Predictive modelling of volumetric and Marshall properties of asphalt mixtures modified with waste tire-derived char:A statistical neural network approach

The goals of this study are to assess the viability of waste tire-derived char(WTDC)as a sustainable,low-cost fine aggregate surrogate material for asphalt mixtures and to develop the statistically coupled neural network(SCNN)model for predicting volumetric and Marshall properties of asphalt mixtures modified with WTDC.The study is based on experimental data acquired from laboratory volumetric and Marshall properties testing on WTDCmodified asphalt mixtures(WTDC-MAM).The input variables comprised waste tire char content and asphalt binder content.The output variables comprised mixture unit weight,total voids,voids filled with asphalt,Marshall stability,and flow.Statistical coupled neural networks were utilized to predict the volumetric and Marshall properties of asphalt mixtures.For predictive modeling,the SCNN model is employed,incorporating a three-layer neural network and preprocessing techniques to enhance accuracy and reliability.The optimal network architecture,using the collected dataset,was a 2:6:5 structure,and the neural network was trained with 60%of the data,whereas the other 20%was used for cross-validation and testing respectively.The network employed a hyperbolic tangent(tanh)activation function and a feed-forward backpropagation.According to the results,the network model could accurately predict the volumetric and Marshall properties.The predicted accuracy of SCNN was found to be as high value>98%and low prediction errors for both volumetric and Marshall properties.This study demonstrates WTDC's potential as a low-cost,sustainable aggregate replacement.The SCNN-based predictive model proves its efficiency and versatility and promotes sustainable practices.

Long-term performance of recycled asphalt mixtures containing high RAP and RAS

The application of reclaimed asphalt pavement(RAP)and reclaimed asphalt shingles(RAS)on asphalt pavement can reduce the asphalt paving cost,conserve energy and protect the environment.However,the use of high contents of RAP and RAS in asphalt pavement may lead to durability issues,especially the fatigue cracking and thermal cracking.It is necessary to conduct a series of analyses on asphalt mixtures containing high RAP and RAS,and seek methods to enhance their long-term performance.This paper provides a comprehensive over-view of the long-term performance of recycled asphalt mixtures containing high contents of RAP and RAS.The findings in this research show that rutting resistance of high recycled asphalt mixtures is not a concern,whereas their resistance to fatigue and thermal cracking is not conclusive.Recycling agents can be used to improve the thermal cracking resistance of high recycled asphalt mixtures.An optimum decision on recycling agents will improve the durability properties of high recycled asphalt mixtures.It is recommended that to use a balanced mixture design approach with testing of the blended asphalt binders will provide better understanding of long-term performance of recycled asphalt mixtures containing high RAP and RAS.

Laboratory evaluation of epoxy resin modified asphalt mixtures

The pavement performance of epoxy resin modified asphalt mixtures was investigated by the Marshall test, the indirect tensile test, the rutting test, the three-pointed bending test and the composite beam fatigue test. In comparison with the performance of epoxy resin modified asphalt mixtures, the performance of stone matrix asphalt mixtures （SMA10） was also investigated. The rutting test and composite beam fatigue test results show that the epoxy resin modified asphalt mixtures can improve permanent deformation and fatigue characteristics. They also show lower temperature susceptibility and greater resistance to moisture damage compared to the SMA10. Findings from the research indicate that the epoxy resin modified asphalt mixture provides an optional material for the pavement of long-span steel bridges in China due to profound performance and economic advantages.

Relationship between repeated triaxial test and Hamburg wheel tracking test on asphalt mixtures

Both the repeated triaxial test （RTT） and the Hamburg wheel tracking test （HWTT） are adopted to evaluate the high temperature performance of the stone mastic asphalt （SMA） and the mastic asphalt （MA）. The correlation of the permanent deformations of the MA and the correlation of the deformation developments of the SMA between the two tests are analyzed, respectively. Results show that both the two tests can effectively identify the high temperature performance of mixtures, and the correlation between the final results of the two tests as well as that between the deformation developments of the two tests are excellent with R20.9. In order to further prove the correlation, viscoelastic parameters estimated from the RTT results is used to simulate the rutting development in the HWTT slabs by the finite element method （FEM）. Results indicate that the correlation between the two tests is significant with errors less than 10%. It is suitable to predict the rutting development with the viscoelastic parameters obtained from the RTT.

