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Evaluation of accelerometers to determine pavement deflections under traffic loads

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Abstract

The purpose of this work was to study the use of accelerometers to measure pavement deflections due to traffic loads. To this end, accelerometers were embedded in two sites: the full scale load simulator Circular Test Track (CTT) and the A1 motorway in Switzerland. Deflections were derived from acceleration measurements using an algorithm that double integrates the measured signal and corrects any errors derived from the procedure. In the motorway, deflections were monitored using a set of three magnetostrictive deflectometers. Additionally, the pavement’s material viscoelastic parameters determined in the laboratory were incorporated in Finite Element (FE) models to estimate the theoretical deflections. The calculated deflections were then compared to the measured and to the theoretical deflections. Deflections calculated from acceleration showed a reasonable qualitative correlation to those measured by magnetostrictive deflectometers. In addition, the FE models revealed the inability of the accelerometers to measure very slow or quasi-static motion.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Road Engineering/Sealing Components, Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA), Ueberlandstrasse 129, Duebendorf, CH-8600, Switzerland

    M. Arraigada & M. N. Partl

  2. Laboratorio Vial—Instituto de Mecánica Aplicada y Estructuras (IMAE), Universidad Nacional de Rosario, Riobamba y Berutti, 2000, Rosario, Argentina

    M. Arraigada, S. M. Angelone & F. Martinez

Authors
  1. M. Arraigada
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  2. M. N. Partl
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  3. S. M. Angelone
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  4. F. Martinez
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Correspondence to M. Arraigada.

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Arraigada, M., Partl, M.N., Angelone, S.M. et al. Evaluation of accelerometers to determine pavement deflections under traffic loads. Mater Struct 42, 779–790 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-008-9423-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1617/s11527-008-9423-5

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