km
5000 mm/km
2-3
4-8
9-12
10 %
10-15 %
Upto 25 %
5-10 mm
10-20 mm
Upto 20 mm
40 SN
35 SN
30 SN
W
Works
k off special
i l repairs
i and
d periodic
i di renewals
l are
undertaken within the first 3 months and payments are done
after the first quarter of the FY of implementation.
2.
Potholes per km
(max. numbers)
3
3.
C ki and
Cracking
d patching
t hi area
(max. permissible)
4
4.
5.
R i
Rutting
(20 mm maximum permissible)
Skid resistance
(Skid number minimum
desirable)
17
Example from UK Birmingham

Contractual arrangements for the city council
to receive a defined level of service
City council determines the service required
contractor determines how to provide and finance

it in lieu of a single monthly payment
Provisions for deductions for non-availability of
service
Transfer of risks for all life cycle costs to the

service providers
Network
Network Based Output and
Performance Based Road
Contracts (OPRC)
An Alternate PPP Model
New Delhi
October 10
10, 2012
Rajesh Rohatgi
Senior Transport
p Specialist
p
The World Bank
Outline
1. Urgent need to bring in Asset Management
focus in the Road Sector
South Africa Maintenance contracts

Main contractor + sub
sub-contractors
contractors
Main contractor to sub-contract > 80% works
Each
E h sub-contractor
b
t t responsible
ibl ffor smallll network
t
k
Overall responsibility of quality and delivery of
works
Responsible for training and hand-holding of
contractors
Contract provide for training of sub-contractors
1. Asset Management
g
Focus
Currently - focus is on Building and then
B ildi another
Building
h road
d and
d then
h
Building another one
Lack of focus and resources for
maintenance
ad-hoc deployment of available resources
Maintenance is not Asset Management
Road Asset Management -- Lifespan of Road

Asset
Asset management applied to the entire life of assets
Hand
over
2. We must start managing and procuring

Network contracts not merely Corridors
contracts
3. Output and Performance Based Road Contract Concept
4
18
1. Asset Management
g
Focus
Road Asset Management Involves :
Socio
Data Collection - Asset Inventory, Traffic, Socioeconomic, pavement condition
Asset Deterioration Modeling
Network safety, reliability and efficiencies
Budgeting, financing , procurement strategies
to preserve Road Asset Value (replacement
cost)
Lookingg at Network not onlyy Corridor
2 Corridor v/s Network Management

2.
NHAI Vision
"To meet the nations need for the provision and maintenance
of National Highways network to global standards and to meet
users
expectations
t ti
iin th
the mostt ti
time b
bound
d and
d costt effective
ff ti
manner, within the strategic policy framework set by the
Government of India and thus promote economic well being
and quality of life of the people.
SANRAL Vision
T b
To
be recognized
i d as a world
ld lleader
d iin the
h provision
i i off a superior
i
primary road network in Southern Africa.
2 Corridor v/s Network management

2.
HIGHWAY AGENCY UK Vision
To be 'The
The world's
world s leading road operator
operator.. We have set five
goals which will indicate progress to achieving this vision:
We provide a service that our customers can trust
We set the standard for delivery
We deliver sustainable solutions
Our
O roads
d are the
h safest
f iin the
h world
ld
Our network is a dynamic and resilient asset
2 Corridor v/s Network Management

2.
Corridor Approach
- More Contracts to manage
- Contract management
g
burden and more disputes
- Inconsistency in features
- Data Collection difficult
Network Approach
- fewer contracts to manage
- Less disputes
p
- Data Collection of asset
efficient few agencies
-Unforeseen events better
managed
-Value
Value for money
-Innovation
3. Output and Performance Based

Road Contract (OPRC)
V i
Various
C
Contracting
t ti M
Models
d l
Item Rate (FIDIC)
EPC/Design and Build
Design Build Maintain Operate and Transfer
(Long Term based on Asset Management Principles)
PPP
Annuity BOT-Toll,
Annuity,
BOT Toll OPRC
What is Output and Performance based

Road Contract (OPRC) ?
Focus on output not input thus eliminate risks of client to pay on
completion of works
orks eeven
en if o
outcome
tcome is unfit
nfit for clients needs
Measure outputs based on actual performance what is achieved
rather than what is done
Profit sharing, an incentive for PPP thus practical for PPP
arrangement by aligning the motivation and performance of
g
contractors with clients needs and goals
Contractors become stakeholders by being directly rewarded for
value they achieve for Client. Financial Model and Payment Schedule
Flexibility
Fl ibilit and
d costt effective
ff ti overallll iinterventions,
t
ti
specifically
ifi ll
maintenance
10
19
Cost
COD
Cash Flow and Payment Modalities.
Annuity
y
OPRC
Year
OPRC: Four Type Of Quotations asked for
Management and Maintenance Services

(Rs/Month)
Rehabilitation Works: Bringg roads back to a
standard they had before. (Rs/Km/Month)
Improvement Works: Add new characteristics
to the road, in response to new traffic, safety,
or other considerations. (Rs/Km/Month)
Emergency Works: Repair the road after
damage from unforeseeable events
events. (BOQ)
Basics
Engineering Investigations/Data Collection
(light)
Traffic Model ( growth
growth, pattern of changes,
changes
description of the model and its major
features),
features)
Concept Design and Specifications Provided
Service level defined and linked to monthly
payments (reductions defined if not met)
Contract period ideally 10-15 year
14
Basics
Pavement Deterioration Model developed and
Required Residual Life of pavement defined
for taking over.
Risk Framework
Frame ork prepared and included
incl ded in the
contract.
Best Value for Money Financial Model
Developed (Payment Schedule, specified in
the contract)
Bid requires a Contracting Entity or
Developer Contractor + Consultant as this is
more of a management contract.
15
Bid Evaluation for OPRC contracts

Activity
Bid Evaluation basis
Managementt &
M
Routine Maintenance:
Network
N
t
kk
km x Lumpsum
L
per
km/month x No. of months
Rehabilitation Works:
Output Unit prices x quantities

(e.g. strengthening/Km)
Improvement Works:
Output Unit prices x quantities

(e.g. widening to four lane/Km)
Hypothetical
y
Input Quantities
x input unit prices
Emergency
g
y Works:
TOTAL BID PRICE:
Payment Mechanism
Contracting Entity prepares a compliance
report + Bill
Employer through a monitoring consultants
check this compliance report
Payment reductions well defined if
compliance not achieved.
Continuous non-compliance triggers actions
(could be termination)
SUM OF THE ABOVE

(Net present value)
16
20
Typical Guarantee Structure for OPRC Projects
The Concessionaire guarantees structure will be required during the entire construction period
because the Government must protect itself against Concessionaires potential breach at
all times during the project cycle
- To ensure Contracting
Entitys will reach
financial closure.
- Significant amount
Operation and Maintenance Bond

- Provided once it is granted a license
to operate the asset.
- The amount shall be derived from
operating and maintenance costs and
assessment of the potential damage
resulting from neglecting
maintenance.
- Usual Guarantee.
Guarantee
- This guarantee will be returned
after full completion of construction
and completion certificate issued.
Pre Transfer Bond

- Guarantee to secure the transfer of
the road according to the level of
service required.
- Validity of this bond should be
enforced until 1 or 2 years after the
end of the concession period.
Pre-transfer Bond:
yr prior
p
to end of
3y
concession with
validity of 2 yr after
end concession
O&M
Perrmit to
op
perate
Construction Performance Bond
Constructio
on Bond at Notice to
proceed
p
Financial
Closure Bond
Finan
ncial Closu
ure Bond
at signatu
ure
- To ensure
Contracting
Entitys
commitment until
financial closure.
- Small amount
Tender Bo
ond at submission
Tender Bond
Construction Bond
milestone
Compliance with m
ng construction
durin
Project Guarantees- overview
PreTransfer
Bond
Permit to operate + 3 years
18
17
3. presentation on Mega Road Projects-Issues in

Financing
By Shri D.R. Santhana Krishnan, CFO, GMR
Definition of Mega Projects by Various Agencies

Though NHAI has not defined Mega Projects clearly, but
it considers projects more than 500 km or projects
costing more Rs 5,000
5 000 crore as Mega
Mega Projects
Projects
Issues in Financing
for Mega Roads
Projects in India
Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation,

Infrastructure and Project Monitoring Division considers
projects costing more than Rs. 1,000 crores as Mega
Projects
Projects
The US Federal Highway Administration defines

megaprojects as major infrastructure projects that cost
more than US$1 billion (~ Rs. 5,500 crores)
Presented by,
D R S Krishnan
CFO,
GMR Highways Limited
Highways Sector Overview
Shall dwell upon
Indian Road & Highways
Wh t is
What
i mega highway?
hi h
?
Why mega highways projects?
Expressways
National
Highways
State
Highways
Major District
Roads and ODRs
Rural Roads
200 km
71,772 km
1,54,500 km
25,77, 400 km
14,33,600 km
Key issues in mega highways projects
Relevant Statistics:
Parameter
Length of National Highway as a % of total roads network
India
Global Average
2%
NA
% of total traffic handled by National Highways
40%
NA
Road Density i.e. (Roads in Kms per thousand people)
2.75
6.7
Road Density in terms of Land (Roads in Kms per thousand

sq.km Land)
770
841
Source: National Highways Authority of India
21
Shall dwell upon

C
Current
t status
t t off hi
highway
h
sector
t in
i India
I di
Key Issues
Category of
#
Issue
Issue
Recommendations
Financing
Time allowed to achieve

Financial close is 180 days
which is the standard time
allowed by Model Concession
Agreement for any Road
Project
Same timelines cannot be

applied
pp
to a Mega
g Road Project
j
given the size and the
challenges that would be faced
in implementation of these
Projects
j
Lenders / Banks require lot of

time to appraise these Projects
to evaluate the risk and the
mitigation measures
measures.
Financial
Closure
Increase the timelines for

financial
fi
i l closure
l
ffrom
180 days to 240 days
Key Issues
Why Mega Highway Projects?

Category of
#
Issue
Why we need to award mega projects in Highways sector?
Issue
Recommendations
Financing
National Highway contributes mere 2% of total roads network in

India.
India
Debt
D
bt requirement
i
t off a Mega
M
Road Project would range
anywhere between Rs. 3,000
Crores to Rs. 6,000 Crores.
There are very few banks who

can underwrite this kind of
Debt requirement.
Even if underwriting in done

by banks jointly,
harmonisation of the terms &
conditions between them
would take lot of time.
Due to huge debt requirement

banks necessarily have to take
sanction from their
Management Committee which
can delay FC
Transportation sector contributes 6% of Indias GDP. Contribution of

roads is over 70% (in Transportation contribution)
FDI expected more in mega highway and expressway projects
India's infrastructure spend has not kept pace with economic growth
Request
q
for
Underwriting
of the Debt
portion
Traffic growth outpaced growth in road network
To improve economic growth and match traffic growth with roads

network growth the development of Mega Highways is need of hour
I
Increase
the
th ti
timelines
li
ffor
financial closure 180
days to 240 days
Shall dwell upon

C
Current
t status
t t off hi
highway
h
sector
t in
i India
I di
Key Issues
#
Category of
Issue
Issue
Financing

Banks
Participation
3 iin th
the D
Debt
bt
is not
encouraging
22
Recommendations
Most of the banks are nearing

their exposure limits to
infrastructure sector/ Group
p
exposure and hence are
reluctant to sanction debt
Banks are sanctioning debt for
th P
the
Project,
j t ranging
i
b
between
t
Rs. 100 Crores to Rs. 300
Crores which is very less
To tie up entire debt required
Concessionaire would require
on an average sanction from
20 to 25 banks
Exposure limits to
infrastructure sector/
Group exposure to be
increased for
infrastructure projects
Banks term funding is

restricted to 15 years
need to be relaxed for
mega projects.
10
Key Issues
Category of
#
Issue
Issue
Recommendations
Financing
High
g interest
rates
Issue
Recommendations
Financing
Key Issues
Category of
#
Issue
The increase in interest rates

has led to a deterioration of
debt coverage ratios for many
companies.
B
Borrowings
i
att
concessional rates for the
Sector
Bank s Exposure Limit for

Banks
Infra to be increased
The higher interest rates may

also lead to an increase in the
cost of BOT/BOOT projects and
hurt their ability to service
debts upon operation. This
could mean their holding

entities (sponsors) are
required to give greater
support.
10(23)G of IT act should

be reintroduced or
similar other benefits
should be extended
Take out financing not

agreed by Banks.
Banks Also
the limit of debt from
IIFCL 20% at any time.
IIFCLs 5 bn $ lying
unutilized
11
Faced with a lack of interest in

the IPO market,
market various
companies raised funds from
private equity investors at the
parent or intermediate holding
company level.
level
Continuing volatility in stock

markets and weakening
economic conditions may
hampe plans to raise
hamper
aise ffunds.
nds
Ability to
raise equity
Cash Trap in SPVs to be

allowed
ll
d tto b
be used
db
by
Holding company as
Equity in highway
Projects.
Dividend Distribution Tax

from SPV to Holding
company to go if used as
equity for new projects
12
******
23
TECHNICAL PAPERS
A LABORATORY STUDY ON MASTIC ASPHALT

Dr. Praveen Kumar* & Col A K Shivkumar**
ABSTRACT
Mastic asphalt is laid on pavements for city streets which carry
extremely heavy traffic, on critical locations such as roundabouts,
intersections, bus stops, bridge decks etc. It could be used
as weaving course in different situations of heavy duty road
pavements. Mastic Asphalt Concrete is a mix of filler, bitumen,
fine aggregates and coarse aggregates in suitable proportion so as
to yield a void less mass which flows like fluid at high temperature,
but on cooling down to normal temperature, it comes in solid or
semisolid state.
In India, due to poor mechanization, skid resistance and cost
considerations, the use of mastic asphalt is very limited till today.
But development of automated equipment, new mixing techniques
and reduced cooking time has brought down cost to a greater
extent. Mastic asphalt is potentially advantageous paving material
due to high stability, high durability, very low maintenance and
good riding quality. Mastic asphalt has gained and would further
gain wide acceptance in road construction technique.
This study includes the various specifications and recommendations,
applications and performance/behavior at different conditions
achieved from continuous research and studies and presents the
essential requisites of mastic asphalt. The present investigation
is performed to study the effect of industrial grade bitumen 85/25
and its blend with penetration grade bitumen 60/70 with various
fillers like cement, cement + fly ash, lime and steel slag in mastic
asphalt preparation. Also, the skid resistance and rut resistance of
mastic asphalt was studied.
INTRODUCTION
Urbanization is increasing at a faster pace in India,

which is evident by the fact that the number of
metropolitan cities have increased from 12 to 14
between 1981 and 2001 and expected to be above 50
by the year 2011. The growth of vehicles in India is
much faster than growth of population during last few
decades. The population of vehicles has grown from 3
lakh in 1951 to about 360 lakh in 1999 and expected
to be above 500 lakh in 2011. About 84 different types
of vehicles are moving at the speed range of 5 to 95
kmph or more with different sizes. The increase in

urbanization and concentration of activities lead to
higher demand especially in transport sector. Thick
surfacing materials are not only costly and time
consuming but also fail at times due to tremendous
increase in traffic intensity in axle load. The wide
range of climatic and physical conditions has given the
continental character to India. In India, approximately
98 percent roads are flexible types probably because
of economy.
Mastic asphalt is a mix of relatively hard bitumen,
mineral filler and fine aggregates. Germany developed
mastic asphalt concrete called as Gussasphalt. Mastic
asphalt is laid on pavements to resist rutting induced
by sloe or stopped traffic on critical locations such as
roundabouts, intersections, bus stops, bridge decks etc.
because it is more flexible compared to Bituminous
Concrete (BC) and therefore can sustain large
deflections without cracking. Mastic asphalt concrete
is a mix of filler, bitumen, fine aggregates and coarse
aggregates in suitable proportion so as to yield a void
less mass which flows like fluid at high temperature,
but on cooling down to normal temperature, it is
in solid or semisolid state. It does not require any
compacting effort also. Mastic asphalt is potentially
advantageous paving material due to high stability,
high durability, very low maintenance and good riding
quality. Mastic asphalt has gained and would further
gain wide acceptance in road construction technique.
The continuous and systematic research for a strong
and durable surface to cater heavy traffic volume
with higher axle loads has resulted in development
of mastic asphalt concrete. In India, due to poor
mechanization, skid resistance and cost considerations,
the use of mastic asphalt is very limited till today. But
development of automated equipment, new mixing
Professor, Department of Civil Engineering, I.I.T. Roorkee, E-mail : pkaerfce@iitr.ernet.in
**
M. Tech. Student E-mail: rajuarmy@gmail.com
24
TECHNICAL PAPERS
techniques and reduced cooking time has brought
down cost to a greater extent. Also less repairs and
more service life indicates an economical mix in the
long run. From a road construction point of view, the
placing of mastic asphalt concrete is less weather
dependent than conventional bituminous mixes and
also having less maintenance problems. It overcomes
the problems of water seepage through its void less
nature. Mastic asphalt has been found to satisfy
several requirements to an acceptable degree though
improvement is desirable in certain respects.
2.
NEED OF STUDY
The geography of India, its mountainous terrain,

rivers and climate has had a decisive and profound
influence in the field of road building practices. The
wide variations of climate and different physical
characteristics have given the continental character to
India. Although, for the first time, mastic asphalt was
laid in India in 1961. Due to high cost factor, lack
of knowledge and production facilities and its use is
confined to special locations till today. As a whole,
further study/research is required in this field to look
into following aspects :-
(b)
Effect of blending of industrial grade bitumen

85/25 and penetration grade bitumen 60/70 in
mastic asphalt preparation.
(c)
The effects of blending of bitumen with

admixtures like steel slag, fly ash, cement etc.
(d)
On the rut resistance of mastic asphalt.
4.
REVIEW OF LITERATURE
Mastic asphalt concrete is one of the special types

of bituminous paving mixes which originally has
been developed in Germany and United Kingdom.
Because of this, the majority of investigations on the
performance of mastic asphalt in the laboratory as
well as field have been carried out in Germany or in
the United Kingdom.
Other countries such as India, Japan and European
countries have basically followed the developed
methods in one of the two countries Germany or United
Kingdom, for design and preparing mastic asphalt
concrete, though each of the mentioned countries has
established a code of practice for mastic asphalt. In
the United States, relatively little interest and work on
mastic asphalt can be found and most interest has been
shown on the stone mastic asphalt in that country.
(a)
Types of filler material.
(b)
The grade of bitumen.
(c)
Blending of industrial grade bitumen with

viscosity grade bitumen.
(d)
Blending of bitumen with admixtures like

sulphur, fly ash, cement, steel slag etc.
(e)
Temperature.
(f)
Long period of cooking process and low skid

resistance of surface.
Basically, coarse aggregates, fine aggregates, filler

and binder are the main components to mastic asphalt
concrete. Besides these, rubber polymer modified
bitumen and sulphur mastic asphalt mixes also have
been studied and have shown improved fatigue
performance and anti-rutting properties.
(g)
The performance of mastic asphalt concrete for

rutting resistance.
4.1.1 Binder
3.
OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
The objectives of the present research are to study

(a)
Effect of industrial grade bitumen 85/25 in

mastic asphalt preparation.
4.1
Components and Their Characteristics
Although, harder grades of bitumen are generally used

but it is found that softer grade of bitumen also can be
used for mastic asphalt preparation. Indian standard
specifies use of 20/40 penetration grade of bitumen
for mastic asphalt concrete. But different grades of
25
TECHNICAL PAPERS
bitumen ranging from 20 to 200 penetrations have
been used for preparation and studied the various
characteristics/performance under different conditions.
The properties to mix are highly dependent upon
binder content and its properties.
As per IRC:107-1992 and IS:5317-1987, 14 to 17%
of binder content is required by weight. Physical
properties of bitumen required for mastic asphalt as
wearing course are given in Table-1.
Table 1 Physical Properties of Bitumen for Wearing
Course of Mastic Asphalt
IS
Specification
(IS : 53171987)
IRC/ CPWD
Specification
(IRC:1071992)
MORTH
Specification
Penetration
at 25in 1/10
mm unit
10 to 40
20 to 40
20 to 40
IS:
1203-1978
Softening
Point (R&B
Method)
50C to 90C
50C to 90C
50C to 90C
IS:
1205-1978
Ductility at
27 C (min)
3cm
3cm
10cm
IS:
1208-1978
Loss of
Heating
(Max)
1%
1%
3%
IS
1212-1978
Solubilty in
CS2 (Min)
99%
99%
99%
IS:
1216-1978
Method of
Test
4.1.2 Filler Material

The stability and strength to an asphalt mix is imparted
by filler which may be fly ash, lime, limestone,
hydrated lime, stone dust, cement etc. A high amount
of filler contents is used preparing mastic asphalt and
several researches have been carried out on effect of
filler. Mastic asphalt containing 10-25% of filler by
weight or even more in excess of filler material, the
mix tends to brittle and crack. As per IRC : 107-1992,
the filler shall be limestone powder passing 75 micron
and shall have CaCO3 content not less than 80% for
mastic asphalt as wearing courses.
4.1.3 Fine Aggregates
The fine aggregates shall consist of crushed hard rock
of natural sand of a mixture of both. The grading of
26
Table 2 Grading of Fine Aggregates for Wearing