Evaluation of modification effect of epoxy resin based on performance of asphalt mixtures

Based on the analysis of the main failures discovered in pavement on steel deck plate and the demanding service condition of the pavement on steel deck, high-temperature rutting test, low-temperature bending test and controlled stress flexural fatigue test are used to study the performance of asphalt mixtures modified by epoxy resin including high-temperature stability, low-temperature cracking-resistance, and fatigue cracking-resistance, which are served to evaluate the modification effect of epoxy resin of different contents. With the addition of epoxy resin, all the three performances are improved greatly. However, when the amount of epoxy resin added is over a certain value, the modification effect will be stable with no extra benefit detected. Finally, in terms of the properties of the three respects, 20%, 30%, 30% are given separately as the proposal adding contents.

Evaluation of fracture properties of epoxy asphalt mixtures by SCB test

The fracture properties of epoxy asphalt mixtures （EAM） are evaluated based on J-integral and ultimate strength. Totally 60 semi-circular bending （SCB）specimens cored from superpave gyratory compactor （SGC）with three groups of notch depths are tested at the temperature of - 10 and 20 ℃. The experimental results reveal good repeatability in EAM characterization. The tensile strength ratio of SCB to the indirect tensile test （IDT） is at a range of 1.4 to 1.7, and the ultimate strength of EAM is exponentially dependent on the notch depths. At the test temperatures, the critical J-integral value of EAM is much higher than that of hot mix asphalt（ HMA） with thermoplastic asphalt binder. The response mode of EAM changes from ductile mode to brittle mode and the fracture energy increases 30% when temperature decreases from 20 to - 10℃, while its critical J-integral value decreases only 15%. It is concluded that EAM has better fracture resistance than thermo-plastic HMA; more fracture energy is needed to initiate cracks in EAM at low temperature, and the cracks propagate more rapidly than at room temperature.

Effects of polyphosphoric acid modified asphalt on the low-temperature cracking of asphalt mixtures

In order to determine whether polyphosphoric acid （PPA） can partially or completely substitute styrene-butadiene- styrene （SBS） modifier while it does not adversely affect the resistance to thermal cracking of the asphalt mixture, the low- temperature fracture properties of the PPA modified mixtures are evaluated and compared to the SBS modified mixtures. First, laboratory compacted test samples were tested by the indirect tensile test （IDT） and the newly developed fracture testing protocol, named as disk-shaped compact tension （DCT）. Then, the effects of the test temperature and air-void ratio on the low-temperature fracture properties of asphalt mixtures were analyzed. The results show that the fracture resistance of the PPA modified mixtures is worse than that of the SBS modified mixtures. However, for those modified mixtures that use the PPA substituting part of the SBS modifier, a relatively low-temperature fracture resistance can be obtained compared with the mixture only using the SBS modifier.

Evaluation of fatigue property of asphalt mixtures based on digital image correlation method

In order to evaluate the accumulative of tensile strain in the process of fatigue failure, the digital image correlation（DIC） method was utilized to characterize the tensile strain development of asphalt mixtures in the indirect tensile（IDT）fatigue test. Three typical hot mix asphalt（HMA） mixtures with varying nominal maximum aggregate sizes were tested at four stress levels. During the tests, a digital camera was mounted to capture the displacement/strain fields on the surface of the specimen by recording the real-time change of speckle position. The results indicate that the vertical deformation curve can barely evaluate the fatigue performance accurately due to the non-negligible local deflection near the loading point. However, based on the analysis of strain fields,the optimal fatigue cracking zone is determined as a 40mm×40mm rectangle in the middle of the specimens. Also, a reasonable fatigue model based on the tensile strain curves calculated by DIC is proposed to predict the fatigue lives of asphalt mixtures.

Effects of Fibers on the Dynamic Properties of Asphalt Mixtures

The dynamic characteristics of fiber-modified asphalt mixture were investigated. Cellulose fiber, polyester fiber and mineral fiber were used as additives for asphalt mixture, and the dosage was 0.3%, 0.3%, 0.4%, respectively. Dynamic modulus test using SuperPave simple performance tester （SPT） was conducted to study the dynamic modulus （E＇） and phase angle （δ） for the control asphalt mixture and fiber-modified ones at various temperatures and frequencies. Experimental results show that all fiber-modified asphalt mixtures have higher dynamic modulus compared with control mixture. The dynamic modulus master curves of each type of asphalt mixtures are determined based on nonlinear least square regression in accordance with the time- temperature superposition theory at a control temperature （21.1℃）. The fatigue parameter E^＊×sinδ and rutting parameter E^＊/sinδ of asphalt mixture are adopted to study the fatigue and rutting-resistance properties, and experimental results indicate that such properties can be improved by fiber additives.

