[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 83 (Monday, May 2, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-10387]


[[Page Unknown]]

[Federal Register: May 2, 1994]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
 

Availability of Solicitation for Center of Excellence (COE) in 
Airport Pavement Research

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of an open solicitation of aviation 
research grant proposals to establish an FAA Center of Excellence in 
Airport Pavement Research. The FAA is responsible for developing 
standards for airport pavement design, evaluation, and maintenance. 
Together with the airport operators and industry, the FAA spends nearly 
$2 billion annually for airport construction and maintenance. Plans for 
the introduction of new, larger, and heavier aircraft weighing more 
than a million pounds have necessitated a re-examination of the current 
pavement design methodologies. The COE for pavement research will 
assist the FAA to develop advanced design methodologies which are 
validated through full-scale testing. The FAA grant award will provide 
long-term funding to establish and operate the COE in support of 
pavement research.
    The grant recipient is required to match FAA funds with non-Federal 
funding over the term of the grant.

DATES: Solicitation packages may be obtained by contacting the COE 
Program Manager. The closing date for submitting final proposals is 
June 8, 1994.

ADDRESSES: Contact Ms. Patricia Watts, The Office of Research and 
Technology Applications, ACL, Building 270, Atlantic City International 
Airport, New Jersey, 08405, telephone (609) 485-5043 or (609) 485-5901, 
Fax number (609) 485-6509 or (609) 485-4020.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FAA intends to award a grant to 
establish a Center of Excellence in Airport Pavement Research at a 
qualified college or university. The Center will conduct basic research 
in four major areas: modeling of airport pavement structures, 
constitutive behavior of payment materials, material characterization 
and new technologies in pavement evaluation.

Eligibility

    Colleges and universities are eligible for grants to establish a 
Center of Excellent in Airport Pavement Research. The FAA is seeking to 
ensure an equitable geographical distribution of funds and to encourage 
the inclusion of minority institutions.

Matching Funds Requirement

    A Center of Excellence receives funding annually in the form of 
single or multiple continuing research grants over a three year period. 
The Federal Government provides 50 percent of the cost to establish and 
operate a Center of Excellence. The institution must show a continuing 
source of non-Federal matching funds available for the remaining 
research and operational expenses at the Center. Once the COE is 
established, a fiscal year declaring the source and amount of funding 
and expenditures must be submitted for review every 6 months to The 
Office of Research and Technology Applications at the FAA Technical 
Center. A full review and grant close-out takes place at the conclusion 
of each three-year phase.
    The Center of Excellence and the agency shall agree upon the 
maximum expected costs in each fiscal year. Any cost incurred in excess 
of the maximum costs agreed upon with the agency shall be the sole 
obligation of the Center of Excellence.
    The Center of Excellence is expected to account for all funds 
granted and matched, utilized to establish, operate, and conduct the 
specified research activities of the Center of Excellence.

Maintenance of Effort and Center Operations

    A Center of Excellence is required to maintain its aggregate 
expenditures from all other sources for establishing and operating a 
Center of Excellence and related research activities at or above the 
average level of such expenditures in its 2 fiscal years preceding 
November 5, 1990. The establishment of a Center of Excellence is 
intended to augment the level of aviation research activities at the 
institution.
    The Center of Excellence must maintain a close working relationship 
with the corresponding agency research program office. This 
relationship extends to participation in conferences, meetings, joint 
research efforts, and submission of significant activity reports to the 
FAA on a routine basis. The COE prepares quarterly and semi-annual 
reports, and a fully inclusive annual report on research projects and 
fiscal expenditures, and hosts an on-site review of all research 
activities.
    The FAA may require the COE to hold an annual joint symposium with 
the agency on topics relating to the status and results of the 
designated technology area. Researchers at the COE may serve as 
consultants by providing technical advice to the sponsoring agency 
program office. They may also be asked to participate on major planning 
and investigative committees related to airport pavement technology.
    The COE will be selected on the basis of the following criteria:

--The extent to which the needs of the State in which the applicant is 
located are representative of the needs of the region for improved air 
transportation services and facilities.
--The demonstrated research and extension resources available to the 
applicant for carrying out the intent of the legislation.
--The capability of the applicant to provide leadership in making 
national and regional contributions to the solution of both long-range 
and immediate air transportation problems.
--The extent to which the applicant has an established air 
transportation program.
--The demonstrated ability of the applicant to disseminate results of 
air transportation research and educational programs through a 
statewide or regionwide continuing education program.
--The research projects that the applicant proposes to carry out under 
the grant.

Research Area

    Aircraft technology has made giant strides in the past thirty years 
by successfully incorporating advances made in a host of other 
technologies. These advanced technologies include composite materials, 
high temperature alloys, inertial navigation, fly-by-wire controls, and 
other areas where the performance and economics could be improved in 
even the smallest increments.
    In comparison, airport pavement technologies have advanced little 
during this time. Current design methods for asphalt and concrete 
pavements for airports use unrelated theories that cannot be applied 
when combinations of these materials are used. This is a commonly 
encountered problem that can only be resolved by using equivalency 
factors, which are judgmentally chosen. This approach to the design of 
airport pavements must be replaced with a common methodology based on 
sound theoretical principles and test validated models. We must take 
advantage of enhanced computational abilities to provide the 
flexibility of dealing with the various permutations of complex landing 
gear configurations that must be analyzed with each new proposed 
aircraft design. The aircraft will have different types of landing gear 
layouts that are quite different from current ones, with more wheels on 
each landing gear strut, and the struts closely spaced around the 
center of the aircraft.
    The current FAA pavement design and evaluation methodologies need 
to be improved for analyzing and airport pavement response and 
requirements of new aircraft, such as the triple tandem Boeing B-777 
and much heavier models reaching 1.3 million pounds. As a result of 
this new methodology, the FAA will be able to deal more efficiently 
with aircraft manufactures, the airlines, and airport owners. These key 
players of the aerospace industry all require an FAA and International 
Civil Aviation Organization sanctioned procedure for estimating 
pavement response because it is critical in selling aircraft, in 
planning new airline route and services, and in protecting the billions 
of dollars already invested in airport pavements. Delays in resolving 
these problems will jeopardize the smooth introduction of new large 
aircraft. Pavement structure is basically a composite system consisting 
of asphalt, concrete, and soils of various types. This system exhibits 
viscoelastic, inelastic, brittle, and plastic behavior when subjected 
to moving wheel loads. Mechanics of pavement failure and methodology to 
predict pavement life, particularly when the new generations of 
aircraft are introduced, are not known. Development of new methodology 
requires fundamental analyses and pavement evaluation.

Who May Apply

    1. Colleges and universities may submit proposals for grant awards 
to establish and operate the COE in Airport Pavement Research.
    2. Individuals are not eligible for a DOE designation and do not 
qualify for grants under this program.
    3. Before final proposal submission, the proposal may be discussed 
with the Center of Excellence Program Manager, Ms. Patricia Watts, in 
the Office of Research and Technology Applications, ACL-1, at (609) 
485-5043/(609) 485-5901 or FAX (609) 485-6509/(609) 485-4020.

Award Date

    The final selection of the Center of Excellence in Airport Pavement 
Research Technology will be announced by the Administrator by September 
30.

    Issued in Atlantic County, New Jersey on April 15, 1994.
Lonni Czekalski,
Deputy Director, FAA Technical Center.
[FR Doc. 94-10387 Filed 4-29-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-M