Traffic Tests of Expedient Airfield Construction Concepts for Possible Application in the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA).

This study was conducted to evaluate several different concepts of runway construction for possible application at the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA) drilling sites. The runways are to be constructed during the winter months on permafrost and be capable of supporting C-130 aircraft for a p...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Burns,Cecil Dawson
Other Authors: ARMY ENGINEER WATERWAYS EXPERIMENT STATION VICKSBURG MISS
Format: Text
Language:English
Published: 1979
Subjects:
Terminal Flight Facilities
Structural Engineering and Building Technology
*CONSTRUCTION
*RUNWAYS
EXPERIMENTAL DATA
COLD WEATHER OPERATIONS
ALASKA
TEST METHODS
SAND
FREEZING
LANDING FIELDS
CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
PERMAFROST
LANDING MATS
*Airfield construction
Styrofoam
Psi
permafrost
Alaska
Online Access:http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA069581
http://oai.dtic.mil/oai/oai?&verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA069581
Description
Summary:This study was conducted to evaluate several different concepts of runway construction for possible application at the National Petroleum Reserve Alaska (NPRA) drilling sites. The runways are to be constructed during the winter months on permafrost and be capable of supporting C-130 aircraft for a period of at least 2 years. Five separate test sections were constructed and traffic tested with a test load cart simulating a C-130 aircraft loading. Construction concepts included in the study were: (1) Prefabricated aluminum landing mat over Styrofoam insulation; (2) Gravel base course over Styrofoam insulation; (3) Gravel base over loosely placed saturated sand fill; and (4) Sand-grid confinement fills. The significant finding from this study was that a landing mat or a good-quality, well-compacted gravel base, at least 15 in. thick, placed directly over a sufficient thickness of 60-psi Styrofoam insulation material to prevent thaw in the frozen subgrade will provide a satisfactory runway for C-130 aircraft operations. (Author)

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