Application of Digital Image Correlation Method to Mechanical Testing of Asphalt-Aggregate Mixtures

The digital image correlation (DIC) method, a noncontact, full-field displacement measurement technique, has been applied to mechanical testing of asphalt concrete. A single couple charged device camera acquires images of an area of interest from a specimen in the undeformed and deformed states. These images are correlated to determine deformations, and advanced mathematical procedures are applied to these deformations to calculate strains. To verify the DIC measurements, vertical displacements for the middle and bottom sections of a specimen subjected to monotonic tension are compared with conventional linear variable differential transformer measurements. A series of DIC images captured during the monotonic and cyclic tests visualizes the evolution of the failure zone (i.e., the fracture process zone) at the crack tip. Also, it is demonstrated that the full-field measurement and post-processing nature of DIC allows a more accurate determination of the stress-strain behavior of the fracture process zone. The applicability of this method to a cylindrical specimen with a curved surface is also investigated by testing a 75-mm-diameter cylindrical specimen. Finally, the DIC method is extended to cyclic testing of asphalt mixtures with the aid of a synchronized image acquisition technique.