Preparation and Analysis of Carbon Fiber-Silicon Carbide Thermally Conductive Asphalt Concrete

An experimental investigation into the thermal conductivity of CF-SiC two-phase composite asphalt concrete is presented.The main objective of this study was to verify the possibility of using SiC powder instead of mineral powder as the thermal conductive filler to prepare a new type of asphalt concrete and improve the efficiency of electrothermal snow and ice melting systems accordingly.The thermal conductivity of asphalt concrete prepared with different thermally conductive fillers was tested by a transient plane source method,and the related performances were measured.Then the temperature rise rate and surface temperature were studied through field heating tests.Finally,the actual ice melting efficiency of the thermally conductive asphalt concrete was evaluated using an effective electrothermal system.As shown by the experimental results,the composite made of SiC powder and carbon fiber has a high thermal conductivity.When SiC replaces mineral powder,the thermal conductivity of the asphalt mixture increases first and then decreases with the increase of carbon fiber content.In the present study,in particular,the thermal conductivity attained a peak when the carbon fiber content was 0.2%of the aggregate mass.

Water Stability Improvement of Acid Fine Aggregate-Based Asphalt Concrete

In general,acid aggregates are not used in combination with asphalt concrete because of their poor compatibility with the asphalt binder,which typically results in a scarce water stability of the concrete.In the present study,the feasibility of a new approach based on the combination of acid granite fine aggregate with alkaline limestone coarse aggregate and Portland cement filler has been assessed.The mineral and chemical compositions of these three materials have first been analyzed and compared.Then,the effect of different amounts of Portland cement(0%,25%,50%,75%and 100%of the total filler by weight)on the mechanical performance and water stability of the asphalt concrete has been considered.Asphalt concrete has been designed by using the Marshall method,and the mechanical performance indexes of this material,including the Marshall stability and indirect tensile strength(ITS),have been measured together with the related water stability indexes(namely the Marshall stability(RMS)and tensile strength ratio(TSR)).The results indicate that the alkaline limestone coarse aggregate and Portland cement filler can balance the drawback caused by the acid granite fine aggregate.The asphalt concrete has good mechanical performances and water stability when the amount of common limestone powder filler replaced by cement is not less than 75%.

Modeling the Impact of Testing Mode on the Viscoelastic Behavior of Asphalt Concrete

The variations in the viscoelastic characteristics of asphalt concrete due to testing mode are assessed and modeled in the present investigation.Asphalt concrete mixture was prepared at its optimum asphalt binder requirement and compacted in slab mold with the aid of roller compaction.Beam specimens of 6.2 cm width,5.6 cm depth,and 40 cm length,were obtained from the slab samples with the aid of a diamond saw,and tested using controlled stress and strain techniques under dynamic flexural stresses.The viscoelastic properties such as the phase angle,cumulative dissipated energy,permanent deformation,flexural stiffness,and micro strain were monitored and modeled among the two testing techniques.It was noticed that higher micro strain and permanent deformation are detected when testing the asphalt concrete specimens under constant strain mode.However,higher phase angle,flexural stiffness,and energy dissipation could be observed under the constant stress mode of the test.

Performance evaluation of open-graded epoxy asphalt concrete with two nominal maximum aggregate sizes

Open-graded friction course(OGFC) is applied to pavement surfaces to increase driving safety under wet conditions, and recently, to reduce tire/pavement noise. The durability of OGFC, however, has been a concern since conventional OGFC mixes last typically less than ten years before major maintenance or rehabilitation is needed. This work investigates a new open-graded asphalt mixture that uses epoxy asphalt as binder to improve mix durability. One type of epoxy asphalt that has been successfully applied to dense-graded asphalt concrete for bridge deck paving was selected. A procedure of compacting the mix into slab specimens was developed and a series of laboratory tests were conducted to evaluate the performance of the new mix, including Cantabro loss, permeability, friction, shear strength, and wheel rutting tests. Results show superior overall performance of the open-graded epoxy asphalt mix compared to conventional open-graded asphalt mix. There are also preliminary indications that the OGFC mix with 4.75-mm NMAS gradation can improve the resistance performance to raveling, while the OGFC mix with 9.5-mm NMAS gradation can improve the performance of surface friction at a high slip speed.

