The City of Saskatoon (COS) manages diverse road infrastructure assets. Given the present day challenges of structurally upgrading in-service road infrastructure assets in diverse field state conditions, there is a need to incorporate new innovative materials, changing field state conditions, and mechanistic design methods in sustainable road rehabilitation decision making. The COS is faced with challenges including rising material and labour costs, budget shortfalls, depleting virgin aggregate sources in close proximity to the COS, and an increase in stockpiled asphalt and concrete rubble materials due to transportation infrastructure renewal. As a result of the COS impact crushing program, a need to determine the design and performance properties of using recycled reclaimed asphalt concrete (RAP) rubble materials in urban pavement structures was established. RAP materials had never been used as a structural base layer in COS pavement structures because no material characterization had been conducted and there was no performance information with regards to their structural behaviour and field performance available. Other jurisdictions documented benefits of using recycled RAP in road structure include: reduced demand on depleting aggregate sources; reduced energy consumption; diversion of stockpiled RAP materials from landfills; and reduced overall handling and disposal costs. Given the amount of crushed RAP material available to the COS, it was determined there are potential benefits to implementing the use of recycled crushed RAP rubble in pavement structures, leading to the implementation of the “Green Street” Infrastructure Program. The findings of this research indicate that RAP materials have improved mechanistic properties compared to conventional granular materials; therefore, RAP materials can be used as a base layer in a road structure. This research indicates that cement stabilization and cement with a slow setting (SS-1) emulsion stabilization improved the moisture susceptibility of well graded (GW) and open graded base course (OGBC) RAP materials. These findings demonstrated that RAP materials stabilized with cement and/or SS-1 emulsion can be used as a base layer in a pavement structure. This research also found that the standard Proctor compaction method is not applicable for RAP materials to quantify moisture-density behaviour under compaction, due to the bound-nature of RAP aggregates, which are composed of asphalt and aggregate. California bearing ratio (CBR) values of Proctor-compacted RAP specimens did not accurately reflect field performance observations. As part of the COS “Green Street” Infrastructure Program, two test sections using crushed GW RAP rubble materials as a base layer were constructed as part of this research and include Marquis Drive (eastbound lanes from Thatcher Avenue to Idylwyld Drive) and 8th Street East (westbound lanes from Boychuk Drive west 0.540 kilometers). Test sections were constructed by the City of Saskatoon with conventional construction equipment and showed structural improvement in structural performance and visual distresses. Using RAP materials as a base layer was economically feasible because the RAP material cost less than conventional virgin aggregate base materials. This research demonstrates that processed and crushed RAP rubble materials are technically feasible to be used as a structural base layer in a recycled pavement structural system for urban road rehabilitation systems, and provide economic benefits over conventional granular base materials.

This thesis investigates the effects of using various percentages of RAP and asphalt binder contents on the dynamic modulus and fatigue resistance of asphalt concrete. Two RAP percentages (20% and 40%) and three binder percentages (plant-mixed, plant-mixed + 0.5%, and plant-mixed + 1.0%) were evaluated. A Superpave gyratory compactor and an asphalt vibratory compactor were used to prepare dynamic modulus samples and fatigue beam samples at 7% air voids. Three replicate samples for each percentage of RAP and asphalt binder content were prepared for testing purposes. An Interlaken Technology Corporation servohydraulic testing machine and a Material Testing System servohydraulic machine were used to determine the dynamic modulus and fatigue resistance of the asphalt samples. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine if any of the factors (air voids, percent RAP, and percent asphalt binder) affected the performance criteria (dynamic modulus and fatigue life cycles). Results suggest that as the amount of RAP increases in asphalt concrete, both the dynamic modulus and fatigue life will increase. As per the literature, these results were expected for the dynamic modulus, but not for the fatigue life. It is suspected that the increase in fatigue life for the 40% RAP mixes may be due to the use of a softer binder (PG 64-22 instead of PG 70-22).  It was also found that by increasing the amount of binder in the mixture, the stiffness of asphalt concrete will decrease, but the fatigue life will improve. The fatigue life results showed a strong trend of this improvement for the 20% RAP samples, however, the results for the 40% RAP samples were inconclusive. For dynamic modulus, it was found that the percent RAP, additional binder, frequency, and temperature were all statistically significant with 95% confidence. For the fatigue life, ANOVA showed that the percent RAP and additional binder were statistically significant with 95% confidence. These results suggest that by utilizing a higher percentage of RAP and asphalt binder, it is possible to meet or improve upon the dynamic modulus and fatigue life of the lower percentage of RAP samples. / Master of Science

