Civil Engineering Commons^™

Design Guidelines For Deploying Closed Loop Systems, Andrew P. Nichols, Darcy M. Bullock

JTRP Technical Reports

Closed loop systems are becoming the preferred method of operating coordinated traffic signal systems. Some of the benefits of a closed loop system include remote controller access, synchronization of controller time clocks, and orderly transition between coordination plans. With ensured time clock synchronization, the coordination of traffic signals becomes more reliable, which leads to optimal vehicle progression through the system. However, due to the complexity and relative infrequent implementation in more rural districts of closed loop systems, it is very difficult to obtain a successful deployment. This manual provides a step-by-step procedure for designing the parameters, implementing, testing, and field …

Development And Evaluation Of Cement-Based Materials For Repair Of Corrosion-Damaged Reinforced Concrete Slabs, Rongtang Liu, J. Olek

JTRP Technical Reports

In this study, the results of an extensive laboratory investigation conducted to evaluate the properties of concrete mixes used as patching materials to repair reinforced concrete slabs damaged by corrosion are reported. Seven special concrete mixes containing various combinations of chemical or mineral admixtures were developed and used as a patching material to improve the durability of the repaired slabs. Physical and mechanical properties of these mixes, such as compressive strength, static modulus of elasticity, dynamic modulus of elasticity, and shrinkage were evaluated. Durability-related parameters investigated included resistance of concrete to penetration of chloride ions and freeze-thaw resistance. The results …

A Real-Time Offset Transitioning Algorithm For Coordinating Traffic Signals, Darcy M. Bullock, Montasir Abbas

JTRP Technical Reports

This report introduces an adaptive real-time offset transitioning algorithm that can be viewed as an integrated optimization approach designed to work with traditional coordinated-actuated systems. The Purdue Real-Time Offset Transitioning Algorithm for Coordinating Traffic Signals (PRO-TRACTS) adds to the controllers the ability to adaptively change their offsets in response to changes in traffic pattern, providing an intermediate solution between traditional coordinated-actuated control systems and adaptive control systems. To facilitate implementation, a new National Transportation Communication for ITS Protocol (NTCIP) object for capturing detector actuation at the controller’s level is defined in this report. The unique cycle-based tabulation of volume and …

An Analysis Of Speed Limit Policies For Indiana, Nisar M. Khan, Kumares C. Sinha

JTRP Technical Reports

The repeal of the National maximum Speed Limit law in 1995 enabled individual states to set their own speed limits. Speed limits are necessary to ensure mobility while preserving highway safety. It is important that states continually monitor and evaluate existing operating speeds in the context of changing patterns of travel, and changing characteristics of highways, vehicles, drivers, and land-use. Any efforts to review existing speed limits should be accompanied by evaluation of policy impacts such as safety and economic productivity. The goal of this research is to develop a set of speed limit policy guidelines for the state. The …

Development Of Low Cost Retaining Walls For Indiana Highways, Philippe L. Bourdeau, Patrick J. Fox, David Joseph Runser, Jin-Pyo Lee

JTRP Technical Reports

Low-cost alternatives to traditional modular facing reinforced soil retaining walls were reviewed, on the basis of published data and information. Technological information, design methods and observed performance of segmental facing reinforced soil walls were used for this review. Guidelines are proposed for selection, design and construction of such retaining walls, within a limited range of conditions, in Indiana highway projects.

Evaluation And Policy For Bridge Deck Expansion Joints, Luh M. Chang, Yao-Jong Lee

JTRP Technical Reports

This report is an overview of the research that was performed for the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) concerning the performance of bridge deck expansion joints. The purpose of the research is to evaluate several types of joints currently in use and also provides the evaluation criteria for rating the joint condition. The types of joints investigated are Compression Seal (B.S.) joint, Strip Seal (S.S.) joint, Integral Abutment Jointless (I.A.) joint, Poured Silicone (XJS) joint, and Polymer Modified Asphalt (LDI and PaveTech) joint. The research was performed by questionnaire surveys, Roadway Management data analysis, expert interviews, and site assessment. The …

