APT FACILITIES IN AUSTRALASIA
Click on the name of the APT facility to find information about that facility
Brief Description:
The Australian ALF facility was designed and built in Australia at the
Australian Road Research Board in 1993 and has been in continuous operation
since then. ALF applies dual loads from 40 to 80 kN (8,800 to 17,600 lb) through
a dual-tire single-wheel assembly to a 12 m (40 ft) test length, at a constant
speed of 20 km/h (12.5 mph). A particular feature is that it loads in one
direction only. Transverse movement of the loading path covers 1.4 m (4.5 ft)
and one load cycle is applied approximately every 7 seconds. ALF is a
transportable machine designed for use on in-service highways or on specially
constructed test pavements. The Australian ALF program is one of the oldest and
most successful APT research programs in the world.
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Brief Description:
The Canterbury
Accelerated Pavement Testing Indoor Facility (CAPTIF) in Christchurch was
commissioned in 1987, replacing the previous accelerated pavement-testing
machine at the site that was commissioned in 1969. Realistic dynamic loading is
applied to test pavements with the Simulated Loading and Vehicle Emulator. The
system has two arms and can accommodate, single, wide single and dual-wheels,
and single to tandem-axle bogies travelling on separate wheel paths. The loading
radius is 9.26 m (30.4 ft) providing a 58m (190ft) track over a 1.5 m (5ft) deep
annular pit. Loads from 21 to 60 kN (4,600 to 10,150 lb) can
be run at speeds up to 50 km/h (31 mph). The track is
generally split into five 12m (19ft) sections using different loads on the
separate wheel paths to provide 10 test sections that are typically tested to 1
million load cycles.
Links
to Facility's:
Website
Publications
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Last Updated:
January 31, 2005