Foamed asphalt stabilized material as a high quality granular base incorporating high percentages of fine fractionated reclaimed asphalt material is investigated. A foamed asphalt mix is designed using a fabricated asphalt foaming device. The final specimens are tested for indirect tensile strength, indirect tensile resilient modulus, triaxial resilient modulus, triaxial repeated load permanent deformation, and unconfined compression. Results are compared to those with the same aggregate blends without stabilization for triaxial resilient modulus and repeated load permanent deformation. Stabilized materials are tested in soaked and unsoaked states to establish moisture susceptibility. Foam stabilization is found to significantly improve triaxial resilient modulus in all materials as well as permanent deformation resistance in materials with high RAP content. Soaking only marginally reduces triaxial resilient modulus and the effects are lesser in materials incorporating high RAP content. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Civil Engineering / Mustaque Hossain / Hot in-place recycling (HIR) preserves distressed asphalt pavements while minimizing use of virgin binder and aggregates. The final quality of an HIR mixture depends on characteristics of the original binder, aging of the pavement surface during service, and whether or not new binder or rejuvenator was added to the mixture. An HIR mixture should maintain desired properties for additional service periods, making asphalt binder modification inevitable. Asphalt binder modifications in HIR are commonly done by adding an asphalt rejuvenating agent (ARA). However, ARA may adversely affect the qualities of new HIR and potentially fail to improve the quality of the final surface. The objective of this research was to investigate the effects of rejuvenation on HIR performance characteristics by assessing critical performance indicators such as stiffness, permanent deformation, moisture susceptibility, and cracking resistance. A two-step experimental program was designed that included mechanical property measurements of the HIR mixture and rheological properties of the extracted binder. The level of mixing occurring between new and aged binder with ARA was also investigated. HIR Samples were obtained from three Kansas Department of Transportation projects, and Hamburg wheel-tracking device, dynamic modulus, flow number, Texas overlay, thermal stress restrained specimen, and moisture susceptibility tests were conducted on mixtures with and without ARA. Rheological studies on the extracted binder included dynamic shear rheometer and bending beam rheometer tests. The miscibility of new and aged binder was investigated using scanning electron microscope (SEM) images, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS), and the exudation droplet test (EDT). Study results showed significant variability in the mechanical performance of HIR mixtures, which was attributed to the variability of binders as observed in EDT, SEM and EDXS studies. Life cycle cost analysis (LCCA) showed that HIR is an economic maintenance alternative for asphalt projects in Kansas. LCCA results exhibited that pavement design strategies with HIR activities will result in alternatives with lower net present values when compared to alternatives without HIR maintenance activities.

This study was carried out to evaluate the use of heated reclaimed asphalt pavement materials with emulsion and the use of hot mix asphalt with wax (Sasobit) as base course materials. Mixes with lower than optimum and optimum emulsion, as well as with heated reclaimed asphalt pavement material and optimum emulsion were made; also, mixes with conventional asphalt binder and those with asphalt binder and Sasobit were produced at relatively lower temperatures. These mixes were tested for workability, and all but one of the mixes were used for preparation of approximately 0.9 m (35 inches) by 0.9 m (35 inches) 0.125 m (5 inches) slabs. The rates of densification during the compaction of these slabs were compared. Samples cored from the slabs were tested for stiffness, and dry retained tensile strengths. The results showed that heating of reclaimed asphalt pavement material can improve the dispersion as well as densification significantly. The use of asphalt binder was found to be beneficial in improving strength and stiffness, and the use of Sasobit helped to achieve almost similar workabilities and compactabilities at lower temperatures, as compared to those of hot mix asphalt with neat asphalt binder. No significant difference was found between the modulus of the Sasobit and hot mix asphalt samples. The dispersion of asphalt binder seemed to improve with the use of Sasobit at lower mixing temperature. A field project is recommended for evaluating performance of emulsion mixes with heated reclaimed asphalt pavements and asphalt binder mixes with Sasobit.

Master of Science / Civil Engineering / Mustaque A. Hossain / Approximately 89% of 11,000 miles of Kansas roads are surfaced with asphalt. Hundreds of thousands of tons of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) are produced annually in the United States, including in Kansas. This bulk volume of RAP must be economically managed in order to achieve environmental friendliness. Recycling of RAP conserves natural resources and reduces landfill usage. However, many agencies have reported that increased RAP content produces drier hot-mix asphalt (HMA) mixtures than virgin mixtures that are susceptible to premature cracking. In this research, laboratory-produced Superpave HMA mixtures containing increased percentages (20, 30, and 40%) of RAP materials from three RAP sources (Shilling Construction Co., Konza Co., and the Kansas Department of Transportation’s project, US 73) were studied for cracking performance. Mix designs were produced using Superpave design criteria for 12.5-mm nominal maximum aggregate size mixture. The static and repetitive Semicircular Bending (SCB) test, the Texas Overlay Tester test, the dynamic modulus test, and Viscoelastic Continuum Damage (VECD) tests were performed on laboratory-prepared samples. In general, cracking performance decreased with increased RAP content. The RAP from the US 73 project performed most consistently compared to other two sources of RAPs. Test results were analyzed using two-way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), proving that mixtures containing 4.5% to 4.9% binder performed the best against cracking. The RAP source was found to have more effect on cracking propensity than RAP content. Mixtures with RAP content up to 40% performed satisfactorily. Tukey’s pairwise comparison method was used to compare results from all tests; VECD was determined to be the most appropriate test to evaluate cracking propensity of HMA mixtures.

