Different Forms of Asphaltene Microstructures Discovered in Transmission Electron Microscopy
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 28, Issue 11
Abstract
Two forms of microstructures in different types of asphaltenes and asphalt binder samples were discovered by using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The first type of the microstructures is needle-shaped with a crystalline structure, while the second type is plate-shaped without a regular pattern. The size of the microstructures ranges from a few nanometers to several micrometers. The microstructures are more prevalent in field-aged asphalt binder and asphaltenes samples than those in nonaged ones. Experimental results indicate that both forms of microstructures are not made of wax, but asphaltenes molecules. The two forms of asphaltenes microstructures differ in morphology, microscopic structure, chemical composition, and resistance to electron radiation damage, indicating that they are formed by different mechanisms and have different physicochemical properties. Both types of microstructures also show thermal stability at elevated temperatures. The prevalence, size, and shape of the microstructures in field-aged asphalt binder may impart significant impacts on binder engineering properties in pavement use as well as its behaviors in recycling or rejuvenation. Hence, the microstructures are believed to be the key to understanding asphalt binder aging, aging control/reversal methods. More studies are needed to investigate the newly found microstructures.
Get full access to this article
View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.
Acknowledgments
This study has been financially supported by the Blue-Sky Research Scheme of the Research Institute for Sustainable Urban Development (RISUD), The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
References
Adobe Photoshop CS5 [Computer software]. Adobe Systems, San Jose, CA.
Akbarzadeh, K., et al. (2007). “Asphaltenes—Problematic but rich in potential.” Oilfield Rev., 19(2), 22–43.
ASTM. (2009). “Standard test method for separation of asphalt into four fractions.” ASTM D4124-09, West Conshohocken, PA.
ASTM. (2011). “Standard test methods for quantitative extraction of bitumen from bituminous paving mixtures.” ASTM D2172/D2172M-11, West Conshohocken, PA.
BSI (British Standards Institution). (2005). “Bituminous mixtures—Test methods for hot mix asphalt—Part 3: Bitumen recovery—Rotary evaporator.” EN 12697-3:2005, London.
Camacho-Bragado, G. A., et al. (2002). “Fullerenic structures derived from oil asphaltenes.” Carbon, 40(15), 2761–2766.
Corbett, L. W. (1969). “Composition of asphalt based on generic fractionation using solvent deasphalteneing, elution-adsorption chromatography and densiometric characterization.” Anal. Chem., 41(4), 576–579.
Dickie, J. P., and Yen, T. F. (1967). “Macrostrucutres of asphaltic fractions by various instrumental methods.” Anal. Chem., 39(14), 1847–1852.
Dittmar, T. (2008). “The molecular level determination of black carbon in marine dissolved organic matter.” Org. Geochem., 39(4), 396–407.
Jennings, D. W., and Weispfennig, K. (2005). “Experimental solubility data of various n-alkane waxes: Effects of alkane chain length, alkane odd versus even carbon number structures, and solvent chemistry on solubility.” Fluid Phase Equilib., 227(1), 27–35.
Jones, D. R. (1993). “SHRP materials reference library: Asphalt concrete: A concise data compilation.”, Strategic Highway Research Program, National Research Council, Washington, DC.
Kelland, M. A. (2014). Production chemicals for the oil and gas industry, 2nd ed., CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Lin, J. R., and Yen, T. F. (1993). “An upgrading process through cavitation and surfactant.” Energy Fuels, 7(1), 111–118.
Liu, M., Chaffin, J. M., Davison, R. R., Glover, C. J., and Bullin, J. A. (1998). “Changes in Corbett fraction composition during oxidation of asphalt fractions.” Transp. Res. Rec., 1638, 40–46.
Lu, X., Langton, M., Oloffs, P., and Redelius, P. (2005). “Wax morphology in bitumen.” J. Mater. Sci., 40(8), 1893–1900.
Mansoori, G. A., Barnes, H. L., and Webster, G. M. (2003). “Petroleum waxes, in fuels and lubricants handbook: Technology, properties, performance, and testing.” ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA.
Mullins, O. C. (2010). “The modified Yen model.” Energy Fuels, 24(4), 2179–2207.
Murgich, J., Jesús, R. M., and Aray, Y. (1996). “Molecular recognition and molecular mechanics of micelles of some model asphaltenes and resins.” Energy Fuels, 10(1), 68–76.
Nath, G., Tripathy, A., and Paikaray, R. (2015). “Ultrasonic study on solvent dewaxing process of crude petroleum oil.” Int. J. Sci. Res., 22(24), 275–277.
NIIR Board of Consultants and Engineers. (2006). “The complete technology book on wax and polishes.” Asia Pacific Business Press, Kamla Nagar, Delhi, India.
Pauli, A. T., Grimes, R. W., Beemer, A. G., Turner, T. F., and Branthaver, J. F. (2011). “Morphology of asphalts, asphalt fractions and model wax-doped asphalts studied by atomic force microscopy.” Int. J. Pavement Eng., 12(4), 291–309.
Petersen, J. C. (2009). “A review of the fundamentals of asphalt oxidation– chemical, physicochemical, physical property and durability relationships.”, Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC.
Provost, E., Chevallier, V., Bouroukba, M., Petitjean, D., and Dirand, M. (1998). “Solubility of some n-alkanes (C23.C25.C26.C28) in heptane, methylcyclohexane, and toluene.” J. Chem. Eng. Data, 43(5), 745–749.
Ruan, Y., Davison, R. R., and Glover, C. J. (2003). “An investigation of asphalt durability: Relationships between ductility and rheological properties for unmodified asphalts.” Pet. Sci. Technol., 21(1&2), 231–254.
Sharma, A., and Mullins, O. C. (2007). “Insights into molecular and aggregate structures of asphaltenes using HRTEM.” Asphaltenes, heavy oils, and petroleomics, O. C. Mullins, E. Y. Sheu, A. Hammami, and A. G. Marshall, eds., Springer, New York.
Trejo, F., Ancheyta, J., and Rana, M. S. (2009). “Structural characterization of asphaltenes obtained from hydroprocessed crude oils by SEM and TEM.” Energy Fuels, 23(1), 429–439.
Wang, Y., et al. (2015). “Effects of aging on the properties of asphalt at the nanoscale.” Constr. Build. Mater., 80, 244–254.
Wang, Y., Wen, Y., Zhao, K., Chong, D., and Wei, J. (2014). “Connections between the rheological and chemical properties of long-term aged asphalt binders.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng., 04014248.
Wang, Y., and Zhao, K. (2015). “The analysis of nanoscale microstructures in asphalts of different aging states.” J. Mater. Civ. Eng., 04015090.
Williams, D. B., and Carter, C. B. (2009). Transmission electron microscope: A textbook for materials science, 2nd Ed., Springer, New York.
Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 28 • Issue 11 • November 2016
Copyright
© 2016 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 17, 2015
Accepted: Apr 5, 2016
Published online: Jun 15, 2016
Published in print: Nov 1, 2016
Discussion open until: Nov 15, 2016
Authors
Metrics & Citations
Metrics
Citations
Download citation
If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.