Minnesota Department of Transportation

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MnROAD

Construction at MnROAD

MnROAD Future Construction

MnROAD is always open to discussing new ideas for test sections. If you're interested, please contact Ben Worel, ben.worel@state.mn.us and start the conversation.

The MnROAD Construction Guide (Word) helps explain the process.

Process: The construction guide document lays out the development of an idea from work plan to work plan approval, to the project execution steps needed.

Costs: Currently, no specific construction funding is currently available, but partnerships can help reduce costs. It's important to talk with our MnDOT staff and develop a solid workplan that includes partnerships for both research support and sharing of the costs to do successful efforts.

Timing for MnROAD Construction: To determine the best use of MnROAD, ideas are due each year:

  • 2025 - LVR will be made June 1st (do not have a lot of time to plan construction)
  • 2026 and on – December 1st each year (allows time for construction coordination)

2025 Construction

The upcoming 2025-2026 construction season at the MnROAD will be impacted by the "GAP" project that MnDOT is upgrading I-94 with three lanes both in directions (East and Westbound lanes). During this time, no construction is possible for MnROAD I-94 westbound, both on our MnROAD mainline and old westbound test sections. This will also end our use of the old westbound test sections but the mainline will continue to be used for our research into the future. Monitoring of the mainline test sections will continue during this period with some modifications. MnROAD low volume road is open for ideas for 2025 and 2026. Please contact Ben Worel if you have any questions or ideas.

2024 Construction - Mainline and LVR

The 2024 construction season at MnROAD provided test sections to continue the work related to low carbon concrete materials that was conducted in 2022 and other work on the LVR and MnDOT service road. On the mailine, 8 new test sections with cement alternatives were constructed with reclaimed or harvested fly ash, microspheres, and other sustainable materials. On the low volume road (LVR), additional low carbon concrete full depth patches were built, the water repellency test sections received a new HMA surface, and a 100% recycled surface was placed. Off the LVR on the west service road, test sections were built with the placement of artificial stripping elements to provide proving ground to investigate the capabilities of non-destructive testing (NDT) technologies in detecting moisture-related damages in bituminous pavements.

2023 Construction - LVR

The 2023 construction season at MnROAD saw the construction of 6 tests sections in the low volume road (LVR). The focus of this construction effort was to provide much need repair to test sections that had already exceeded their research and design life while using the available space to construct new test sections to evaluate the reflective cracking resistance of a mix and structural design intended for low-volume city and county applications in Minnesota. Furthermore, two test sections were constructed to assess the effectiveness of organo-silane (OS) in enhancing water control, improving subgrade, and overall pavement system performance, while also investigating its potential to mitigate frost heave-thaw settlement and freeze-thaw weakening in frost-susceptible pavement foundation layers. This construction efforts address specific research questions related to pavement materials, performance, drainage and cracking mechanisms, contributing valuable insights to ongoing LRRB and NRRA projects and paving the way for optimized pavement engineering practices.

2022 Construction - Mainline

The 2022 construction season at MnROAD saw the construction of 39 novel pavement test sections and the repair of 6 existing sections in the mainline (ML) to address high-priority research needs from the National Road Research Alliance (NRRA). The focus of this construction effort was on enhancing sustainability and resiliency in our pavement system, as well as studying and promoting intelligent construction technologies. Noteworthy innovations included the use of materials like plastic, rubber, and fibers in asphalt pavements, and alternative cementitious, supplementary cementitious, and carbon injection in concrete pavements. Rehabilitation efforts aimed at extending the life of some sections involved recycling in-situ materials and applying preventive maintenance techniques. Additionally, perpetual pavement and wicking geotextile research projects were undertaken, with a focus on improving drainage and foundation stiffness for long-term benefits. Six repaired sections utilized performance-engineered mixes and diamond grinding for fault elimination.

2021 Construction

MnROAD developed test sections to support two studies from NRRA and Minnesota Local Road Research Board at MnROAD and 15th Street located in the City of St. Michael to study spray rejuvenator products.