Self-monitoring Application of Asphalt Concrete Containing Graphite and Carbon Fibers

The self-monitoring application of asphalt concrete containing graphite and carbon fibers using indirect tensile test and wheel rolling test were introduced. The experiment results indicate that this kind of pitch-based composite is effective for strain/stress self-monitoring. In the indirect tensile test, for a completely conductive asphalt concrete specimen, the piezoresistivity was very weak and slightly positive, which meant the resistivity increase with the increment of tensile strain at all stress/strain amplitudes, with the gage factor as high as 6. The strain self-sensing ability was superior in the case of higher graphite content. However, when the conductive concrete was embedded into common asphalt concrete specimen as a partial structure function, the piezoresistivity was positive at all stress/strain amplitudes and with the gage factor of 13, which was much higher than that of completely conductive specimen. Thus, the strain self-sensing ability was superior when conductive asphalt concrete was taken in as a partial structure function. In the wheel-rolling test, the piezoresistivity was highly positive. At any stress amplitude, the piezoresistivity was strong, with the gage factor as high as 100, which was higher for a stress amplitude of 0.7 MPa than that of 0.5 MPa.

Discrete Element Modeling of Asphalt Concrete Cracking Using a User-def ined Three-dimensional Micromechanical Approach

We established a user-defined micromechanical model using discrete element method （DEM） to investigate the cracking behavior of asphalt concrete （AC）. Using the ＂Fish＂ language provided in the particle flow code in 3-Demensions （PFC3D）, the air voids and mastics in asphalt concrete were realistically built as two distinct phases. With the irregular shape of individual aggregate particles modeled using a clump of spheres of different sizes, the three-dimensional （3D） discrete element model was able to account for aggregate gradation and fraction. Laboratory uniaxial complex modulus test and indirect tensile strength test were performed to obtain input material parameters for the numerical simulation. A set of the indirect tensile test were simulated to study the cracking behavior of AC at two levels of temperature, i e, -10 ℃ and 15 ℃. The predicted results of the numerical simulation were compared with laboratory experimental measurements. Results show that the 3D DEM model is able to predict accurately the fracture pattern of different asphalt mixtures. Based on the DEM model, the effects of air void content and aggregate volumetric fraction on the cracking behavior of asphalt concrete were evaluated.

Predicting the Dynamic Behavior of Asphalt Concrete Using Three-dimensional Discrete Element Method

A user-defined three-dimensional （3D） discrete element model was presented to predict the dynamic modulus and phase angle of asphalt concrete （AC）. The 3D discrete element method （DEM） model of AC was constructed employing a user-defined computer program developed using the ＂Fish＂ language in PFC3D. Important microstructural features of AC were modeled, including aggregate gradation, air voids and mastic. The irregular shape of aggregate particle was modeled using a clump of spheres. The developed model was validated through comparing with experimental measurements and then used to simulate the cyclic uniaxial compression test, based on which the dynamic modulus and phase angle were calculated from the output stress- strain relationship. The effects of air void content, aggregate stiffness and volumetric fraction on AC modulus were further investigated. The experimental results show that the 3D DEM model is able to accurately predict both dynamic modulus and phase angle of AC across a range of temperature and loading frequencies. The user- defined 3D model also demonstrated significant improvement over the general existing two-dimensional models.

