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MnROAD Research Objectives
The Mn/ROAD Project enables researchers to pursue a wide spectrum of projects. Currently there are 14 research objectives for the project developed into 75 long and short-term projects. Representative objectives include the following:
Evaluating the effects of heavy vehicles on pavements.
Current knowledge about the ways heavy loads damage pavements is based on research done in the 50s. Since then, however, truck weights, tires, suspension systems, the way trucks are loaded and how the loads are distributed on the pavement have changed. In addition, the volume of truck traffic has greatly increased. Mn/ROAD instrumentation will show how pavements respond to different loads imposed by trucks and measure roadway damage accurately. Accurate measurement will allow engineers to program roadways for repair in advance as well as do better initial designs.
Evaluating seasonal changes in paving materials.
Roadway materials properties change in relation to weather. A major challenge is to design pavements that will function over a wide range of conditions. Asphalt, for example, is strong when temperatures are low and weak when they are high. The strength of soils varies with regard to the amount of moisture they contain. Mn/ROAD will enable researchers to monitor materials and conditions to better understand what happens in an actual roadway rather than in a controlled laboratory environment.
Improving the design and performance of low-volume roadways.
The majority of roads in Minnesota and the rest of the U. S. are defined as low-volume. That is, they serve many fewer vehicles than interstates, but are important for mobility and commerce. Often, engineering resources are not readily available to study them. Frequently, materials used to build them vary greatly in quality and type. The low-volume sections at Mn/ROAD allow researchers to closely observe how these pavements perform. Results should include better understanding of the assumptions made in building low-volume roads and better designs for future construction.
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