Nanotechnology for Advancement in Transportation Engineering

The applications, innovations, developments in the field of nanotechnology in various applied fields is receiving widespread attention. It is essential to note that these applications are improving general well-being of the public. The development of nanotechnology and its significance in civil engineering practice is illustrated in this paper for enhancing the vision of nanotechnology in the field of road pavements. Although good pavements can be constructed using existing techniques and available materials, there are a number of areas where the judicious application of nanotechnology techniques should be able to improve the longevity and performance of the service provided by the pavement facility. These include improved and smart materials and characterization of materials. Nanotechnology is focused on materials in nanoscale while civil engineering infrastructure (especially road pavements) focused on the macro scale (100s of kilometer in length). This paper focuses on the nanomaterial which gives the effective results on the operation and maintenance costs of the road pavements. The Chennai flood in 2015 effects is being focused on for the development of the road pavement infrastructure. To execute these, the gap between the nanotechnology and construction materials research needs to be bridged. Finally the future trend, potential and implications of nanotechnology development in civil engineering towards more economical infrastructure, low cost maintenance with longer durability are deliberated. This paper concentrates on the macro level analysis of the nanomaterials in pavements.