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Effect of Thermal Cutting Methods on the Fatigue Life of High Strength

Structural Steel S690Q

Article  in  American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Pressure Vessels and Piping Division (Publication) PVP · July 2015
DOI: 10.1115/PVP2015-45174

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 EFFECT OF THERMAL CUTTING METHODS ON THE FATIGUE LIFE OF HIGH
STRENGTH STRUCTURAL STEEL S690Q
1,* 1 1 1 2
Tiberio Garcia , Sergio Cicero , Jose A. Álvarez , Isidro Carrascal , Antonio Martin-Meizoso
1
Universidad de Cantabria
Santander, Cantabria, Spain
garciapt@unican.es
2
Centro de Estudios e Investigaciones Técnicas de Guipúzcoa (CEIT)
San Sebastián, País Vasco, Spain

ABSTRACT The commonly denominated thermal cutting processes are

This paper analyzes the effect of different cutting methods the most widely used manufacturing techniques for obtaining
on the fatigue life of high strength steel S690Q. The research pieces with different geometries from rolled steel plates.
covers three cutting methods (oxy-fuel, plasma and laser) and Within thermal cutting processes, the main alternatives
two specimen geometries: plain specimens with rectangular used by the industry and considered in this paper are named
sections and cut edges, and specimens with machined edges flame cutting (or oxy-fuel cutting), plasma cutting and laser
and a cut hole in the middle section. All the specimens were cutting. They are based on melting the metal to cut it, but the
conducted to failure by applying fatigue cycles, the stress ratio most important difference between them is the methodology to
(R) being 0.1, and the corresponding S-N curves were obtained melt the metal. In oxy-fuel cutting, a torch is used to heat metal
for each combination of cutting method and specimen to its kindling temperature; after that, a stream of oxygen is
geometry. Measurements of roughness and hardness have been then trained on the metal, burning it into metal oxide that flows
performed in order to explain the influence of the cutting out of the kerf as slag. In plasma cutting, an inert gas is blown
method on the fatigue life of this particular steel. Fatigue results at high speed out of a nozzle; at the same time an electrical arc
have been compared with the predictions provided by current is formed through that gas from the nozzle to the surface being
fatigue standards, analyzing the possibility of extrapolating cut, turning some of that gas to plasma, which is sufficiently
their S-N curves, focused on oxy-fuel cuts, to plasma and laser hot (in the range of 25.000ºC) to melt the metal being cut and
cuts. moves sufficiently fast to blow molten metal. Laser cutting
works by directing the output of a high power laser at the
NOMENCLATURE material to be cut; the material then either melts, burns,
vaporizes away, or is blown away by a jet of gas, leaving an
N = Number of cycles related to a constant edge with a high quality surface finish.
stress range After thermal cutting, the cut-edges of steel sheet
∆σ = Nominal stress range components show a characteristic surface topography and a
heat affected zone (HAZ) similar to that produced by welding
∆σrun out = Stress range value below which no processes. Durability requirements for safety-critical structures
failure will occur in tests under constant are significantly influenced by the conditions of the cut-edges
amplitude stress conditions produced during component manufacture [1]. Particularly,
m = Slope of fatigue strength curve when investigating dynamic loading and fatigue failure, the
logA = Intercept of the mean S-N curve quality of the surface has a considerable influence on the
fatigue strength [2].
INTRODUCTION Oxy-fuel cutting is the traditional thermal cutting process.
The majority of steel components used in different sectors However, this technology is in the process of being
such as construction, the naval industry or the manufacturing significantly replaced by plasma and laser cutting. These two
industry require specific shapes to enable their final assembly. modern cutting techniques allow manufacturers to increase
productivity (and consequently reduce production costs) and to

