Determination of SMA Slab Properties Using a Newly Developed Roller Compactor (Turamesin)

Compaction of asphalt mixtures in the laboratory is critical to meaningful results. Over the years several compactors were development to closely simulate field compaction. However, none of the devices or equipment was found to effectively compact asphalt mixtures. Therefore, a new automatic roller compactor (Turamesin) was developed which is able to compact any asphalt mixtures to the required slab thickness and density. The machine was developed by researchers from the Universiti Putra Malaysia under the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation. In this study Stone Mastic Asphalt (SMA) mixture was selected. The study was carried out in order to establish criteria for slab compaction and explore the potential of the newly developed Turamesin for use in SuperPave mix designs. A total of nine slabs were prepared with different combination of compactive efforts. Data was collected and analyzed to determine the appropriate values of the compactive efforts that results in optimum performance of the asphalt mixture. It was observed that to compact slabs of asphalt mixture to a design air void of 4%, a compactive effort of applied pressure of 8.0 kgf/cm², and 75 passes of roller were required.