Design Method and Performance for Large Stone Porous Asphalt Mixtures

Design method for large stone porous asphalt mixtures （LSPM） was analyzed to avoid the early distresses of semi-rigid asphalt pavements. Based on stone-to-stone skeleton structure concept, processes of LSPM gradation design was given. The gradation composite design for LSPM shows that the LSPM nominal maximum size （ N MS） should be larger than 26.5 mm, and the NMS sieve passing percentage should be greater than 50%. Through experiments and calculations on the volume properties of the aggregate, the range of aggregate gradation curve of LSPM was given. In terms of asphalt binder＇s normalized test results, MAC-70 and SBS modified asphalt were selected as the asphalt binders. The applicability of large scale Marshall Method and gyratory compaction method to shape specimens was investigated. Based on the asphalt mixture performance evaluation, the optimum asphalt content range （3.1%-3.6%）, the bitumen film＇s thickness range （13-16 μm） and the air void range （13%-18 %） were recommended. Finally, LSPM was tested by the laboratory performance tests including rutting resistance test, fatigue test and water stability test. The theoretic and practical analysis shows that LSPM has a good performance on water permeability, rutting resistance and reflection crack resistance.

Multiscale Study on Low Temperature Crack Resistance Mechanism of Steel Slag Asphalt Mixture

The objective of this paper was to study low temperature crack resistance mechanism of steel slag asphalt mixture(SAM).Thermal stress restrained specimen test(TSRST)and three-point bending test were carried out to evaluate the low-temperature crack resistance of SAM and basalt asphalt mixture(BAM).Based on the digital image correlation technique(DIC),the strain field distribution and crack propagation of SAM were analyzed from the microscopic point of view,and a new index,crack length factor(C),was proposed to evaluate the crack resistance of the asphalt mixture.The crystal phase composition and microstructure of steel slag aggregate(SA)and basalt aggregate(BA)were studied by X-ray diffraction(XRD)and scanning electron microscopy(SEM)to explore the low-temperature crack resistance mechanism of SAM.Results show that the low-temperature crack resistance of SAM is better than that of BAM;SAM has good integrity and persistent elastic deformation,and its bending failure mode is a hysteretic quasi-brittle failure;The SA surface is evenly distributed with pores and has surface roughness.SA has the composition phase of alkaline aggregate-calcite(CaCO3),so it has good adhesion to asphalt,which reveals the mechanism of excellent low-temperature crack resistance of SAM.

Effects of Temperature on the Dynamic Properties of Asphalt Mixtures

By using the falling weight deflectometer（FWD）,the dynamic loading tests on different thickness of asphalt mixture pavement in different temperature were performed.The experimental results show that the effects of temperature on dynamic properties of asphalt mixture are significant,and the thickness of asphalt mixture is also another important influence factor.The comparisons indicate that effect of temperature on the behaviors of dynamic loading properties and static loading properties of asphalt mixture were quite different.

Permanent deformation response parameters of asphalt mixtures for a new mix-confined repeated load test

The main objective of this work is to propose new mixture response parameters and to compare correlations with rut depths and sensitivity of permanent deformation response parameters based on field extracted cores and lab-mixed duplicates. A new "mix-confined" test is developed and four new parameters for this test are proposed. Correlation coefficients with rut depths and coefficients of variation (sensitivity) are compared between the four new and two existing parameters. Some parameters are recommended to be used for the newly developed test. The results show that, newly developed test can capture the changes of permanent deformation of asphalt mixtures. Only one new parameter (D1 of Stephen Price model) and one existing parameter (flow number, Fn ) have strong correlations with rut depths of asphalt pavements (R2 greater than 0.7) and have relative small sensitivity (coefficient of variation, COV, less than 30%). For polymer modified asphalt mixtures, the parameter D1 rather than Fn should be used. These findings can be used to check the permanent deformation of asphalt mixture during the mix design.

Effect of Loading Condition and Temperature on Dynamic Properties of Asphalt Mixtures

In order to study the effects of loading condition and temperature on the dynamic properties of asphalt mixtures, the dynamic loading tests on different loading condition （various speeds and loads under a certain roughness） and temperature conditions were performed. The experimental result show that the dynamic properties of asphalt mixtures are influenced by vehicle load and speed, besides, the effects of temperature on dynamic properties of asphalt mixture are significant.

Effect of aggregate gradation on low temperature performance of asphalt paving mixtures

Low temperature cracking has become one of the important factors that diminish asphalt pavement's ride quality and service life.Especially in cold region,cracking caused by low temperature is the main distress form.This paper discussed the effect of aggregate gradation on the low temperature performance in asphalt paving mixtures.A total of 11 asphalt mixtures with 11 different aggregate gradations and one asphalt binder content were studied.Volumetric properties of the coarse aggregate and asphalt mixtures showed aggregate grading has a significant impact on the degree of aggregate interlock in asphalt mixtures.A trend is existed in the low temperature performance with the change of gradation.With the aid of mathematic statistics,it indicates gradation affects the low temperature performance significantly.The findings also indicate the relationship between the degree of aggregate interlock in asphalt mixtures and the low temperature performance:With the stone-to-stone contact developed,the mixture has a high energy to resist contract and deformation at low temperature.The properties of fine aggregate and asphalt play an important part in resisting low temperature cracking in floating structure.But it provides lower energy to resist low temperature cracking compared to the skeleton structure.

