Study the Crack Development of Geosynthetics Interlayers in Bituminous Structures under Different Temperatures

Abstract Overlay application is a widely used technique in pavement management systems for rehabilitation. This method proves particularly beneficial when the pavement structure retains sufficient structural integrity, allowing for the correction of visible distresses. However, the presence of deteriorated pavement poses a challenge to overlay performance, as it can lead to the upward propagation of existing cracks and joints into the overlay due to the concentration of stress and strain under the variations of loading and temperature in which those cracks, named reflective cracks, are created. This issue underscores the challenge of managing existing cracks when applying overlays. To mitigate this, interlayer systems such as geosynthetics are employed. Despite previous research in this area, a comprehensive understanding of the mechanical behavior of these composite systems is needed to enhance their effectiveness. This study investigates the effectiveness of the temperature as well as the position of reinforcement in the asphalt interface using the crack widening device. The outcomes showed that all the reinforcement can improve the performance of the system compared with the unreinforced one in most of the cases. All the reinforcement interlayers performed best at temperatures around 25°C ±2°C, regardless of the position of reinforcement, except in the case of geo-composite GV. Geo-composite GV exhibited the lowest maximum force values among others before failure at room temperature in both cases, reinforcement at one-third and two-thirds from the bottom of the samples, whereas the performance of geotextile was the best compared with other kinds of reinforcement and unreinforcement in terms of force and displacement at both one-third and two-thirds position in most of the cases. The reinforcement or emulsion placed at one-third position always outperforms those at two-thirds in most of the cases.