Abstract
In the period 2004-2008, the Norwegian Public Roads Administration conducted a research and development project called "Environmentally Friendly Pavements". In this project, different road surfaces were tested regarding their texture and noise characteristics. Follow-up measurements, including texture and noise measurements, were performed on a number of dense surfaces in 2009 and 2010. The results show that the biggest changes in texture and noise levels occur after the first winter season with exposure to studded tires. These changes are correlated to the asphalt mixture. The aggregates used in the asphalt mixtures on the different road sections vary in rock type, maximum aggregate size and grading. In addition, the used binders differ in content and type. About 1/3 of the tested asphalt mixtures contain a polymer modified binder. The data for all dense asphalt mixtures tested have been analyzed to find correlations between the specific material characteristics and the texture properties. This paper reports the results of these analyses of the material characteristics and their effect on the changes of the road surface texture. The strong correlation between road surface texture and tire/road noise allows additional assumptions regarding noise performance.
