STRIPPING ON SAUDI ARABIAN ROADS –

PREDICTION AND PREVENTION

H.I. Al-Abdul Wahhab1, I.M. Asi1, S.A. Ali2, S. Al-Swailmi3 and A. Al-Nour4

1: Professor and Assistant Professor, respectively,Civil Engineering Dept, KFUPM, Dhahran 31261

2: Associate Professor, Chemistry Dept., KFUPM, Dhahran 31261

3: Director, Operations & Maintenance, Riyadh Municipality, Riyadh

4: Engineer, M&R Dept., Ministry of Communications, Riyadh

The 6th Saudi Engineering Conference, KFUPM, Dhahran, December 2002 Vol. 3.

ABSTRACT

Pavement weathering or stripping is a major distress in the highway network in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Stripping severity varies between the regions of the Kingdom. The highway networks of the Al-Qassim and Hail regions are the most affected by pavement stripping in the Kingdom. Saudi roads, which are experiencing stripping and weathering, have passed locally used water sensitivity tests. In this study, which is funded by King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), seventeen road test sections were selected, out of which eight were stripped and nine were unstripped sections. These sections were selected across the Kingdom to cover the different stripping affected regions. Aggregates from quarries used to build these sections were also collected for laboratory analysis evaluation. Collected materials were subjected to detailed physical and chemical testing to evaluate the ability of these tests to distinguish between stripped and non-stripped sections. Out of these tests, modified Lottman which has the highest significance and currently adopted as a result of SHRP research, worldwide, in addition to Swedish Rolling Bottle which has the ability to screen asphalt-aggregate materials for their stripping potential, were selected. Eleven antistripping liquid additives, lime, and cement in addition to two polymers were evaluated for their ability to reduce/eliminate stripping potential of stripping-prone aggregates. It was found that EE-2 Polymer and Portland cement and their combination were effective with all aggregate sources.

Keywords: Stripping, ECS, Polymer, Antistripping agents, Lottman