  • 2021 Construction Report (in development)

2020 Construction

NRRA develop a research project and test sections near Emily Minnesota that are being utilized to develop a better understanding of HMA rejuvenators and their long-term effects on performance.

  • 2020 Construction Report (in development)

2016 Construction

MnROAD partnered with NCAT to reconstruct 8 mainline HMA test sections. These test sections support a national pooled fund study on cracking group experiment focusing on low temperature cracking.

  • 2016 Construction Report (in development)

2011 Construction

MnROAD 2011 Reconstruction and Repair of PCC Mainline Cells 5, 6, 63, & 96

Four test cells on the MnROAD Mainline were in need of reconstruction or substantial repairs in 2011. This opportunity allowed us to enhance the research program at MnROAD by evaluating and demonstrating the following materials and methods:

  • the performance of three gradations to optimize paste content, workability, and durability;
  • longitudinal tining as a quiet surface;
  • the use of drainable, stable aggregate bases to enhance pavement life; and
  • roller compacted concrete on the shoulders.

Also, a thin (5") unbonded concrete overlay using a non- woven geotextile interlayer was constructed on half a cell, and, repairs were made on a thin whitetopping cell to evaluate best practices to maintain concrete overlays.

Stabilized Full Depth Reclamation on Cell 28

With budgets being stretched and local sources of pavement materials being depleted, reconstruction of low volume roadways is becoming difficult for local agencies to fund. Cheaper methods, such as the use of gravel material, have been adopted to try and alleviate these costs.

The construction on Cell 28 explored alternative methods of paving that are both renewable and relatively inexpensive in overall costs. The plan attempted to utilize in situ materials of the previous Cell 28 construction to repave the cell in a sustainable manner using 100% of the existing materials. The cell consisted of 100% recycled pavement that has no transportation costs, material costs, and relatively inexpensive operating costs providing for a better quality road. This cell has the potential to serve as a model for maintaining thousands of low volume road miles.

2006 Construction

In 2006 Cell 1, 27, and 28 were reconstructed by MnROAD. There were three significant aspects of research behind the test cell reconstruction: field validation of Geocomposite Capillary Barrier Drain (GCBD) for limiting moisture changes in pavements, Intelligent Compaction (IC) research performed on the unbound base and subgrade layers, and accelerated testing of PG 52-34 binder to support a Local Road Research Board (LRRB) project. These reports document the previous pavement condition, pavement structural and mixture designs, instrumentation plan, field construction activities, material sampling, and laboratory test results.

Pervious concrete helps to divert polluted and excess water from local water sources. In 2006 MnROAD and its partners collaborated on a pervious concrete sidewalk project to help study how to effectively use pervious concrete to best limit negative environmental factors.

2005 Construction

In 2005, MnROAD continued to study the effectiveness of pervious concrete in its test cells. MnROAD was researching the pervious concrete's inherent sustainability during the varying environmental factors that come with each season especially safety during the winter seasons.

2004 Construction

2004 marked several different construction and research projects for MnROAD. Cells 60- 63 were constructed using whitetopping technique to replace earlier whitetopping cells constructed in 1997. The report below contains the relevant information about the reconstruction and the data attained through the seven years research.

Mesabi Hard Rock aggregate began to be tested during 2004 resulting in several reports and studies. The purpose of the research was to see the utilization possibility of a new and Minnesota based resource.

Cell 26 was reconstructed to replace a test cell that had failed prematurely.

1999 Construction

This paper's purpose is to provide an update on the pavement condition of MnROAD's three low volume road (LVR) SuperPave test cells constructed in 1999 with different asphalt binders. These cells were built to field validate the current low temperature performance grading (PG) system currently being used at MnDOT and many other agencies around the world.

1996 Construction

This report focuses on the second construction phase of the Minnesota Road Research facility (MnROAD) and evaluates three typical, locally available, surfacing aggregates along with a rollover section from the initial phase for performance.