Effects of Pavement Characteristics on Rolling Resistance of Heavy Vehicles: A Literature Review

Abstract

The effects of pavement characteristics on rolling resistance of heavy vehicles have gained more interest in recent years. Rolling resistance is the result of the combination of independent (but sometimes correlated) physical phenomena that dissipate energy, which can be regrouped under three different main themes. Road roughness (wavelengths between 0.5 and 50 m) causes movements in vehicle suspensions, which dissipate energy. Pavement macrotexture (wavelengths between 0.5 and 50 mm) creates additional viscoelastic deformations on tire treads. The viscoelastic behavior of the flexible pavement structure, which is referred to as structure-induced rolling resistance, is responsible for a perpetual upward slope perceived by heavy vehicle tires. Secondary aspects can also affect rolling resistance, such as road wetness and snow. This paper addresses each of these three main phenomena from three angles of analysis: (1) theoretical modeling, (2) laboratory experiments, and (3) in situ measurements. The literature on road roughness and structure-induced rolling resistance modeling is extensive compared to macrotexture-effect modeling, as the underlying physical mechanisms are still not well understood. There is, however, strong experimental evidence that the pavement macrotexture can significantly affect rolling resistance, but these studies are mostly related to cars. There are many in situ approaches, but the results are usually based on an indirect method and the different studies are difficult to compare and sometimes inconsistent. It appears that the bottleneck of scientific research on this topic is the fundamental inability to measure the rolling resistance of heavy vehicles with a direct in situ approach under real driving conditions.