Assessment of automatic induction self-healing treatment applied to steel deck asphalt pavement

Automatic induction self-healing treatment (AI-SHT) is a novel maintenance method for asphalt pavements that can efficiently heal cracks when inductive particles are incorporated into the asphalt. In the case of asphalt pavements on steel bridge decks, the metallic elements of the bridge act as the inductive materials to heal the cracks. This study focused on verifying the engineering feasibility and economic value of using AI-SHT for steel deck asphalt pavement (SDAP). The magnetic circuit principle was introduced to explore the self-healing effects. Fracture and induction self-healing tests were conducted based on a simplified model of the SDAP. Results showed that the maximum strength recovery rate via intermittent heating, without considering the aging, could reach 89.5%, which almost returned the strength of the newly constructed SDAP. Meanwhile, the maintenance cost of the AI-SHT could be ignored compared with the conventional maintenance method.