Course including Filler (IS:5317-1987)
S.
No
IS Sieve Passing
IS Sieve
Retained
% By Weight
2.36 mm
600 micron
0-25
600 micron
212 Micron
5-35
212 micron
75 micron
10-20
75 micron
30-50
Table 3 Grading of Fine Aggregates for Flooring

(IS: 1195-2002)
Requirement as per
Characteristic
fine aggregate for wearing course is given in Table-2

and for flooring is given in Table-3.
Grading
% By Weight
I) Passing 75 micron IS sieve
Min
Max
40
56
4.1.4 Coarse Aggregates

The coarse aggregates shall consist of clean, hard,
durable, crushed rock free of disintegrated pieces,
organic and other deleterious matter and adherent
coating. They shall be hydrophobic and of low porosity
and the physical properties as shown in Table-4.
Table 4 Physical Properties of Coarse Aggregates for
Mastic Asphalt (IS:5317-1987)
Test
Allowable
(max) in %
Test method
Los Angeles Abrasion Value
30
IS: 2386(Part IV)
Or
Aggregates Impact Value
40
-do-
Flakiness Index
35
IS: 2386 (part I)
Stripping Value
25
IS: 6241
Soundness
12
IS: 2386(part V)
Loss with Sodium Sulphate

5 cycle
18
-do-
Loss with Magnesium

Sulphate 5 cycle
IS: 2386 (part-III)
Water absorption
The structure of mineral aggregates, its proportion

and grading also highly influence on the properties of
asphalt paving mixes such as compressive strength,
stability and deformation characteristics, crack
TECHNICAL PAPERS
formations etc. The percentage and grading of coarse
aggregates to be incorporated in the mastic asphalt
concrete depending upon the thickness of the finished

course as per IRC specifications is given in Table -5.
Table 5 Grading of Coarse Aggregates for Wearing Course and Footpath (IRC:107-1992)
Grading of coarse aggregates
S.
No
Thickness off
inished course, mm
Type of work
1.
Wearing Course for road pavement

and bridge decks
2.
Foot Paths
% of coarse
aggregates
IS Sieve
% Passing
19 mm
13.2 mm
2.36 mm
100
88-96
0-5
a) 25-40
or
b) 41-50
30-40
or
40-50
6.7 mm
600 microm
100
0-15
20-25
15-30
The specifications/compositions used in different countries for mastic asphalt are given in Table 5.1 below
Table 5.1 : Composition of Mastic Asphalt Concrete Used In Different Countries
Name of Country/Mix
Traffic Conditions
Performance
High tensile &

comp. Strength
at 49C
High tensile
strength at 0 C
11.7
10
Heavy
Good
25.0
8.5
Heavy
Good
20.95
8.9
Heavy
Good
22.58
9.7
Heavy
Good
19.2
9.6
Heavy
Good
26.8
11.8
Heavy
Good
Mix Composition (%)

Coarse Aggts
Fine Aggts
Filler
Bitumen
German(Gussasphalt)
40.5
27.0
25.5
USA (Gussasphalt modified

with asbestos fibers)
40.2
26.7
20.1+5.0
(Asbestos
Fiber)
USA (Mastic Asphalt)
29.7
48.6
USA (Mastic Asphalt)
40.0
26.5
USA (Gussasphalt)
43.73
26.42
INDIA (Mastic Asphalt)
33.86
33.86
INDIA (Mastic Asphalt)
40.0
31.2
UK (Mastic Asphalt)
40.0
21.4
5.
Experimental
Results
Programme
and
Mastic Asphalt (MA) is used extensively as surfacing

material for highway and streets subjected to heavy
traffic. Therefore, it should have the following basic
properties.
(a)
Resistance to rutting and the formation under

heavy traffic condition
(b)
Riding quality
(c)
Skid resistance
(d)
Durability
It has been found to satisfy these requirements to an

acceptable degree though improvements are highly
desirable in certain respects such as skid resistance
property. The grading and amount of CA is governed
by the thickness at which the mastic asphalt is
laid. Since, MA is void less, it is not mechanically
compacted unlike materials such as rolled asphalt and
bituminous macadam and in India, it is hand spread till
today. The binder content in mastic asphalt concrete
(14 - 17 % by weight of mix) is roughly thrice of rolled
asphalt. To keep permanent deformation or rutting
within reasonable limits, a much more viscous binder
is normally recommended for mastic asphalt. The
influence of mineral aggregate, although important is
considered of secondary importance.
27
TECHNICAL PAPERS
The following tests were performed on sample of
mastic asphalt concrete to determine its stability and
other properties at various conditions:
(a)
Wilson hardness test
(b)
Portable skid resistance test.
(c)
Rutting test.
5.1
Materials Selection and Their Properties
Mastic asphalt is a mix of bitumen, filler, fine aggregate

and coarse aggregate in suitable proportions. The
Indian standards and the Indian Roads Congress codes
are commonly used for design of mastic asphalt.
These codes specify a mix for most modem roads
and bridges that will provide a compromise between
various properties of the materials, in particular its
stability, resistance to rutting and shoving. However,
it may be possible to improve these properties by
varying the ingredients and their contents/properties
as well as introducing various additives such as
polymers, rubber, sulphur cement etc. Under the
present investigation, following materials were used
to prepared different types of mixes.

Coarse Aggregate - Crushed rock (19 mm -2.36

mm).
Fine Aggregate - Natural Sand
Filler - Cement, Fly Ash, Slaked lime or

hydrated lime and Steel Slag.
Binder-Industrial grade bitumen 85/25 and

paving grade bitumen 60/70(VG30)
5.1.1 Coarse Aggregate (CA)

CA is added to the mastic to achieve extra stability,
resistance to wear and better skid resistance. The
CA shall consist of clean, hard, crushed rock free
of disintegrated pieces organic and other deleterious
matter and adherent coatings. They shall be
hydrophobic of low porosity and satisfy the physical
requirements
28
Quartzite and granite crushed rock aggregate are most

suitable for mastic asphalt because of their mechanical
strength, resistance to abrasion and affinity for bitumen.
The grading of the CA used in this investigation and
grading of the CA to be incorporated in the mastic
asphalt depend upon the thickness of the finished
course.
The grading adopted in this study is given in

Table 6. The physical properties of the CA used are
given in Table 7.
Table 6 Final Grading of Coarse Aggregates (CA)
Sl.
No.
IS Sieve
Percent Passing (by wt.)

Adopted
As per IRC /
MORTH
19.0 mm
100
100
13.2 mm
91.4
88-96
2.36 mm
1.03
0-5
Table 7 Physical Properties of Coarse Aggregate (CA)

Particulars
Value
Test
Method
Actual
value
As per
IRC
MORTH
Aggregate impact Value
11.5%
<40%
-do-
Flakiness Value
29.6%
< 35%
IS:2386
(PtI)
Stripping Value
14.4%
< 25%
IS:6241
Soundness after 5 cycles

(Na2 S04)
6.8%
< 12%
IS : 2386
(Pt. V)
Water absorption (after

24 hour)
1.1%
< 02%
IS: 2386
(pt. III)
The property, grading and properties of CA have been

maintained constant throughout the experimental
programme.
5.1.2 Fine Aggregate (FA)
The FA shall consist of crushed hard rock or natural
sand or a mixture of both. An essential requirement
needed in FA is that it conforms to the grading
specified by IRC: 107-1992 (Ref. Table 2.3). For
this investigation, natural sand has been used as FA
TECHNICAL PAPERS
and the adopted grading of FA has been given in
Table 8. If the FA is free from moisture, and is warm,
it has an advantage during the manufacture of the
mastic asphalt.
Table 8 Final grading and Properties of
Fine Aggregated (FA)
S.
No
Passing IS
Sieve
Retained
IS Sieve
Adopted
(%)
As per IRC/
MORTH (%)
2.360 mm
600 micron
15.30
0-25
600 micron
212 micron
22.3
5 - 25
212 micron
75 micron
15.70
10 - 20
75 micron
46.70
30 - 50
2.1). In U.K. and Germany, a blend of Trinidad Lake

Asphalt and the petroleum based bitumen is suitable
proportions in used. But from the literature survey, it is
found that soft bitumen, also can be used in preparation
of mastic asphalt which required more cooking time
and higher temperature. In this study, industrial grade
bitumen 85/25 independently and also in combination
with softer grade bitumen 60/70 (VG 30) in the ratio
of 60: 40 has been used. A few properties of bitumen
used are given in Table 9.
Table 9 Physical Properties of Binder
Observed Values
Properties
The Calcium content in the lime used has been found

to be 87.674% (minimum required 80%).
5.1.4 Binder
Mastic asphalt contains about 14-17 % of bitumen and
hard bitumen is preferred because of higher viscous
properties. The binder shall be straight run bitumen
conforming to IS: 73-1961 or industrial bitumen as
per IS: 702-1961 of suitable consistency satisfying
the requirement of physical properties (Ref Table
Ref
85/25
60/70
(VG 30)
85/25
60/70
(VG 30)
Penetration
(1/10MM),
100gm, 5
sec, 25c
23
67
20-30
50 - 70
IS: 73-2006
IS: 702-1988
IS: 1203-1978
Softening
Point, c
89
45
80-90
47
IS: 73-2006
IS: 702-1988
IS: 1205-1978
Ductility at
27 c, cm
38
40
IS: 73-2006
IS: 702-1988
IS: 1208-1978
5.1.3 Filler Material

In mastic asphalt, filler content is about four to five time
more than that of conventional bituminous mixes and
more pronounced influence on strength and rheological
behavior. The filler shall be lime stone powder
passing 75 micron with calcium carbonate not less
than 80 percent when determined in accordance with
IS:1195-2002. Lime stone powder is no doubt the best
filler, because of its inherent affinity to bitumen. But
the study with other types of the filler will be helpful
especially in the use of locally available materials. In
this study, cement (passing 75 micron), fly ash, slack
lime and steel slag has been used as filler. The filler in
the mix has a multiple action such as fills the voids,
controls voids in mineral aggregate, increase contact
area and stiffness of the mix, improves strength and
adhesiveness etc.
Limits
In order to be used in a surfacing material the binder

must be capable of getting softened by heat until it
becomes a purely viscous fluid, so that it can be mixed
with the mineral aggregate. Also, it should not be so
soft in summer that the surfacing deforms nor so hard
in winter that surfacing becomes brittle and cracks.
5.2
Testing
To achieve the objective of the present study, the

various tests were conducted as listed below by
adopting the conventional cooking process of mastic
asphalt.
5.2.3 Wilson Hardness Test
The Wilson hardness is the only standard test adopted
by the designed codes of various countries, including
India and England. This test is called as Indentation
Test in Germany. Toe Wilson Hardness test is a very
29
TECHNICAL PAPERS
quick and simple one in which a 6.35 mm diameter rod
is loaded to cause an indentation in the test simple. The
depth of indentation in hundredth of a cm. recorded
as a hardness number. A load of 31.7 kg (311N) is
applied to the rod for a period of 60 seconds. The test
is performed in a water both at a constant temperature
of 35 C. The hardness number for M.A. specimens
shall conform to the following requirements.
(a)
(b)
Without CA at 35C -

60-80 (Hardness
Number)
With CA at 35C
-

10-20 (Hardness
Number)
In this investigation, optimum proportion of

constituents of mixes and optimum binder content
have been selected based on the results of Wilson
Hardness test and thereafter other tests were performed
on the specimens thus selected. The test set up and a
typical sample of Wilson hardness Testing equipment
is shown in Photos 1 and 2.
Photo 3: Portable Skid Resistance Testing Equipment
5.2.4 Portable Skid Resistance Test

This test is based on principles of conservation of
energy. The loss in energy of the pendulum arm,
after the slider has traversed the surface is equated
to the work done during the sliding process. This set
up is also used to measure the Polished Stone Value
(PSV) for road aggregates. This equipment measures
the coefficient of friction directly on the graduated
scale. The measurement is recorded as 100 times the
coefficients of friction. The equipment used is shown
in Photo 3.
5.3
Photo 1: Wilsons Hardness Testing Equipment
Photo 2: Test Samples for Hardness Testing
30
PREPARATION OF MASTIC ASPHALT

SPECIMENS
Mastic asphalt sample were prepared by conventional

cooking process. The required amount of filler
material and the fine aggregate with specified grading
were heated to 170-200C separately and then
approximately half to 2/3rd of the binder of required
quantity heated at about 200C was mixed with the
filler materials and cooked for about 30 minutes.
The fine aggregate was added to the mix along with
rest of the quantity of binder and cooked for another
30 minutes at 180-200C. Finally, the required
quantity of coarse aggregate heated to 180-200c was
added to this mortar of mastic and again cooked for
another 30 45 minutes and in this way the mastic
asphalt concrete mix was ready in 120 to 150 minutes
maintaining the temperature of the mixes at 200 to
210C approximately.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
The flow properties of the bitumen are affected by
temperature changes. Beside this, the volatilization
and changes in rheological characteristics of bitumen
during heating at long periods of the time is also due to
oxidation as well as polymerization or decomposition
of bitumen depending upon the temperature and
nature of bitumen. In earlier time of application of
mastic asphalt, long period of cooking had been used
for softer grade of bitumen. However, major objective
of this investigation was to determine whether long
period of cooking (3.5 to 4 hours) is necessary when
industrial grade 85/25 bitumen and when blended with
bitumen 60/70 (VG 20) are used as binder instead of
hard grade of bitumen as recommended by various
codes of practices.
5.3.1 Proportioning of Materials for Mastic Asphalt

Mastic asphalt design is not considered as convenient
by the Marshal method because of higher binder and
filler content as well as its fluidity. The Optimum
Binder Content (OBC) is determined on the basis of
hardness number.
Attempts to manufacture Mastic were made for various
proportions of CA, FA, fillers (cement, fly-ash, lime
and steel slag). In the absence of mastic cooker the
mastic was prepared in normal open aluminum utensil.
40 mm thick mastic samples of 75 mm diameter
were prepared as per the procedure laid down in
IRC:107-1992 and IS: 1195-2002. The results obtained
are as given in Table 10.
Table 10 Result of Mastic Preparation

Composition (%)
S.
No.
Sample
No.
Filler
C.A.
F.A.
Mastic Formed
(Yes/No)
Bitumen
Cement
FLY ASH
Lime
Steel Slag
85/25
60/70
C-l
40
20
25
15
YES
C-2
50
12.5
25
12.5
YES
C-3
58.5
23.4
9.35
8.75
NO
C-4
62.5
12.5
12.5
12.5
NO
CFA-l
45
10
15
15
YES
CFA-2
40
20
20
YES
CFA-3
38.65
9.66
18.35
18.35
YES
CFA-4
40
22.5
22.5
YES
SL-l
40
25
20
15
NO
10
SL-2
45
15
25
15
NO
11
SL-3
44
25
20
11
NO
12
SL-3
42
20
25
13
NO
13
SLM-l
40
25
20
NO
14
SLM-2
45
15
25
NO
15
SLM-3
44
25
20
6.6
4.4
NO
16
SLM-4
42
20
25
7;8
5.2
NO
17
L-l
50
25
10
YES
18
L-2
45
25
15
15
YES
19
L-3
50
25
10
15
YES
20
L-4
53
20
12
15
YES
21
L-5
53
20
12
YES
22
L-6
47
20
15
18
NO
31
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Contd...
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
L-7
L-8
L-9
L-1O
L-ll
L-12
L-13
L-14
L-15
L-16
L-17
L-18
L-19
SLG-l
SLG-2
SLG-3
SLG-4
SLG-5
SLG-6
44
45
45
42
40
47
44
45
44
45
43
42
40
50
50
48
48
45
45
19
20
15
15
15
20
25
20
19
15
15
15
15
25
25
25
25
23
23
The hardness number of mastic asphalt specimens was

determined at 35C in accordance with the method
specified in Appendix D of IS: 1195- 2002. The
summary of results is shown in section 4.2.1 and the
suitable binder content was selected based on limitations
imposed by IRC (Hardness number between 10 to 20
with coarse aggregate) for each type of mixes.
15
15
20
20
30
15
15
15
15
20
20
20
20
-
5.4
10
10
15
15
20
20
22
20
20
20
25
10.8
9.6
12
13.2
12
13.2
13.8
15
15
9
12
7.2
12
7.2
7.2
6.4
8
8.8
8
8.8
8.2
10
6
4.8
4.8
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
YES
Hardness/Penetration Test
These samples were tested for the hardness in

Wilsons Hardness Testing machine at a temperature
of 35C. The results obtained have been tabulated in
Tables - 11 to 14.
Table 11 Penetration Values
Filler: Cement
S.
No
1.
2.
3.
4.
32
Sample
C-1
C-2
C-3
C-4
Composition in %
CA
FA
Cement
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Cement
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Cement
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Cement
Bitumen- 85/25
-40%
-20%
-25%
-15%
-50%
-12.5%
-25%
-12.5%
-58%
-23%
-10%
-9%
-62.50%
-12.5%
-12.5%
-12.5%
Sample 1
Average
Observation
Penetration
Sample 2
Average
Observation
10.5
11.4
10.95
16.43
14.98
15.72
Overall Average
Observation
Mastic did not form
5.8
5.5
5.65
TECHNICAL PAPERS
FILLER: CEMENT + FLY-ASH

Penetration
S.
No
1
Composition
10%
Sample
CFA-l
CF A-2
CFA-3
CFA-4
Sam Die 1
Sample 2
Average
Average
Average
CA
FA
Cement
Fly-Ash
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 45%
- 10%
- 15%
- 15%
- 9%
- 6%
53.1
37.83
45.46
CA
FA
Cement
Fly-Ash
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 40%
- 5%
- 20%
- 20%
- 9%
- 6%
16.88
20.17
18.52
CA
FA
Cement
Fly-Ash
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 38.65%
- 9.66%
- 18.35%
- 18.35%
- 9%
- 6%
12.8
19.4
16.10
CA
FA
Cement
Fly-Ash
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 40%
- 10%
- 22.5%
- 22.5%
- 9%
- 6%
48.3
50.5
49.4
TABLE 13: PENETRATION VALUES
FILLER: SLACK LIME

Penetration
S.
No
1
Sample No.
L-l
L-2
L-3
Composition
In %
Sample 1
Sample 2
Average
Average
Avg
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 50%
- 25%
- 10%
- 9%
- 6%
24.05
24.05
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 45%
- 25%
- 15%
- 15%
5.93
7.02
6.47
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 50%
- 25%
- 10%
- 15%
16.4
18.92
17.66
33
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Contd...
4
10
11
12
13
14
15
34
L-4
L-5
L-6
L-7
L-8
L-9
L-10
L-11
L-12
L-13
L-14
L-15
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 53%
- 20%
- 12%
- 15%
14.12
10.44
12.28
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 53%
- 20%
- 12%
- 9%
- 6%
43.74
50.86
47.3
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 47%
- 20%
- 18%
-15%
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 44%
- 19%
- 15%
- 22%
46.88
37.75
42.31
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 45%
- 20%
- 15%
- 20%
28.90
36.04
32.47
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 45%
- 15%
- 20%
- 20%
23.50
23.36
23.43
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
- 42%
- 15%
- 20%
- 23%
37.26
31.12
34.19
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
- 40%
- 15%
- 20%
- 25%
32.0
30.18
31.09
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
- 47%
- 20%
- 18%
- 10.80%
- 7.20%
27.30
31.24
29.27
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
- 44%
- 25%
- 15%
- 9.6%
- 6.40%
39.17
45.3
42.23
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
- 45%
- 20%
- 15%
- 12%
- 8%
68.24
48.07
58.15
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
- 44%
- 19%
- 15%
- 13.2%
- 8.8%
84.1
92.9
88.53
Mastic did not form
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Contd...
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
L-16
L-17
L-18
L-19
SL-l
SL-2
SL-3
SL-4
SLM-l
SLM-2
SLM-3
SLM-4
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen-85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
CA
FA
Lime
Bitumen- 85/25
60/70
- 45%
- 15%
- 20%
- 12%
- 8%
- 43%
- 15%
- 20%
- 13.2%
- 8.8%
- 42%
- 15%
- 20%
- 13.8%
- 9.20%
- 40%
- 15%
- 20%
- 15%
- 10%
- 40%
- 25%
- 20%
- 15%
- 45%
- 15%
- 25%
- 15%
- 44%
- 25%
- 20%
- 11 %
- 42%
- 20%
- 25%
- 13%
- 40%
- 25%
- 20%
- 9%
- 6%
- 45%
- 15%
- 25%
- 9%
- 6%
- 44%
- 25%
- 20%
- 6.6%
- 4.4%
- 42%
- 20%
- 25%
- 7.8%
- 5.2%
35.28
69.34
52.31
79.5
68.08
73.79
61.7
58.3
60.0
97.6
83.52
90.56
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
Mastic did not form
35
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 14 Penetration Valves
FILLER: Steel Slag

