Evaluate Effects of Recycled Asphalt Pavement (RAP) on Performance-Graded (PG) Binder Polymer Concentration

Polymer additives are used to design high performance-graded (PG) virgin binders that meet the PG requirements to protect the mix against rutting and cracking under the climate and traffic conditions of a hot-mix asphalt (HMA) project. When recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) is added to the mixture, the effective binder may not meet the desired grade. This project will quantify the extent to which polymer dilution is a problem that should be addressed in the Texas Department of Transportation's (TxDOT's) HMA specifications and if so, develop specification language to address it. This project involves evaluating binder blends and mixtures with RAP. Both lab blended and commercial PG binders will be evaluated for continuous grade, elasticity, polymer content, and other rheological parameters. Then these binders will be mixed with recovered RAP binders at several percentages and retested to determine the same properties. Standard mixtures(s) will also be used with several of these binders and various RAP percentages to measure mixture performance-related properties (cracking and rutting). The research team will use the results from binder and mixture results on the impact of "virgin binder – RAP binder dilution" and work with the TxDOT to develop specification language for inclusion in TxDOT's HMA specifications, as needed.

• Record URL:
  https://library.ctr.utexas.edu/Presto/project=0-7197

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $593006
• Contract Numbers:

  0-7197

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Texas Department of Transportation

  125 E. 11th Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78701-2483
• Managing Organizations:

  Texas Department of Transportation

  125 E. 11th Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78701-2483
• Project Managers:

  Schwerdt, Tom

• Performing Organizations:

  Center for Transportation Research

  3925 W. Braker Lane
  Austin, TX  United States  78759

  Texas Transportation Institute

  Texas A&M University System
  3135 TAMU
  College Station, TX  United States  77843-3135
• Principal Investigators:

  Bhasin, Amit

• Start Date: 20231006
• Expected Completion Date: 20260228
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Asphalt additives; Asphalt pavements; Binders; Hot mix asphalt; Mix design; Pavement performance; Polymer asphalt; Reclaimed asphalt pavements; Recycled materials; Rheological properties; Specifications
• Geographic Terms: Texas
• Subject Areas: Design; Highways; Materials; Pavements;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01916896
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Texas Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: 0-7197
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Apr 26 2024 10:16AM