1
cut sheet components with very intricate geometries with high intended that the cut-edge quality should be as representative of
precision. real quality as possible, so the cutting parameters selected are
In spite of the advantages of using plasma and laser the ones used by the industry to cut the steel grade and
cutting processes, the current fatigue codes (i.e., BS 7608 [3]) thickness considered. The cutting parameters are summarized in
only take into account the fatigue performance of straight cut- Table 2.
edges made by flame cutting. Besides, some fabrication It should be noted that plasma cutting has used oxygen
standards, particularly North American codes (i.e., Alberta and air as plasma gas and as shielding gas, respectively, and
Specification for Bridge Construction [4]), define some laser cutting has used oxygen as assist gas. This election is very
extremely conservative limitations of cut-edge hardness, which common in carbon steels given that the heat of the oxidizing
cannot be reached by the two alternatives of cutting process or exothermic reaction allows the cutting speed to be increased by
even (in many occasions) by oxy-fuel cutting. 25%.
Regarding the fabrication of bolt holes, current fabrication Relating to the cutting speed, it is straightforward to
codes often state that holes shall only be made by drilling or notice that the cutting speed provided by both plasma cutting
punching. For example, the Specification for Structural Joints (2.2 m/min) and laser cutting (1 m/min) is considerably higher
Using High-Strength Bolts [5] defines that thermally cut holes than that provided by oxy-fuel cutting (0.5 m/min).
produced by mechanically guided means are permitted in
statically loaded joints and, for cyclically loaded joints,
thermally cut holes may be permitted if approved by the
Engineer of Record. However, many constructors choose not to
exercise this clause because there are no data to show how
these holes perform under fatigue loading. So far, steel structure
fabricators have had to perform multiple material-handling
steps to accommodate standard drilling and punching
operations. The validation of thermally cut holes for cyclically
loaded joints would allow multiple processes to be performed at
one time, reducing the amount of handling, thus leading to
reduced fabrication costs.
With all this, the aim of this research is, on the one hand,
to compare the fatigue performance of the three thermal cutting
methods concerning both straight cut-edges and cut holes; and,
on the other hand, to evaluate the possibility of extrapolating
the standard S-N curves to plasma and laser straight cut-edges
and thermally cut holes.

MATERIAL FIG 1. MICROSTRUCTURE OF STEEL S690Q.

In order to complete a recent fatigue research programme
performed on structural steel S355M [6] (thermo mechanical
rolled steel), a high strength structural steel S690Q has been
selected. It is a quenched and tempered steel and is supplied in
plates with 15 mm thickness. The selection of this steel grade
and thickness is based on its widespread use in heavily dynamic
loaded parts of offshore structures, pressure vessels, pipelines
and yellow goods. It presents a bainitic/martensitic
microstructure which is shown in Figure 1.
Electro Back Scatter Diffraction (EBSD) image was also
taken to measure its average grain size (Figure 2) and two
mismatch angles were considered for determining grain
boundaries. The average grain size as mean linear intercept for
3º and 12º mismatch angles is 2.34μm and 2.83μm,
respectively.
Finally, Table 1 gathers the chemical composition and
some of the main mechanical properties.

THERMAL CUTTING PROCESSES

With the aim of performing a complete comparative study,
the three thermal cutting processes have been analyzed. It was FIG 2. EBSD IMAGE OF S690Q BASE MATERIAL.

