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Compacting and proving deep sand fills for airport pavements constructed for large modern aircraft loads
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Compacting and proving deep sand fills for airport pavements constructed for large modern aircraft loads

Greg White and Hudson Anstee
Transportation Research Procedia , Vol.99, pp.1333-1340
International Conference on Bearing Capacity of Roads, Railways, and Airfields (BCRRA), 12th (Ljubljana, Slovenia, 22-Jun-2026–24-Jun-2026)
2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.trpro.2026.07.186
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Compacting and proving deep sand fills for airport pavements constructed for large modern aircraft loads712.47 kBDownloadView
Published Version Open Access CC BY-NC-ND V4.0

Abstract

airport compaction fill pavement
The ability to prove and compact all layers within flexible airport pavements is a critical element of Australian airport pavement design and construction practice. The inadequate availability of the historical 200 tonne pneumatic tired Supercompactor reduced that ability, and this research considered the potential for 20 tonne vibrating rollers to replace the much larger Supercompactor. Following review of various potential comparison methods, a theoretical and mathematical model was used to approximate the dynamic effect to 1,500 mm depth, of a typical 20 tonne vibrating roller. It was found that the 20 tonne vibrating roller can adequately prove sand fills to 1,500 mm for all current large commercial aircraft. However, the compactive effort was not as robust as that associated with the 200 tonne Supercompactor. It was also found that the 50 tonne Marco roller was effective for both compaction and proving to a depth of 150 mm, and was effective for proving to a depth of approximately 700 mm. It is recommended that sand fills be constructed in maximum thicknesses of 750 mm, to enable to the full depth to be adequately proven, and that the lower layer be compacted with the 20 tonne vibrating steel drum roller, with the upper layer compacted and proven with both the 50 tonne Marco roller and the 20 tonne vibrating steel drum roller. That will minimize the risk of post-construction settlement of sand fills in typical airport pavements, in the absence of the 200 tonne Supercompactor.

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