Evening star., 1936-06-27
By S. r. WinferS.
Bureau of Public Roads of
the United States Department

the United States Department
of Agriculture is soon to have
a permanent research station
on the George Washington Memorial
Highway in Abingdon, Va.
Since 1914 the bureau has dreamed
of occupying permanent research
buildings and having model testing
grounds. This year the dream be-
comes a reality, for the Government
plans to start building the Abingdon
Research Station this Summer.
For 26 years the bureau has been
established in Arlington on land desig-
mated for the War Department. The
buildings there are temporary, make
shift, frame structures and are in
adequate for efficient experiments
ton.
The new location for the testing
grounds is very picturesque. The acre
age Of the new buildings is part of the
15-nlile stretch of land adjacent to
the historic Mount. Vernon home
which has been bought by the Gov
ernment This land was purchased
with intention of preserving the
beauty of the surroundings, and with
the deliberate plan of frustrating any
attempt to obtain the land that might
be made by industrial exploiters ia
voring the location near the national
shrine, In keeping with the sur
roundings, three spacious, dignifed,
Colonial buildings, whose design has
been approved by the Fine Arts Com
mission, will form a neat group of
structures on the highwy along the
Potomac shore.
When the testing plant is COM
pleted, the United States will boast
the most outstanding highway re-
search station in the world. New
eqipment, designed with view to per-
manency, will be added. Each build
ing has been planned to accommodate
the specific type of research that it
will house There will be a special
building for bituminous and subgrade
investigation; another for concrete.
structural and non-bituminous studies.
and the third building will contain the
machine and carpenter shops, where
apparatus will be made and tested.
The most modern system Of air-condi-
tioning will be used in those rooms
where temperature is important in the
testing OF road materials. There will
be several outdoor testing tracks for
the purpose of studying the behavior of
concrete under a series Of varia le
conditions
THE outdoor tracks are Of special
value in the study of road -buj. =
ing. Modern roads do not wear out
as a result Of the grinding action
OF autos on high top surfaces. De-
terioration Of pavement results mainly
from the workings Of the forces of
nature. Testing teaches what these
forces are, and what composition of
concrete best checks their action. The
element Of time is important in a
study Of the effect Of natural condi-
tions on paved roads. The outdoor
tests Will be applied to a study Of ma
lures forces for a period of years
The bureau viii work with several
different types Of surfaces and viii
nave adequate means of testing each
as result Of careful, technical study.
The main Job of the Bureau of Pub
lie Roads Is TO see that Federal funds
appropriated for highways are properly
spent. In order TO carry out this OBJ
3ective conscientiously. it is necessary
Tor the bureau TO engage in research
The United States has the greatest
network Of roads in the world High
ways are constantly being Quilt and re-
built. Each year brings new improve
ment in road building Methods of
highway construction nave been devel-
oped largely within the last Is years.
Each year travel is smoother and safer.
The finer, more durable surfaces have
been achieved through experiments
and laboratory work.
The increase of compreSSive strength
illustrates the vast improvements in
road making that can be brought about
through laboratory testing. From
1915 TO 1920 a eompTeSsiye strength in
concrete of 1000 pounds per square
inch and less was most frequent. En-
gineers today require strengths of at
least 5000 pounds per square inch, and.
occasionally, they see fit to use
strengths up TO 1000.
This great gain in strength, which
means a great financial saving. was
made by no single discovery. Engineers
decided on the final composition OF
concrete as a result of technical re-
ports based on thousands OF careful
tests. r. E. Royal, senior highway
engineer Of the Bureau Of Public Roads,
says: Mixing concrete is like mixing