Evaluation Of The Implementation Of Hot Pour Sealants And Equipment For Crack Sealing In Indiana, David R. Ward

JTRP Technical Reports

This study was initiated as an implementation effort that would monitor, assist with and report on a new maintenance activity involving the trial use of hot pour crack sealant. Work associated with this new activity was qualitatively assessed over a period of several years. INDOT began by purchasing six oil-jacketed melters that were distributed to various sub-districts. Previous INDOT research indicated using hot pour sealant might save on labor expense because it lasted significantly longer than the current emulsion. Random observations were made of various sub-district crews using hot pour sealant and the results were reported to appropriate personnel. Inspections …

Evaluation Of Zero Velocity Deicer Spreader And Salt Spreader, Tommy E. Nantung

JTRP Technical Reports

Increasing traffic volumes and declining resources have led to a need for innovative winter maintenance strategies, techniques, equipment and materials while not sacrificing the safety of the traveling public. Any reduction of salt usage will ease fund for other maintenance operations while minimizing salt runoff on surface and ground waters and effect of road salt on roadside vegetation. In the past, conventional spreaders have been designed for sand and are generally incapable of metering the lower, more precise amount of salt desired. The use of materials in solid form demands critical timing of the application to minimize loss of the …

Follow-Up Study To Fhwa/In/Jhrp-92/22: Development Of A Strategy For Compliance With Epa And Osha Regulations Applicable To Indot Facilities, Lynn A. Corson

JTRP Technical Reports

The objectives of this research were - 1. To assess the department’s progress at selected facilities toward minimizing, reducing, recycling, reusing, reclaiming and eliminating by-products of operations classified as hazardous, solid or special waste. The department’s progress toward modifying or eliminating (such as by contracting) operations or its use of alternate products to reduce potential environmental liability and associated costs will be examined, 2. To observe and analyze selected operations at a sample of facilities visited during the first study [March 1990 – November 1992] to identify where additional strengthening is needed. Additional facilities recommended by the department will also …

Real-Time Determination Of Soil Type, Water Content, And Density Using Electromagnetics, Vincent P. Drnevich, Chih-Ping Lin, Quanghee Yi, Janet Elaine Lovell

JTRP Technical Reports

The primary objective of this study was to explore the potential use of electromagnetic characteristics of soils using the Time Domain Reflectometry (TDR) technique to identify physical properties of soils. Three fundamental studies in this exploration are the frequencydependent electromagnetic properties of soils, the wave propagation in a TDR system, and the inverse analyses of TDR waveforms. The three-phase model for soils was extended to a four-phase model so as to account for the interface effect and hence the soil fineness. The physical parameters of the four-phase model are related to the frequency-dependent dielectric permitivity of the soil through a …

Seismic Design Of Deep Foundations, Antonio Bobet, Rodrigo Salgado, Dimitrios Loukidis

JTRP Technical Reports

Detailed investigations of pile foundations affected by earthquakes around the world since the 1960’s indicate that pile foundations are susceptible to damage to such a degree that the serviceability and integrity of the superstructure may be affected. Although numerous cases of seismically damaged piles are reported, the detailed mechanisms causing the damage are not yet fully understood. As a consequence, an effective seismic design of pile foundations has not been yet established in practice. Many road bridge structures supported on piles exist in southern Indiana. This is a region where the risk of occurrence of a dangerous earthquake is high …

Performance Of Bridge Decks And Girders With Lightweight Aggregate Concrete, V. 2 Of 2, J. A. Ramirez, J. Olek, Eric Joseph Rolle, Brian Joseph Malone

JTRP Technical Reports

Structural lightweight concrete is a very versatile material and Haydite and Minergy lightweight aggregates can be utilized in the mixture development of concrete for use in girders and decks in bridges. More widespread use of lightweight aggregates (LWA) would result in savings in construction cost due to considerable dead load reduction.

