Homework Question on Airport Facility Upgrade
Airport received a grant to complete a substantial pavement upgrade in various locations throughout your facility, including some portions of apron, a high speed taxiway exit and a runway.
Explain what type of pavement you would use for these area and give a detailed description why you would use the type of pavement you chose in these areas. For example of pavement ( concrete, asphalt, ect)
Homework Answer on Airport Facility Upgrade
Introduction
When an airport decides to upgrade its pavements, it should consider several factors, which include safety, durability, affordability, and sustainability. The most essential aspect of airfield pavement is its capacity to endure frequent use of heavy cargo airplanes that operate at the airport. Constructing pavements in airports is a critical undertaking because pavements are expected to withstand heavy traffic without deteriorating to an extent of being unusable. The most appropriate pavement that airport authorities should utilize in their runways, taxiway exits, and at the apron is the asphalt pavement because it is economical while the raw material can be reused during the upgrading of runways.
Using Asphalt Pavement in Airports
Asphalt is a raw material utilized in road construction, and is extracted from crude petroleum through the refining process. In the construction of pavements, asphalt is usually termed as asphalt binder due to its capacity to fasten particles together at a room temperature (Mallick and El-Korchi 19). Asphalt pavements are safe, smooth, and long lasting, hence, suitable for busy airport runways. What is more, asphalt is quite flexible and is usually built in multiple layers where the material flows continuously through the asphalt paver, thus, eliminating noisy surface texture, and enhancing smooth and quiet ride. A smooth textured surface is necessary in airports for safe landing and takeoff.
Asphalt pavement is durable and offers service for an indefinite time. Asphalt pavement is most popular in the construction of low and medium traffic roadways, since it is capable of withstanding heavy loads without wearing out. The aircraft landing gear, which is utilized on airport runways and taxiways, creates loading and unloading stress that causes damage to pavements (Losa and Papagiannakis 169). Thus, having asphalt pavements can help in maintaining a smooth runway for a long time. The pavement is constructed using thick base course to bear the main load on top of a granular layer. Properly designed and maintained base courses can remain viable for many years without requiring total reconstruction.