American Rural HighwaysAgg, T. R. (Thomas Radford)
Science
American Rural Highways
Agg, T. R. (Thomas Radford)
Roads -- United States
=Patching.=--As in the case of surface treatments, there are likely to
be places that, on account of defects in the construction, will fail
soon after the road is placed under traffic. These will quickly
enlarge unless they are repaired promptly. The repairs are made by
loosening the stone in the area affected and adding new stone as
needed and then pouring on the necessary amount of bituminous material
to coat the stones. Allowance must be made for the compression of the
material by tamping so that a depression does not result. The stones
are carefully tamped to place and covered with chips which are also
tamped.
=Characteristics.=--The penetration macadam is a surface well adapted
to motor traffic if the individual vehicles are not too heavy. It is
likely to squeeze out of shape under motor truck traffic, becoming
seriously uneven and uncomfortable for traffic. Its durability is
materially affected by the construction methods followed.
III. Hot Mixed Macadam
The wearing course of the mixed macadam is composed of graded broken
stone or gravel and a bituminous binder. Usually the bituminous
material only is heated prior to the mixing, but sometimes the stone
is also heated.
=Foundation.=--The lower course, which serves as the foundation, is
either broken stone macadam, gravel or concrete.
Where a foundation of broken stone is used, it is constructed of the
materials and in the manner described for the foundation of the
penetration macadam. Quite often a badly worn macadam or gravel road
is used for the foundation and a new wearing course provided by adding
a mixed macadam surface. If such is the case, the old surface is
worked over so as to restore the shape sufficiently and to insure that
it is everywhere of sufficient thickness.
Portland cement concrete is sometimes used as a foundation for the
mixed macadam, but not often. Usually if the traffic is of a character
requiring a concrete foundation, it is desirable to use a better
wearing course than the mixed macadam, and the asphaltic concrete or
sheet asphalt type of surface is employed. It is necessary to finish
the surface of the concrete base with some device that will leave the
surface rough to prevent the macadam from creeping. A knobbed tamper
which leaves numerous irregular depressions about 2 inches in diameter
and three-fourths inch deep is often employed.
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