Influence of Spring Stiffness on the Loading Speed of the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) in Bearing Capacity Evaluation of Cement Concrete Pavement

Introduction: The bearing capacity evaluation of cement concrete runway pavement is one of the most important contents in the airfield operation. Among the methods for estimating bearing capacity, the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) is the most widely used method because it does not damage the pavement structure and spends so much time. The equipment for evaluation should have suitable parameters, such as. magnitude and loading speed, to the actual operating loads. Aims and Objectives: Currently, the equipment to assess the bearing capacity of cement concrete pavements of highways and airports by falling weight has been widely used in the world and is being applied in Vietnam. The loading system consists of a falling block through a spring system acting on the pressure plate under the pavement with a certain falling height. In particular, the spring system plays an important role in controlling the speed of the load on the pavement. In Vietnam, the test standards (Industry Standard 22TCN335-06, Vietnamese Standard TCVN 11365-2016) for assessing the pavement bearing capacity by FWD equipment do not specify the selection of spring stiffness corresponding to different operating speeds of the vehicle. Therefore, it is difficult to use the equipment for pavements with operating speeds different from the standard. In this paper, we study the effect of spring stiffness on the loading speed when considering different loading speeds corresponding to different speeds of vehicles moving in reality. This research is only limited to laboratory experiments. This study aims to determine the dependence of the loading magnitude and loading time on the damping spring stiffness of the dynamic loading equipment, that is, used as a basis for choosing the appropriate damping stiffness of FWD corresponding to actual vehicles. Methods: Among the methods for estimating the bearing capacity, the Falling Weight Deflectometer (FWD) is the most widely used method as it does not cause any damage to the pavement structure and spends much time. The equipment for evaluation should have suitable parameters, such as magnitude and loading speed, to the actual operating loads. Results: This paper presents the results of experimental research that determines the influence of the damping spring stiffness on the loading speed of the dynamic loading equipment on the model of the concrete slab in the laboratory. Conclusion: Based on the comparison of the FWD loading speed when using 02 damping springs with different stiffness, we propose the basis for choosing the damping system that conforms to the evaluation needs of different types of vehicles. © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Bentham Science Publisher.