The materials phase of this research study evaluated the fresh concrete properties (slump, unit weight, and air content), the mechanical properties of hardened concrete (compressive strength, tensile strength, flexural strength, static and dynamic modulus of elasticity, Poisson’s Ratio, and temperature development), and durability related parameters (air void distribution, freeze-that …

New Treatment Combinations For Vegetation Management Along Indiana Roadsides, D. James Morré

JTRP Technical Reports

This report represents results from a project for research to develop and implement new treatment mixtures for control of problem brush, trees and other woody species and herbicide-resistant weeds along Indiana roadsides. An environmentally safe mixture of trichlopyr (Galon Herbicide) and ammonium nitrate for one application control of deciduous roadside vegetation was developed. Also discovered and developed was a new, environmentally safe and effective TR series of additives that enhance the action of the auxin herbicides (trichlopyr, 2,4-D, picloram) for inclusion in both the brush control mixtures and control of milkweed, Canada thistle, bindweed, ground cherry and other perennial, herbicide-resistant …

Evaluation Of Lightweight Non-Contact Profilers, Amit Mondal, Adam J. Hand, David R. Ward

JTRP Technical Reports

Pavement smoothness was recently identified as the most significant factor the motoring public uses to judge the quality of our Nations roadways. A new generation of lightweight profilers has recently been developed, which have the potential of providing nearly instantaneous smoothness measurements, providing contractors with a tool to identify and address process control issues promptly and cost effectively. The new technology was co-operatively evaluated by a team of Purdue University and Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) researchers to assess the repeatability and reproducibility of the devices, as well as the potential for their use in Indiana. A successful field test …

Determination Of Practical Esals Per Truck Values On Indiana Roads, Sedat Gulen, John Nagle, John Weaver, Victor Lee Gallivan

JTRP Technical Reports

The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) has been using ESAL (Equivalent Single Axle Load) values for pavement design. The current ESAL values were obtained in the late 1970. However, truck deregulation and higher allowable maximum loads have increased the 1970's values. Updated ESAL values are needed for better road designs. The 1998 and 1999 traffic data from the all Weight-in-Motion (WIM) stations were obtained and used to compute updated ESAL values for multiple unit trucks (Class 9/F-9) and single unit trucks (Class 5, 6 and 7). Statistical analyses indicated that average ESAL values for 1998 and 1999 are statistically the …

Construction Data Management 2000, Bob G. Mccullouch

JTRP Technical Reports

Construction Data Management 2000 was a project designed to help guide INDOT into using emerging technologies to meet data management needs in the construction process. The landscape at INDOT has changed, having been shaped through the factors of increased workloads, a reduced number of employees, and increasing dependence on outside consultants to fill the needs. This has resulted in changing roles for INDOT employees creating differing data management needs. This project looked into this area, studied various answers, and is recommending solutions. This report describes the work performed and proposes recommendations with supporting documentation. The original project scope had the …

A Field Study Of Scour Monitoring Devices For Indiana Streams, Thomas J. Cooper, Huey-Long Chen, Dennis A. Lyn, A. Ramachandra Rao, A. G. Altschaeffl

JTRP Technical Reports

INDOT is considering the deployment of fixed scour-monitoring instrumentation as part of a systematic response to the problem of scour around bridge piers. Fixed-in-place automated scour-monitoring devices measure the depth of scour at the point where they are installed. Unless they are installed at the location where maximum scour occurs, their readings may give a misleading estimate of scour potential. This raises a number of technical issues concerning their effective deployment and the interpretation of the collected data, which should be resolved in order to maximize the benefits to INDOT from using these monitoring devices. These include the location of …

A Laboratory Sensitivity Study Of Hydraulic Parameters Important In The Deployment Of Fixed-In-Place Scour-Monitoring Devices, Dennis A. Lyn, E. Neseem, A. Ramachandra Rao, A. G. Altschaeffl

JTRP Technical Reports

INDOT is considering the deployment of fixed scour-monitoring instrumentation as part of a systematic response to the problem of scour around bridge piers. Fixed-in-place automated scour-monitoring devices measure the depth of scour at the point where they are installed. Unless they are installed at the location where maximum scour occurs, their readings may give a misleading estimate of scour potential. This raises a number of technical issues concerning their effective deployment and the interpretation of the collected data, which should be resolved in order to maximize the benefits to INDOT from using these monitoring devices. These include the location of …

