Capping Material for Compacted Runway Crater Repairs

Adequate airfield facilities are critical for successful operation of the US Air Force, and rapid recovery of flight operation is imperative when the runway has succumbed to damage. The US Air Force has invested significant resources into a rapid airfield damage recovery (RADR) sequence that restores the substructure and surface of runway craters, but the moisture-cured capping material used in the final step does not meet the required time threshold for rapid recovery and exhibits structural failure below the targeted lifetime. There remains an urgent need for a rapid-setting capping material that contains potential debris from the compacted substructure while maintaining structural integrity for 2,000 landing-and-takeoff cycles. The ideal replacement material would be a non-toxic technology that promptly restores full operational capability within 30 minutes of compaction/preparation of repair site and supports any combination of fighter or heavy-lift aircraft. Luna has developed a class of polymeric materials that demonstrate rapid, on-demand curing. Incorporation of these high strength materials as a binder for cementitious composites will enable prompt recovery of flight operations. The proposed effort will focus on developing this novel capping material with an emphasis on meeting the set-time, temperature stability, and strength requirements as outlined.