How Light Weight Deflectometer is used for Road Testing

Testing soil properties is critical to any construction project. In fact, it is one of the most important initial steps to take during the early conceptualization stages of a build up. This is because soil conditions and properties can have significant effects in the basic structure and the future state of the ground surface. Typical soil testing is usually performed in a specialist laboratory, where a series of procedures are undertaken in order to determine the soil's chloride, sulphate, pH, and carbonate levels, its organic limit, clay sedimentation, and other properties. Determining and ascertaining soil density, strength, contamination, and compaction are all vital at the beginning stages of the construction process.

Despite its crucial role in the design and construction process, soil testing is very commonly overlooked, causing much delay, and sometimes, even cancelation of projects because of the unsuitability or the instability of the soil and ground surface at the site. These kinds of situations can very well be rectified if soil testing was done during the initial stages of the project.

Fortunately today, there are different types of soil testing devices that can be used right onsite to ensure immediate measurement and determination of soil quality and suitability. Modern devices like light weight deflectometers are designed for easy, fast, and convenient compaction testing. LWDs allow for dynamic load plate testing by making falling weight deflection testing possible on different testing surfaces, including rather soft subbases and subgrades, where heavy weight devices can't be used. Newer models even feature advanced inclusions like Bluetooth technology for easy data transmission, high-performance rechargeable batteries, a GPS system, in-built printer, and even a USB drive and text input function. Even more advanced models feature PC integration via enhanced software that allow for easier data management, transfer, documentation, reporting, and analysis, for on-the-go testing.

Benefits of Using Portable Light Weight Deflectometer for Construction Quality Control

Traditional compaction and soil quality control methods can be costly over time. In addition to price considerations, they can also require significant time investment during field testing, as well as extensive training when it comes to operation and safety. Older devices that engineers and designers used to test and monitor compaction would only measure one of two things: modulus (stiffness) or density. Newer devices, such as portable light weight deflectometers can measure both and more.

The stiffness or modulus of a soil or pavement is a qualitative term that indicates the surface's general resistance to deformation. Modulus is interchangeable with a soil's elastic modulus, resilient modulus, and modulus of subgrade reaction as it determines displacements of and strains to the subgrade as the load is introduced. Also during construction, great emphasis is placed on meeting a specified dry density for the compacted fill. Water content and dry density measurements are convenient control parameters for engineering properties. This is why it is important to have instruments that allow for accurate measurement of these values so as to ensure efficient quality assurance.

The many benefits of using portable light weight deflectometers for quality control in construction projects include:

• Relatively more manageable initial cost
• Easy operation by even inexperienced operators (no extensive training required)
• Fast and easy set-up (without calibration and manual set-ups)
• Portability and applicability when it comes to testing otherwise impossible to reach surfaces with traditional devices/methods
• Data integration 

Portable light weight deflectometers have the capability to measure density and the stiffness modulus of different types of soils and subgrades. They allow for the same accurate results as other mechanistically based methods and techniques so you can select the appropriate type of construction or rehabilitation method to be implemented on any given pavement, based on considerable economic significance.

Benefits of Using Mobile Light Weight Deflectometer

Mobile, lightweight deflectometers are among the latest and most advanced soil testing devices out in the market today. While traditional methods are preferred for their established effectiveness and wide acceptance, modern instruments also offer great things to be praised, especially when it comes to the technological advancements they offer over traditional methods. Dated instruments may have been the standard for the longest time, but there is also a lot to be said about their modern counterparts, which make work a lot easier and manageable for users. Portable light weight deflectometers, for instance, provide many notable updates to their heavy weight counterparts, making them more practical and even more suitable for certain construction, engineering, and design projects.

Light weight deflectometers use the same science behind conventional falling weight deflectometers, thus offering the same accuracy, if not a greater degree of precision when it comes to the results they return. These devices offer the great advantage of portability, making them more ideal for use in areas or locations that are simply impossible to reach via traditional falling weight devices and other measuring equipment. The sheer size and weight of other types of soil modulus measurement devices restricts their usefulness in many different types of project locations and applications.

Light weight deflectometers also don't require tedious set-up and calibration processes, which can take up a great deal of time. They don't require time and energy consuming safety tests and other manual set-up processes, which can lead to inaccurate results. Instead, these devices streamline the entire testing process by eliminating these pre-testing rituals, while still ensuring the accuracy of results. Light weight deflectometers are portable in design, which makes them suitable for single-person operation, unlike other devices that require a minimum of two people to operate. Finally, light weight deflectometers are not extremely technical to use, eliminating the need for long learning curves for users.