A Methodology To Estimate Load And Non-Load Shares Of Highway Pavement Routine Maintenance And Rehabilitation Expenditures, Zongzhi Li, Kumares C. Sinha

JTRP Technical Reports

The present study focused on the estimation of load and non-load shares of pavement maintenance and rehabilitation expenditures. The information provides the basis for the allocation of pavement-related expenditures in a highway cost allocation study. A comprehensive database was developed in the study, and an aggregate performance approach was used based on econometric models. This approach utilizes the marginal effect of traffic loading to quantify the load and non-load shares of pavement routine maintenance and rehabilitation expenditures. The study revealed that the share of pavement damage attributable to load and non-load factors depends on several factors such as the type …

Borman Expressway Point-To-Point Wireless Modem, J. V. Krogmeier, Michael P. Fitz

JTRP Technical Reports

The Federal Highway Administration has a nationwide allocation of five frequency pairs in the 220-222 MHz Narrowband Radio Services band which are intended for application in Intelligent Transportation Systems. These frequencies are available for use by state DOTs (subject to FHWA approval) and provide an attractive solution for certain low to medium bit rate data communications applications. However, given the limited bandwidth available in these channels, very efficient modems will be required to make maximum beneficial use of this resource. The goal of this project was to design, field test, and deploy a digital radio which uses the 220-222 MHz …

Wireless Local Area Network For Its Communications Using The 220 Mhz Its Spectral Allocation, J. V. Krogmeier, Ness Shroff

JTRP Technical Reports

The objective of this project was to design a radio architecture using the ITS spectral allocations in the 220-222 MHz Land Mobile band which provides a multi-mode operation optimized for point-to-point, mobile, and multiple access communications. A radio performance goal was to achieve greater than 3 bits/second/Hz transmission efficiency for mobile applications, and greater than a 5 bits/second/Hz transmission efficiency for point-to-point applications. An additional important goal of this project was to explore potential ITS applications of the modem technology particularly as applied to an application in sensor telemetry concentration. The fixed point modem will be deployed for remote surveillance …

The Development Of A Speed Monitoring Program For Indiana, Darren L. Jorgenson, Kumares C. Sinha

JTRP Technical Reports

From the passage of the National Maximum Speed Limit (NMSL) of 55 mph in 1974 through its repeal in 1995 speed monitoring programs have been mandated by the federal government. The speed-monitoring program was primarily intended to provide reliable data to be included as a part of the State’s annual certification in order to be approved for Federal Aid highway projects. The repeal of the NMSL in 1995 not only authorized states to set their own speed limits, it also allowed states to develop their own speed monitoring programs. The goal of this research is to provide the framework for …

Examination Of Post-Tensioned Steel Bridges In Indiana, Hung-I Wu, Mark D. Bowman

JTRP Technical Reports

The purpose of the research study is to conduct an investigation to understand the performance of a relatively new type of bridge construction that involves prestressed (post-tensioned) steel-concrete composite bridge members. Strictly speaking, the technical and economical advantages of this type of structure have been understood for several decades. However, the application of this concept to practice is still very limited due to difficulties associated with the post-tensioning anchorage. The study was thus intended to explore the mechanical behavior of such construction. Both the short-term and long-term bridge performance were evaluated in this study.

The investigation included experimental as well …

Utilizing Gis Technology To Improve Indot Pavement Friction Data Management And Distribution, Karen Zhu

JTRP Technical Reports

Pavement friction condition provides an important parameter in selecting highway rehabilitation and maintenance projects. The Research Division of Indiana Department of Transportation has been conducting annual pavement friction testing on the Indiana highway network. Due to the large amount of data accumulated, an efficient system is in demand for data management. In this project, we developed a computer program that constitutes an integrated system for friction data management and distribution. In the developed system, database technology was utilized for data storage and organization; networking technology was utilized for real-time data distribution; geographic information systems (GIS) technology as well as computer …

