The International Falls-Koochiching County Airport in Minnesota is located in one of the most severe climates in the U.S. The average annual air temperature is 0 degrees C (32 degrees F), with temperatures reaching 38 degrees C (100 degrees F) in the summer and exceeding -40 degrees C (-40 degrees F) in the winter. Low temperature cracking has been a continual problem, with numerous 25mm to 100mm wide transverse cracks along the airport runway. Excessive stresses from the harsh environment have also caused significant secondary longitudinal and transverse cracking in the pavement, To address the demands of this environment, transverse contraction joints had been installed at approximately 15 meter intervals, When it came time to resurface the runway, the Koochiching County Commission and the consulting engineering firm of Short Elliott Hendrickson, Inc. (SEH) decided to use both FAA engineering recommendations and the technology developed by SHRP (the Strategic Highway Research Program) to select an asphalt binder designed for this difficult climate. SEH proposed the newly developed SHRP specifications as an alternate bid for the project, The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reviewed and approved the alternate proposal which provided funding to allow the innovative technology.