Simulation and analysis of two-point bending fatigue test of asphalt concrete based on discrete element model

In order to investigate the fatigue performance ofFrench high modulus asphalt concrete and the correlationbetween Burger＇s parameters and fatigue life, the virtualmodel of asphalt mixture trapezoidal specimen in the two-pointbending fatigue test was constructed in discrement elementsoftware PFC3D. The initial stiffness and the maximum stresswhen the specimen reached fatigue were calculated. Throughthe comparison between virtual and single field fatigue testcurves, the credibility of simulation in DEM was verified.Then, the impacts of top controlled displacement and Burger＇sparameters （ El, E2, η1, η2） on the fatigue life of the specimenwere explored. The simulation results indicate that themaximum stress increases with the increase in the topcontrolled displacement. With the increase of E1 and thedecrease of E2 in Burger＇s model, the modulus of the asphaltbinder increases, and the fatigue performance of the asphaltmixture enhances, η1 and η22 have limited influence on fatiguelife compared with El and E2.

Percolation Model of Graphite-modified Asphalt Concrete

The addition of graphite powder in conventional asphalt mixture can produced asp halt concrete with excellent electrical performance. Percolation theor y was employed to discuss the relation between the conductivity and graphite con tent of graphite-modified asphalt concrete. It was found that the results of pe rcolation model are consistent with experimental values. The percolation thresho ld of graphite-modified asphalt concrete is 10.94% graphite content account for the total volume of the binder phase consisting of asphalt and graphite. The cr itical exponent is 3.16, beyond the range of 1.6-2.1 for the standard lattice c ontinuous percolation problem. Its reason is that the tunnel conduction mec hanism originates near the critical percent content, which causes this system to be not universal. Tunnel mechanism is demonstrated by the nonlinear voltage-cu rrent characteristic near percolation threshold.The percolation model is able to well predict the formation and development of conductive network in graphite- modified asphalt concrete.

An Improvement in Electrical Properties of Asphalt Concrete

Materials such as Koch AH-70,basalt aggregate,limestone powder and graphite particles were used to prepare conductive asphalt concrete,which is a new type of multifunctional concrete.The mix proportion by weight was shown as follows.Fine aggregates (2.36-4.75 mm)∶fine aggregates (<2.36mm)∶limestone powder∶asphalt=120∶240∶14∶30.The content of added graphite particles ranged from 0% to 20%(by the weight of asphalt concrete).A conductive asphalt concrete with a resistivity around 10-10 3Ω·m was obtained.Special attention was paid to the effects of graphite content,graphite physical-chemical properties,asphalt content and temperature on the resistivity.Furthermore,an attempt was made to develop an electrically conductive model for asphalt concrete.

Modelling the Rheological Properties of Epoxy Asphalt Concrete

This paper presents an investigation into modelling the rheological properties of epoxy asphalt concrete( EAC) by using the Huet-Sayegh model. Complex modulus tests were conducted on EAC specimens at various temperature and loading frequency conditions. Dynamic modulus and phase angles obtained from the complex modulus tests were used in the construction of the Huet-Sayegh model. The dynamic modulus master curve was developed by the Huet-Sayegh model as well as the Burgers model for comparison purpose. The results showed that EAC exhibits typical rheological behavior whose dynamic modulus decreases with the increase of temperature while increases with the increase of frequency,and phase angles increase with the decrease of frequencies and the increase of temperatures. The Huet-Sayegh model predicts the dynamic modulus master curve of EAC very well and much better than the Burgers model over a wide range of frequencies.

Microstructural Characteristics of Asphalt Concrete with Different Gradations by X-ray CT

The main objective of this paper is to evaluate the effects of asphalt concrete types on the microstructural characteristics at high-temperature. Suspend-dense structure and Skeleton-dense structure were selected to investigate the deformation of pavement at meso-scale. The internal microstructures of typical asphalt concretes, AC, SUP and SMA, were scanned by X-ray CT device, and microstructural changes before and after high-temperature damage were researched by digital image processing. Adaptive threshold segmentation algorithm（ATSA） based on image radius was developed and utilized to obtain the binary images of aggregates, air-voids and asphalt mastic. Then the shape and distribution of air-voids and aggregates were analyzed. The results show that the ATSA can distinguish the target and background effectively. Gradation and coarse aggregate size of asphalt mixtures have an obvious influence on the distribution of air-voids. The movements of aggregate particles are complex and aggregates with elliptic sharp show great rotation. The effect of gradation on microstructure during high-temperature damage promotes the research about the failure mechanism of asphalt concrete pavement.