Effect Of Fine Aggregate Angularity On Asphalt Mixture Performance, Chih-Jen Lee, Thomas D. White, Terry R. West

JTRP Technical Reports

Superpave aggregate qualification includes the fine aggregate angularity (FAA). Fine aggregate angularity levels used in the Superpave system are below 40, 40 to 45 and above 45. The higher values are specified for layers near the surface and for higher traffic levels. The objective of this study was to address the effect of fine aggregate angularity on asphalt mixture rutting performance. A total of 18 mixtures were designed according to the Superpave volumetric design criteria. A surface mixture utilizing a partially crushed 9.5mm coarse aggregate and a single PG 64-22 binder were utilized. The poor quality coarse aggregate was used …

Indiana Lane Merge System - Warrants For Use, Andrzej P. Tarko, Shyam Venugopal

JTRP Technical Reports

The entry to a work zone is critical for traffic smoothness and safety because of the discontinuation of one or more lanes. The Indiana Lane Merge System (ILMS) was designed to implement dynamic lane change control at work zone entries by encouraging drivers to switch lanes well upstream of the discontinuous lane taper, thereby reducing the number of aggressive lane changes at the taper. At the time of this research, the ILMS had not been implemented on a large scale at rural freeway work zones. The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) wanted to do a complete safety and capacity evaluation …

Indot Training Needs Study, Ray E. Eberts, Jodi S. Goodman, Bob G. Mccullouch, Kumares C. Sinha

JTRP Technical Reports

During the strategic plan development process, the INDOT staff identified a list of possible training needs, which included suggestions for workshops, certification procedures, training sessions for interpersonal communication, computer skills, and video conferencing, as well as more specific topics such as hazardous areas and clean up of contaminated soil. This study’s objective is to assess current and future training needs at INDOT on a comprehensive basis, as well as analyze current and future trends in order to fulfill the INDOT strategic goals and objectives.

Monitoring Of Long-Term Performance Of Highway Bridge Columns Retrofitted By Advanced Composite Jackets In Indiana, Ming-Hung Teng, Elisa D. Sotelino, Wai-Fah Chen

JTRP Technical Reports

The service life of highway bridges is limited by the deterioration of their substructure components. In the U.S., it is estimated that more than 240,000 (about 40%) of the highway bridges are functionally or structurally deficient. Repairing these deteriorated bridges using traditional methods is usually time-consuming and expensive. Furthermore, these methods are such that they can cause a number of problems, such as being a threat to public safety and severe traffic disruption. Thus, it is important that new safer and more efficient methods be developed. Fiber Reinforced Plastics (FRP) have a great potential to provide such a solution. Due …

Development Of Closed Loop System Evaluation Equipment And Procedures, Eric J. Nelson, Montasir Abbas, Gary E. Shoup, Darcy M. Bullock

JTRP Technical Reports

Modern traffic control systems are complex entities whose performance should be thoroughly quantified prior to deployment. However, many of the advanced features available with this control equipment, such as preemption and real-time control strategies, are typically proprietary in nature, and therefore not incorporated into standard simulation models. Since it is not desirable for the engineer to learn in a field environment, under live traffic conditions, this research presents a rational procedure for evaluating and validating such control strategies in a laboratory setting. This document explores three aspects of traffic signal systems, which include the advanced control settings for single controller …

Evaluation Of Scour And Stream Stability By Using Caesar, Huey-Long Chen, A. Ramachandra Rao, Dennis A. Lyn, A. G. Altschaeffl

JTRP Technical Reports

The performance of an expert system (CAESAR for Catalog and Expert Evaluation of Scour Risk and River Stability) for an initial evaluation of scour and stream stability was assessed. Three alternative scour indices are used to compare with the evaluation results of CAESAR. These scour indices include the Observed Streambed Scour index, the INDOT Potential Streambed Scour Index, and the Simon Potential Streambed Scour Index. Ten bridges in Indiana are selected for evaluation in this study. The scour indices and the field inspection information required by CAESAR are retrieved from the USGS data base. In general, the results show that …