Penetration
S.
No
1
Composition
In %
Sample No.
SLG-l
SLG-2
SLG-3
SLG-4
SLG-5
SLG-6
Sample 1
Sample 2
Average
Average
Average
CA
FA
SLAG
Bitumen- 85/25
- 50%
- 25%
- 10%
- 15%
51.5
19.87
35.68
CA
FA
Slag
Bitumen- 85/25
60170
- 50%
- 25%
- 10%
- 92%
- 6%
52.5
53.0
52.75
CA
FA
Slag
Bitumen- 85/25
- 48%
- 25%
- 15%
- 12%
30.05
19.3
24.67
CA
FA
Slag
Bitumen- 85/25
60170
- 48%
- 25%
- 15%
- 7.2%
- 4.8%
17.04
32.03
24.54
CA
FA
Slag
Bitumen- 85/25
- 45%
- 23%
- 20%
- 12%
13.22
9.87
11.54
CA
FA
Slag
Bitumen- 85/25
60170
- 45%
- 23%
- 20%
- 7.2%
- 4.8%
63.37
71.95
67.66
Only following seven samples passed the penetration test as laid down in IRC: 107-1992. The test results
obtained are summarized in Table 15.
S.
No
Sample
No
Composition %
Average
Penetration/
Binder
C.A
F.A
85/25
Filler
60/70
Cement
Fly
Ash
Hardness
Lime
Steel
Slag
(Standard 10 to 20)
C-l
40
20
15
25
10-95
C-2
50
12.5
12.5
25
15.72
36
TECHNICAL PAPERS
CFA-2
40
20
20
18.52
CFA-3
40
10
17.5
17.5
16.10
L-3
50
25
15
10
17.60
L-4
53
20
15
12
12.28
SLS-5
45
23
12
20
11.54
5.5
Skid Resistance Test
penetration test. First the test was carried out before the
rutting test and then skid resistance was checked after
carrying out 1000, 5000, 10000, 15000 and 20000 passes
of rubber tyred wheels in wheel tracking apparatus. The
initial test results are given at Table 16.
Skid resistance test on British Portable Skid Resistance

Apparatus as per the procedure was carried out on the
seven samples which had met the specifications for
Table 16 Skid Resistance Values (Wet Condition)

Sample No
Observations
Average
5.6
C-l
60
45
40
50
45
48
C-2
55
58
62
50
52
55.40
CFA-2
70
60
65
65
65
65
CFA-3
95
96
100
105
98
98.80
L-3
85
85
90
93
90
88.60
L-4
75
68
70
72
66
70.20
SLG-5
98
105
100
107
115
105
Rutting Test
The mastic asphalt test samples of size 260 mm x

320 mm x 40 mm of the above seven compositions
were manufactured. Rutting test was performed on the
indigenously fabricated Wheel Tracking Apparatus at
IIT, Roorkee.
(a)
The wheel was kept static and table an which

the sample was kept was allowed to move to
and fro for a distance of 230 mm at a speed of
53(+/- 2) passes per minute.
(b)
The wheel load applied on the test sample

was 72 kgs. and temperature of 50C was
maintained inside the chamber.
(c) The equipment was run at the rate of 9.45

minutes per 1000 passes of rubber tyred wheel.
(d)
Rutting depths were noted for 1000, 2000,

3000, 5000, 8000, 10000, 15000, 18000 and
20000 passes. The test observations are given
at Table - 17 and photograph of a test sample is
shown in Photo 4.
37
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table -17: Rutting Depth (mm)
S
Sample
Rut Depth (mm)
No
No of Passes
1000
2000
3000
5000
8000
10000
15000
18000
20000
C-l
0.76
0.79
0.79
0.86
1.22
1.25
1.35
1.46
1.57
C-2
0.11
0.11
0.12
0.15
0.20
0.34
0.41
0.44
0.50
CFA-2
1.16
1.16
1.48
2.16
3.13
3.74
3.80
3.84
4.03
CFA-3
0.26
0.26
0.28
0.67
1.34
1.92
4.58
6.90
7.96
L-3
0.26
0.26
0.38
0.49
0.60
0.79
0.95
1.11
1.27
L-4
0.17
0.17
0.26
0.30
0.35
0.38
0.40
0.46
0.55
SLG-5
0.05
0.05
0.15
0.23
0.40
0.55
0.66
0.70
0.76
e)
Photo 4 Test Sample for Rutting Test
5.7
Skid Resistance after Rutting
Skid resistance values were taken after 1000, 5000,

10000, 15000 1nd 20000 passes of rubber tyred
38
Number of passes Vs Rut depth relationship has

also been plotted and has been shown Fig.1.
Fig. 1 Wheel passes Vs Rutting Depth
wheels in wheel tracking apparatus fabricated in IIT,

Roorkee. The observations are given at Table - 18 and
relationship graph drawn is given at Fig - 2.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 18 Skid Resistance Values
S
Sample
Skid Resistance Values
No
No of Passes
0
1000
5000
10000
15000
20000
C-I
48
47
36
34
33
33
C-2
55.40
52
45
41
40
38
CFA-2
65
61
51
55
52
50
CFA-3
98.8
95
86
81
79
80
L-3
88.6
87
78
73
70
70
L-4
70.2
70
63
58
55
54
SLG-5 :
105
100
94
90
87
85
of filler is of significance from the view of laying the

mixes
6.1
Analysis and Conclusions
Based on the literature review and experimental studies

carried out following analysis and conclusions can be
drawn: Fig. 2 Wheel passes versus Skid resistance after rutting
6.
(a)
In case filler used is cement + fly ash and Lime

then at bitumen content less than 15% mastic
asphalt does not form, The reason may be that
the bitumen gets consumed in coating the fine
particles of cement and fly ash and the lighter
constituents of bitumen does not get evaporated
on heating up to a temperature of 200C to
210C.
(b)
Bitumen content may reduced nom 17-20%

(IRC:107-1992) to about 12-15% by using
cement, fly-ash, slack lime and steel slag. This
will reduce the cost of mastic.
(c)
Coarse aggregate content less than 40% does not

give adequate penetration indicating inadequate
strength.
ANALYSIS/CONCLUSIONS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
Conventional bituminous mastic paving mixes are

designed using preferably harder grade of binder
20/30 or 30/40 and higher filler content between 17%
to 35% by weight of the total mass. Mastic asphalt
achieves a dense mix possessing high stability, very
low temperature susceptibility, tough and durable
pavement. Properties of mastic asphalt is mainly
derived nom characteristics and relative properties
of bitumen and mineral filler. Wear of mastic asphalt
concrete is independent of type of aggregate used. The
selection of grade of binder, the type and percentage
39
TECHNICAL PAPERS
(d)
When cement alone is used as filler in proportion

less than 20% it does not give adequate
resistance against penetration. However cement
in combination with fly-ash in equal proportion
(35-40% of total weight) gives adequate
penetration value.
(e)
Cooking time in preparing Mastic asphalt is

very high resulting in more fuel consumption
and hence adding to the cost. Cooking time
can be reduced to 2-2.5 hours by pre-heating
the constituents to a required temperature. This
is also possible when industrial grade bitumen
85/25 is used in combination with bitumen
60/70 (VG 30) grade.
(f)
The cost of mastic asphalt pavement is exorbitant

and it is one of the reasons for its limited use.
Cost can be reduced by using cement, cement +
fly -ash, lime and steel slag as filler. This may
bring down the bitumen content to 12 to 15%.
(g)
Skid resistance is maximum when cement is

added as filler material whereas it is minimum
when steel slag is used. Lime and combination
of cement and fly ash gives intermediate skid
resistance. This similar pattern is generally
followed when tested after the rutting test.
With these observations we may classify the
road surfaces in following manner :-
(i)
(ii) Cement + Fly Ash Medium textured

surface.
(iii) Lime Medium textured surface.
(iv) Steel slag Smooth textured surface.
(h)
The observations noted in rutting depth of the

various mixes indicates adequate resistance
since maximum rutting observed after 10000
and 20000 passes are 3.74 mm and 7.96 mm
respectively. These values are well within the
acceptable limits of 4 mm and 10 mm.
(ii)
Cement + Fly Ash: Cement and

fly ash used in equal proportion
between 35% to 40% by weight of the
constituents provide adequate resistance
against penetration. The resistance
against rutting observed to be acceptable
at 10000 and 20000 wheel passes of
rubber tyred wheel. However the skid
resistance is a
suspect because of
fineness and flowing nature of fly ash.
(iii) Lime: Mastic cannot be prepared if Lime

content is less than 12% when industrial
grade bitumen 85/25 is used. The skid
resistance and resistance against rutting
seem to be satisfactory.
(iv) Steel Slag: The bitumen content can

be reduced to 12% by using steel slag
as the filler. Skid resistance as well as
resistance against rutting is observed to
be satisfactory.
6.2
Recommendations for Further Studies.
Cement Rough textured surface.
(j)
Effects of Fillers
(i)
40
resistance indicating inadequate strength

and provides rough textured surface
having high skid resistance. Resistance
against rutting is also within the
acceptable limits.
Cement: Cement content less than 20%

does not provide adequate p e n e t r a t i o n
A number of areas from this experimental study

deserve further research in this field
(a) Use of industrial grade bitumen 85/25 can
be considered for mastic asphalt after further
detailed evaluation under uncontrolled field
conditions and study the effects of environmental
factors, vehicle parameters like type, weight
and speed and type & quality of surface/subbase layer.
(b)
Development of modified design and fabrication

of mastic cooker for laboratory tests.
(c)
Possibility of use of industrial grade bitumen

85/25 with penetration grade 60/70 (VG 30) can
be further explored with cement + fly ash filler.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
(d)
This combination requires more experimental

studies.
(13)
IS: 1195-2002, Specification for Bitumen Mastic for

Flooring. Bureau of Indian Standards, New Delhi.
Experiments can be carried out using other

types of binders including modified binders
and their effects on the various characteristics
properties.
(14)
Rajbongshi Pabitra (2001). Investigation on Mastic

Asphalt using Soft Bitumen with Rubber. M.E.
Dissertation, Dept. of Civil Engg., University of Roorkee,
Roorkee.
(15)
Swaminathan, CG. and Nair, K.P., Fly ash as a Filler in

Asphaltic Concrete, Indian Roads Congress, Vol. 31,
1961, pp 1-11.
(16)
Tripathi, V.K., Laboratory Investigations on Skid

Resistance Characteristics of Bituminous Paving Mixes
Using Cement as Filler with Application of Portable Skid
Resistance Tester, M.E. Dissertation, Department of
Civil Engineering, University of Roorkee, India, 1994.
REFERENCES
(1)
Azadani, M.N. (1997). Evaluation of Mastic Asphalt

Concrete as a Wearing Course. Ph.D. Thesis, Dept. of
Civil Engg. University of Roorkee, Roorkee.
(2)
IS:702-1961, Industrial Bitumen, Indian Standard

institution, 1961.
(3)
IS:73-1961, Paving
Institution, 1961.
(4)
IS:5317-1969, Specification for Bitumen Mastic for

Bridge Decking and Roads, Indian Standard Institution,
1969.
(5)
IS:2386 (Part-IV) - 1963, Methods of Test for Aggregates

for Concrete, Part-IV, Mechanical Properties, Indian
Standard Institution, 1963.
(6)
IS:2386 (Part-V) - 1963, Methods of Test for Aggregates

for Concrete, Part -V, Soundness, Indian Standard
Institution, 1963.
(7)
IS:2386 (Part-III) - 1963, Methods of Test for Aggregates

for Concrete, Part -III, Specific Gravity, Density, Voids,
Absorption and Bulking, Indian Standard Institution,
1963.
(8)
IS:2386 (Part-I) - 1963, Methods of Test for Aggregates

for Concrete, Part -I, Particle Size and Shape, Indian
(9)
IS:1203-1978, Determination of Penetration, Indian

(10)
IS:1205 -1978, Determination of Softening Point, Indian

(11)
IS:1208-1978, Determination of Ductility, Indian

(12)
IRC:107-1992, Tentative Specifications for Bitumen

Mastic Wearing Courses. Indian Roads Congress, New
Delhi.
Bitumen,
Indian
Standard
41
Recycled Concrete Aggregate in Concrete

Pavement ConstructionAn Innovative Approach
for Sustainable Development
Dr. V.V.L. Kanta Rao*, Ms. Surya Maruthupandian** and Dr. Lakshmy Parameswaran***
Abstract
The concrete is the most consumed man made material in the
world, and India is the second largest producer and consumer of
Portland cement. Although, many efforts are being employed in
many service oriented sectors towards sustainable development,
the construction sector is lagging behind as the concrete
production itself involves more unsustainable practices. The two
major concerns which demand attention of mankind in the field of
construction are rapid depletion of quality aggregates for concrete
and the enormity of construction debris and demolition wastes
being dumped in the land fill. These factors give rise to demand
for recycling of aggregates from the construction and demolition
waste and their fruitful utilization in concrete construction.
This paper discusses the worldwide efforts to use recycled concrete
aggregates in concrete construction, including in construction of
pavements.
Introduction
Although the term sustainable development has

been defined in many ways, the definition coined
by Gro Harlem Brundtland, the then Prime Minister
of Norway and the first chairman of the Brundtland
Commission (now known as World Commission on
Environment and Development (WCED)) in 1983,
appears to be the most appropriate even now. The
Commission defined sustainable development as
the kind of development that meets the needs of the
present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs[1].
In this connection, it has to be emphasised that the
production of cement concrete involves most unsustainable practices. The production of cement
concrete requires (i) Portland cement as a binding
material, which is produced from limestone and

siliceous materials which in turn are irreversibly
extracted from the earth, and (ii) the aggregates which
are obtained by crushing the naturally occurring, nonrenewable, rock masses.
Cement concrete is the single largest construction
material in the world. The annual global production
of concrete amounts to the tune of 20 billion tons[2],
and the aggregates occupy about 70-80 % of
volume of concrete. The concrete industry has been
growing rapidly with ever increasing development
of infrastructure worldwide. The growth of concrete
industry can be judged based on the increase in annual
production of cement as well as from the amount being
spent on the construction activity. The production
of cement increased at an average rate of 7.2% per
anum from 2006 to 2010[3]. The annual production of
cement in 2010 was 3.3 bn tones. India is the second
largest producer, as well as consumer, of cement in the
world. It is well known that one ton of cement is used
to produces approximately 7-9 tonnes of concrete, and
one cubic metre of concrete comprises of about 2 tons
of aggregates. Such a high requirement of aggregates
necessitates exploitation of natural resources in a
large scale.
Production of such large quantity of aggregate from
natural sources would lead to un-sustainability and
the future generation may not be left with sources
of quality aggregates. The transportation of these
quarried aggregates to the construction/casting site
involves consumption of fossil fuel and the high
transportation costs resulting there-in escalates the
Principal Scientist, Bridges and Structures Division CSIR- CRRI, New Delhi, E-mail: vvlkrao.crri@nic.in
**
M. Tech student of AcSIr, E-mail: surya07b55@gmail.com
*** Sr. Principal Scientist & HOD, Bridges and Structures Division CSIR- CRRI, New Delhi, E-mail: lakshmy.crri@nic.in
42
TECHNICAL PAPERS
overall construction costs. Also, crushing of existing
rock masses from hills would create environmental
imbalance and affect the wild life which made these
hills as its safe home.
Another un-sustainability associated with the
construction industry is the creation of vast amounts
of Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) during
the production and demolition of concrete structures,
respectively. Huge quantities of waste are generated
during the construction stage and the same is often
left at the temporary casting site. The necessity for
demolition of an existing structure arises due to the
following reasons:
(i)
The structure has over-lived its intended service

life and can pose a safety hazard if it is subjected
to further use.
(ii)
There has been change in the usage pattern and

the structure does not fulfil the new intended
use
(iii) The structure has suffered severe pre-mature

deterioration and repair of the same is
economically not viable.
The creation of CDW has been increasing year
after the year all over the world. In United States of
America, 3.2 pounds (1.45 kg) of CDW per person
per day was produced during 2003[4], and as per
Cement Sustainability Initiatives of USA, a total of
about 900 million tons of CDW was being disposed
every year[5]. About 285 million tons of construction
waste was being produced annually in Germany, out
of which 77 million tons was the demolition waste.
It has been estimated that approximately 13 million
tons of concrete was demolished every year in France,
where-as in Japan the total quantity of concrete debris
was around 10-15 million tons per year. Hong Kong
generated about 20 million tons of demolition debris
every year and was facing serious problem for its
disposal. Much of the CDW was dumped in landfills,
resulting in conversion of useful land in to dump
yards and landfills, leading to environmental related
problems.
In India, the Central Pollution Control Board had

estimated the current quantum of solid waste generation
in India to be 48 million tons per annum, out of which
waste from construction industry only accounts for
more than 25%. Management of such high quantum
of waste puts enormous pressure on solid waste
management system. An another report[6] stated that
the total quantum of waste from construction industry
was estimated to be 12 to 14.7 million tons per annum
out of which 7-8 million tons were concrete and brick
waste.
The disposal of CDW has become a major concern in
the present times. Precious land is being used to dump
the CDW and usage of land for such purpose has been
increasing. In order to the save environment, some
European countries are imposing tax on use of natural
(virgin) aggregates in construction. Laws are being
brought in other countries such as USA, Canada etc.,
to restrict CDW, in the form of taxes or prohibitions
on creation of waste[7].
2
Recycling
of
Construction
and
Demolition
Waste
for
production of Aggregates
It has been realised that the above concerns/issues can

be addressed and sustainability in the construction
sector can be achieved through recycling of the CDW
to produce aggregates of suitable sizes for use in
new concrete and other applications. This aggregate
is called Recycled Concrete Aggregate (RCA). The
use of RCA in new concrete has attracted worldwide
attention and has been adopted as a viable option
as a source of aggregates. Highway sector has been
a major user of the RCA. Huge quantities of CDW
are being generated worldwide and many countries
are successfully using RCA which include United
States, South Africa, Netherlands, United Kingdom,
Germany, France, Russia, Canada, and Japan. It has
been reported that India produces about 23.75 million
tonnes of CDW and the same is likely to increase by
two times in next 7 years[8].
43
TECHNICAL PAPERS
3
Advantages of Recycled
Concrete Aggregate
Use of RCA in new construction can

(i)
reduce demand for fresh aggregate
(ii)
reduce the transportation cost (and the

construction cost)
(iii) reduce energy consumption

(iv) save environment
(v)
save wildlife
(vi) save the precious land from converting into

landfill
4
Photos 1 (a-d) show different stages involved in

producing RCA from a concrete pavement, i.e.
breaking, transport of rubble, separation, and crushing
the rubble in a mini-plant[10]. Photo 2 shows the
concrete rubble and the RCA produced from it[11].
Photo 3 shows a concrete recycling plant located in
Queensland, Australia[12]. Mobile crushers are also
available for crushing of CDW and production of
RCA in-situ.
Owing to its origin, some cement mortar would adhere
to the RCA particle. This would make appear the yield
of RCA on a higher side (60- 70 %). Japan developed
a special technique that removes the original mortar
from the concrete, by which the yield of coarse
aggregate would reduce to 2035% [11].
Production of RCA
The concept of recycling the CDW to produce

aggregates is not new. It was first used in Germany and
UK after World War II, for the nation re-building[9].
The enormous quantities of CDW generated due to
destruction in the war was recycled and used to meet
the huge demand for building materials, and to clear
the rubble from the devastated cities.
The RCA is produced from CDW by a series of
processes which include separation, crushing, sieving
and washing. The closed-loop system of producing
RCA, involves (a) preliminary inspection, survey
and assessment of an existing concrete structure
(b) demolition (c) collection of concrete rubble (d)
heating and rubbing (e) collection of RCA as coarse,
fine and power fractions, and (f) use of coarse RCA
in concrete making. Crushing concrete for use as
RCA uses similar equipment and processes as when
preparing virgin aggregate. There are two types of
crushers: compression (cone type and jaw type), and
impact (vertical and horizontal types) where repeated
blows against break plates reduce the size of the
concrete pieces.
44
Photo 1 (a) Impact Hammer for Breaking Concrete
Photo 1 (b) Transport of Broken Rubble
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Photo 1 (c) Separation of Reinforcing Steel
Photo 2 Concrete Rubble (Left) and the RCA (Right) Produced
Photo 1 (d) Mini-Crushing Plant
Photo 3 A Concrete Recycling Plant Located in Australia
45
TECHNICAL PAPERS
5
Properties of RCA
RCA, owing to its production process, is 100%

angular in shape with rough surfaces. It is highly
heterogeneous and porous with large amounts of
impurities. Therefore, the properties of RCA differ
from those of virgin aggregates. While virgin
aggregate has a specific gravity of 2.7, for RCA the
value is about 2.4. This is due to the relative density
of the old mortar attached to the RCA. Coarse RCA
typically has a specific gravity between 2.2 and 2.6
under SSD conditions, and this value decreases as
the particle size decreases. Fine RCA has a specific
gravity between 2.0 and 2.3 under SSD conditions.
RCA for use in concrete construction. It recommends

to pre-wetting of the RCA before use to overcome the
problems associated with high absorption of RCA,
however, does not recommend using the recycled fine
aggregate in the concrete. ACI Education Bulletin
E1-07[14] discusses the properties and the limitation
of RCA. ACI 202-R-545 made it mandatory for the
contractor to process PCCP and super structure concrete
removed within the project site in to aggregates.
Many other countries such as Germany, Japan[15],
Australia[16], USA[17], Canada[18], etc., have already
formulated specifications for RCA to encourage their
effective use in concrete construction.
RCA would exhibit higher water absorption (up to

