Author(s)

Michael Pinard^1*, Philip Paige-Green², Jon Hongve³, Estime Mukandila⁴

¹Infra Africa Consultants, Gaborone, Botswana.
²Department of Civil Engineering, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa.
³Independent Consultant, Tjome, Norway.
⁴Real Baobab (Pty) Ltd, Pretoria, South Africa.

In order to minimise the cost of constructing low volume roads (LVRs), it is essential that optimum use is made of locally available, naturally occurring materials. However, conflicts often arise between material acceptability, as defined by conventional test methods and specifications, and material suitability in terms of actual engineering performance as a “fit-for-purpose” road construction material. To avoid such conflicts, it is crucial to adopt appropriate test methods and specifications for selecting construction materials. This paper presents a materials evaluation framework for optimizing the utilisation of materials in LVR pavements based on the use of the Dynamic Cone Penetrometer (DCP). This approach enables materials to be selected on the basis of their “fitness-for-purpose”. It avoids suitable materials from being rejected based on one or other of the traditionally specified parameters not being complied with, even though their strength, as measured by the DCP penetration rate (DN value in mm/blow) of the soil, may be adequate. Investigations of the properties of a wide range of locally available materials that have been used successfully in the construction of LVRs have confirmed the validity of the materials evaluation framework.

Low Volume Roads, Dynamic Cone Penetrometer, Materials, Fit-for-Purpose

Pinard, M. , Paige-Green, P. , Hongve, J. and Mukandila, E. (2021) A Proposed Framework for Optimised Utilisation of Materials for Low Volume Roads Using the Dynamic Cone Penetrometer. Journal of Transportation Technologies, 11, 14-36. doi: 10.4236/jtts.2021.111002.