ASPHALT PAVEMENT MAINTENANCE METHODS AND APPLICATIONS
Properly maintaining an asphalt pavement surface is essential to the durability and the life of any asphalt pavement. Performing routine maintenance such as seal coating and crack filling will extend the life of the pavement and decrease the need for pavement repairs. Once the asphalt pavement surface is showing signs of distress or deterioration, it is critical to perform maintenance or make repairs to minimize future costly repairs or replacement.
The most common asphalt maintenance procedures include asphalt patching, crack sealing, seal coating and resurfacing with an asphalt overlay.
Asphalt patching is appropriate for potholes, depressions, ?alligator? cracking, slippage cracks & rutting. Once the asphalt begins to crack in a concentrated area it will become ?alligatored? and eventually become a pothole. When longitudinal and transverse cracks in the asphalt pavement become more concentrated in a particular area, it is time to make repairs to minimize the impacts and salvage the pavement surface as much as possible. The correct and more permanent way to repair the concentrated cracking is with a full depth asphalt patch. Beyond the limits of the damaged asphalt, the existing asphalt should be completely removed to the base rock. The base rock should be properly compacted prior to asphalt replacement and the vertical sides of the patch should be coated with a liquid tack coat to assure proper adhesion with the new asphalt. The new asphalt should be placed within the patch in lifts no greater than 3? thickness at a time and properly compacted flush with the existing surrounding asphalt surface.
Crack sealing is critical to extending the life of an asphalt pavement surface. Crack sealing prevents water from infiltrating through the asphalt surface and into the base rock and sub grade. Once water is allowed through the asphalt surface it will weaken the underlying pavement structure and thus compromising the asphalt surface leading to further cracking and pavement failures. Prior to installing the crack sealer, the existing cracks must be cleaned and dried to allow for proper adhesion between the sealer and the asphalt pavement.
Seal coating is also essential to extending the life of an asphalt pavement surface. Direct sun exposure and ultraviolet rays from the sun will create oxidation of the asphalt allowing essential liquid chemicals in the asphalt to escape and leave the pavement vulnerable to raveling and cracking. Seal coating is appropriate for weathered and worn surfaces, small and minor cracking in the asphalt, and segregated or raveling surfaces. By sealing the existing asphalt pavement through seal coating, the essential elements are locked into the existing pavement while keeping water and other elements from infiltrating the surface of the asphalt pavement surface thus extending its life.
Resurfacing with an asphalt overlay is a way to salvage and strengthen an existing asphalt pavement surface. If the pavement defects in the existing surface are not a result of base or sub grade failure, the existing pavement surface can be resurfaced with an asphalt overlay. This will repair and correct minor deficiencies in the existing asphalt pavement as well as prolonging the life of the pavement structure without major replacement costs.
Forecasting Methods And Applications
Technical analysis and fundamental analysis differ greatly, but both can be useful forecasting tools for the forex trader. They have the same goal - to predict a price or movement.
The technician studies the effects, while the fundamentalist studies the cause of the forex market movements. You should combine a mixture of both approaches to get the best results.
Note: If both fundamental analysis and technical analysis point to the same direction, your chances for profitable trading are much better.
So let us begin with where we left off on the technical analysis:
Moving Averages - Are used to emphasize the direction of a trend and to even out price and volume fluctuations, or "noise", that can confuse interpretation. There are seven different types of moving averages:
- Simple (arithmetic)
- Exponential
- Time series
- Weighed
- Triangular
- Variable
- Volume adjusted
The only significant difference between the various types of moving averages is the weight assigned to the most recent data. For example, a simple (arithmetic) moving average is calculated by adding the closing price of the instrument for a number of periods, then dividing this total by the number of times.
The most popular method of interpreting a moving average is to compare the relationship between a moving average of the instrument's closing price, and the instrument's closing price itself.
Sell signal: when the instrument's price falls below its moving average Buy signal: when the instrument's price rises above its moving average The other technique is called the double crossover, which uses short-term and long-term averages.
Typically, upward momentum is confirmed when a short-term average (15 'day) crosses above a longer-term average (50-day). Downward momentum is confirmed when a short-term average crosses below a long-term average.
MACD - Moving Average Convergence/Divergence - A technical indicator, developed by Gerals Appel, used to detect swings in the price of financial instruments. The MACD is computed using two exponentially smoothed moving averages of the security's historical price, and is usually shown over a period on charts.
By then comparing the MACD to its own moving average (called the signal line), traders believe they can detect when will affect the RSI by creating false buy or sell signals. The RSI is best used as a valuable complement to other stock-picking tools.
Stochastic Oscillator - A technical momentum indicator that compares an instrument's closing price to its price range over a given period. The oscillator's sensitivity to market movements can be reduced by adjusting the time, or by taking a moving average of the result.
This indicator is calculated with the following formula:
%K=100* [(C-L14) / (H14-L14)] - C= the most recent closing price - L14= the low of the 14 previous trading sessions - H14= the highest price traded during the same 14 day period
The theory behind this indicator, based on George Lane's observations, is that in an upward-trending market, prices tend to close near their high, and during a downward-trending market, prices tend to close near their low.
Transaction signals occur when the %K crosses through a three-period moving average called "%D".
Trend Line - A sloping line of support or resistance.
- Up trend line - straight line drawn upward to the right along successive reaction lows
- Down trend line - straight line drawn downward to the right along successive rally peaks
Two points are needed to draw the trend line, and a third point to make it valid trend line. Trend lines are used in many ways by traders. One way is that when price returns to an existing principal trend line, it may be an opportunity to open new positions in the direction of the trend in the belief that the trend will hold and the trend will continue further.
A second way is when a price action breaks through (the principal trend line) an existing trend, it is evidence that the trend may be going to fail, and you (the trader) may consider trading in the other direction to the existing trend or exiting in the direction of the trend.
Note: Do not fall in love with your Forex position, and never take revenge of your Forex position.
Both Rahul & Orlando Thompson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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