An Original Evaluation of the Wearing Course Macrotexture Evolution using the Abbot Curve

ABSTRACT The wearing course is the top surface layer of the road. The road surface has multiple functions the main one being traffic safety, which is conditioned by skid resistance. This skid resistance is conditioned by pavement texture. This paper presents an experimental procedure allowing to evaluate surface macrotexture evolution of an asphalt concrete specimen by laboratory testing. Specimen surface changes through the application of a sinusoidal repeated load at high temperature. The studied surface is scanned before and after mechanical testing using a laser profiler. Texture maps are analysed using Abbott curve which is also called bearing ratio curve. The 3D analysis enables to quantify macrotexture evolution under repeated traffic conditions and to analyze the influence of both temperature and binder.