2
TABLE 1. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND MECHANICAL EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAMME
PROPERTIES OF S690Q In order to achieve the conditions stated by ASTM E739-
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION (%) 10 [7], 10 specimens have been used to define each S-N curve.
C Si Mn P S Cr Mo Ni On the one hand, the specimen with tangentially blending fillets
between the uniform test section and the ends proposed by
0.15 0.40 1.42 0.005 0.001 0.02 0.002 0.16 ASTM E466-96 [8] has been selected to reproduce the real
Al Cu Nb N Sn Ti V CEV conditions of straight thermally cut-edges, which is shown in
0.048 0.01 0.029 0.006 0.002 0.003 0.058 0.43 Figure 3; it should be noted that the specimens were extracted
parallel to the rolling direction. On the other hand, a specimen
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES with a centered hole and mechanized straight edges has been
Young modulus Yield strength Tensile strength designed in order to simulate the presence of a bolt hole in a
(GPa) (MPa) (MPa) real component (Figure 4); due to the absence of this kind of
samples in the actual codes, it was necessary to adopt the
209.4 776.2 833.7 specimen drawing proposed by other authors [9]. Similar to the
straight specimens, the samples with a hole were also extracted
TABLE 2. CUTTING PARAMETERS parallel to the rolling direction. The finishing cut point is
located at the end of the hole diameter parallel to the load
OXY-FUEL CUTTING
direction, given that this is a singular point in which the
Parameter Value material disturbance is significantly higher.
Cutting speed 0.45-0.5 m/min
Propane pressure 0.4 bar
pre 1.2 bar
Oxygen pressure
working 6 bar
PLASMA CUTTING
Parameter Value
Plasma arc current 200 A
Plasma arc voltage 131V
FIG 3. DRAWING OF SPECIMEN WITH STRAIGHT CUT-
Cutting speed 2.2 m/min EDGE (DIMENSIONS IN MM)
Torch standoff 4.1 mm
Plasma gas: pre 24 l/min
Oxygen flow rate working 69 l/min
Shielding gas: pre 65 l/min
Air flow rate working 28 l/min
Piercing time 0.6 s
Piercing standoff 8.2 mm
LASER CUTTING FIG 4. DRAWING OF SPECIMEN WITH HOLE (DIMENSIONS
IN MM)
Parameter Value
Beam power 3600 W As a summary, 60 fatigue tests have been carried out. The
specimen distribution is shown in Table 3.
Cutting speed 1 m/min
TABLE 3. SPECIMEN DISTRIBUTION
Nozzle diameter 1.7 mm Straight edge With hole
Nozzle distance 0.5-0.8 mm OXY-FUEL CUTTING 10 10
Focus diameter 0.2 mm PLASMA CUTTING 10 10
Focus position On the top surface LASER CUTTING 10 10
Assist gas Oxygen
Both S-N curves and fatigue limit are the parameters
Assist gas pressure 0.6 bar selected to evaluate the fatigue behavior. Fatigue tests were
conducted using a high frequency testing machine with a

3
400KN capacity, which can carry out fatigue tests at the fatigue category corresponding to the flame cut edges should be
specimen resonance frequency. This frequency oscillates adopted, because BS7608 [3] does not take into account the
between 77 and 79 Hz for the two types of specimens selected. fatigue quality of plasma or laser cut-edges:
Referring to the definition of the rest of the fatigue test
- Class B: “Any flame cut edges subsequently machined
parameters, the stress ratio (R) selected is equal to 0.1, which is
or ground smooth. All visible signs of draglines should
adopted by most of the references found in the bibliography
be removed from the flame cut-edge by grinding or
(i.e., [2]). The stress ranges have been defined taking into
machining”.
account that the maximum stress of the sinusoidal cycle cannot
be higher than the steel yield stress. Finally, a number of cycles - Class C: “Any cutting of edges by planning or
equal to 107 has been adopted to define the fatigue strength in machine flame cutting with controlled procedure.
the infinite fatigue life [10]. Thermal cut quality in accordance with EN 9013 [13]
with mean height of the profile range 2”.
COMPARISON WITH THE STANDARDS
If it were necessary to evaluate the fatigue performance of
The nominal stress approach is an established approach
a component with thermally cut bolt holes, a situation
for fatigue design and assessment of steel components adopted
represented here by the specimens with the hole, this would not
by most standards. The nominal stress approach is based on S-
be possible, because BS7608 [3] does not include this fatigue
N curves. Structural details are designed based on the nominal
detail. For this reason, the fatigue category used to evaluate
stress range in the connecting members rather than on the local
drilled holes is adopted to compare with the experimental
concentrated stress. The fatigue design procedure is based on
results:
associating the detail under consideration with a specific
- Class D: “Small hole (may contain bolt for minor
category.
fixtures). Hole drilled or reamed. Minimum distance
Around the world, there are numerous fatigue standards
between center of hole and plate edge: 1.5 x hole
which provide their own fatigue S-N curves (i.e. BS7608 [3],
diameter”.
ASSHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications [11], Eurocode 3
[12]). They present some differences given that they have been CUT-EDGE CHARACTERIZATION
obtained in base on their own experimental fatigue programme. Figure 5 show the typical physical appearance of the three
With a view to validating the present research, the standard thermally cut-edges.
BS7608 [3] has been selected. This is one of the most up-to-
date fatigue codes in the world and it is used in many areas of
industrial application. Besides, the steel grade (S690Q) and TOP
plate thickness (15 mm) selected here are covered by this code. DROSS ADHERENCE
One of the main advantages of this standard is that each
design class is characterized by a mean and a design S-N curve BOTTOM
corresponding to the selected nominal probability of failure.
The expression proposed to define both S-N curves is shown in a)
equation (1): 5 mm

logN = logAmean−Class − d · σClass − mClass · log∆σ (1)

where: TOP
- logAmean−Class is the intercept of the mean S-N curve
of the design class adopted.
BOTTOM
- σClass is the standard deviation of the design class
selected.
b)
5 mm

- mClass is the slope of the design class adopted.