2-10% for coarse RCA and 4-12% for fine RCA, as
against 0.3% for virgin coarse aggregates), lower
specific gravity, higher Losangels abrasion (20-45%),
and higher sulphate content. The properties of the
original aggregate used in the demolished structure
also influence the properties of the RCA. The desired
particle size distribution of RCA can be obtained
through combination of two or more gradations of RCA
as is done with virgin aggregates. RCA is successful
if careful consideration is given to the properties and
physical characteristics of the aggregate, the physical
properties of the fresh and hardened concrete.
Due to the above reasons, RCA is often used as a part

replacement of the virgin aggregates in concrete. It
has been reported the properties of concrete do not
change substantially when RCA is used up to 30% as a
replacement of virgin aggregates. The Works Bureau
Technical Circular (UK)[13] recommends replacement
up to 20% when strength of concrete in the range of
25-35 MPa or higher is sought. For non-load bearing
concrete elements, even concrete with 100 % RCA
can be used.
Fresh concrete made with recycled aggregate tends

to be very harsh due to the angular shape and rough
surface of the aggregate, more prone to slump loss and
require higher water contents due to higher absorption
of the cement paste attached to the aggregate, and
higher air contents due to the greater porosity of the
recycled aggregate themselves and to the entrained air
in the original mortar[19].
Specifications/Guidelines for use

of RCA
The Works Bureau Technical Circular (UK)[13] specified

the limiting values of some of the above properties for
46
Properties
of
aggregate concrete
Recycled
The properties of RCA concrete are influenced by

the adherent mortar, amount of aggregate replaced
by RCA and the amount of RCA fines. Higher
the amount of attached mortar to the RCA, lower
the resulting compressive strength of hardened
concrete. It was reported that too many RCA fines
would produce unworkable mix. The recommended
proportion of coarse RCA course can be up to 30%.
The recommended maximum size of aggregate of
RCA is 19 mm for reduced D-cracking.
Hardened concrete made with recycled aggregate

has slightly lower compressive strength and flexural
strength, a lower stiffness (modulus of elasticity),
higher resistance to freeze-thaw due to higher air
contents, less potential for D-cracking, increased
potential for ASR, equivalent bond strength, higher
creep and drying shrinkage than concrete made with
TECHNICAL PAPERS
virgin aggregates. Figs. 1 and 2 show compressive
and flexural strengths of recycled aggregate concrete
containing different proportions of recycled concrete
aggregate, respectively[19].
improved by adding water reducing agents, increasing

the cement content and as mentioned previously,
limiting the amount of recycled fine aggregate in the
mix.
8 Use
of
RCA
construction
in
highway
Currently, RCA is being used in pavement construction

for the following purposes:
(i)
as aggregate in granular sub-bases,
(ii)
as aggregate in lean-concrete sub-bases,
(iii) as aggregate in soil-cement,

(iv) as the only source of aggregate in new
concrete
Fig. 1 Variation of 28 Day Compressive Strength of Concrete in
Different Proportions of Recycled Concrete Aggregate
(v)
as a partial replacement of new aggregate in

concrete
The Works Bureau Technical Circular (UK)[13]

prescribed particular specifications for RCA for use as
a sub-base material, including the permissible range of
particle size distribution. The guidelines for laying and
compaction of sub-base layers are also presented.
Fig. 2 Variation of Flexural Strength of Concrete in Different

Proportions of Recycled Concrete Aggregate
It has been reported that the workability of mixes

made with RCA can be improved by limiting the use
of recycled fine aggregate, adding fly ash as a partial
cement replacement and using water reducing agents.
Limiting the amount of recycled fine aggregate also
improves the durability and strength of concrete made
with RCA. Durability can also be improved by using
a smaller top size aggregate, using fly ash, blending
the RCA with virgin aggregates and using low-alkali
cement. Lower strength of mixes made RCA can be
Rosario Herrador, et al.[20] constructed a road test

section of 80 m length in Spain using recycled concrete
aggregate and compared its performance with that made
with quarried aggregates. The performance of the road
sections was tested through deflection measurements
using a FWD. The resulting measurements for CDW
were satisfactory. In the case of the recycled CDW
aggregate, most of the deflection values obtained were
lower than the theoretically estimated deflection. The
results showed that the performance of the recycled
aggregate was significantly better than the natural
aggregate.
Few trials were also carried out in USA on construction
of concrete pavements using RCA. Photo 4 shows
a section of pavement constructed in Illinois, USA
using RCA[21]. In general, the behaviour of pavements
constructed with RCA mixes has been observed to be
47
TECHNICAL PAPERS
different than those constructed with conventional
mixes. RCA appear to affect slab cracking, load
transfer and durability of concrete pavements. Some
of the observations made by Anderson et.al[19] on
the performance of some of the pavement sections
constructed in USA are:
Some of the mechanical and durability problems

associated with use of RCA have been sought to be
addressed by[19]:

use of fly ash (without use of additional water)
Use of RCA has resulted in a decrease in

performance of the pavement.
improving the properties of RCA through

coatings
limiting the amount of RCA to 30%
using water reducing admixtures
Excessive amounts of mid-slab cracking in

Jointed Plain Concrete Pavement (JPCP). The
problem traced back to the higher shrinkage
and greater thermal expansion/contraction
properties of the concrete containing RCA.
Mid-slab cracking in JPCP often leads to failure

of the pavement due to a loss of load transfer.
Abrasion resistance in RCA has been found to

be less than in natural aggregates. The faces
of transverse joints or mid-slab cracks in RCA
concrete are more sensitive to abrasion during
traffic loading which results in the rapid loss of
load transfer capability at these locations.
and by making suitable modifications in the design of

pavements such as
(i)
adopting shorter joint spacing
(ii)
using two-layer slabs i.e. lower slab with RCA

mix and the upper slab with the concrete mix
containing virgin aggregates
(iii) reducing the size of the coarse aggregate

(iv) using natural sands instead of RCA fines and
(v)
use of dowel bars for effective load transfer.
Economics of Recycling
Recycling is influenced by local and regional

conditions and market specifications. Relative
transportation distances and costs among construction
and demolition sites, recycled concrete aggregate
producer, competing natural aggregate producers, local
landfills, and markets influence how much material is
available for recycling and set local pricing and fee
structures. Plant location, design, and efficiency can
have significant impact on economic performance.
The quantity, consistency, quality of feed material
and a skilled labour force also affect plant efficiency
and market options available to the recycled concrete
aggregate producer. Costs associated with equipment,
labour, and overheads are important to operational
economics, but revenues generated by product pricing
and tipping fees are also significant [22].
Photo 4 Concrete Pavement Made with 100 % RCA in

Illinois (USA)
48
A detailed economic analysis of recycling process has

not been reported for Indian conditions. However, a
TECHNICAL PAPERS
similar study carried out in USA[22] gives a glimpse
of various components involved in establishing the
concrete aggregate recycling business. A capital
investment of $4 to $8 (` 220 440) per metric ton of
annual capacity is generally required. Processing cost
of aggregates range from $ 2.5 to $ 6 (`138 to 330)
per metric ton. Operating rate and revenues generated
from tipping charges and product prices are the most
important factors affecting profitability, but can vary
considerably by operation and region. Transportation
costs associated with feedstock acquisition, while
significant to regional dynamics of the industry were
assumed to indirectly affect profitability of a recycled
concrete aggregate producer, because such costs are
typically incurred by a construction contractor that
supplies material rather than the recycled concrete
aggregate producer, which processes that material.
Mobile, job-site recycling is common for larger
construction projects as a means of avoiding high
transportation, disposal, and new material costs. Cash
flow analyses indicated that all operations could
achieve at least a 12 percent rate of return on total
investment, while the most larger recyclers were more
profitable.
10
Indian Scenario
Interest on the use of RCA in concrete is gradually

growing in India. Although there have not been
any published instances on the use of RCA in real
structures, it has come to be known through dialogue
that a few stretches of road were constructed using
RCA. However, research is in progress across India
to understand the behaviour of the concrete elements
made with RCA[8, 23-27]. The RCA for the above purpose
was produced by manually crushing the discarded
concrete members or tested concrete specimen. The
absence of interest in using this material could be due
to:

Lack of standards/specifications/guidelines on
use of RCA
Non-availability of crushers (mobile or static)

to produce RCA in sufficient quantities
Lack of awareness about/enthusiasm to use

CDW
Therefore efforts should be made to create awareness

about this material as India also may witness problems
such as depletion of sources of virgin aggregates,
accumulation of CDW, and growth in environmental/
wildlife issues.
11
Conclusions
Construction and Demolition Waste (CDW) is a waste

material produced by civil infrastructure. Recycled
Concrete Aggregate (RCA), produced from CDW,
is being increasingly used worldwide in making of
concrete pavements and other structures. This is
primarily to maintain the sustainability of the materials
and protect the environment. Although the concrete
made with RCA exhibits slightly inferior properties
compared to those made with virgin aggregates, the
same can be improved by taking proper precautions
such as suitably modifying the mix design methods, by
addition of cementitious admixtures or by improving
the properties of RCA through suitable coatings on
RCA. RCA is widely being used in base course and
sub-base course in pavement construction. Research
is in progress to use them in dry-lean concrete and
pavement quality concrete also. Efforts are on
worldwide to increase the use of RCA in concrete
construction. Various agencies in India also should
take initiative to encourage the use of RCA in concrete
construction by developing standards/specifications/
guidelines.
12
Acknowledgements
This paper is being published with the kind permission

of the Director, CSIR-CRRI, New Delhi.
49
TECHNICAL PAPERS
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of Recycled Concrete Aggregate in PCCP, WSDOT
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Singh S. K. and Sharma P.C Use of Recycled Aggregates

in Concrete- A Paradigm Shift, New Building Materials
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Ordez. Use of Recycled Construction and Demolition
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Transportation Engg., ASCE, February 2012, p. 182-190
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Mirjana Maleev, Vlastimir Radonjanin, and Sneana

Marinkovi, Recycled Concrete as Aggregate for
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at Chicago O Hare International Airport, Presentation
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from Natural and Recycled Sources - Economic
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M. Chakradhara Rao, S.K. Bhattacharyya, and S.V.

Barai, Behaviour of Recycled Aggregate Concrete under
Drop Weight Impact Load, Construction and Building
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Yadav, S.R., and Pathak, S.R., Use of Recycled Concrete

Aggregate in Making Concrete An Overview, Proc. of
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Fady M. Abed, Using Recycled Aggregate in Producing

Concrete Elements, MS Thesis, The Islamic University,
Gaza, 2009
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Concrete Pavement Technology Series, Production

of RCA, TS043.2P, American Concrete Pavement
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Biswajit Bhattacharjee, Sustainability of Concrete

Construction in Indian Context, Point of View, Indian
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50
DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF MODIFIED

RETAINING STRUCTURES
Ram Asra Khural*
Abstract
A number of retaining structures are required for construction of hill
roads to achieve the requisite road formation width and to stabilise
disturbed hill slope. The purpose of construction of retaining walls
is to achieve the desired road width instead of cutting when the
same is not economical or possible due to more height of cut. Also
to improve the road geometrics, retaining walls are constructed
at re-entrant curves, zigs etc. The breast walls are constructed to
stabilize the disturbed hill slope. The cost of retaining structures
is about 20% to 30% of total project cost of hill roads including
cross-drainage works. On number of occasions the civil engineer
encounters the problem of increasing formation width on valley
side where the valley side has almost vertical fall or steep slope.
This technical paper recommends a modified design of retaining
structures to achieve the same objective with less effort and less
cost. The emphasis has been laid on construction of modified
retaining structures in plum concrete instead of construction of
conventional retaining structures of stone masonry walls as dry,
banded and fully mortared. Construction of retaining structures in
plum concrete as suggested in this paper is not only cost effective,
but more stable, more beautiful and easy for construction. By
adopting modified design of retaining structures cost can be
reduced by 30 to 80% due to reduction in height depending upon
the slope of hill and further by 5 to 10% by use of plum concrete in
place of stone masonry. Hence the cost of a hill road project can be
reduced by 5 to 15% as saving to the Govt. which can be utilized
for some other development works or rich specifications can be
adopted within the same amount.
Introduction
1.1 Retaining structures are the walls meant to

support earth or other materials. Hence in order to
design a retaining wall, it is necessary to determine
the horizontal pressures exerted by earth on the wall
i.e. active earth pressure and pressure exerted by wall
i.e. passive earth pressure.
1.2 In hills, it is not possible to construct the roads

without constructing retaining structures such as
retaining walls, breast walls, toe walls, check walls,
revetment walls etc. These retaining structures support
the downhill side unstable strata or fills and stabilize
the natural disturbed hill slope on uphill side.
1.3 Generally retaining walls are constructed on
re-entrant curves to improve the radius of the curve
and to support the fill material. These walls are also
constructed where either required formation width is
not available or the formation cutting is not possible
due to some reasons and is also not economical. Toe
walls are constructed under the toe of the retaining
walls where either sufficient width is not available or
the toe of the wall is hanging in the air. But it cannot
be constructed under the retaining wall where filling
is required behind the toe wall. Breast walls are
generally constructed on the hair pin bends to support
the disturbed natural hill slope, loose or saturated soil
to avoid occurrence of landslides.
1.4 Plum concrete is a composite concrete with
stones used as plum stone to increase the bond
between the concrete. The purpose of using the plum
stones is to reduce the cost of concrete to some extent
in construction of gravity structures.
2
AIM
2.1 The objective of this paper is to highlight the

cost effectiveness and stability of modified retaining
structures in plum concrete or masonry as compared
to the conventional type of retaining structures.
BRES, Executive Engineer (Civil), Officer Commanding, 129 RCC (GREF)/758 BRTF/PROJECT SWASTIK, Border Roads,
Email:bro.khural@gmail.com
51
TECHNICAL PAPERS
3
EXISTING PRACTICE
3.1 As huge quantity of stones is available in hills,

generally gravity retaining structures are constructed in
stone masonry irrespective of the cost of construction.
Following kinds of stone masonry retaining structures
are constructed on hill roads:
Random Rubble Masonry (Banded)
Random Rubble Masonry (Cemented)
Random Rubble Masonry (Dry)
Sausage or Gabion Wall
3.2 Generally retaining structures are constructed

as per the standard drawings being followed by
particular department to avoid the wastage of time as
well as money on design of retaining structures time
and again. The design parameters for the retaining
walls and breast walls as per Hill Road Manual are as
shown in Table 1.
Table 1 Dimensions of Retaining Walls and Breast
Walls as per Hill Road Manual
Sl. No.
Description
R/W
B/W
0.6m
0.90 m
Top width
Bottom width
up to 6 m ht
0.4 H + 0.3 m
0.33H + 0.90 m
Bottom width
above 6 m ht
0.4H + 0.6 m
NA
Depth of
foundation
0.1 H + 0.3 m
0.1 H + 0.30 m
Front batter
1:4
1:3
Back batter
Vertical
Vertical
4.2 Keeping in view the objective of the retaining

walls and breast walls, some modifications are
recommended in the design and shape of the gravity
retaining structures without compromising with the
stability of the structures. The design philosophy of
the modified retaining wall is clear from the Fig. 1.
From the figure, it is clear that by giving steps onback
face of the wall to achieve the required base width, the
height can be reduced by 10 to 80% depending upon
the slope of hill to achieve the same formation width
as shown in the Table 2. Moreover extra formation
width can be achieved by constructing retaining wall
of same height.
MODIFIED PROPOSALS
4.1 The stone masonry retaining structures are

being constructed since long as there was no alternate
52
and cheaper material available especially in hills. But

based on economical analysis, it has been observed
that the cost of concrete walls is also at par with the
masonry walls. As the gravity walls are designed
based on their shape and size, but not based on type of
material. The stability also depends upon dimensions,
hence to reduce the cost of concrete walls some quantity
of stones can be used as plum stones popularly known
as plum concrete. Moreover it has been observed that
stone masonry walls do not work as single unit due
to not placing proper bond stones as specified during
construction due to lack of supervision.
Fig. 1 Modified & Conventional R/W
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 2 Reduction in Height of Retaining Walls Due to Modified Design
Sl. No.
Hill Slope
Slope
(Degree)
Height of
R/W (CON)
Height of
R/W(MODI)
Reduction in
Height
% age
reduction
1 IN 0.65
33
4.8
0.8
16.67
1 IN 1
45
5.4
1.4
25.93
1 IN 1.19
50
6.0
2.0
33.33
1 IN 1.43
55
6.4
2.4
37.5
1 IN 1.73
60
7.3
3.3
45.21
1 IN 2
63.5
8.5
4.5
52.94
1 IN 3
71.5
17
13
76.47
1 IN 4
76
NA
#VALUE#
#VALUE#
Note:
When the valley slope is more than 76 degree,

construction of conventional type of R/Wall will not be
feasible as parallel lines will never meet.
4.3 Keeping in view the basic principles of design

for gravity walls, it is proposed to modify the design
of the retaining walls from trapezoidal to rectangular
block in shape as shown in Fig. 1. It can be seen from
Fig. 1 that height of modified retaining wall will reduce
by about 25% when the hill slope is about 45 degree.
The reduction in height will be more in case of slope
more than 45 degree. It is clear that I m extra width
can be achieved by changing the design and formation

of wedge action behind walls having sloping/vertical
back can be avoided. Hand Packed Stone (HPS) filling
behind retaining walls on all the offsets will not only
work as filter media, but will also add to the stability
by increasing counter weight. The base width of the
wall to be kept as 0.5H instead of 0.4H+0.3m and top
width as 0.6 m. To increase stability, an inward slope
of 0.1H has been proposed at the base of retaining wall
as shown in Fig. 1. The dimensions and quantities of
the proposed modified retaining walls for 1m in length
have been given in Table 3.
Table 3 Dimensions and Quantities of Modified Retaining Walls
Sl. No.
Description
Base
Width
Offset
Plum Conc
(Cum)
Hps Fill
(Cum)
0.63
0.30
1.
R/W 1m height
0.6 m
2.
R/W 2m height
1.0 m
0.4m
1.80
0.40
3.
R/W 3m height
1.5 m
0.4m, 0.5m
3.55
1.50
4.
R/W 4m height
2.0 m
0.4m, 0.5m, 0.5m
5.90
2.90
5.
R/W 5m height
2.5 m
0.4m, 0.5m, 0.5m, 0.05m
8.22
4.90
6.
R/W 6m height
3.0 m
0.4m, 0.5m, 0.5m, 0.5m, 0.5m
12.40
7.40
53
TECHNICAL PAPERS
4.4 A number of modified retaining walls have been
constructed on various roads in Bhutan and Sikkim
in plum concrete as well as in stone masonry fully
mortared. Modified retaining wall of size 16m x 2m
has been constructed on Indira Bye Pass road in East
Sikkim at km 7.400. The wall has been constructed
in a slide prone area which is clear from the
Photo. 1. The wall is more safe against failure,
durable and aesthetically beautiful. The wall has also
experienced a major earthquake on 18 Sept 2011
of 6.8 magnitude on Richter Scale and the same is
still safe without any sign of failure where as a few
conventional retaining walls got damaged.
Photo 1 Modified Retaining Wall in PC
Photo 2 Modified Retaining Wall in CM
54
4.5 Modified retaining walls were also constructed

on Gangtok-Chungthang Road at 6.95 in cemented
masonry 20 months back which can be seen from
Photo 2. The walls have also experienced major
earthquake on 18 Sept 201, but no sign of failure have
been noticed till date. It indicates safe design and
construction of modified retaining walls which are
cost effective also.
4.6 Breast walls are constructed on hillside of
the road and are subjected to active earth pressure
due to moving soil mass. The breast walls should
be constructed at locations which are unstable and
cannot be stable at an slope of 1 in 2 i.e at an angle
of 63.50 degree. Generally the breast walls are
constructed having top width 0.9 m and front slope
1:3, whereas it is proposed to be modified the front
slope as 1:2 instead of 1:3 and slope of back face as
1:3 in place of vertical face to increase the stability
of the walls against lateral active earth pressure and
to avoid filling of stones behind walls as shown in
Fig. 2 & 3. Moreover maximum height of the breast
walls should be restricted to 1.5m only from stability
point of view. But if there is requirement of more
height due to unavoidable circumstances, wall should
be constructed in steps instead of single wall having
more height as shown in Photos 3 & 4 to reduce the
horizontal pressure as well as cost by 10 to 50% due
to less section depending upon the height of the wall
and will be more stable as pressure exerted on the
wall is directly proportionally to the height of the wall
ie.P=wH.
Fig. 2 Conventional B/W
TECHNICAL PAPERS
4.7 To construct conventional breast wall, soil has
to be cut almost vertical. But it is pertinent to mention
here that if soil can be stable at an angle of 90 to 63
degree (1 in 2), it means there is no requirement of
any breast wall for stabilizing the hill slope.
Fig. 3 Modified B/W
Fig. 3 Conventional B/W
4.8 The stone backfilling as proposed in Hill Road