Viscoelastic micromechanical model for dynamic modulus prediction of asphalt concrete with interface effects

A viscoelastic micromechanical model is presented to predict the dynamic modulus of asphalt concrete(AC) and investigate the effect of imperfect interface between asphalt mastic and aggregates on the overall viscoelastic characteristics of AC. The linear spring layer model is introduced to simulate the interface imperfection. Based on the effective medium theory, the viscoelastic micromechanical model is developed by two equivalence processes. The present prediction is compared with available experimental data to verify the developed framework. It is found that the proposed model has the capability to predict the dynamic modulus of AC. Interface effect on the dynamic modulus of AC is discussed using the developed model. It is shown that the interfacial bonding strength has a significant influence on the global mechanical performance of AC, and that continued improvement in surface functionalization is necessary to realize the full potential of aggregates reinforcement.

Resistivity-temperature Characteristics of Conductive Asphalt Concrete

The changes of resistivity of conductive asphalt concrete at different temperatures were studied,and positive temperature coefficient（PTC）modelwas established to estimate the influence of temperature on the resistivity quantitatively,which eliminated the interference with conductivity evaluation brought by temperature variation.Finally,the analysis of temperature cycling test results proves that the changes of percolation network structure caused by temperature variation prompt the emergence of PTC of conductive asphalt concrete.

Micromechanical modeling of asphalt concrete fracture using a user-defined three-dimensional discrete element method

A user-defined micromechanical model was developed to investigate the fracture mechanism of asphalt concrete(AC)using the discrete element method(DEM).A three-dimensional(3D)AC beam was built using the "Fish" language provided by PFC3D and was employed to simulate the three-point bending beam test at two temperature levels:-10°C and 15°C.The AC beam was modeled with the consideration of the microstructural features of asphalt mixtures.Uniaxial complex modulus test and indirect tensile strength test were conducted to obtain material input parameters for numerical modeling.The 3D predictions were validated using laboratory experimental measurements of AC beams prepared by the same mixture design.Effects of mastic stiffness,cohesive and adhesive strength on AC fracture behavior were investigated using the DEM model.The results show that the 3D DEM fracture model can accurately predict the fracture patterns of asphalt concrete.The ratio of stress at interfaces to the stress in mastics increases as the mastic stiffness decreases;however,the increase in the cohesive strength or adhesive strength shows no significant influence on the tensile strength.

Performance Characterization of CR/PU Asphalt for Potential Application in Assembled Fast-Repairing Engineering

Conventional repairing methods for asphalt pavement have some inconveniences,such as insufficient strength,and are typically time-consuming.To address these issues,this study proposes a new technological method to design and prepare a high-performance assembled asphalt concrete block for fast repair of the potholes.A series of composite modified asphalt binders with 10%crumb rubber(CR)and different dosages(0%,1%,3%,5%)of polyurethane(PU)are examined to determine the optimized binder.Subsequently,the corresponding asphalt mixtures are prepared for further comparison and assessment of engineering properties,such as moistureinduced damage,high-temperature deformation,and low-temperature cracking characteristics.The test results show that PU can significantly improve the high-temperature performance and hardness of(crumb rubber modified asphalt)CRMA binder;3%PU contributes allowing the resistance of CRMA mixture to moisture-induced damage at higher levels,particularly under water whole immersion;as 3%PU is added,the high-temperature rutting deformation resistance of the CRMA mixture increases significantly,and the low-temperature anti-cracking properties are also improved slightly.Therefore,the innovatively designed high-quality assembled fast-repairing asphalt concrete block is recommended as an appropriate option for highway maintenance.

