Deployment Support and Caltrans’ Implementation of the Sealzall Machine

The Advanced Highway Maintenance and Construction Technology (AHMCT) Research Center, in partnership with the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) have successfully completed a multi-year research effort to develop the Sealzall prototype high production crack sealing machine. The goal of the project was to provide Caltrans maintenance with original equipment, which could dramatically increase highway sealing production rates as well as radically improving worker safety on the highway. The Sealzall prototype has succcessfully completed a one year field trial operated by Caltrans' District 11 maintenance crews sealing longitudinal pavement cracks on various highways, across a wide range of environments district wide. The Sealzall sealant kettle heat-up and sealing systems are fully automated and can be monitored and controlled from inside the truck's cab. The longitudinal sealing operation requires only a single operator who controls the entire sealing operation while driving the truck at a continous 2-5 mph in a moving lane closure. Caltrans workers are not on foot or exposed to direct highway traffic while on the highway. Using the Sealzall, Caltrans has consistently sealed 5-8 linear miles of edge joints a day, and the Sealzall machine can be utilized to yield up to $4.0 million dollars in cost savings annually as described in the Sealzall cost benefit analysis contained in this report. The Sealzall machine can also be used to seal in-lane and random pavement cracks with a traditional manual sealing operation in a stationary lane closure. The current status of the Sealzall machine is described in detail in this report along with various potential strategies which could be utilized to further development of this equipment and continue deployment with Caltrans Maintenance crews.