EXPERIMENTAL RESEARCH OF THE WHOLE TENSILE CURVE FOR BITUMINOUS MORTAR

In meso-scale, bituminous mixture consists of bituminous mortar, aggregate and voids. The mechanical parameters of bituminous mortar are important parts of meso-scale properties of bituminous mixture and they have very significant effect on the tensile strength. To this end, a loading fixture is designed. Tensile tests for 9 groups of specimens at different loading rate and temperatures are carried out, and the whole tensile curve for bituminous is obtained. From the curve, the maximum tensile stress σ_max, the stiffness K_nn, and the displacement of failure process U are determined. The parameters obtained are essential to simulate the cracking behavior of bituminous mixture using the cohesive constitutive model.