Resistivity measurement of conductive asphalt concrete based on two-electrode method

The objective of this work is to develop a novel methodology for determining real resistivity of conductive asphalt concrete based on two-electrode method.Due to an influence of contact resistance,the measured resistivity is always not equal to the real resistivity.To determine the real resistivity,a linear relationship of the measured resistivity,contact resistance and the real resistivity was established.Then experiments for six specimens with varying graphite contents were designed and performed to validate the formulation.Results of experiments demonstrate that the slope of the line represents contact resistance,and the intercept indicates the real resistivity.The effects of graphite content on contact resistance and real resistivity are also revealed.Finally,results show that the influence of contact resistance on accuracy of resisitvity measurement becomes more serious if graphite content is beyond 3%.Hence,it is the time to choose this novel methodology to determine the real resistivity of asphalt concrete by taking account of contact resistance.

Stress-strain analysis of Aikou rockfill dam with asphalt-concrete core

Aikou rockfill dam with asphalt-concrete core is situated in a karst area in Chongqing City, China. In order to study the operative conditions of the rockfill dam, especially those of the asphalt-concrete core, the Duncan model is adopted to compute the stress and strain of both the rockfill dam and the asphalt-concrete core after karst grouting and other treatments. The results indicate that the complicated stress and deformation of both the dam body and the core are within reasonable ranges. It is shown that structure design and foundation treatment of the dam are feasible and can be used as a reference for other similar projects.

Experimental Study of Rubberized Asphalt Emulsion Modified Portland cement concrete

The poor fatigue properties and high rigidity of cement asphalt emulsion treated mis(CETM) have for a long time been problems restricting its further development making it impossible for C-ETMto be used as surface layer materials. In this paper, a new kind of cement asphalt emulsion composite-rubberized asphalt emulsion modified Portland cement concrete (RACC) was proposed, which was formed by dispersing rubberized aSPhalt emulsion coated coarse aggregates into cement mortar matrix. In order to evaluate systematically the performance of RACC, laboratory tests with nearly one thousand SPecimen were conducted for resilient modulus, fatigue properties, ultimate ban and length,abrasion, temperature contraction, and dry shrinkage. The experimental results show that the problems existed in C-ETM have to a great extends been solved by RACc. To verify the field performance and inquire into paving technology, teSt road appearsatlsfactory it is concluded that when thed ape surface laycr of semi-rigid base course, RACC is more for surface layer material than both Portland cement concrete(PCC) and asphalt concrete(AC)

Substitution of Kasila Group Basalt with the Archean Man Gneiss in Asphalt and Hydraulic Concrete Mix Design (Sierra Leone)

The study of the performances of the Archean of Man gneiss aggregates with the addition of filler to replace the basalt of Kasila group in the asphalt and concrete mix design of southern Sierra Leone is presented in this document. The goal is to compare the results of the asphalt and concrete mix design with gneiss and basalt aggregate. The applied methods and design used are 1) Volumetric design and Marshall method for the asphalt, 2) French Dreux-Gorisse Method for the concrete. We added 2% of gneissic filler and 2% portland cement type 42.5 R to the asphalt hot mix with the gneiss aggregates to follow the criteria variation. The Marshall, the diametric compression and the Duriez tests require us to perform four different types of mix design. The four mix designs meet the requirements but F2 and F4 give the best mechanical properties. F2 (gneiss + 2% filler) and F4 (basalt) have many similarities from which we can conclude their interchangeability. F2 gives 5255 of optimal bitumen content. In regards to hydraulic concrete, the results of the compressive strength test (cement content 350 kg CMI 42.5 R/m3) with the gneiss and basalt aggregates are respectively 40 MPa and 45 MPa at 28 days curing: these values are greater than 35 MPa required by the technical specifications. The use of the Super Fluid &#174 Thermoplast 120 admixture, to increase the concrete compressive strength, is justified by the requirement of a minimum of 80% Rc28 at 24 hours. For both types of concrete, we have at 24 hours, 34 and 35 MPa which are higher than the minimum of 32 MPa (in 24 h). These results meet the requirements of the technical specifications.