U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-4000
This glossary is intended to help readers understand certain road treatments referenced on page 2 of the DOJ/FHWA Joint Technical Assistance on the ADA Title II Requirements to Provide Curb Ramps When Streets Roads or Highways are Altered Through Resurfacing. The definitions explain the meaning of these terms from an engineering perspective and are provided in the order in which they appear in the Technical Assistance document.
Treatments that are considered alterations of the road surface
Reconstruction – Reconstruction refers to removing all or a significant portion of the pavement material and replacing it with new or recycled materials. This may include full-depth reclamation, where the pavement surface is demolished in place and new pavement surface is applied. In addition, reconstruction may also include grinding up a portion of the pavement surface, recycling it and placing it back, and then adding a wearing surface, such as in cold in-place asphalt recycling. Reconstruction often includes widening or geometrical changes to the roadway profile.
Rehabilitation – Rehabilitation refers to significant repairs made to a road or highway surface, including activities such as full slab replacement, filling voids under slabs (slabjacking), widening, and adding additional structural capacity.
Open-graded surface course – Open-graded surface course, also known as “open-graded friction course,” involves a pavement surface course that consists of a high-void, asphalt concrete mix that permits rapid drainage of rainwater through the course and off the shoulder of the road. The mixture consists of either Polymer-modified or rubber-modified asphalt binder, a large percentage of one-sized coarse aggregate, and a small amount of fibers. This treatment prevents tires from hydroplaning and provides a skid-resistant pavement surface with significant noise reduction.
Microsurfacing – Microsurfacing involves spreading a properly proportioned mixture of polymer modified asphalt emulsion, mineral aggregate, mineral filler, water, and other additives, on a paved surface. Microsurfacing differs from slurry seal in that it can be used on high volume roadways to correct wheel path rutting and provide a skid resistant pavement surface.
Thin lift overlays – Thin lift overlays are thin applications of mixtures of hot mix asphalt. Thin lift overlays may also require some milling along curbs, manholes, existing curb cuts, or other road structures to assure proper drainage and cross slopes.
Cape seal – A cape seal is a thin surface treatment constructed by applying a slurry seal or microsurfacing to a newly constructed chip seal. It is designed to be an integrated system where the primary purpose of the slurry is to fill voids in the chip seal.
In-place asphalt recycling – In-place asphalt recycling is a process of heating and removing around 1-2 inches of existing asphalt and remixing the asphalt with the addition of a binder additive and possible aggregate to restore the wearing surface for placement and compaction. All of this is performed in a train of equipment.
Treatments that are considered maintenance of the road surface
Crack filling and sealing – Crack filling and sealing involves placing elastomeric material directly into cracks in pavement.
Surface sealing – Surface sealing involves applying liquid sealant to pavement surface in order to stop water penetration and/or reduce oxidation of asphalt products. Sand is sometimes spread over liquid to absorb excess material.
Chip seals – Chip Seals involve placing graded stone (chips) on liquid emulsified asphalt sprayed on pavement surface. The surface is rolled to enable seating of chips.
Slurry seal – Slurry seals involve spraying a mixture of slow setting emulsified asphalt, well graded fine aggregate, mineral filler, and water on the pavement surface. It is used to fill cracks and seal areas of old pavements, to restore a uniform surface texture, to seal the surface to prevent moisture and air intrusion into the pavement, and to improve skid resistance.
Fog seals – Fog seals are a type of surface sealing.
Scrub sealing – Scrub sealing is type of surface sealing
Joint crack seals – Joint crack seals are usually associated with concrete pavement. This work consists of routing and cleaning existing cracks and joints and resealing to prevent water and non-compressibles from entering into the pavement joints and subgrade materials.
Joint repairs – Joint repairs are usually associated with concrete pavement. This work consists of selectively repairing portions of the pavement where the slabs are generally in good condition, but corners or joints are broken. The depth of the patch could be full depth or partial depth.
Dowel retrofit – Dowel retrofits are usually associated with concrete pavement. This work involves the installation of dowel bars connecting slabs in existing pavements. Pavement with dowel bar retrofits can have life extensions of as much as 20 years. Its application is almost exclusively on high-speed Interstate highways.
Spot high-friction treatments – Spot high-friction treatments involve using epoxy based resin liquids as a binder for an aggregate with high-friction properties. These are used in locations where drivers are frequently braking and the pavement surface has less resistance to slipping.
Diamond grinding – Diamond grinding involves using a gang saw to cut grooves in the pavement surface to restore smoothness and eliminate any joint faulting.
Pavement patching – Pavement patching involves selectively repairing portions of the pavement where the slabs are generally in good condition, but corners or joints are broken. The depth of the patch could be full depth or partial depth.
