Tuesday, April 21, 2026
noon–1:30 p.m. CDT, Virtual
Understanding how infrastructure materials perform over time is critical to making informed design, construction, and maintenance decisions. This webinar will feature two recent University of Minnesota research efforts that examined the real-world performance of commonly used transportation infrastructure materials.
Continue reading CTS Webinar: Infrastructure Materials and PerformanceCold recycling road pavement materials into new road construction is a cost-effective and sustainable practice. However, the properties of these materials must be characterized to adequately design pavement structures. This project developed a framework and tool for transportation agencies to estimate the key material properties of cold recycled materials incorporated into road designs.
Continue reading Assessing Recycled Pavement for Use in Road DesignDetours for highway construction projects direct heavy freight vehicles onto local roads that were not designed to accommodate the frequency of heavy loads. Detours to these local roads often accelerate pavement deterioration that shortens their service life and requires additional repair. This project examined the structural and economic impacts of detours on local roads to develop a framework for optimizing detour routes that limit pavement damage while maintaining traffic mobility.
Continue reading Limiting Pavement Damage from DetoursMany modern vehicles continuously track location and performance data such as speed and acceleration. Collecting large amounts of this data to use in machine learning models has many potential applications, including aggregating and evaluating road pavement conditions. This project investigated the feasibility of using large amounts of onboard data from electric vehicles to monitor and assess pavement conditions comprehensively and cost-effectively across a large network.
Continue reading Using Onboard Vehicle Data to Assess Pavement QualityOver time, asphalt pavement becomes stiff and brittle due to oxidation, often leading to surface cracking and distress. To mitigate these damages and extend the service lives of roads, transportation agencies may apply a spray-on rejuvenator (SOR) to restore essential components of the asphalt. This project investigated the short- and long-term effectiveness of 12 SORs that state and local transportation agencies may consider for future use.
Continue reading Assessing Rejuvenators That Extend Pavement Service LifeHigh friction surface treatments (HFSTs) on Minnesota roads are composed of imported, industry standard calcined bauxite aggregate. This material is expensive, and producing it is energy-intensive. Taconite aggregate, a by-product of the Minnesota mining industry, is a potential alternative to calcined bauxite that is less expensive. This research compared taconite and calcined bauxite in field skid resistance performance testing to determine the feasibility of using taconite in place of calcined bauxite in HFST applications.
Continue reading Evaluating Taconite as a Lower Cost Friction TreatmentAggregate materials used in the base and subbase layers of pavements provide structural support and drainability to Minnesota roads. But the supply of locally available high-quality aggregate material is becoming increasingly scarce. This project explored sustainable and cost-effective solutions for constructing durable flexible pavement roads with lower quality aggregate material.
Continue reading Evaluating Road Designs That Use Lower Quality AggregateAddressing the increasing need for pavement materials coincides with an increasing supply of plastic waste. Incorporating recycled plastic into aggregate for transportation infrastructure is of growing interest. Testing plastic waste material in both asphalt and concrete pavement mixtures revealed promising results and the need to explore long-term performance and durability.
Continue reading Testing Recycled Plastics in Asphalt and Concrete Pavement MixesTreating early deterioration in concrete pavement can extend a road’s service life and defer costly replacement. An assessment of different strategies years later demonstrated that over time, asphalt overlays made the roadways smoother for travelers.
Continue reading Strategies for Addressing Deteriorated Concrete RoadsThe production and use of construction materials for transportation projects have varying impacts on the environment based on factors such as production process, transportation and material inputs. To mitigate negative outcomes, MnDOT sought to incorporate environmental impacts into the procurement process for concrete mixtures and concrete pavement. This project provided a framework for considering environmental impacts and standardizing a reporting system to encourage the use of low-carbon construction materials in infrastructure projects.
Continue reading Incorporating Sustainability into the Procurement Process
Crossroads 