Manual as 0.6m wide vertically behind the back of the
wall is neither practically possible, nor required as it
can be replaced by a wire mesh to serve as filter media.
Moreover it has been seen on ground that HPS filling
is not being done behind breast walls having more
height either due to difficulty in filling stones behind
walls or due to lack of supervision. Hence the purpose
of filling stones behind breast walls is defeated. Based
on the facts mentioned above, it is proposed either to
use wire mesh on back face of the walls as filter media
in place of Hand Packed Stone (HPS) filling, which
will also act as skin reinforcement and will reduce
development of cracks in back face of the walls due to
horizontal earth pressure or to use empty cement bags
(non-degradable) which will result into reduction in
construction cost of breast walls. The dimensions
along with quantities of proposed breast walls are
given in Table 4.
Table 4 Dimensions and Quantities of
Modified Breast Walls
Sl. No
Fig 4 Breast Wall in Steps
DESCRIPTION
TOP
WIDTH
BASE
WIDTH
QTY
(CUM)
1.
B/W 1 m height
0.9 m
1.07 m
1.38 cum
2.
B/W 1.5 m height
0.9 m
1.15 m
1.57 cum
3.
B/W 2.0 m height
0.9 m
1.23 m
2.58 cum
4.9 The proposed parameters for modified

retaining walls and breast walls are given in
Table 5.
55
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 5 Dimensions of Modified Retaining Walls and Breast Walls
SL. NO.
DESCRIPTION
B/W
1.
Top width
0.6m
0.90m
2.
Bottom width
0.5H
0.1H +0.90m
3.
Depth of foundation
0.1 H +0.3m
0.1H +0.30m
4.
Front batter
Vertical
1:2
5.
Back batter
Vertical
1:3
PROPOsED THEORY
5.1 Before proposing any modification, it is

compulsory to know about the existing theories of
design of retaining structures. There are two famous
theories of two famous scientists given as under:

Coulombs Earth Pressure Theory
Rankins Earth Pressure Theory
5.2
Assumptions of Coulombs Theory
5.2.1 The first rigorous analysis of the problem of

lateral earth pressure was published by CA Coulomb
in 1776 and the assumptions of his theory are as
under:

The soil is isotropic and homogeneous.
The rupture surface is a plane surface.
The failure wedge is a rigid body
The pressure surface is a plane surface
There is wall friction on the pressure surface
Failure is two dimensional
The soil is cohesion less
5.3
Assumptions of Rankines Theory
5.3.1 W J Rankine proposed a different approach

to the problem of lateral earth pressure in 1857 and
assumptions of his theory are as under:
56
R/W
The soil mass is homogeneous and cohesion

less.
The ground surface is a plane which may be

horizontal or inclined
The back of the wall is vertical and smooth
5.4
Assumptions of Proposed Theory
Soil mass/fill material is homogeneous
Front face is vertical and smooth
Back face in steps is vertical and smooth without

any shearing stress or friction
Bed base of wall is in slope towards heel to

increase stability against sliding/overturning.
Fill material is cohesion less
No formation of pore water pressure behind

walls as sufficient number of weep holes are
provided
Concrete to be laid over stone metal but not

directly over soil
Weight of hand packed stones will add to the

stability by increasing self weight of the wall
STABILITY COMPARISON
6.1 From the design criteria, it is clear that stability

of a dry stone masonry, banded stone masonry and
TECHNICAL PAPERS
fully mortared stone masonry will be equal for same
dimensions and similar soil conditions since the
stability depends upon the compressive strength.
Against sliding the strength of above walls will be
same because it depends upon the co-efficient of
friction between the wall base and foundation material.
The co-efficient of friction between the wall base and
foundation can be increased by laying different kinds
of material on bed base.
6.2 The above discussion makes it clear that there
is no utility of bands or mortar being used in the
retaining structures as far as the strength is concerned.
The basic requirement of cement mortar is to increase
the frictional bond between the different layers of

masonry so that it can act integrally as one unit. In
case of dry or banded stone masonry this can be
achieved if roughly rectangular shaped stones with
sufficient overlap and bond stones are used for proper
interlocking. But practically it is not possible to use
rectangular shaped stones with overlaps due to lack of
supervision, resulting into weak structure.
6.3 The factors of safety for modified retaining
walls have been calculated assuming = 0.5 (concrete
over stone metal), Cp=0.2 (stones as filling material),
density of wall and HPS fill (w) = 2 t/cum as shown
in Table 6.
Table 6 Stability Checks for Retaining Walls of Various Heights
Sl. No.
DESCRIPTION
1m
2m
3m
4m
5m
6m
1.
FOS against overturning
5.01
3.72
3.72
3.72
3.72
3.72
2.
FOS against sliding
2.6
2.17
2.17
2.17
2.17
2.17
3.
Tension (e<b/6) e in m
0.07
0.15
0.23
0.30
0.38
0.45
4.
Pressure at toe (t/sqm)
3.50
7.75
11.75
15.51
19.50
23.26
5.
Pressure at heel (t/sqm)
0.64
0.48
0.60
0.97
1.09
1.45
6.4 Modified retaining walls are more safe

against sliding and overturning which can be
seen from Table 7.
Table 7 Comparison Between Modified and Conventional Retaining Walls
Sl. No. Height of

R/W
FOS (Sliding)
FOS
(O/Turning)
Eccentricity
Pressure at Toe
Pressure at
Heel
CR
MR
CR
MR
CR
MR
CR
MR
CR
MR
1m
2.77
2.6
5.90
5.00
0.03
0.07
2.12
3.50
1.42
0.64
2m
1.79
2.17
3.02
3.72
0.08
0.15
4.66
7.75
1.88
0.48
3m
1.51
2.17
2.46
3.72
0.15
0.23
7.00
11.75
1.86
0.60
4m
1.36
2.17
2.23
3.72
0.24
0.30
9.65
15.51
1.48
0.97
5m
1.27
2.17
2.09
3.72
0.35
0.38
12.6
19.50
0.76
1.09
6m
1.21
2.17
2.00
3.72
0.47
0.45
15.9
23.26
-0.20
1.45
Note: CR-Conventional Retaining Wall, MR-Modified Retaining Wall
57
TECHNICAL PAPERS
7
COST COMPARISON
7.1 As per DGBR SSR for Project Swastik of

Border Roads Organisation, construction of Retaining
Walls in Plum Concrete is economical as compared
to construction of conventional wall i.e. banded/
cemented random rubble stone masonry. Cost
comparison of conventional retaining wall of 4 m

height constructed in banded RRM 1:6 to R/Wall in
plum conc. (71% PCC 1:3:6 & 29% stone), modified
R/Wall in banded RRM and modified R/Wall in plum
conc. has been shown in Table 8. PVC pipe 4 dia has
been considered in place of weep holes.
Table 8 Cost Comparison of Retaining Walls
SL.NO.
DESCRIPTION
COST PER MTR
REMARKS
1.
Conventional R/Wall (banded)
Rs 14543/-
As basic cost
2.
Conventional R/Wall (cemented)
Rs 16039/-
+10.28%
3.
Conventional R/Wall (plum conc.)
Rs 14086/-
-03.14%
4.
Modified 3m ht R/Wall (banded)
Rs 10293/-
-29.22%
5.
Modified 3m ht R/Wall (plum conc.)
Rs 9961/-
-31.51%
7.2 It can be seen from above table that the cost of

plum concrete walls is about 3% less than the stone
masonry (banded) walls and 12% less than cemented
masonry wall. The difference may vary from place to
place and department to department based on their SSR
rates. But the cost difference between conventional
R/Wall in RRM (banded) and modified R/Wall in
plum concrete is about 30% to 80% depending upon

the hill slope.
7.3 The cost comparison between conventional
breast walls in stone masonry and modified breast
walls in plum concrete of 1.5 m height is given in
Table 9.
Table 9 Cost Comparison of Breast Walls
SL.NO
DESCRIPTION
REMARKS
1.
Conventional B/W (Banded)
Rs 8311/-
As basic cost
2.
Conventional B/W (Cemented)
Rs 8767/-
+5.48%
3.
Modified B/W (Banded)
Rs 6143/-
-26.09%
4.
Modified B/W (Plum Conc.)
Rs 6455/-
-22.33%
5.
Modified B/W (Cemented)
Rs 7246/-
-12.81%
7.4 Valley side slope varies from place to place

and to get the net saving due to modified design of
retaining walls, following calculations have been done
based on ground experience and TI No.05 of DGBR,
as shown in Table 10. It can be seen from Table 10
58
COST PER MTR
that there will be about 45% reduction in construction

cost of retaining walls and about 22% reduction in
construction cost of breast walls on hill roads. The
cost of breast walls may be further reduced up to 20%
by constructing breast walls in steps.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 10 Weighted % Age Cost Reduction of Retaining Walls
Sl. No.
Valley side slope (degree)
Average % age
of R/W
% Age Height
reduction
% Age Cost
Reduction
Weighted % age cost

reduction
1
2
3
4
5
6
45
50
55
60
65
70 & above
TOTAL
SAY
30
30
15
15
5
5
25.93
33.33
37.50
45.21
57.89
69.2
30.61
39.66
45.83
58.52
71.50
80.96
09.18
11.90
06.87
08.78
03.57
04.05
44.35
45%
7.5
The net saving in any hill road project will be
about 9% as shown in Table 11.
Table 11 % Age Cost Saving
SL. NO.
1.
2.
3.
4.
DESCRIPTION
R/W
B/W
CULVERTS
MISC.
TOTAL
SAY
APPROX
% AGE OF ITEM
40
30
25
5
%AGE SAVING
45
22 +18
20
NA
SAVING = 30%
OF 30%
CONCLUSION
WEIGHTED %AGE
13.50
12.00
05.00
00.00
30.50
30%
9% OF AE AMT
REFERENCES
8.1 Based on study of this paper, it is concluded that

construction of modified retaining structures is not only
cheaper but also more stable than conventional type of
retaining structures. Height of retaining walls can be reduced
by constructing walls with vertical face and stepped back
for achieving the desired width depending upon the site
conditions.
1.
IRC SP-48 HILL ROAD MANUAL
2.
DGBR TI NO-5 (REVISION-2002)
3.
Dr A S ARYA and V P GUPTA, Retaining Walls for Hill

Roads-1983, IRC Compilation of some important papers
on design, construction and maintenance of Hill Roads1985
8.2 It is strongly recommended that construction of

gravity retaining structures in banded and mortared/
cemented stone masonry walls should be replaced with
plum concrete walls up to 6m height and RCC Retaining
Walls beyond 6m height for better durability and aesthetic,
depending upon the ground conditions to increase the life
span of the structures resulting into durable roads and to
reduce the cost of construction of the retaining walls by
2% to 5%. Further the cost of construction be reduced by
30 to 80% by adopting the proposed modified design of
retaining wall for achieving the same formation width and
overall reduction in cost of a wall up to 82%. As the cost
of retaining structures is about 20 to 30% of the total cost
of the project estimate, so there will be about 5 to 10%
reduction in the overall cost of the project estimate for
construction of hill roads. Suitable standard specifications
need to be drawn up and to be included in the Hill Road
Manual and DGBR TI No.05 for this purpose which can
be done with the help of data presented in this paper.
4.
S RAMAMRUTHAM, Design of RCC Structures and

Theory of Structures
5.
HARBHAJAN SINGH, AVSM, VSM, A Fresh Look at

Design of Retaining Walls on Hill Roads Oonchi Sadken
a Technical Magazine of BRO.
6.
BRIG RAJESH TYAGI, Construction of Retaining

Structures in Bhutan Journal of the Indian National Group
of the International Association for Bridge & Structural
Engineering, March-April 2009.
7.
R A KHURAL Cost Effective Construction of Retaining

Structures Published in technical papers of IRC for
seminar on Roads in High Precipitation Areas at
Guwahati, Feb 2010.
8.
R SELVAM, Design Principles of Retaining Wall

Journal of the Indian National Group of the International
Association for Bridge & Structural Engineering, MarchApril 2009.
59
GEOTECHNICAL INVESTIGATION OF SHEDI SOIL BLENDED

WITH POND ASH, LIME AND COIR
Dr. A.U. Ravi Shankar*, Prashant S.K ** and Chandrashekar, A***
Abstract
Considerable length of roads planned to be constructed
in India under various programs require large quantity of
highway material. The suitability of existing soil as sub-base or
sub-grade course depends on soil characteristics and strength.
The abundantly available local shedi soil in Dakshina Kannada
District of Karnataka state in India has very poor strength when it
comes in contact with water. In order to improve its strength and
other characteristics, the soil has to be stabilized with either sand/
quarry dust or pond ash with lime. To improve the strength further,
it is proposed to stabilize the same with locally available coconut
coir. While stabilizing, coir and lime percentages are kept constant
and pond ash content varied to study the geotechnical properties
of soil. These blended samples were allowed for seven days
curing and properties like California Bearing Ratio (CBR), tensile
strength, Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS), permeability
and Atterbergs limits were studied. There is improvement in all
these properties when soil is blended with coir, pond ash and
lime.
Introduction
Construction of inexpensive roads for satisfying

moderate traffic requirements is in great demand.
This demand cannot be satisfied either by traditional
or by recent research and construction techniques.
Due to huge investment and maintenance costs new
methods had to be thought of. Economic development
necessitates the improvement of the existing road
network to the required standard.
To bring down the vehicle operating and maintenance
costs the road should satisfy the design standards. The
engineers and researchers try to use locally available
materials for road construction to bring down the cost
Professor, E-mail: aurshankar@yahoo.com
**
Former Post-Graduate Student,
and to dispose off the industrial waste in a scientific

and eco friendly manner. Soil stabilization as a science
started to evolve about 60 years ago, and today it is
generally accepted that the last 40-45 years have seen
the most important development in road and airport
construction. It helps countries and regions to emerge
from mud and dust, to reach for a higher economic
and cultural level system of the developed world.
Today, stabilized roads are built all over the world
from Sahara desert to Arctic regions, from the highly
civilized to the economically most underdeveloped
countries (Kezdi 1979).
Soil stabilization involves certain treatment of the
soil which again involves remixing or admixture of
other soil types or foreign matter and compaction of
the mixture. Soil stabilization produces new materials
which resist weather and traffic, if correctly used
and maintained, in all weather condition. The locally
available problematic soils can be stabilized with
waste from thermal power plants, locally available
natural coir and lime to resist traffic loads and heavy
rain fall. The Randomly Distributed Fibre Reinforced
Soil (RDFRS) is a technique used to improve the
properties of the soil. The mixing of reinforcement
in the soil is very easy and no skill is required for
the same. In India, where the cost of synthetic fibre
is very high with scarcity of skilled workers for the
construction of unpaved roads, effective usage of
RDFRS technique with natural fibres can be a good
solution.
Department of Civil Engg., National Institute of Technology Surathkal, Karnataka
*** Research Scholar,
60
TECHNICAL PAPERS
1.1
Objectives and Scope of the Present Study
Under the traffic loads, the soil sub-base is subjected

to compression in the vertical direction accompanied
by tension in the lateral direction. Also, during dry
weather conditions, cracks develop at the soil surface
due to tensile stresses induced as a result of drying
and shrinkage. During wet weather conditions, water
starts to rise in the sub-base by capillary action from
soil sub-grade. Materials like coir, lime and pond ash
are needed to improve the compressive as well as the
tensile strength and the permeability characteristics of
the sub-base for a better performance of the pavements.
In the usual way, CBR test and UCC strength are
selected for testing the soil matrix in compression.
Tensile strength characteristics of the soil mix and
coir fibre were studied using tensile strength test.
Permeability characteristics of the soil mix were also
studied. Now-a-days, geosynthetics and geotextiles
are being widely used in highway engineering, to solve
a variety of problems related to drainage, separation
and reinforcement of soil structures. Geotextiles made
of natural fibres such as coir and jute are emerging as
alternatives to polymeric geotextiles for applications
in temporary as well as in non critical soil structures.
Coir is an eco-friendly product and so its application
never causes any damage to environment due to its
biodegradability. The naturally available shedi soil is
not suitable to use it as a subbase material since it
doest not satisfy the Atterbergs limits (LL25% and
PI 6) and soaked CBR Value > 15%. Pond ash which
is almost freely available can be used to stabilize shedi
soil which is a problematic soil of Dakshina Kannada
from both economy and strength point of view. To
enhance the strength further the soil is stabilized
with locally available coconut coir. In the present
study, the lime content for Proctor and modified
Proctor Compaction tests were fixed as 5% and 3%
respectively. Based on Madhus (2004) results, the
optimum coir content was fixed as 2%.
2
Review of Related Work
Many researchers have tried to stabilize the locally
available shedi soil with pond ash and lime. The

strength characteristics in terms of UCC and CBR
value and modulus of subgrade reaction were studied.
Phanikumar (2000), Venkataraja (2001) and Raghavan
(1985) used locally available coir for stabilization of
local lateritic soil. Strength values in terms of CBR and
tension were studied. Based on the test results, it was
found that the CBR value increases with coir content
up to 10 per cent and with further increase of coir
content the improvement in CBR value is negligible.
On the contrary, as coir content increases, the tensile
strength increases significantly. Narayanaswamy Setty
et al. (1989) conducted experiments to evaluate the
mix of laterite and cement with varying percentages of
coir. The validity of the study was checked using UCC
and flexure tests. The coir- soil- cement mix improved
the UCC and flexural strength of soil by about 60%.
Shenbaga and Vasant (2001) studied the individual
and combined effects of randomly oriented fibre
inclusion and cement stabilization on the geotechnical
characteristics of fly ash soil mixture. The behaviour
of stabilized soil was evaluated using direct shear test,
UCC and triaxial tests. The direct shear test results on
fly ash blended soil containing randomly distributed
fibres indicated an improvement in the failure and
vertical strains. The trend in the variation of shear
strength parameters c and due to fibre inclusions
is not very consistent, whereas the fibre inclusion
definitely increased the shear strength. The UCC of fly
ash-soil mixture increased due to addition of cement
and fibre. Kumar et al. (1999) studied the engineering
behaviour of fibre reinforced pond ash and silty
sand. Experiments were conducted to evaluate the
suitability of pond ash and silty sand. The stability of
mix was evaluated according to the UCC, CBR value
and ductility in the laboratory. The test results reveal
that the fibres in soils increase the peak compressive
strength, CBR value and ductility of the specimens.
It was concluded that the optimum fibre content for
both silty sand and pond ash is approximately 0.3 to
0.4% of the dry unit weight. Evert et al. (1993) tried to
increase the strength and stiffness of granular soil with
the inclusion of geosynthetic. The results indicated
that layered multi-oriented geosynthetics inclusion
61
TECHNICAL PAPERS
typically increased the stiffness of granular soil.
Madhu (2004) conducted more than 40 experiments
with randomly distributed coir of 1%, 2% and 3% in
shedi soil. The CBR value decreases beyond 3% coir
addition. The optimum coir content suggested was
2% to enhance the UCC strength. However, based on
the previous studies it is found that many researchers
are stabilized the locally available Lateritic soil in
costal belt of Karnataka (west-cost). Very less work
was done in stabilizing shedi soil to suit the sub-base
requirements. Hence in this experimental investigation
an attempt is made to study the behaviour of shedi soil
blended with pond ash, coir and lime.
3
Materials Used
Atterbergs Limit
Liquid Limit,%
53.0
Plastic Limit,%
33.0
Plasticity Index,%
20.0
Test Adopted
Light
Heavy
Compaction Compaction
I.S Compaction Test

Optimum Moisture Content, %
21.00
16.50
Maximum Dry Density, kN/m3
15.86
17.55
252
354
299
421
Unsoaked Condition, %
6.00
8.00
Soaked Condition, %
<1.00
2.00
Immediate Strength, kN/m2
20.00
110
1 Day Oven dried Strength,

kN/m2
41.00
111
U.C.C Test
1 Day Strength, kN/m2
7 Days Strength, kN/m
CBR Test
Tension Test
3.1 Shedi Soil: The basic properties of shedi soil

are given in Table 1. Shedi soil (Lithomarge Soil) is
the name given to the locally available white sandy
silt, which is a problematic soil of Dakshina Kannada
and Udupi districts in Karnataka. Shedi soil can be
found underlying the top lateritic soil in almost all
parts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts. The
lateritic soil is hard and comparatively stronger. Shedi
soil has good strength in dry condition. But its strength
drastically reduces when it gets saturated. This soil is
characterized by its poor strength in tension and shear
particularly in wet condition. Roads constructed on
this sub-grade become problematic during monsoon
due to spongy action.
3.2 Pond Ash : The Pond ash was procured from

Thermal Power Station, Raichur, Karnataka State and
the basic properties of pond ash are given in Table 2
and the chemical properties are given in Table 3. The
Pond Ash contains free lime content of 1.02% owing
to its pozzolanic property; the pond ash can be used
for stabilization of shedi soil. The use of pond ash not
only minimizes the disposal problem but also saves
the cost of stabilization.
Table 1 Basic Properties of Shedi Soil
Table 2 Basic Properties of Pond Ash
Description
Specific Gravity
Test Values
Description
Test Values
2.60
Specific Gravity
2.00
Grain Size Analysis

