Radio frequency identification applications in pavements / Charles W. Schwartz, Junaid S. Khan, Grant H. Pfeiffer, Endri Mustafa

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology is widely used for inventory control, tool and material tracking, and other similar applications where line-of-sight optical bar codes are inconvenient or impractical. Several applications of RFID technology to pavements are evaluated in this report: tracking of placement of truckloads of hot mix asphalt (HMA) within the pavement, tracking of placement of truckloads of Portland cement concrete (PCC) within the pavement, real-time measurement of pavement temperature versus depth and time during intelligent compaction, and early detection of reflection cracking in overlays. RFID tracking of HMA placement was the most successful application and the one with potential for immediate commercial implementation. RFID tracking of PCC placement was unsuccessful, at least with the RFID systems evaluated in this study; the high dielectric constant of the hydrated cement paste severely attenuates the RFID signals. Real-time measurement of pavement temperatures with depth and time during intelligent compaction shows promise but further work is required to develop reader software/hardware and RFID tags with more reliable and faster response rates. Laboratory and limited field evaluation of an RFID-based sensor for early detection of reflection cracks in HMA overlays also shows promise, but additional development work and field trials are required. Guidelines for integration of material property data from construction and pavement performance data during service via RFID-assisted geolocation are also provided. The necessary steps required to integrate RFID-tagged material property and pavement management data are outlined in generic terms. Implementation details will depend on the materials and pavement systems used by each individual agency.