Pothole repair study launched

University researchers in Nottingham have been awarded funds by the Institution of Civil Engineers to study the performance of pothole repair work.

Teams from Nottingham Trent University and the University of Nottingham will now undertake a six month research project.

The research will evaluate the current approaches and design guidance for repairs, investigate the suitability of easily deployable non-destructive testing devices to examine patch performance, and improve existing design guidance.

This will, in turn, enable a performance-based approach to repair specification, which will make them more reliable.

Dr Mujib Rahman, senior lecturer in civil engineering at Nottingham Trent University, said: “Generally, potholes and other types of distress, such as rutting and cracking, appearing on the road surface are a sign of major underlying problems that require structural rehabilitation.

"However, budgeting constraints often lead to patch repair and pothole filling in order to maintain the road in a safe and serviceable condition.

“It is anticipated that this project will be the first stage in a much larger programme of research, generating early data to enable the key features of pothole deterioration to be identified, and allowing initial comparison of repair materials.

"This research will produce a number of recommendations concerning the quality of road surface repair work.”

The industrial partners in the research project are Cooper Research Technology, Aggregate Industries, Halcrow and Epicuro ltd.