Influence of inertia on falling weight deflectometer (FWD) test response

This note addresses the appropriateness of adopting an elastostatic model for backcalculating in situ layer moduli from falling weight deflectometer (FWD) data. By approximating the elastodynamic displacement field using an elastostatic solution for a given load distribution, it is shown via Ritz vector analyses that elastostatic fields do not accurately represent the displacements associated with pavements subjected to FWD-type loading. Some improvement is, however, possible by including first-order corrections for inertial forces. The main conclusion stemming from the analyses is that elastostatic models should not be used to estimate in situ moduli. Key words : pavement, elastodynamic analysis, Ritz vectors, back-calculation, structural integrity.