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November/December 2002
Recent Publications
Compiled by Zac Ellis of FHWA's Office of
Research and Technology ServicesBelow are brief descriptions of reports recently published by the Federal Highway Administration's (FHWA) Office of Research, Development, and
Technology. All of the publications are available from the National Technical Information Service (NTIS). In some cases, limited copies are available from the Research and Technology (R&T) Report Center.When ordering from NTIS, include the NTIS publication number and the publication title. You also may visit the NTIS Web site at www.ntis.gov to order publications online. Call NTIS for current prices. For customers outside the United States, Canada, and Mexico, the cost is usually double the listed price. Address requests to:
National Technical Information Service
5285 Port Royal Road
Springfield, VA 22161
Telephone: 703-605-6000
Toll-free number: 800-553-NTIS (6847)
Expanded Sales Desk Hours: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. EST, Mon.-Fri.Address requests for items available from the R&T Report Center to:
R&T Report Center, HRTS-03
Federal Highway Administration
9701 Philadelphia Court, Unit Q
Lanham, MD 20706
Telephone: 301-577-0818
Fax: 301-577-1421For more information on research and technology publications from FHWA, visit the Turner-Fairbank Highway Research Center's (TFHRC) Web site at www.tfhrc.gov, FHWA's Web site at www.fhwa.dot.gov, the National Transportation Library's Web site at http://ntl.bts.gov, or the OneDOT information network at http://isweb.tasc.dot.gov/library/library.htm.
Identification and Evaluation of Driver Errors: Overview and Recommendations
Publication No. FHWA-RD-02-003
Researchers cite driver error as a contributing factor in most automobile crashes, and although estimates vary by source, driver error is cited as the principal cause of 45 to 75 percent of crashes. The specific errors that lead to crashes, however, and the nature of driver error contributions to crash circumstances, often cannot be specified. Rather, driver error has been used as a catchall category when machine failures have been ruled out. This report describes an effort to gather more specific information about the driver errors that lead to crashes, the relative influences that various driver errors have in causing crashes, and the degree to which current infrastructure features may contribute to driver errors.The project's objectives are to (1) develop driver error taxonomies; (2) identify the causes of errors within taxonomic categories; (3) gather data to further develop these taxonomies; and (4) provide recommendations for improvements to traffic control devices, roadway delineations, and accident reporting forms. The report summarizes the tasks conducted to achieve the project objectives.
One highlight of the project was a site surveillance during which video cameras recorded more than 1,200 traffic events caused by driver error. Analysis of these events included the development of infrastructure-based countermeasures to reduce the number of incidents caused by driver error.
Guidelines for Detection, Analysis, and Treatment of Materials-Related Distress in Concrete Pavement
Publication No. FHWA-RD-01-163,
Volume 1: Final ReportPublication No. FHWA-RD-01-164,
Volume 2: Guidelines Description and UsePublication No. FHWA-RD-01-165,
Volume 3: Case Studies Using the Guidelines
The performance of concrete pavements can be affected adversely by the concrete's inability to withstand the environment in which it is placed. This lack of durability can occur even when the structural design of the pavement is adequate. The distresses that result from this lack of durability are referred to as materials-related distress (MRD). This report documents the investigation of MRD in concrete pavements and the development of a set of systematic guidelines for the evaluation of MRD. The guidelines cover three major areas of MRD: (1) field distress surveys, pavement sampling, and sample handling; (2) laboratory testing, data analysis, and interpretation; and (3) treatment, rehabilitation, and prevention.Transport Properties and Durability of Concrete: Literature Review and Research Plan
Publication No. FHWA-RD-00-073
The increased emphasis on life-cycle cost analysis for building projects requires that new attention be focused on the service life and durability of concrete structures. While concrete specifications typically are based on compressive strength and slump, it is well recognized that durability is most influenced by the transport properties of the concrete, such as diffusivity, permeability, and sorptivity. This report reviews the state of the art for measurement of transport properties in the laboratory and field, and discusses the linkages between transport properties and models for various deterioration processes relevant to highway concretes. Based on this review, the authors present a preliminary research approach and testing guidelines for evaluating the durability of new and existing concretes for pavements. A key feature of the overall approach will be the development of a general model relating concrete sorptivity to spalling damage for three common degradation phenomena: sulfate attack, alkali-silica reaction, and freeze-thaw scaling.
Other Articles in this issue:
Measuring the Road to Improvement
Digging into LTPP Pavement Data
Does Your Interchange Design Have You Going Around in Circles?
From Small Beginnings Come Great Things