- d is the coefficient which considers the nominal TOP
probability of failure based upon an assumed normal
distribution. d=0 corresponds to 50% nominal
probability of failure (mean S-N curve), and d=2 is the
typical value to define standard design S-N curves and
BOTTOM
corresponds to 2.3% nominal probability of failure. c) SURFACE DISRUPTIONS
5 mm
If it were necessary to evaluate the fatigue performance of
FIG 5. APPEARANCE OF THERMALLY CUT-EDGES: A) OXY-
a component with straight thermally cut-edges, a situation that
FUEL CUTTING; B) PLASMA CUTTING; C) LASER CUTTING.
is represented here by specimens with straight cut-edges, the

4
 Analyzing Figure 5, the cut-edge surfaces generated by absence of defects and very shallow draglines. The oxy-fuel cut
the three thermal cutting methods are observed to have very hole also displays a smooth surface. Nevertheless, it should be
different characteristic features. It should be noted that the noted that the presence of some dross adhered to the cut surface
specimens have been tested without any machining or polishing and the bottom edge has been rounded. The quality of the laser
step after the cutting operation. cut surface is the worst and it is characterized by the presence
of predominant surface draglines, particularly near the top of
- The oxy-fuel cut-edge surface is considerably smooth
the cut edge.
and is covered by an oxide layer which is very difficult
to remove. The formation of surface dross at the OXY-FUEL CUTTING
bottom of the oxy-fuel cut-edge is also clearly visible. FINISHING CUT POINT
The plasma cut-edge surface is the smoothest of the
three thermally cut-edge surfaces. The presence of
very shallow draglines is noticeable.
- The laser cut-edge surface is characterized by the
presence of irregular surface disruptions. The causes
of these surface features could be determined to an
increased molten flow of steel overlapping [14]. 5 mm 5 mm

Figure 6 compares the maximum hardness measured in PLASMA CUTTING

the three thermally cut-edges with the hardness limit defined by FINISHING CUT POINT
two representative standards of USA (Alberta Specification for
Bridge Construction [4]) and EU (EN 1090 [15]). The three
thermal cutting methods are observed to show practically the
same value of maximum hardness. The maximum hardness of
all of them is equal to or is slightly higher than the limit value
defined by [15]. However, none of them achieve the
requirement of maximum hardness proposed by [4], which
could be extremely conservative. 5 mm 5 mm

700 LASER CUTTING

OXY-FUEL CUTTING PLASMA CUTTING LASER CUTTING
FINISHING CUT POINT
VICKERS HARDNESS (HV05

600
ALBERTA SPECIFICATION EN 1090
500
kg/mm2)

400

300

200

5 mm 5 mm
100

0 FIG 7. APPEARANCE OF THERMALLY CUT HOLES.

S690Q
FIG 6. MAXIMUM HARDNESS.
Once the straight cut-edges have been analyzed, the
quality of the thermally cut holes is evaluated. Figure 7 shows a
general view of the thermally cut holes. It is also shown the
finishing point, which is characterized by a small disturbance.
Relating to the quality of the cut surfaces, similar
draglines to those observed in the straight cut-edges are also
generated in cut holes. Given that the rugosimeter can only be
used in straight planes, and draglines are vertical and located in
the edge of the hole, the surface roughness cannot be measured.
In spite of that, a qualitative evaluation of the surface quality
a) b) c)
5 mm 5 mm 5 mm
has also been done. The appearance of the surface of thermally
cut holes is shown in Figure 8. It can be observed that the FIG 8. APPEARANCE OF SURFACE OF THERMALLY CUT
plasma cut-surface demonstrates the best quality, with the HOLES: A) OXY-FUEL; B) PLASMA; C) LASER.

