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    <copyright>Copyright © 2026. National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.</copyright>
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    <managingEditor>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</managingEditor>
    <webMaster>tris-trb@nas.edu (Bill McLeod)</webMaster>
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      <title>Research in Progress (RIP)</title>
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      <title>The Use of Recycled Plastic in Concrete Pavements - Phase II</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2685709</link>
      <description><![CDATA[Phase 1 of this Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT)-funded study provided the first feasibility study of incorporating recycled plastic aggregates (RPA) and recycled plastic fibers (RPF) into concrete. Early findings indicated that incorporating up to 10% RPA or 1.5% RPF did not compromise key fresh and mechanical properties such as slump, air content, compressive strength, splitting tensile strength, or modulus of rupture in comparison with the control mix (47B concrete). In fact, compressive strength values at 28 days exceeded 4,500 psi across tested mixtures. Furthermore, semi-circular bending (SCB) fracture testing revealed substantial improvements in ductility and fracture energy as ductility indices increased by as much as 135% for RPA and up to 225% for RPF mixtures, while fracture energy rose by 14– 45% for RPA and 47–147% for RPF mixtures. These results confirm the potential of recycled plastic to reduce crack propagation, enhance energy absorption, and improve overall structural resilience. Such improvements are particularly promising for paving applications, which must be able to withstand heavy traffic loads without cracking.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:23:14 GMT</pubDate>
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      <title>Validation of SCB Jc Prediction Model and Aging Correction Factor</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/2404031</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of the proposed study is to validate the SCB Jc prediction model and aging correction factor concept developed as part of LTRC Project 19-4B - 	Implementation of Semi Circular Bend Test for QC/QA of Asphalt Mixtures.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 17 Jul 2024 09:48:50 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/2404031</guid>
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      <title>Development of a Cyclic Semi-Circular Bend Test to Evaluate Asphalt Mixture Crack Propagation Properties at Intermediate Temperature</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1765419</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objectives of this study are to acquire and set up the digital image correlation system that is optimized for deformation and crack propagation measurements in asphalt concrete testing; and to develop a standard cyclic semi-circular bend (SCB) test method coupled with the digital image correlation (DIC) technique for identification of fatigue crack propagation properties of asphalt concrete.
In order to achieve the objectives, three asphalt mixtures will be designed and used for sample preparation, which are expected to clearly exhibit different fatigue crack propagation resistance. The DIC system will be set up and optimized for displacement measurement and crack path identification with minimal noise interference. Various specimen thickness and notch depth are expected to be investigated to find an optimal dimension that yields reasonable results with the lowest test variability per material composition. The test data from the finalized specimen dimension and optimized DIC setup will be processed to obtain the crack propagation relationships and determine the fatigue lives of asphalt mixtures.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 26 Jan 2021 10:55:56 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1765419</guid>
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      <title>Implementation of Semi-Circular Bend (SCB) Test for QC/QA of Asphalt Mixtures</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1631601</link>
      <description><![CDATA[The objective of this study is to develop a specification for the implementation of the semi-circular bend (SCB) test in the field quality control/quality assurance (QC/QA) phases of production and construction of asphalt mixtures.  A scaling factor will be developed to predict the LTA SCB Jc values from plant-produced unconditioned SCB Jc.  In this process, the research team expects to explore and obtain a scaling model for Jc, a relationship between Jc and the aging state of the mixture that is traced by a set of rheological and chemical aging indices.
To achieve the objective of this study, a minimum of 15 field projects throughout the State with a good plant record of mixture consistency will be identified and selected.  The selected projects are expected to encompass a range of material types (virgin and recycled; modified and unmodified asphalt binders, limestone and gravel, etc.) and volumetrics.  The plant-produced loose mixtures as well as extracted cores from field compacted layers will be collected and evaluated in this study.  The Laboratory Compacted (LC) and Field Compacted (FC) samples will be conditioned to obtain a series of progressive aging intensities and then evaluated using the SCB test; Table 1.  For each mixture (both LC and FC) with each aging condition, the asphalt binder will be extracted and evaluated with respect to its rheological and chemical characteristics.  The rheological binder testing under consideration includes performance grading, frequency sweep at multiple temperatures, Multiple Stress Creep and Recovery (MSCR), and Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) tests.  The chemical evaluation is aimed to examine the shift of molecular components because of progressive aging using Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC) and Saturate, Aromatic, Resin and Asphaltene (SARA) analysis, and changes in the functional group through Fourrier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy technique.  Table 1 presents the candidate-testing matrix for each mixture and extracted binder.
]]></description>
      <pubDate>Tue, 18 Jun 2019 12:20:20 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1631601</guid>
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    <item>
      <title>PPRC14 SPE 4.50: Performance-Related Specifications for Rubberized Asphalt Binder</title>
      <link>https://rip.trb.org/View/1441815</link>
      <description><![CDATA[This is a continuation of Task 2558 to develop supporting data/information for the writing of performance related Quality Control/Quality Assurance (QC/QA) specifications for mix design and mix placement of terminal blend and wet process asphalt rubber mixes.  This project will use recently developed dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) test methods for assessing rubber binders and will include laboratory mix tests and field evaluations on new and recent projects.  The project will also investigate potential changes in bending beam rheometer (BBR) test procedures for binders containing rubber.]]></description>
      <pubDate>Wed, 04 Jan 2017 10:53:19 GMT</pubDate>
      <guid>https://rip.trb.org/View/1441815</guid>
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