ABSTRACT
Ultra-thin wearing course (UTWC) as an asphalt overlay is widely used in pavement maintenance for extending pavement service life. Researchers focused on improving and evaluating its performance, yet few researchers compare the performance of typical UTWCs. Moreover, some traditional asphalt mixture tests are improper for UTWC due to the thicknesses of UTWC, which is thinner than the traditional asphalt overlay. This study further evaluated the advantages and disadvantages of typical UTWCs. A series of tests were conducted to compare the comprehensive performance of three typical UWTC products, including SMA-10, Novachip-B, and GT-10. Moreover, this study improved the rutting test to evaluate its rutting performance more accurately. Rutting specimens of 20 mm thick and 50 mm thick composite specimens (20 mm UTWC + 30 mm Portland cement concrete slabs) were prepared. Two types of PCC slabs were used, including unprocessed PCC slabs and PCC slabs with preset cracks. The test results showed that Novachip-B showed the best water stability and weakest raveling resistance, while GT-10 showed the best fatigue and anti-skid performance. The rutting performance of UTWCs was reduced because of the influence of preset cracks. The rutting depth of GT-10 was only 60-90% of that of others, showing the comprehensive performance of GT-10 was better than that of others. These results provide a significant reference for the research and application of UTWC.
ABSTRACT
Curved texturing is an effective technique to improve the skid-resistance performance of concrete pavements, which relies on the suitable combination of the groove parameters. This study aims to optimize these parameters with the consideration of skid-resistance performance and driving stability. A pressure film was adopted to obtain the contact stress distribution at the tire-pavement interface. The evaluated indicator of the stress concentration coefficient was established, and the calculation method for the stationary steering resistance torque was optimized based on actual tire-pavement contact characteristics. Test samples with various groove parameters were prepared use self-design molds to evaluate the influence degree of each groove parameter at different levels on the skid-resistance performance through orthogonal and abrasion resistance tests. The results showed that the groove depth and groove spacing had the most significant influence on the stress concentration coefficient and stationary steering resistance torque, respectively, with the groove depth having the most significant influence on the texture depth. Moreover, the driving stability and durability of the skid-resistance performance could be balanced by optimizing the width of the groove group. After analyzing and comprehensively comparing the influences of various parameters, it was found the parameter combination with width, depth, spacing, and the groove group width, respectively, in 8 mm, 3 mm, 15 mm, and 50 mm can balance the skid-resistance performance and driving stability. The actual engineering results showed that the R2 of the fitting between the stress concentration coefficient and SFC (measured at 60 km/h) was 0.871, which proved the effectiveness of the evaluation index proposed in this paper.
ABSTRACT
The storage stability concern, caused by phase separation for the density difference between polymers and asphalt fractions, has limited the widespread application of polymer modified asphalt (PMA). Therefore, this study aims to improve the storage concern of PMA by incorporating nano-montmorillonite. To this end, different nano-montmorillonites were incorporated to three PMAs modified with three typical asphalt modifiers, i.e., crumb rubber (CRM), styrene-butadiene-rubber (SBR) and styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS). A series of laboratory tests were performed to evaluate the storage stability and rheological properties of PMA binders with nano-montmorillonite. As a consequence, the incorporation of nano-montmorillonite exhibited a remarkable effect on enhancing the storage stability of the CRM modified binder, but limited positive effects for the SBR and SBS modified binders. The layered nano-montmorillonite transformed to intercalated or exfoliated structures after interaction with asphalt fractions, providing superior storage stability. Among selected nano-montmorillonites, the pure montmorillonite with Hydroxyl organic ammonium performed the best on enhancing storage stability of PMA. This paper suggests that nano-montmorillonite is a promising modifier to alleviate the storage stability concern for asphalt with polymer modifiers.
ABSTRACT
Asphalt rubber (AR) is a sustainable paving material with merits including waste tire consumption, low traffic noise, and enhanced mechanical performance. However, the poor workability and storage stability limited its further application. This study attempted to alleviate these two concerns of AR simultaneously by incorporating heavy bio oil (HBO). To achieve this goal, bio-AR binders with three different mixing sequences were prepared. A series of rheological and chemical tests were conducted. Test results prove that the bio-AR binders exhibited superior rutting and fatigue resistance compared to AR binder. The viscosity values of bio-ARs were closed to AR modified with commercial warm mix additive, which indicates enhancement in workability. Due to the relatively high density of HBO, the density difference between the asphalt liquid phase and crumb rubber in the bio-AR system narrowed, which brought improved storage stability. Among bio-ARs prepared with different mixing sequences, the direct mixing one (ARB) had the most satisfied overall performance. The early incorporation of HBO had limited negative influence on binder performance, but allowed for more energy saving during the bio-AR binder production. Future study will be conducted on performance of bio-AR mixtures and quantitative estimation of its energy saving during the blending and compacting process.
ABSTRACT
Asphalt rubber (AR), which is prepared by blending crumb rubber and bitumen, provides various advantages, including superior rutting resistance, lower road-tire noise and longer service life. However, contractors have expressed concerns regarding its poor storage stability, which in turn limits its wider application. This study aims to address the storage stability concern by incorporating nano-montmorillonite (nanoclay). Three types of nanoclay were dispersed into hot AR binder by high shear blending. The rheological properties of nanoclay-crumb rubber modifier (CRM)-modified bitumen were evaluated through Superpave performance grade (PG) tests and the storage stability was characterized by measuring the difference in softening points or complex moduli at the top and bottom portions of binders after lab-simulated storage. X-ray diffraction (XRD) evaluation was conducted to observe the variation of nanoclay layer gap distance for mechanism investigation. It was found that all selected nanoclays had insignificant effects on workability, rutting and fatigue properties. The layered nanoclay transformed to intercalated or exfoliated structures after interaction with bitumen fractions, providing superior storage stability. Among the three selected nanoclays, pure montmorillonite with Na⺠inorganic group, which has an intermediate hydrophilic property and middle layer gap, showed the most obvious effect on enhancing the storage stability of AR.
ABSTRACT
Engineering performance of asphalt pavement highly depends on the properties of bitumen, the bonding material to glue aggregates and fillers together. During the service period, bitumen is exposed to sunlight, oxygen and vehicle loading which in turn leads to aging and degradation. A comprehensive understanding of the aging mechanism of bitumen is of critical importance to enhance the durability of asphalt pavement. This study aims to determine the relations between micro-mechanics, chemical composition, and macro-mechanical behavior of aged bitumen. To this end, the effect of aging on micro-mechanics, chemical functional groups, and rheological properties of bitumen were evaluated by atomic force microscope, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and dynamic shear rheometer tests, respectively. Results indicated that aging obviously increased the micro-surface roughness of bitumen. A more discrete distribution of micromechanics on bitumen micro-surface was noticed and its elastic behavior became more significant. Aging also resulted in raised content of carbonyl, sulfoxide, and aromatic ring functional groups. In terms of rheological behavior, the storage modulus of bitumen apparently increased after aging due to the transformation of viscous fractions to elastic fractions, making it stiffer and less viscous. By correlation analysis, it is noted that the bitumen rheological behavior was closely related to its micro-mechanics.