5
FATIGUE EVALUATION OF SPECIMENS WITH strength at the run out level in comparison with the other two
STRAIGHT CUT-EDGE cutting processes: oxy-fuel cutting decreases plasma cutting
The fatigue test results corresponding to specimens with a and laser cutting fatigue strength by 84 MPa and 63 MPa,
straight edge and mean S-N curves of different cutting respectively. After comparing fatigue results and surface
processes are shown in Figure 9. The run-out points are quality, a correlation between them cannot be found in this
represented with an arrow. case. This can be explained by the fact that all oxy-fuel cut
600
specimens show the crack initiation at the bottom edge where
the surface dross actuates as a stress concentrator; it would
seem to reduce the fatigue resistance at the run out level.
Although the laser cut surfaces display disruptions, the fatigue
performance of laser cut specimens is slightly better than that
shown by plasma cut specimens. Thus, other parameters (i.e.
residual stresses or HAZ microstructures) could significantly
affect the final fatigue performance
Figure 10 compares the experimental results with both
∆σ (MPa)

design classes B and C provided by BS7608 [3].

1000

OXY-FUEL RESULTS

PLASMA RESULTS

LASER RESULTS

OXY-FUEL S-N (50%)

PLASMA S-N (50%)

∆σ (MPa)

LASER S-N (50%)

100 100 OXY-FUEL RESULTS
10000 100000 1000000 10000000
PLASMA RESULTS
CYCLES
LASER RESULTS
FIG 9. S-N CURVES CORRESPONDING TO SPECIMENS
CLASS C - MEAN
WITH STRAIGHT CUT-EDGES.
CLASS C - DESIGN
Considering only the results from specimens that failed,
the intercept (log Amean) and the slope (m) of the best fit S-N CLASS B - MEAN
curve through the data (S-N (50%)) are estimated by ordinary
linear regression, as described by Schneider and Maddox [16]. CLASS B - DESIGN
10
The fatigue fitting parameters are shown in Table 4. 10000 100000 1000000 10000000
TABLE 4. S-N CURVE FITTING PARAMETERS CYCLES
logAmean m ∆𝛔𝐫𝐮𝐧−𝐨𝐮𝐭
OXY-FUEL 14.25 3.51 166 MPa FIG 10. COMPARISON BETWEEN EXPERIMENTAL
RESULTS AND BOTH STANDARD CLASSES B AND C S-N
PLASMA 13.14 3.05 250 MPa CURVES.
LASER 18.82 5.19 229 MPa
Analyzing Figure 10, most of the experimental results are
Firstly, it can be observed that laser cutting shows the best well above the mean S-N curve of design class C. Only one
fatigue resistance within the finite fatigue regime. However this value (corresponding to oxy-fuel cutting) is below the mean S-
improvement reduces at the same time as the stress range is N curve, but it is in the safe region (above the design S-N curve
higher. The fatigue performance of oxy-fuel cutting is quite of design class C). Relating to the class B, it is observed that
similar to that exhibited by plasma cutting. Analyzing the both plasma and laser cut-edges display conservative results in
values of slope fitted, it should be mentioned that all of them both the finite and infinite fatigue range: all experimental
are higher than 3, especially in laser cutting. Referring to the results are above the mean S-N curve. Secondly, the oxy-fuel
fatigue strength at the run out level, which corresponds to the cut-edge fatigue results are generally closer to the mean S-N
lowest stress range with two run-out´s, the results obtained are and all of them are located in the safe region. Thus, it could be
quite different from those observed in the finite fatigue regime. concluded that design class B could be extrapolated to the three
Oxy-fuel cutting exhibits a significant decrease in fatigue thermal cutting processes in the steel grade S690Q.

6
FATIGUE EVALUATION OF SPECIMENS WITH A CUT (Figure 8b). In contrast, the presence of predominant draglines
HOLE in the laser cut holes (Figure 8c) could have a considerably
The fatigue test results obtained in the specimens with a negative impact on the fatigue strength at the run out level. The
thermally cut hole are presented in Figure 11. The run-out oxy-fuel cut holes also display a high quality surface as shown
points are represented with an arrow. in Figure 8a, but the presence of dross adherence (particularly
600
near the bottom of the cut-edge) could assist crack initiation.
Finally, Figure 12 compares the S-N curves provided by
the design class D of BS7608 [3] with the experimental results
obtained in specimens with a thermally cut hole. The aim is to
determine whether or not it is possible to apply this design class
(proposed for hole drilled or reamed) to steel holed components
that have been thermally cut. After analyzing design class D, it
can be stated that the fatigue design values are safe enough in
the finite life region and the amplitude fatigue limit is
∆σ (MPa)

extremely conservative, especially if it is compared with oxy-

fuel cutting and plasma cutting fatigue strength at the run out
level.
OXY-FUEL RESULTS 1000