Gravel Size, %
Sand Size, %
Silt Size, %
I.S Classification
1.60
77.40
21
SM
Permeability, cm/s
5.5x10-4
Grain Size Analysis

Gravel Size, %
4.70
Sand Size, %
41.30
Silt Size, %
42.10
Clay Size, %
11.90
62
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 3 Chemical Properties of Pond Ash
Chemical Composition
SiO2
Al2O3
Fe2O3
CaO
MgO
Na2O
K 2O
SO3
Loss of ignition
pH value
Natural water content
Pond Ash( %)
62.89
27..65
3.98
1.02
0.90
0.58
0.70
0.06
4.80
9.00
4.66
3.3 Coir Fibre : Coir was procured from the local

market. Properties of coir are presented in Table 4.
Coir is an eco-friendly product and so its application
never causes any damage to the environment. A
versatile product at cheaper costs, it is as such a sure
and economical answer to the problems related to
the sub-base course. Fibre is defined by its geometric
parameters, characterized not only by its length
to diameter ratio, but also by its near crystal size
diameters. Any material in an elongated form whose
length to diameter ratio is not less than 10 can broadly
be grouped under this category. Coir fibre has good
strength, a reasonable amount of interfacial bond
strength and is fairly suitable even in certain chemical
environments. Coir is susceptible to the action of
alkaline environment. Treatment of coir with either
Sodium Hydroxide or Calcium Hydroxide has shown a
significant decrease in strength. A large number of tests
conducted previously show that the ultimate strength
of 30 days treated fibre is about 33% less compared to
the original fibre strength. It has also bean observed
that after a period of 6 months immersion in alkaline
solution, the fibre strength was reduced to nil with the
change in material property from ductile to brittle.
Table 4 Properties of Coir
Description
Colour
Test Values
Dark Brown
Diameter, mm
0.25
Aspect Ratio
1:10
Tensile Strength , kN/m2
41553
Specific Gravity
1.025
Even though the vegetable fibre or coir absorbs

significant amount of moisture almost equivalent
to its own weight or even more, it has been noted
that such moisture has a beneficial stabilizing effect
(Krishnamoorthy et al. 1981). The production of
coconut in India is concentrated along the coastal
districts of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra
Pradesh, Orissa, Maharashtra and West Bengal. Coir
is the fibrous portion of the coconut, extracted mainly
from the green nut. Of the recent soil stabilization
techniques, using lime and fly ash in the construction
of pavements have been successful. Since then quite
a lot of research work has been done on the behaviour
of lime, fly ash and different types of soils available
locally. In the present investigation, 2% of coir
by weight of soil has been kept constant for all the
investigations.
The coir is placed on the weak (under consolidated)
sub-grade where the coir constitutes substantially to the
improvement in strength and reduction of settlements.
But as time progresses the sub-grade soil consolidates
and becomes stiffer under the action of granular subbase surcharge, self weight of pavement, construction
rolling and traffic loads. The coir immediately
helps in rapid sub-grade strengthening process in
combination with the drainage layer above it. With
time, the sub-grade becomes less and less dependent
on the fabric for its stability and therefore, the long
term durability aspect of coir should not deter its use
as fiber for various applications in road construction.
Coir materials are biodegradable and their uses in
various geotechnical engineering applications are
ecologically safe (Ramaswamy, 1989).
4
Laboratory Investigations
4.1
Grain Size Analysis
The particle size distribution of the shedi soil, lime

and pond ash was obtained by wet sieve analysis
and hydrometer analysis. Grain size distribution
of shedi soil, lime, pond ash and pond ash blended
63
TECHNICAL PAPERS
soil are shown in Fig. 1. It is evident from the figure
that the percentage of particles passing 0.075 mm IS
sieve for shedi soil is more than 50% and the soil is
defined as fine grained. The soil is predominantly sand
silt with highly compressible silt, and hence its IS
classification is MH-MC. The colour of soil is whitish
light yellow. It can be seen from the Fig 1 that pond ash
is predominantly sandy and since it is non plastic, its
IS classification is SM. The percent of coarse fraction
retained on 0.075 mm IS sieve is more than 50%. It is
clear that pond ash has more coarse grained particles.
The grain size characteristics of pond ash are shown
in Table 5.
increasing percentage of pond ash, soil tends to become

more and more coarse grained due to aggregation.
4.2
Lime Fixation
The requisite quantity of lime to be added for effective

stabilization of soil is determined in the laboratory by
increasing concentration of lime till the desired pH and
strength are achieved. Following tests were carried out
with soil to determine the lime requirement for soil.
Several samples were prepared with different lime
contents to determine the pH of each sample after one
hour. The lowest lime content producing the pH of
12.4 is the initial design lime content. The results are
shown in the Table 6. Minimum pH of approximately
10.5 is necessary for pozzolanic reaction to take place
(Davidson et al. 1965).
Table 6 pH Values of Shedi Soil-Lime Mixes
Fig. 1 Grain Size Distribution (Percentage Passing) of Shedi

Soil, Pond Ash, Lime and Blended Soil
Table 5 Grain size characteristics of Shedi Soil, Pond

ash and Pond Ash Blended Soil
Soil
(%)
Pond
Ash
(%)
D10
(mm)
D30
(mm)
D60
(mm)
Cu
Cc
100
0.054
0.16
0.39
7.22
1.22
100
0.0018
0.015
0.23
127.78
0.54
90
10
0.0026
0.028
0.35
134.62
0.86
80
20
0.0036
0.0355
0.36
100.00
0.97
70
30
0.004
0.055
0.37
92.50
2.04
60
40
0.0048
0.068
0.38
79.17
2.58
50
50
0.006
0.07
0.38
63.33
2.15
40
60
0.01
0.07
0.38
38.00
1.29
By the addition of pond ash to shedi soil from 10 to

60 % at an increment of 10%, the Cc value increase
from 0.86 to 2.54 up to 40% of pond ash and thereafter
further addition of pond ash the Cc decreases. Where
as Cu value decreases from 134.62 to 38 for the entire
proportion. This is due to addition of lime (fixed) and
64
Shedi Soil
(%)
Lime
(%)
pH Values
100
4.85
99
11.63
98
11.86
97
11.97
96
12.00
95
11.99
94
11.77
93
11.78
92
11.79
91
11.79
90
10
11.80
100
12.00
From the above tests three results having highest

pH values were selected for UCC tests. Samples
were prepared for three soil-lime mixes and kept in
desiccators for seven days. The lime content producing
the strength of 700 kN/m2 of the soil-lime mixture
is the final design lime content (IRC:51-1992). The
results are shown in the Table 7. It was found that
optimum lime for light and heavy compaction was
5% and 3% respectively, which satisfies the pH and
strength criteria.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 7 UCC Strength of Shedi Soil-Lime Mixes for Heavy and Light Compaction Tests
Type of
compaction
Shedi Soil Lime (%)

(%)
Compaction Characteristics
OMC
(%)
MDD
(kN/m3)
Bulk Density
(kN/m3)
Seven Days UCC

Strength
( kN/m2)
Heavy
97
12.94
18.30
20.69
703
Heavy
96
12.09
18.22
20.42
837
Heavy
95
9.40
18.01
19.70
935
Light
97
20.50
16.30
19.64
616
Light
96
18.15
16.20
19.14
656
Light
95
16.1/8
16.09
18.69
704
4.3 Atterbergs Limits: The Atterberg limits

of shedi soil and pond ash blended soil with and
without lime are shown in Table 8. The value of LL
of the blended soil (Shedi Soil+Pond Ash+Lime)
decreases with increase in percentage of pond ash.
Similarly the value of LL of the pond ash blended
soil (Shedi Soil+Pond Ash) decreases with increase in
percentage of pond ash. The liquid and plastic limits
are decreasing with an increase in pond ash content.
Till to achieve the objective (LL25% and PI6%) the
soil is blended pond ash. The reduction in the LL and
PL with the addition of lime could be due to the result
of the exchange reaction which flocculates the soil
particles and reduces the clay size fraction and hence

the soil surface area (Attoh and Okine 1995). The
effect of coarser size fraction of pond ash, which acts
as diluent in turn decreases the liquid and plastic limit
(Sivapullaiah et al.1996). Plasticity index is decreasing
with the increase in pond ash content upto 40%, and
thereafter it behaves like non plastic material. The
liquid and plastic limit values increases with addition
of lime, which may due to the excess lime content
causing formation of cementious compounds which
may increase the water holding capacity (Sivapullaiah
et al. 1996).
Table 8 Atterbergs Limits

Shedi
Soil
(%)
Pond Ash
(%) (with
Lime)
100
Without Lime
Liquid
Limit
(%)
Plastic
Limit
(%)
Plasticity
Index
(%)
53
33
20
85
15
51
32.8
75
25
46
65
35
55
Pond Ash
(%)
After 7 Days Curing with Lime 3%

Liquid
Limit
(%)
Plastic
Limit
(%)
Plasticity
Index
(%)
53
33
20
18.2
12
34
28
31
15
22
32
27.6
4.4
41
29
12
32
30
27.8
2.2
45
37
28
42
28
25.7
2.3
45
55
30
NP
52
25
NP
35
65
20
NP
62
21
NP
65
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Change in Atterbergs limits depends on the type of
soil and amount of lime added. An increase in liquid
limit is observed in case of illitic clay and a decrease
in liquid limit is observed in case of montmorillonitic
clay. The shedi soil lies in the region of silts of high
compressibility. After the addition of 3% lime and
10% pond ash to shedi soil it remains in the same
region, but it is closer to the silts of intermediate
compressibility. Addition of 3% lime and pond ash
content from 20 to 40% at an increment of 10%, the soil
behaves like silts of intermediate compressibility, but
it is closer to the region of silts of low compressibility
as the pond ash content increases. With the addition
of 3% lime and pond ash content 50%, 60% to shedi
soil, the soil behaves like silts of low compressibility.
After the addition of 10 to 60% pond ash content at an
increment of 10% to shedi soil it behaves like silts of
low compressibility. The lime causes an aggregation
of the particles and they occupy larger spaces. This
alters the effective grading of the soil mix proportion
which in turn increases the void ratio and porosity
(Attoh and Okine 1995).
4.4 UCC Test on Coir Stabilized Soil : Unconfined
compression tests were carried out on 38 mm diameter
and 75 mm high (L/D ratio is 2) samples of the pond
ash blended soil for one day and 7 days curing for
both light and heavy compactions at OMC. To observe
the variation of UCC strength with replacement of soil
by pond ash, an increment of 10 per cent pond ash
has been tried. The UCC value increases to maximum
with 10 per cent replacement of soil by pond ash after
curing for one day and seven days for both light and
heavy compaction. When compared to virgin soil, the
UCC values are increasing up to 50 per cent of soil
replaced by pond ash for one day and seven days curing
for both light and heavy compaction. These values are
decreasing thereafter with further replacement of soil
by pond ash and the test results are shown in Fig. 2.
66
Fig. 2 UCC Test Results on Blended Soil

(Lime + Coir + Pond Ash)
Fresh samples of laterite and lime stabilized soil

can have ultimate unconfined compressive strength
greater than older samples once they have been
subjected to repeated loading before testing for the
unconfined compression strength (Akoto 1986).The
gain in strength for seven days cured samples may be
because of short term reactions such as hydration and
flocculation and long term reactions such as pozzolanic
and carbonation. But gain in strength for one day
samples may be due to short term reactions such as
hydration and flocculation. There is no contribution
from long term reactions (Bergado et al. 1996). The
pozzolanic reaction of pond ash takes longer period.
The soil samples blended with pond ash and lime are
tested after one day and seven days. The seven days
strength is compared with one day strength. Due to
the inclusion of coir, there is a change in UCC value
after 7 days curing. The samples of shedi soil after
seven days curing show increase in UCC strength
compared to one day unsoaked samples; this may be
due to the presence of additives. The inclusion of coir
improves the one day strength of pond ash blended
soil from 10 to 40% and 10% to 30% for heavy and
light compactions respectively because of following
reasons,

The brittle behaviour of seven days sample may

be because of the increase in coarser fraction
due to flocculation and contact area between
coir and soil might decrease the load taken by
soil coir matrix.
TECHNICAL PAPERS

The ductile behaviour of one day sample

indicates that load taken by coir and a part by
soil. One day cured, samples are bulging more
as compared to seven days samples because of
large specific area of soil particles and better
contact between soil and coir.
The reasons for the probable difference in the failure

mechanism for the two cases may be explained as
follows. Due to the coarser nature of this pond ash, its
pozzolanic activity cannot be fully exploited (Tsonis et
al. 1983). The UCC strength decreases with increase in
pond ash content for both light and heavy compaction.
The decrease in UCC strength may be because of the
decrease in MDD of soil mix proportions. The fibres
are likely to be pulled out in the UCC test.
4.5 Compaction Characteristics: The volumetric
properties of shedi soil and pond ash blended
soil for light and heavy compaction are shown in
Table 9. The variation of MDD, OMC with variation
in pond ash content for blended soil for light and
heavy compaction are shown in Table9. The value
of OMC of the pond ash blended soil increases with
increase in pond ash content. The moisture content-
density relationship is very important in assessing the

strength, stability, permeability and compressibility
of soil mix proportion for construction. In the present
investigation soil mix proportion is subjected to
compactive energy of 6.05 kN-mm/ 1000 ml of soil
for light compaction using standard Proctor test and
compactive energy of 27.50 kN-mm/ 1000 ml of soil
for heavy compaction using modified Proctor. The
density values are tabulated in Table. 9. The cause for
reduction of density may be explained in two ways.
Primarily, lime causes an aggregation of the particles
and increase in the shear strength at particle level, so
that they occupy larger spaces. They also offer more
resistance to deformation, i.e., compaction. This
alters the effective grading of the soil mix proportion,
in turn increasing in the void ratio and porosity (Attoh
and Okine1995). Secondly, the specific gravity of
lime, pond ash and coir in most cases is lower than
the specific gravity of shedi soil. As the coir and lime
percentages are fixed, the amount of water used for
saturating the coir and for the reaction of lime with
basic materials is almost constant this indicates that
the increase in OMC may be due to the pond ash.
Table 9 Compaction Test Results of Blended Soil (Lime + Coir (2%) + Pond Ash)
Pond Ash
Percentage
Heavy Compaction
(Lime = 3% )
Light Compaction
(Lime = 5%)
OMC
(%)
MDD
kN/m3)
Bulk
Density
(kN/m3)
OMC
(%)
MDD
(kN/m3)
Bulk
Density
(kN/m3)
Shedi Soil
16.7
17.55
20.48
21.21
15.86
19.23
2.600
10
15.5
16.55
19.12
21.00
15.03
18.19
2.489
20
16.5
16.13
18.79
21.90
14.4
17.56
2.429
30
17
16.1
18.84
22.82
14.15
17.38
2.369
40
18.5
16.05
19.02
23.00
13.4
16.48
2.309
50
19
14.55
17.31
25.80
13.2
16.63
2.249
60
21.5
14.5
17.62
26.00
12.8
16.13
2.189
67
TECHNICAL PAPERS
4.6 CBR Test Results: The CBR test for the shedi
soil and soil mix proportion was carried out as per
Indian standard specifications and the results are
shown in Table 10. The sample was compacted in
the CBR test mould at OMC and MDD, then kept
for seven days in air for unsoaked CBR value, three
days in air and four days in water for soaked CBR
value. The CBR increases with increase of pond ash
content for both light and heavy compactions. As
OMC increases the CBR also increases for both light
and heavy compactions. But the reverse is true as
pond ash content increases, MDD decreases and CBR
increases for both light and heavy compactions. The
CBR value of the pond ash blended soil increases with
increase in percentage of pond ash. In view of several
factors affecting CBR values, it is extremely difficult

to predict the behaviour of the soil mix proportion
(Sridharan et al. 1998).
CBR may be increasing because of following
reasons,

The coir reinforced soil offers resistance to the

penetration of the plunger. The resistance may
be made up of adhesion between soil mix and
coir surface and friction between soil particles
(Raghavan 2004).
The increase in CBR value can be attributed

to the better packing of different fractions
(Sridharan et al. 1998).
Table 10 CBR Test Results Blended Soil (Coir (2%) +Lime +Pond Ash)
Material
Heavy Compaction
(3% Lime)
Material
Light Compaction
(5 % Lime)
Soil
Pond
ash
Soaked
Condition
(%)
100
100
<1
85
10
10
83
10
75
20
12
73
20
10
65
30
11
14
63
30
12
55
40
13
18
53
40
14
45
50
16
22
43
50
10
16
35
60
18
24
33
60
12
18
Unsoaked
Condition
(%)
Soil
Pond
ash
Soaked Condition
(%)
Unsoaked
Condition
(%)
4.7 Permeability : Permeability tests were carried

out on cylindrical blended soil samples of diameter 80
mm and height 60 mm compacted at OMC and MDD.
The permeability test results are shown in Table 11.
The permeability of the pond ash soil increases with
increase in percentage of pond ash. The permeability
68
values increased to 2.8x10-6cm/s with 10% of

pond ash to 7.7x10-6cm/s with 20% of pond ash to
1.2x10-5cm/s with 30% of pond ash to 1.7x10-5cm/s
with 40% of pond ash to 4.7x10-5cm/s with 50% of
pond ash and to 1.0x10-4cm/s with 60% of pond ash
content by weight for light compaction.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Table 11 Permeability Test Results (Coir (2%) + Lime + Pond Ash)
Shedi Soil (%)
Pond Ash (%)
Permeability
(cm/s) in Heavy
Compaction
(Lime = 3%)
Shedi Soil (%)
Permeability
(cm/s) in Light
Compaction
(Lime = 5%)
100
3.8x10-7
100
1.6 x10-6
100
5.5 x10-4
85
10
5.0x10-7
83
2.8 x10-6
75
20
7.3x10-7
73
7.7 x10-6
65
30
2.8x10-6
63
1.2 x10-5
55
40
3.6x10-6
53
1.7 x10-5
45
50
1.0x10-5
43
4.7 x10-5
35
60
2.6 x10-5
33
1.0 x10-4
4.8 Set-Up Used for Tension Test : A briquette

mould as shown in Fig.3 having plan dimensions as per
I.S (IS: 269-1958, Specification for Ordinary, Rapid
Hardening and Low Heat Portland cement) and made
of seasoned teak wood was prepared. The minimum
cross sectional area of the mould was 25.4 mm x 25.4
mm. The volume of the briquette was found out using
sand replacement method. The oven dried shedi soil,
lime, pond ash and coir as per mix proportion was
weighed to have maximum dry density, mixed in dry
state and with water up to optimum moisture content.
It was compacted later in the mould using steel rod
such that specimen of thickness 25.4 mm is obtained.
The specimen was taken out of the mould and dried
in an oven at a constant temperature of 110C for 24
hours. In the case of moist specimen, the procedure
is similar to the one explained, except that the testing
was carried out as soon as compaction was over
without drying.
For the determination of tensile strength, a separate
loading arrangement as shown in Fig.4 was set up
in the laboratory. Two mild steel U-shaped clamps
having hooks at their ends were fabricated such that
the briquette can be placed firmly in between them. A
hanger was attached to the hook on the lower clamp
so that slotted weights can be placed on the hanger.
The upper clamp was tied to the fixed head of loading

frame. The briquettes were placed in between the
upper and lower clamps and the slotted weights were
added gradually till the specimen failed. In the first
few tests, approximate weights required were noted
down and then for subsequent trials, increments of 20
N up to 80 N, followed by 0.10N increments and
in the final stages the increment was reduced to 50N
(Raghavan 1985).
Fig. 3 Briquette Mould with Dimensions
69
TECHNICAL PAPERS

Fig. 4 Apparatus for Tension Test
4.9 Tension Test on Coir : The arrangement for

measuring the tensile strength of the coir used consists
of upper end of the coir fibre was securely fixed to the
fixed head of loading frame and lower end is tied to
the hanger. The increments of loads were added to the
hanger until it fails.
4.10 Tension Test on Compacted Sample : Tension
tests were carried out on 25.40 mm thick briquette
samples for the soil mix proportions. The results
are shown in Fig.5. It shows that there is continuous
decrease in tensile strength with highest value at 10%
pond ash content for immediate and one day oven dried
samples for both light and heavy compaction. As pond
ash increases and aggregation occurs, contact between
soil and reinforcement may decrease resulting in loss
of friction bond between the fibre and soil matrix. The
coir per cent in the soil blend is kept constant as 2
per cent throughout the study. The gain in strength for
immediate and one day oven dried samples may be
because of short term reactions such as hydration and
flocculation, there is no contribution from long term
reactions (Bergado et al. 1996).
As the load is applied through hanger at the bottom
the following things may happen,

70
The improved inter particle cohesion of soils

due to addition of lime may try to resist the
applied tensile load. The adhesion between coir
and stabilized soil may also try to resist the
applied tensile load.
The improved inter particle friction of soils due

to addition of lime may try to resist the applied
tensile load. The friction between coir and
stabilized soil may also try to resist the applied
tensile load.
The deformation of soil matrix is resisted by tangential

forces which develop along the coir which in turn
mobilizes the tensile resistance of the coir from the
above activity. In the above activity, soil may act
passively (Madhu 2004). The failure of stabilized soil
matrix means failure of soil only, because coir is strong
in tension than soil. The one day oven dried samples
have higher tensile strength than the immediately
tested samples. This may be because at optimum
moisture content, the presence of more moisture may
act as a lubricant thereby reducing the friction between
the coir and the surrounding soil matrix resulting in
bond failure.
Fig. 5 Tension Test Results for Blended Soil

