Maintenance of Airport Pavements:

Maintenance Elements

The maintenance of airport pavements is an important task of a civil engineer, since the safe movement of aircraft is closely linked to it. The elements that require attention are :

(a)        pavement

(b)       drainage

 (c)       markings

(d)       shoulders

Maintenance of Pavements

The flexible pavements, the maintenance should cover the following:

(a)        Sealing of cracks by rubberized bitumen.

(b)       Restoration of skid resistance by providing skid-resistant surface.

(c)        An overlay if the pavement has structurally failed.

In rigid pavements, the following activities should be covered :

(a)        Spalling of joints should be made good by epoxy concrete,

(b)       Worn out or oxidized joint sealant should be replaced,

(c)        Narrow cracks can be filled by epoxy resins,

(d)       Wide and deep cracks should be repaired by cutting the area and filling with epoxy concrete, and

(e)        If the cracks indicate structural deficiency, an overlay (flexible or rigid) should be given.