PLASMA RESULTS

LASER RESULTS

OXY-FUEL S-N (50%)

PLASMA S-N (50%)

LASER S-N (50%)

100
∆σ (MPa)

10000 100000 1000000 10000000

CYCLES 100

FIG 11. S-N CURVES CORRESPONDING TO SPECIMENS OXY-FUEL RESULTS

WITH A CUT HOLE.
The fatigue fitting parameters (least squares) are PLASMA RESULTS
summarized in Table 5.
LASER RESULTS
TABLE 5. S-N CURVE FITTING PARAMETERS
logAmean m ∆𝛔𝐫𝐮𝐧−𝐨𝐮𝐭 CLASS D - MEAN
OXY-FUEL 15.89 4.28 187 MPa CLASS D - DESIGN
PLASMA 15.88 4.18 250 MPa 10
10000 100000 1000000 10000000
LASER 15.76 4.20 125 MPa
CYCLES
As shown in Figure 11, the fatigue performance of the
three thermal cutting methods is very similar in the finite FIG 12. COMPARISON BETWEEN EXPERIMENTAL
fatigue range, the fatigue resistance of the plasma cutting being RESULTS AND STANDARD CLASS D S-N CURVES.
slightly higher than that shown by the others. It should also be
added that all the best fit S-N curves have approximately the CONCLUSIONS
same value of the slope (≈4.2). As regards the fatigue strength Plasma cutting and laser cutting improve the fatigue
at the run out level, there are big differences depending on the performance of oxy-fuel cutting when dealing with straight cut-
thermal cutting method adopted: laser cutting exhibits a edges, especially in the fatigue strength at the run out level. As
significant reduction of this parameter, which reduces the regards the thermally cut hole, specimens with a plasma cut
plasma cut-hole run-out load by 50%; oxy-fuel cutting is also hole displays a better fatigue performance than that with an
observed to exhibit a drop in the fatigue strength by 25% in oxy-fuel or a laser cut hole. Particularly, this latter one reduces
comparison with plasma cut-hole run out load. The quality of considerably the fatigue strength at the run out level.
the cut surfaces shown in Figure 8 may provide an indication of The BS7608 – design class B curve, which is used in the
the resulting fatigue limit. The highest value of the fatigue limit design of components with straight oxy-fuel cut-edges
of plasma cutting may arise as a result of its smooth surface subsequently machined or ground smooth, could be adequate

7
for oxy-fuel cut straight edges (without machining), and it is [12] EN 1993-1-9, “Eurocode 3: Design of steel structural -
rather conservative for plasma and laser cut straight edges in Part 1-9”, European Committee for Standardization, Brussels,
the steel grade S690Q. 2005.
Finally, it has also been demonstrated that the fatigue [13] EN ISO 9013, “Thermal cutting – Classification of thermal
categories proposed by BS7608 for drilled and reamed holes cut – Geometrical product specification and quality tolerances”,
(design class D) could also be used for thermally cut holes in European Committee for Standardization, Brussels, 2004.
the steel grade S690Q. [14] Thomas D.J. Characterisation of steel cut edges for
improved fatigue property data estimations and enhanced CAE
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS durability. PhD Thesis, Materials Research Centre, School of
The authors of this work would like to express their Engineering, University of Wales, 2002.
gratitude to the European Union for the financial support of the [15] EN 1090-2:2011, “Execution of steel structures and
project HIPERCUT: “High Performance Cut Edges in aluminium structures - Part 2: Technical requirements for steel
Structural Steel Plates for Demanding Applications” (RSFR- structures”, European Committee for Standardization, Brussels,
CT- 2012-00027), on the results of which this paper is based. 2011.
[16] Schneider C.R.A., Maddox S. J. IIW-XIII-WG1-121r3-06,
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22056EN, Research Fund for Coal and Steel, 2003.
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Organization for Standardization, 2003.
[11] ASSHTO, “ASSHTO LRFD Bridge – Design
Specifications”, American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials, 2012.

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