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Description:
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The Texas Department of Transportation depends on one primary test for the determination of the strength of the flexible base and subgrade roadway materials . The Triaxial Strength Test is generally accepted in all State Transportation Agencies for strength determination . However the Triaxial is known for being lengthy , laborious , and test results with high variance .
Through this research project , an emerging test procedure and respective test procedure is studied that determines material strength through flexural testing of the base binder portion of the composite base matrix . The research performed of the proposed strength test is to determine its merit . Early testing with an existing crude prototype has already shown that the proposed method is worthy of further investigation . Should this study provide data reinforcing the existing data , a new for the materials industry .
In order to complete this goal , a quality prototype device was developed . The triaxial test results for materials used by the department are compared with the flexural results . The binder portion , material passing the #40 sieve , is the constituent of the test specimens for the proposed flexural test . The triaxial test uses all of the base material , the aggregate matrix and binder . The prototype device is referred to as the Base Binder Flexometer .
Should a correlation exists between the compressive and flexural testing methods , both the Department and the contractors bidding on highway contracts would receive a huge benefit of expedited material testing and less delays . |