Micromechanical analysis of damage evolution in splitting test of asphalt mixtures

A methodology was presented relating the microstructure of asphalt mixtures to their damage behavior. Digital image techniques were used to capture the asphalt mixture microstructure, and the finite element method was used to simulate the damage evolution of asphalt mixture through splitting test. Aggregates were modeled to be linearly elastic, and the mastics were modeled to be plastically damaged. The splitting test simulation results show that the material heterogeneity, the properties of aggregates and air voids have significant effects on the damage evolution approach. The damage behavior of asphalt mixture considering material heterogeneity is quite different from that of the conventional hypothesis of homogeneous material. The results indicate that the proposed method can be extended to the numerical analysis for the other micromechanical behaviors of asphalt concrete.

A fatigue damage model for asphalt mixtures under controlled-stress and controlled-strain modes

A fatigue damage model based on thermodynamics was deduced for asphalt mixtures under controlled-stress and controlled-strain modes. By employing modulus of resilience as the damage hardening variable, a damage variable related with dynamic modulus was extracted as the evaluation index. Then, the damage evolution law under two control modes was proposed, and it has a similar form to the Chaboche fatigue model with a nonnegative material parameter m related to its loading level. Experimental data of four loading levels were employed to calibrate the model and identify the parameter in both control modes. It is found that the parameter m shows an exponential relationship with its loading level. Besides, the difference of damage evolution under two control modes was explained by the law. The damage evolves from fast to slow under a controlled-strain mode. However, under a controlled-stress mode, the evolution rate is just the opposite. By using the damage equivalence principle to calculate the equivalent cycle numbers, the deduced model also interprets the difference of damage evolution under two control modes on the condition of multilevel loading. Under a controlled-strain mode, a loading sequence from a low level to a high level accelerates damage evolution. An inverse order under the controlled-stress mode can prolong fatigue life.

Parameter Characterisation of Asphalt Mixtures for Visco-Elastoplastic Analysis

Asphalt mixtures exhibit strong viscous properties under repetitive loads. This phenomenon can be simulated in creep and recovery tests. By applying the visco elastoplastic model proposed, data recorded in the tests are interpreted. It is emphasised that applicability of the visco elastoplastic model depends on the proper method of characterising parameters involved in the constitutive equations. Since two or more strain components of elasticity and viscosity coexist during the loading or unloading, a measuring system of two loggers is introduced to decouple these components. Test data are analysed in three steps as elastic, visco elastic and visco plastic evaluations, using the records collected at the moment of unloading, during the periods of recovery and creep respectively. Factors that may influence the accuracy of data analysis are also discussed.

New method to quantitatively evaluate the homogeneity of asphalt mixtures

To evaluate the homogeneity of asphalt mixtures,the images of sections obtained by cutting the asphalt mixtures specimen horizontally or vertically were analyzed with digital image processing techniques,and the particle area ratio was achieved by applying sector scan for horizontal specimen and vertical scan for vertical one.The research result indicates that the influence of random distribution of aggregates in cutting the specimen can be eliminated by using colored aggregates to distinguish coarse and fine aggregates and using color threshold to segment the images.Choosing three typical gradations,proving particle area ratio obeying normal distribution and using the variability of particle area ratio as an index,it is feasible to quantitatively evaluate the homogeneity of asphalt mixtures.

Investigation of Micro-mechanical Response of Asphalt Mixtures by a Three-dimensional Discrete Element Model

The micro-mechanical response of asphalt mixtures was studied using the discrete element method. The discrete element sample of stone mastic asphalt was generated first and the vehicle load was applied to the sample. A user-written program was coded with the FISH language in PFC3 D to extract the contact forces within the sample and the displacements of the particles. Then, the contact forces within the whole sample, in asphalt mastic, in coarse aggregates and between asphalt mastic and coarse aggregates were investigated. Finally, the movement of the particles in the sample was analyzed. The sample was divided into 15 areas and a figure was drawn to show how the balls move in each area according to the displacements of the balls in each area. The displacements of asphalt mastic balls and coarse aggregates were also analyzed. The experimental results explain how the asphalt mixture bears vehicle load and the potential reasons why the rutting forms from a micro-mechanical view.