(Pond Ash + Coir + Lime)
Conclusions
Without Lime : It is evident from Table. 8 as the

pond ash content increased to 65% in steps of 10 %,
the LL decreased from 53 to 20%. Up to 45% of pond
ash, the PI decreased from 20% to 9% with further
addition of pond ash, the blended soil will behave like
a non plastic material.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
With 3 per cent Lime : As the pond ash content
increased to 62% in steps of 10 %, the LL decreased
from 53% to 21%. Up to 42% of pond ash the PI
decreased from 20% to 2.3% with further addition of
pond ash the blended soil behaves like a non plastic
material.
unsoaked condition. The CBR of shedi soil with

heavy compaction and light compaction are 2%
and < 1% respectively at soaked condition, 8%
and 6% respectively at unsoaked condition.
6.
From UCC test (seven days curing) it can be

concluded that the pond ash blended shedi soil
samples compacted at OMC-MDD exhibit
brittle behaviour. The inclusion of fibre and
change of curing period changes the behaviour
of pond ash blended shedi soil and it becomes
brittle.
7.
The UCC strength of for seven days cured shedi

soil sample is more than one day cured sample.
The increase is due to change in soil structure.
Moisture-Density Relation
1.
It is evident from Table.9 as pond ash content

increased from 0 to 20%, OMC varied between
16.5 to 16.7% and further with increase in
pond ash content from 30 to 60% (with steps
of 10%) OMC increased from 17% to 21.5%.
MDD decreased from 17.55kN/m3 at 0% pond
ash to 14.5kN/m3 at 60 % pond ash for heavy
compaction.
2.
Similarly, for Light Compaction the MDD

decreased from 15.86 to 12.8kN/m3 when pond
ash is added from 0% to 60 % in steps of 10%.
3.
As the pond ash content increases, the MDD

decreases and OMC increases. The variation
of MDD and OMC with pond ash content is
almost linear.
Permeability
4.
It is evident from Table. 11 as pond ash content

increased from 10 to 60% permeability have
increased from 5.0x10-7 to 2.6x10-5cm/s
for heavy compaction. Similarly for light
compaction it increased from 2.8x10-6 to
1.0x10-4cm/s. Permeability of shedi soil with
heavy compaction & light compaction are
3.x10-7 and 1.6x10-6 cm/s respectively
Strength Properties
5.
It is evident from Table 10 on the pond ash

content increases from 10% to 60% in steps
of 10% the CBR increases from 4% to 18% at
soaked condition and 10% to 24% at unsoaked
condition for heavy compaction. Similarly for
light compaction, CBR increases from 2% to
12% at soaked condition and 8% to 18% at
8. Up to 10% replacement by pond ash, the tensile

strength values for light and heavy compaction
increase. Thereafter with further replacement by
pond ash, the tensile strength values decreases.
References
1.
Akoto, B.K.A., (1986): Effect of Repeated Loading

on the Ultimate Unconfined Compressive Strength of a
Lime Stabilized Laterite, Engg Geol V23, N2, Dec 1986,
P125135.
2.
Attoh, N. O and Okine., (1995): Lime Treatment of

Laterite Soils and Gravels - Revisited, Construction and
Building Materials, Vol. 9, No. 5, pp. 283-287.
3.
Bergado, D. T., Anderson, L. R., Miura, N. and

Balasubramaniam, A. S. (1996): Soft Ground
Improvement in Lowland and other Environments, ASCE
press, New York.
4.
Davidson, L. K., Demirel, T. and Handy, R. L. (1965):

Soil Pulverization and Lime Migration in Soil Lime
Stabilization, Highway Research Board, Highway
Research Record No. 92, Washington, PP. 103-126.
5.
Evert, C. Lawton., Milind, Khire V. and Nathaniel, S.

Fox. (1993): Reinforcement of Soils by Multioriented
Geosynthetic Inclusions, Journal of Geotechnical
Engineering, Vol. 119, No. 2, pp. 257-275.
6.
Kezdi, A.(1979):Stabilized Earth Roads, Elsevier

Scientific Publishing Company., New York.
7.
Krishnamoorthy, S., Ahuja, B. M. and Ramaswamy,

H. S.(1981): Vegetable Fibre Reinforced Concrete for
Paving Works, National Symposium on Binder economy
and building construction, CRRI, New Delhi. Session 1.
71
TECHNICAL PAPERS
8.
Kumar, R., Kanauji, V. K. and Chandra, D. (1999):

Engineering Behavior of Fiber Reinforced Pond Ash and
Silty Sand, Geosynthetic International, Vol. 6, No. 6, pp.
509-518.
14.
Shenbaga, R. K. and Vasant, G. H. (2001): Behavior

of Cement Stabilized Fiber Reinforced Fly ash Soil
Mixtures, Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental
Engineering, Vol. 127, No. 7, pp. 574-584.
9.
Madhu N. (2004): Studies on Accelerated

Consolidation and CBR Tests on Randomly Distributed
Fibre Reinforced Soil using Natural Geotextiles,
M.
Tech Thesis, National Institute of Technology Karnataka.,
Surathkal.
15.
Sivapullaiah, P. V., Prashanth, J. P. and Sridharan, A.

(1996): Effect of Fly Ash on the Index Properties of
Black Cotton Soil, Soils and Foundation, Vol. 36, No. 1,
pp. 91-103.
16.
10.
Moore, R K. (1987): Lime Stabilization: Reactions,

Properties, Design and Construction. State of the Art
Report, Transportation Research Board, National
Research Council, No. 5, Washington, DC.
Sridharan, A., Pandian, N. S. and Srinivas, S. (1998):

Use of Fly Ash to Improve the CBR of soils, Indian
Geotechnical Conference, New Delhi, pp. 261-264.
17.
Tsonis, P., Christoulas, S. and Kolias, S. (1983): Soil

Improvement with Coal Ash in Road Construction,
Proceedings of 8th European Geotechnical Conference
on Soil Mechanics and Foundation Engineering, Helsinki,
May , Vol 2, pp. 961-964.
18.
Venkata Raja, G. (2001): Stability of Lime Pond Ash

Stabilized Shedi Soil for Pavement Layers an Experimental
Study, M.Tech Thesis, National Institute of Technology
Karnataka, Surathkal. Pond Ash
19.
The Pond ash was procured from Thermal Power Station,

Raichur, Karnataka State and the basic properties of pond
ash are given in Table 2 and the chemical properties are
given in.
11.
Narayanaswamy Setty, K. R. and Parshwanatha Shetty,

P. (1989): Reinforced Soil in Pavement Construction,
International Workshop on Geotextiles, Bangalore, pp.
267-270.
12.
Phanikumar, M. V. S. (2000): Strength Behavior of

Shedi Soil-Lime-Pond Ash Mixes an Experimental
Study, M.Tech thesis, National Institute of Technology
Karnataka., Surathkal.
13.
Raghavan, K. S. (1985): A study of Coir-Stabilized

Lateritic Soil for Rural Roads, M.Tech Thesis, Karnataka
Regional Engineering College, Surathkal.
OBITUARY
The Indian Roads Congress express their profound sorrow on the sad demise of Shri Surjit Singh resident
of 771, Sector-60, SAS Nagar. He was an active member of the Indian Roads Congress.
May his soul rest in peace.
The Indian Roads Congress express their profound sorrow on the sad demise of Shri S. K. Mitra resident
of DB-102, Salt Lake, Kolkata. He was an active member of the Indian Roads Congress.
May his soul rest in peace.
72
AUTOMATED DETECTION AND MEASUREMENT OF CRACKS

FROM MONOCHROME VIDEO CLIPS CAPTURED BY ROAD
NETWORK SURVEY VEHICLE
Huidrom Lokeshwor*, Lalit K. Das**, S.K. Sud***
Abstract
The assessment of cracks is an essential part of a road management
system for developing repair and maintenance strategies. Nowadays,
road condition assessment is gradually being automated by using
various imaging systems. However, the processing of the collected
road visual data is still being done manually or semi-automatically
in India. There are thousands of kilometres (50,000km approx.)
of raw video data of Indian National Highways in Central Road
Research Institute; collected using road network survey vehicle
under the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MORTH)
sponsored R&D Scheme (T-5) Development of GIS based
National Highways Information System. Existing methods of
data processing are very costly and time consuming. In this paper,
a method for automated detection and measurement of cracks out
of a large volume of monochrome video clips of Indian Highways
is presented. In the proposed method, all the frames of a raw video
clip are extracted and grouped automatically using an algorithm
into two different categories, viz. clear frames i.e. without distress,
and suspicious frames which may have distress. Then, frames
belonging to the suspicious category are subjected to various image
processing techniques supported by user defined decision logic for
the cracks detection and their measurement. This methodology has
been implemented in a Windows XP environment with the help
of Visual Studio 2008 and OpenCV, an open source computer
vision library and tested on five different road video clips. The
results show that this method can detect and measure cracks
automatically with accuracy up to 93%, while saving considerable
time and manpower resources. The information extracted using the
proposed method can be used for determining maintenance levels
of Indian roads and taking further appropriate actions for repair
and maintenance.
Introduction
The assessment of road surface distress is an essential

part of road management system for developing
repair and maintenance strategiesto ensure a good
and an effective road network1,2. Cracks are the most
common and earliest forms of road surface distress,
which weakens the road and allows water to penetrate
causing further deterioration3. Thus, early detection

and measurement of cracks is necessary for managing
road maintenance and this is done by establishing
the location and measuring their area, length, width,
extent and/or classifying their types3,4,5.
In the past, various automated cracks detection systems
have been developed using image based techniques.
Some of them include RoadCrack System6 from
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research
Organization, Fugro-Roadwares Wise Crax System7
and Automated Pavement Surface Imaging Model
4096 from Dynatest & Way Link System8. Since these
systems come bundled with commercial road survey
vehicles, image based methods or algorithms used
are not available to researchers due to commercial
reasons and the cost of these vehicles exceeds three
crores rupees (US$ 680,000) on Indian soil.
In India, millions of kilometres of roads need to be
urgently evaluated for their performance. The last
extensive road data collection was done in India via
traditional manual inspections during 1980s only9.
Now, after a gap of three decades, these surveyed
data need to be updated so that maintenance and
repair requirements can be assessed. There are
thousands of kilometres (50,000km approx.) of raw
video data of National Highways in Central Road
Research Institute (CSIR-CRRI), collected using a
road network survey vehicle (NSV) under MORTH
sponsored R&D Scheme (T-5) Development of GIS
based National Highways Information System. In
CSIR-CRRI, the processing and analysis of these road
video data are done offline and semi-automatically
Technical Officer, Central Road Research Institute (CSIR-CRRI), Delhi, Email: hlokeshwor@gmail.com
**
Ex-Head, IDD Centre, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, Email: lalitdas@gmail.com.
*** Chief Design Engineer, IDD Centre, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi, Email: sksud123@hotmail.com.
73
TECHNICAL PAPERS
using a processing toolkit supplied with the vehicle
(NSV Toolkit). This toolkit may be considered as one
of semi-automated type since the amount of human
intervention is being reduced by half as compared to
that of a traditional field inspection. Using this toolkit,
the detection and classification of a distress is done
manually through human intervention while video
frames extraction, reporting information and distress
area measurement are done semi-automatically. With
the toolkit, a trained staff needs to mark the distress
area by drawing a rectangle with the mouse over the
distress on each frame of the video to measure the
influence area of the distress, i.e., the area of rectangle
enclosing the distress (bounding box), not the actual
area on road. This toolkit takes many trained staffs
and many hours to process video clip of one km
length road. Therefore, development of an automated
method for detection and measurement of cracks from
a large database of video clips for Indian roads still
remains as a challenge so far. The key challenges are
the segmentation of cracks out of a large raw video
clip collected under different sunlight intensities,
with different images of objects (manholes, animals,
vehicles or their parts), different shadows of various
objects (vehicles, man, animals, trees or poles) and
different road markings (white, yellow or black).
In this paper, a method is proposed for automated
detection and measurement of cracks out of a road
video clip using various image processing techniques.
In the proposed method, cracks are defined as a
series of interconnected small dark regions appearing
against the background of a road surface image with
a minimum standard deviation of 5.0, maximum
circularity of 3.0 and maximum average width of
60cm. Standard deviation (std) is a measure of variation
or dispersion of pixels intensities representing a crack
in a road image from their mean value. The value of
stdis computed using the Eq.1. Circularity is a shape
factor which describes the circular shape of a crack
numerically and its value is 1 for an ideal circle and
between 0 & 1 for all other shapes. The value of circ
74
is computed from area (A) and perimeter (P) covering

the crack, using Eq.2 while the average width (w) of
the crack is computed using Eq.3.
To increase the accuracy of cracks detection, the
proposed method is performed in two steps. An
algorithm is developed for each step. In the first
algorithm, frames are extracted from an input road
video clip and grouped automatically into two
categories of frames types, viz. clear frames and
suspicious frames. A clear frame is a video frame
without any distress or noise, whereas a suspicious
frame is a video frame with at least one distress or
noise. In the second algorithm, cracks are detected out
of suspicious frames and measured automatically using
various image processing techniques. The results show
that proposed method can detect cracks automatically
out of a sequence of suspicious frames based on three
features of cracks. The first feature is the statistical
visual texture as given by standard deviation of the
pixels intensities representing the cracks from their
mean value while the second feature is the shape of
cracks as given by circularity and the third feature is
the dimension of cracks as given by average width.
The results obtained are also compared with that
of NSV Toolkit at CSIR-CRRI. The information
extracted using the proposed method can be used
for determining maintenance levels for Indian roads
and taking further appropriate actions for repair and
maintenance related issues such as allocating budgets
or awarding contracts for repairing the critical roads
in a short duration of time1,10. The results obtained are
up to 93% accurate.
In the next sections, objective of this research study is
included. Then, a brief description of the NSV which
has been used for collecting road surface video data is
given. After that the proposed method for automated
crack detection and measurement is described. Later,
test results are presented and compared with that of
NSV Toolkit. Finally, conclusions and future works
are given.
TECHNICAL PAPERS
2
CRACKS
DETECTION
MEASUREMENT METHOD
AND
The overall objective of this research is to test whether

a large database of road video clips, that have been
captured using a NSVwithout any artificial lighting
systems, can be utilized for the purpose of speedy
assessment of Indian roads condition.
The NSV continuously captures road surface video
clips using two progressive scan, square pixels, 8-bit
monochrome CCD based FireWire cameras. The two
CCD based FireWire cameras are fitted in the back of
a Tata Sumo and are synchronized with the triggers
provided by a distance measuring instrument (DMI),
fitted to the rear wheel of the vehicle. One video frame
covers 3m length by 2.5 m width of the road with a
resolution of 1280X960 pixels. Each square pixel
covers 2.5mm x 2.5 mm. The images are captured
in different sunlight conditions without any artificial
lighting systems.
To increase the accuracy, the database of collected
video clips is processed offline in two steps. Each
step is subjected to a different algorithm. The first is
suspicious frames selection algorithm and the second
is cracks detection and measurement algorithm. The
final result is two different types of video frames
category viz. frames with cracks and frames without
cracks. A video frame is considered for frames
with cracks category if the frame contains at least
one crack, otherwise the video frame belongs to
frames without cracks category. The cracks in the
former category are tagged with a different colorand
measurement information is reported in a printable
format. The results are compared with the current
methods practiced in the field for the evaluation of the
proposed method.
2.1
Suspicious Frames Selection Algorithm
The suspicious frames selection algorithm(Algorithm

1), is developed for selecting suspicious frames
automatically from road video clip stored in a hard
drive. This algorithm in the proposed method is
applied to extract and group all the frames of a video

into categories mentioned earlier. This system of
categorization is based on user defined decision logic.
This is as follows. If the total area of the black pixels is
less than 100 cm2 then video frame is categorized as a
clear frame; otherwise the video frame is a suspicious
frame. The area of 100 cm2 which is used in the decision
logic can be modified as per the actual requirement in
context of road repair and maintenance. However, the
authors have been found that 100 cm2 (1600 in pixels)
as the most significant threshold value to identify a
suspicious frame out of a video clip and this threshold
value has been determined by experimenting on 100
road images with cracks.
Algorithm 1:
1.
Input a raw video clip of road surface;
2.
Extract the first frame;
3.
Convert its default 24-bit depth format into

8-bit depth format by selecting its blue channel
image [discussed in section 2.2.1];
4.
Apply median filtering for image enhancement

[discussed in section 2.2.2];
5.
Apply clipping technique to remove unwanted

features such as road markings and white spots
6.
Apply adaptive thresholding to convert the

clipped enhanced image into a binary image
with black pixels representing objects of interest
7.
Apply morphological dilation to remove

isolated black pixels or their small clusters in
the binary image [discussed in section 2.2.6];
8.
Count the number of black pixels in the binary

image, say C;
9.
Categorize the current video frame into one of

two groups: (a) clear frames, if C < 1600, (b)
suspicious frames, if otherwise i.e. C >=1600;
10.
Store the corresponding original extracted

frame in its category type folder;
75
TECHNICAL PAPERS
11.
Repeat steps 3 to 10 for all remaining frames;
12.
End.
After applying the above algorithm, all the frames

are grouped into the two categories. Among them,
suspicious frames category is only used for cracks
detection and their measurement (discussed in
section 2.2).
2.2
Cracks
Detection
Algorithm
and
Measurement
The cracks detection and measurement algorithm

(Algorithm 2) is developed for the automated
detection and measurement of cracks out of a sequence
of suspicious frames that have been identified by
suspicious frames selection algorithm. Various image
processing techniques used in theproposed method
are discussed in section 2.2.1 to section 2.2.7.
2.2.1 8-Bit Depth Format Conversion
The original video frame extractedfrom a video clip
is in the RGB 24-bit depth (24-bit per pixel) format.
Each channel (Red, Green and Blue) is represented by
8-bit array and their pixel value ranges from 0(black)
to 255(white). Each channel has the same pixel values
because of the monochromatic nature of the camera.
Thus, the blue channel image is selected. This makes
the frame compatible with various image processing
techniques and saves memory space and processing
time.
2.2.2 Median Filtering
The blue channel image needs to be enhanced or
smoothened before they can be used for analysis. For
this, median filtering11,12 is applied to the gray scale
(8-bit depth) image. There may be many reasons for
doing smoothening but it is done here mainly to reduce
noise or camera artifacts developed during road image
acquisition.
76
Algorithm 2 Flowchart of the Proposed Cracks Detection

and Measurement Algorithm
TECHNICAL PAPERS
This filter replaces each pixel by the median or middle
pixel in a square neighborhood around the centre
pixel. The size of the neighborhood used for filtering
is 5X5 pixel. Other technique like simple blurring
that replaces each pixel by an average pixel value can
be sensitive to noisy images, especially images with
large isolated outliner points, sometimes called shot
noise. Large differences in even a small number of
points can cause a noticeable movement in the average
value. However, median filtering is able to ignore the
outliners by selecting the middle points.
2.2.3 Clipping Values
Besides noises or camera artifacts, there are still
unwanted features present in the road frames such
as road markings or white spots. These unwanted
features need to be removed before segmentation. For
this, all the pixel intensity values above their average
(mean) value of the enhanced image are clipped to its
average value. This is because most of the values of
pixels representing these road markings or white spots
are found to be above the average value of the image
and an average value of an image represents the most
occurring pixel value. If clipping values technique is
not applied then some of these features will be falsely
detected as cracks.
2.2.4 Adaptive Thresholding
It is not wise to apply many layers of preprocessing
steps since it will slow automation of image processing
and also waste some valuable information. The main
objective at this stage is only to determine which pixel
belongs to object or region of interest. To achieve this
segmentation, an adaptive thresholding technique
which is based on the weighted mean11,13 is applied.
This is a modified threshold technique in which the
threshold level is itself variable. The threshold level is
set on a pixel by pixel basis by computing a weighted
mean of a neighborhood region around each pixel
location minus a constant. All the pixels in the region
are weighted equally.
By trial and error method, the optimal neighborhood

region and the best constant value are determined for a
frame size of 1280 X 960 pixels, which covers an area of
3m X 2.5 m of road surface. Global thresholding is not
applied here since getting an optimum threshold is very
difficult for large set of noisy road images, collected
without any artificial lighting systems due to varied
conditions. Other techniques of segmentation such
as histogram based thresholding and edge detection
techniques are not able to give reliable results due to
the highly textured or uneven nature of road surface,
which resulted in highly noisy road images17. However,
adaptive thresholding based on weighted mean is found
to be very useful for images that are characterized by
strong illumination or reflectance gradient as a result
of variation of illumination. Besides, this technique is
also able to remove uniformly distributed shadows or
image parts of some unwanted features present in the
images while saving computation time.
2.2.5 Morphological Erosion Operation
By applying Adaptive thresholding, the grayscale
image is converted into a binary image with black
pixels representing objects which may be a distress and/
or noises while white pixels representing background.
Further processing of this binarized image is required
for removing noises and mapping the actual area of
the object as measured on the road. For this, a series of
morphological operations such as erosion and dilation
are applied. These operations can be used for different
purposes like removing noise, isolating individual
elements, joining disparate elements and finding
intensity bumps or holes or gradients in an image11.
Morphological erosion operations are being used to
join the disparate elements or bridge the gaps between
black pixels (object pixels). Basically, this operator
adds more black pixels to a binarized image. The action
of this operator is equivalent to computing a local
minimum over the area of the kernel. As the kernel
is scanned over the image, it computes the minimum
pixel value overlapped by the kernel and replaces
the image pixel under the anchor point of the kernel
77
TECHNICAL PAPERS
with that minimum value. This operator is iterated for
a limited number of times using a square 3X3 kernel
with the anchor at its centre, just before the dilation
(discussed in Section 2.2.6), as well as just after the
dilation, so that more detail and useful information is
retained in the image.
2.2.6 Morphological Dilation Operation
After the erosion operation has been applied, isolated
black pixels or their small clusters which constitute
noise are developed in the binary image. This noise
needs to be removed. For this, dilation operation11 is
applied, which is basically addition of white pixels to
a binary image. The action of the dilation operator is
equivalent to computing a local maximum over the area
of the kernel. As the kernel is scanned over the image,
it computes the maximum pixel value overlapped
by the kernel and replaces the image pixel under the
anchor point of the kernel with that maximum value.
By iterating this operation a limited number of times
using same kernel used in erosion, some of the isolated
black pixels or their small clusters are removed away
without affecting the larger black regions. To map the
actual shape and size of the segmented object with
physical road, total number of iterations that has been
eroded throughout the processing must be dilated
back.
2.2.7 Connected Component Labeling and Chain
Coding
After applying all the above image processing
techniques, a binary image containing probable
objects of interests is obtained. To simplify the process
as well as save time, firstly, all the objects whose
area are less than 100 cm2 (minimum cut off area)
are filtered out and called them non-critical object
(NCO). Then, some information are extracted from
the remaining bigger objects, which the authors called
them as critical object (CO). This minimum size of
critical objects can be modified in accordance with
78
the actual requirements of a concerned authority. For

extracting the required information, the 8-connected
component labeling algorithm using contour tracing
technique14 is applied in the binary image. Unlike
traditional two-pass algorithms, labeling is done here
in a single pass over the image, while contour points
are revisited more than once but not more than a
limited value. This method is applied here since the
computational speed is faster than other traditional
connected component labeling techniques. Using this
technique and the 8-connected Freeman chain coding
technique15, the number of COs present in each image
has been counted, and their area (A), perimeter (P),
circ, maximum dimension (D) and average width (w)
are estimated from the binary image using Eq.(1-6),
while std of pixels intensities from their mean value
() is computed from the original image by mapping
the corresponding pixels co-ordinates of the CO
(binary image).
N
N
1
1
( gi ) 2 , where = ,
gi , and g
N i =1
N i =1
= pixels intensity level
(1)
std =
circ =
4A
p2
of the crack
, where A = area and p = perimeter

