Low-Temperature Performance Evaluation of Recycled Binder Blends for Assessing Recycling Agents’ Acceptance
Publication: Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 36, Issue 9
Abstract
The use of high contents of recycled materials in asphalt mixtures has an adverse effect on the low-temperature cracking performance of these mixtures if not accounted for properly due to the high stiffness and poor relaxation properties of the reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) binder. This concern has driven some to suggest using recycling agents (RAs) in the asphalt mixture to restore the rheological properties of the RAP binder without compromising the short- and long-term performance of the mixture. However, the relationships between RA type and dosage, virgin and RAP binder characteristics, and low-temperature properties, i.e., creep stiffness and -value, need to be investigated further to assess the acceptance of RAs. In this study, 26 recycled binder blends from a combination of three virgin binders, four RAP sources, and eight RAs were used to study these relationships. First, the use of a method based on the dynamic shear rheometer to predict low-temperature properties of recycled binder blends successfully is demonstrated. Second, a linear relationship is found to exist between the low-temperature properties and RA dosage of these blends. Third, a parameter based on low-temperature properties is proposed to select an RA that yields a balance in the stiffness and relaxation properties of the recycled binder blends. Fourth, a conceptual framework is proposed to assess the acceptance of RAs based on low-temperature performance-related parameters.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code that supports the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank Zhe “Alan” Zeng (North Carolina State University) for providing the LVE interconversion software and Youngsoo Richard Kim (North Carolina State University) for useful discussions. This research was supported by the Virginia Transportation Research Council (the research division of the Virginia Department of Transportation) under Grant UPC 117566 and by the North Carolina Department of Transportation under NCDOT RP 2020-16. The contents of the paper reflect the views of the authors and not necessarily the views of the North Carolina or Virginia Department of Transportation. Any errors are the fault of the authors.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Materials in Civil Engineering
Volume 36 • Issue 9 • September 2024
Copyright
© 2024 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 6, 2023
Accepted: Feb 9, 2024
Published online: Jun 18, 2024
Published in print: Sep 1, 2024
Discussion open until: Nov 18, 2024
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Aging (material)
- Asphalt pavements
- Binders (material)
- Deterioration
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Infrastructure
- Material mechanics
- Material properties
- Materials characterization
- Materials engineering
- Measurement (by type)
- Mixtures
- Pavements
- Recycling
- Temperature effects
- Temperature measurement
- Transportation engineering
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