Fatigue characteristics of cement-stabilized steel slag base course for asphalt pavement structure considering different paving methods

This study investigates different on-site paving methods for the base course, establishing a model using the computational programme GAMES based on the elastic layered system theory. The impact of the number of paving layers, paving thickness and the bonding condition at interfaces between sub-layers on the fatigue characteristics of the asphalt pavement structure with the cement-stabilized steel slag (CSS) base course is investigated. Furthermore, this study explores the impact of factors such as forming method, curing time and cement content on the fatigue characteristics of the CSS mixtures through laboratory indirect tensile test. The results indicate that the impact of the bonding conditions at paving interfaces between sub-layers due to layered paving on the tensile stress at the bottom of the CSS base course is much greater than that of the asphalt surface course. The tensile stress at the bottom of the CSS base course increases first and then decreases as the paving interface moves from top to bottom, indicating the existence of the most unfavourable paving interface. It is recommended to use vibration compaction method for forming the CSS base course to reduce the paving interface, thereby enhancing the fatigue resistance of the pavement structure.