(2)
A
, where D = maximum dimension of the
w =
D
crack
(3)
A(m2) = (Number of pixels in CO) * pixel
(4)
size (m2);
P (m) = {/8 (1 + 2) (ne +no)} * pixel length (m);(5)
Where, ne and no are number of even and odd Freeman
chain elements respectively;
D (m) = {P + (P2 16*A)}/4; if (P2 16*A) > 0;
= P/4; if (P2 16*A) < = 0;
(6)
TECHNICAL PAPERS
2.2.8 Decision Logic for Cracks Identification
The extracted information such as std, circ and w are
compared with user defined decision logic for cracks
identification out of shortlisted COs. This decision
logic has been developed by experimenting on 100
numbers of video images having cracks. The cracking
road images used for the experiments have been
selected randomly to determine the deciding range of
values or significant thresholds for std, circ and w. In
this decision logic, a CO is classified using Eq. (7).
Fig. 1(c)
Fig. 1(d)
Fig. 1(e)
Fig. 1(f)
(c ) Cracks, if std > = 5.0 & circ < = 0.30 & w < = 60 mm;
type (CO) =
(d) Non-Cracks, if otherwise
(7)
Where, non-cracks = other types of distress or noise

in the video image;
In the developed logic, the average width of 60 mm
is the maximum limit of average width that has been
computed from area and perimeter of a crack in a
video image, using the developed algorithm. This
computed average width may be sometimes more
than that of actual cracking width in a road surface
due to the presence of noise, developed automatically
during the course of various image processing stages.
This dimension has been used in the proposed method
for automated identification of cracks in a noisy road
video image. However, this method has not attempted
to measure the actual width of a crack.
The procedure for automated detection
measurement of cracks is illustrated in Fig.1.
Fig. 1(a)
Fig. 1(b)
and
Fig. 1(g)
Fig.1 Procedure to detect and measure cracks using

the proposed method in video image with cracks:
(a) Original image; (b) Binary image B after median
filtering, clipping and adaptive thresholding; (c)
Binary image BE after erosion; (d) Binary image BED
after dilation; (e) Binary image BEDE after erosion;
(f) Detected potholes with a minimum size of 177cm2
in binary image BEDE (g) Extracted information
report with all the required measurements.
Note-Fig. 1 (f): Black Color = Non-Critical Objects
(NCO) and Gray Color = Critical Objects (CO) with
79
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Dark Gray Color = Non-Potholes (NP); Bright Gray
Color = Critical Potholes (P) and Brightest Gray Color
= Biggest Critical Object (BCO).
and Open CV library, are listed below in Table 1 to 3

and Graph 1 to 3.
Table 1 Comparisons of Evaluation Done Using the
Proposed Suspicious Frames Selection Algorithm
Note-Fig.1 (g): CRCAKS_REPORT = Information of

detected cracks using Eq.7; NONCRACKS_REPORT
= Information of detected non-cracks using Eq.7;
BIGGEST_CO_REPORT = Extracted properties of
the biggest critical object (BCO) based on which the
decision logic has been developed. This BCO report is
just to illustrate the effectiveness of the logic.
and A Manual Method

Video
clips
(road
length)
Total
no. of
frames
(TNF)
TEST RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
NSV.1
(0.171km)
For testing the performance of the proposed algorithms,

five video clips have been chosen randomly from a
large database of video clips captured by the NSV
without any artificial lighting systems. The clips
have all the varieties of features that occurs on a
road e.g. road markings, shadows/images of trees,
manholes, vehicles or their parts and distresses like
cracks, potholes, water bleeding, patching etc. The
detailed analysis reports which have been obtained by
implementing the proposed algorithms in a Windows
environment (Intel Celeron CPU 2.13 GHz, 1 GB
RAM, OS XP SP2), with help of Visual Studio 2008
Suspicious frames
selection algorithm
Manual
Error
(%)
No.
of
SF
No.
of
CF
Time
(min)
No. of
false
detections
in CF
57
56
1.9
1.75
NSV.2
(0.570km)
190
102
88
6.0
NIL
NSV.3
(0.564km)
188
173
15
6.2
4.2
NSV.4
(0.843km)
301
241
40
8.8
2.9
NSV.5
(0.936km)
312
298
14
10.2
0.9
Note:
SF = Suspicious Frames; CF = Clear Frames;
Error = {(No. of false detections in CF) / TNF} * 100;
Table 2 Comparisons of evaluation done using the proposed cracks detection and measurement algorithm and
processing toolkit at CSIR-CRRI.
Video
No.
Cracks detection and
of SF measurement algorithm
NSV Toolkit
No.
of
FCp
No. of
FNCp
Time
taken
(min)
No.
of
FCt
No. of
FNCt
Time
taken
(min)
Falses
in
FCp
Falses
in
FNCp
Error
(%)
Time saving
(min)
NSV.1
56
56
56
112
NIL
112-3 =109
NSV.2
102
38
64
102
122
38
37.2
122-6 =116
NSV.3
173
172
11
160
13
357
12
6.9
357-11 =346
NSV.4
241
152
89
14
143
98
493
11
6.6
493-14 =479
NSV.5
298
282
16
18
267
21
596
12
5.4
596-18 =578
Note:
FC = Frames with cracks, FNC = Frames without cracks;
Error(%) = {(No. false detections in FCp + No. false detections in FNCp)/ SF}*100;
80
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Graph 1 Accuracy of suspicious frames selection

algorithm in terms of error (%)
sequence when analyzed using the toolkit has taken

around 112 to 596 minutes. The average processing
time taken per frame by the proposed method has
been found to be 3 seconds only, while each frame
has taken 60 seconds to 120 seconds approximately
when analyzed using toolkit depending upon the
number of cracks and quality of the noisy images.
Thus, a considerable amount of time and manpower
resources could be saved while processing road video
clips, using the proposed method. Much more savings
can be done if one can afford a higher speed computer
with a larger memory at a little extra cost.
Graph 3 Efficiency comparison between proposed cracks

detection & measurement algorithm and NSV Toolkit
Furthermore, the proposed suspicious frame selection

algorithm has been able to retrieve suspicious frames
from video clips successfully with accuracy up to
95% while the crack detection and measurement
algorithm has been able to retrieve frames with crack
ssuccessfully with accuracy up to 93% for four video
clips out of five video clips tested. Some examples of
results obtained by applying the proposed suspicious
frame selection algorithm are illustrated in Fig.2 to
3 while results obtained by applying the proposed
cracks detection and measurement algorithm are
illustrated in Fig.4 to 6. However, one of video clips
(NSV.2 in Table 2), has not been able to achieve high
accuracy due to some false detections and these have
been mostly due to presence of features such as water
bleedings, shoulder defects, very dark spots, black
color road markings and shadows/images of trees,
vehicles and animals. Some of these feature when
distributed non-uniformly over the image, they found
in different shapes and sizes which are very similar to
that of cracks. Such examples are illustrated in Fig.6.
Total processing time taken by using the proposed

method on a sequence of 56 to 298 frames has been
found to be only 3 to 18 minutes depending upon the
total number of critical objects in the video. The same
The three maximum permissible maintenance levels

based on cracking for Indian highways given in the
committee report1,10 can also be determined using the
proposed method by applying Eq.(8) or Eq. (9).
Graph 2 Accuracy of cracks detection and measurement

algorithm in terms of error (%)
81
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Percentage of frames with cracks (%) = (No. of frames
with cracks / TNF)*100;
(8)
Overall extent of cracking area (%) = Sum of cracking
extent in each frame/TNF;
(9)
Where, TNF = Total Number of Frames in a road
video.
A comparison of total critical cracking area measured
using the proposed method and the toolkit is shown
in Table 3 for 6 frames with cracks. The cracks areas
measured using the two different methods are found
to be of huge differences. This is mainly because the
toolkit measures the area of the rectangle that encloses
a crack instead of actual area of the crack on a video
image. And, the rectangle that encloses a crack always
consists of some non-cracking area. Thus, the cracking
area estimated by drawing rectangle over a crack using
the toolkit is always more than that of the proposed
method depending upon the geometrical patterns
of cracks. This can be proved by measuring cracks
area manually or using ImageJ16, open source image
analysis software. Using ImageJ, area of a crack can
be estimated by fitting polygons or freehand selections
over a cracking area, which is more accurate than that
of area given by the enclosed rectangle.
Examples of results obtained by applying proposed

suspicious frame selection algorithm are illustrated
in Fig.2 to 3 while examples of results obtained by
proposed cracks detection and measurement algorithm
are illustrated in Fig.4 to 6 where images in column
(a) are original image, column (b) are processed
image using the proposed algorithm and column (c)
are report showing all required measurements.
Fig. 2 (1)
Fig. 2 (2)
Fig. 2 (3)
Fig. 2 (4)
Fig. 2 Examples of clear frames with white spots,
road markings and trees shadows
Table 3 Comparisons of critical cracks area measured

using the proposed method and NSV Toolkit.
Frames
with
cracks
Fig.1
Fig.5(1)
Fig.5(2)
Fig.5(3)
Fig.5(4)
Fig.5(5)
Difference
Critical cracks area
2
(m2)
(m )
Proposed NSV Toolkit
0.71
1.50
0.77
0.64
0.65
0.83
7.68
7.68
7.68
5.37
3.84
3.83
Note:- Difference = Area (Toolkit) - Area (Proposed)
82
Fig. 3 (1)
Fig. 3 (2)
Fig. 3 (3)
Fig. 3 (4)
6.97
6.18
6.91
4.73
3.19
3.00
Fig.3 Examples of suspicious frames with bleeding,
black road marking, patching, tree and vehicle shadows
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Fig. 4. (1)
Fig. 4. (2)
Fig. 4. (3)
Fig.4 Examples of processed suspicious frames without cracks
Fig. 5 (1a)
Fig. 5 (1b)
Fig. 5 (1c)
Fig. 5 (2a)
Fig. 5 (2b)
Fig. 5 (2c)
Fig. 5 (3a)
Fig. 5 (3b)
Fig. 5 (3c)
Fig. 5 (4a)
Fig. 5 (4b)
Fig. 5 (4c)
Fig. 4. (4)
83
TECHNICAL PAPERS
Fig. 5 (5a)
Fig. 5 (5b)
Fig. 5 (5c)
Fig.5 Examples of processed suspicious frames with truly detected cracks
Fig. 6 (1a)
Fig. 6 (1b)
Fig. 6 (1c)
Fig. 6 (2a)
Fig. 6 (2b)
Fig. 6 (2c)
Fig. 6 (3a)
Fig. 6 (3b)
Fig. 6 (3c)
Fig.6 Examples of processed suspicious frames with some falsely detected cracks
84
TECHNICAL PAPERS
4
CONCLUSIONS AND FUTURE WORK
In this paper, resulting from doctoral research of the first author,

a new method for automated detection and measurement of
cracks from monochrome video clips using various image
processing techniques has been presented. To increase the
accuracy of cracks detection, this method has been performed
in two steps. In the first step, a video has been extracted into
its respective frames and grouped into two different categories
viz. clear frames and suspicious frames, automatically by
using the proposed suspicious frames selection algorithm. In
the second step, all the frames in suspicious frames category
has been subjected to the proposed cracks detection and
measurement algorithmin a sequence for automated detection
and measurement of cracks. The proposed method has been
implemented in a Windows environment and tested on five
road video clips captured by the NSV without any artificial
lighting systems.
The results obtained by applying suspicious frames selection
algorithm has been compared with that of a manual method
done by checking frame by frame visually and found to be
up to 95% accurate. The results obtained by applying cracks
detection and measurement algorithm has been also compared
with that of a processing toolkit at CSIR-CRRI and found
to be up to 93% accurate for video clips without many
non-uniformly distributed features such as water bleeding,
shoulder defects, black color road markings and shadows.
Applying the proposed method, cracks can be detected out of
a sequence of video images in one go and their location, area,
and extent can be measured automatically resulting in saving
of considerable time and manpower resources. This method
can be readily applied in professional practice and effectively
to meet the challenges faced by Indian highway professionals
both for road maintenance management and evaluation of the
current health condition of the national highways. The method
is worthy of field implementation and only field testing will
demonstrate its novelty and innovative character. There is
potential in developing an automated road surface imaging
system which is optimally designed for the described method
to get even far better results.
5
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of this doctoral

research by MORTH and CSIR-CRRI, particularly Professor
S.K. Brahmachari, Director General (CSIR), Professor
S. Gangopadhyay, Director (CSIR-CRRI) and D.C. Sharma,
Head, Instrumentation Division (CSIR-CRRI). Furthermore,
the authors would like to acknowledge the support of IIT Delhi
and thank Professor K.K. Biswas for his illuminating lectures
in the field of Digital Image Analysis, which the first author
had the honour to attend.
REFERENCES
1.
MORT&H (2004), Guidelines for Maintenance Management of

Primary, Secondary, and Urban Roads, Indian Road Congress,
New Delhi, May, p.3.
2.
R.Robinson, U.Danielson, M.Sneith( 1998 ), in: Road maintenance

management, Palgrave, New York, pp. 3-4.
3.
W.D.O. Paterson (1987), Road deterioration and maintenance

effects, The Highway Design and Maintenance Standards Series,
The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore and London, pp.
149-150.
4.
K.H.McGhee (2004), Automated pavement distress collection

techniques, NCHRP Synthesis 334, Transporatation Research
Board, Washington D.C.
5.
C.R.Bennett, a.Chamorro, C.Chen, H.D.Sominihac,G.W.Flintsch

(2007), Data collection for road management, East Asia Pacific
Transport Unit, The World Bank, Washington D.C., Version 2.0,
February.
6.
Road Crack, CSIRO, Australia, http://www.csiro.au/solutions/

Road Crack.html, Last view on 01-08- 2011.
7.
Wise Crax, Fugro-Roadware, Canada, http://www.fugroroadware.

com/related/downloads/WiseCrax/Brochure, Last view on 01-082011.
8.
Automated Pavement Surface Imaging System, Model 4096,

Waylink-Dynatest, USA, http://www.waylink.com/apsi.htm,
Last view on 01-08-2011.
9.
N.Sharma (2006), Keeping a hawks eye on roads, 12 Dec, 0053

hrs IST,TNN, Available at http:// timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
article show/780093.cms.
10.
Committee (2007), The Report of the Working Group on Roads

(2007-2012) for 11th Five Year Plan, MOSRTH, Govt. of
India, April, p. 30, http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/
committee/wkgrp11/wg11.road.pdf.
11.
G. Bradski, A. Kaehler (2008), Learning OpencV, OReilly Media

Inc., Sebastopol, CA, First Edition.
12.
R.C. Gonzalez, R.E. Woods (2008), Digital Image Processing,

Pearson Educational International, Upper Saddle River, Third
Edition.
13.
A.K. Jain (1986), Fundamentals of Digital Image Processing,

Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Prentice-Hall, p. 408.
14.
F. Chang, C. Chen, C. Chun (2004), A linear-time component

labeling algorithm using contour tracing technique, Computer
Vision and Image Understanding, Volume 93, Issue 2, February,
Elsevier, pp. 206-220.
15.
L.Yang, F.Albertgtsen, T.Lonnestad, P. Grottum (1994), Method to

estimate areas and perimeters of blob-like objects: a comparision,
MVA94 IAPR Workshop on Machine Applications, Dec. 13-15,
Kawasaki.
16.
W. Rasband (2011), ImageJ 1.44P, National Institute of Health,

USA, http://imagej.nih.gov/ij. Last view on 01-06- 2011.
17.
L.Qingquan, L. Xianglong (2008), A model for segmentation and

distress statistic of massive pavement images based on multi-scale
strategies, The International Archives of the Photogrammetry,
Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol. XXXVII.
Part B5.Beijing 2008.
85
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INDIAN HIGHWAYS

A REVIEW OF ROAD AND ROAD TRANSPORT DEVELOPMENT

The Indian Roads Congress

Founded : December 1934

Jamnagar House, Shahjahan Road,

Kama Koti Marg, Sector 6, R.K. Puram

From the Editors Desk

Roads for Economic Upturn

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013

Vishnu Shankar Prasad

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013

APPROACH FOR HARMONIOUS WORKING

FAMILY-KEY ELEMENT FOR

For a healthy society and a pleasant life, harmonious

PREVENTION IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN

They should keep in view: Married people are more

more and pressure is less. But those are not to that

Both should proceed forward jointly as per

One should try to adjust to the other as it is,

One should not think that he/she should have

Giving and taking respect should be mutual.

Each should look appealing to the other with

Retd. DG (RD), Former Vice-President IRC and Past Chairman ING/IABSE

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013

Happiness displayed should be natural and

Being able to share each others opinions, respecting

THINGS THAT WILL ASSURE SUCCESS

We have to manage our mind for success. Things that

Goal-setting and actualization (Write them

Time management (Do more work in shorter

Stress management (Normally we use logical

Communication skills (Get your thoughts and

Assertive behaviour (Develop ability to say

Positive mental attitude (Tick off the occasional

Enthusiasm (Feel genuinely enthused about

Networking (Better chances of knowing people

Mind management (Use both sides of brain.

We are the builders of our own destiny. Law of Karma

Know about yourself (A conscious person will

Meaning for life (Observe surroundings and

Where did you start your life (childhood, youth,

Where are you? (If you know your present

Getting inspiration for life (On the way, you

Does the work give you satisfaction/

Societal relationships (The happiness you get

Strength-weaknesses (know about them in you.

What you want to achieve? (know that so that

Love and respect yourself (such persons know

One should speak softly and clearly. Rude talking

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013

somebody talks rudely, being silent is better. By

Human relationships thrive on caring, sharing and

MEDITATION TO BUILD POSITIVE

Step 1: Sit down comfortably on a chair with a straight

Step 5: Hold the visualization of your self-worth and

WHAT BRINGS PEACE

Nothing can bring man peace but himself; nothing

Peace begins with a smile

Confidence is Gods gift. It comes from prayer.

One is perfectly justified in approaching God and

INDIAN HIGHWAYS, January 2013

and price of non-conformance is avoided. For this,

A Comprehensive Approach to Sustainable Highway

DESIGN PHASE CONSIDERATIONS