abstract: This research focused on the structure-property relationships of a rejuvenator to understand the comprehensive rejuvenation mechanism of aged asphalt binder. Aged asphalt such as recycled asphalt shingles (RAS) and reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) contain various amounts of asphalt binder. However, the asphalt binder in RAS and RAP is severely aged and inferior in properties compared to a virgin binder. To address this issue, liquid additives have been used under the general title of rejuvenators. That poses an additional challenge associated with the lack of clear metrics to differentiate between softeners and rejuvenators. Therefore, there is a need for a thorough study of rejuvenators. In this study, diverse-sourced rejuvenators have been used in RAS and RAP-modified binders as well as laboratory-prepared aged binders. The properties of the rejuvenated aged binder were characterized at a macro-level and molecular level. The study showed that the performance of the RAS-modified binder was significantly improved after bio-modification by a bio-rejuvenator. This study further evaluated laboratory-prepared aged asphalt rejuvenated with different rejuvenators. The results found that oxidized bitumen became soft after adding rejuvenators, regardless of their source. Molecular dynamics simulation showed that the effective rejuvenator restored the molecular conformation and reduced the size of asphaltene nanoaggregates. The study results showed that due to the specific chemical composition of certain rejuvenators, they may negatively impact the durability of the mixture, especially about its resistance to moisture damage and aging. Computational analysis showed that while the restoration capacity of rejuvenators is related to their penetration into and peptizing of asphaltene nanoaggregates, the durability of the restored aged asphalt is mainly related to the polarizability values of the rejuvenator. Rejuvenators with lower polarizability showed better resistance to aging and moisture damage. In summary, this study develops the rheology-based indicators which relate to the molecular level phenomenon in the rejuvenation mechanism. The rheology-based indicators, for instance, crossover modulus and crossover frequency differentiated the rejuvenators from recycling agents. Moreover, the study found that rejuvenation efficiency and durability are depended on the chemistry of rejuvenators. Finally, based on the learning of chemistry, a chemically balanced rejuvenator is synthesized with superior rejuvenation properties. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Civil, Environmental and Sustainable Engineering 2020

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The diploma thesis deals with the design of an asphalt mixture for an abrasive layer with a standard R-material content (20 %) without the use of other softening additives, while the properties of the aged asphalt binder in the mixture were compensated by dosing "softer binder 70/100". Asphalt mixtures type ACO 11+ are designed to meet the requirements ČSN 73 6121: 2019. The aim of the work is to verify the expected properties of the asphalt mixture performed functional and empirical tests according to the standards for asphalt mixtures of the ČSN EN 12697 series.

Finding innovative technologies for building our roads has always been of paramount importance. From moving to warm mix asphalt to decrease our indulgence in high energy consumption to substituting fly ash for asphalt binders to reduce dependence on pure asphalt binders from petroleum, engineers have painstakingly tried to develop new ways to improve the ways that flexible pavements are made. The major problem facing the next generation of civil engineers is sustainable practices on the field. Over the years, significant progress has been made in this regard on the impacts of building pavements on the environment. Characterizing these improvements tends to be difficult, and that is where Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) comes in. LCA is a technique used to analyze and quantify the environmental impacts of a product, system, or process. LCA shows where the significant impacts occur and how improvements can be made while recommending better practices. Even with its many advantages, its use is very constrained, especially in the United States, as it is still a very novel approach in design coupled with limited datasets and protocol for its operation. With modern technologies of substitute materials for binders like bio-oil from food waste, reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP), and fly ash, there is a need to understand their environmental impacts. Furthermore, in this regard is where LCA can help using three significant areas: selection of materials, normalization, and characterization. Characterization refers to the identification and quantification of the relationships between the life cycle results and the environmental impacts. This research explores the environmental impacts of substituting other materials for asphalt binders using LCA. With variations in modifying levels of substitutes, results show promising levels in emissions of harmful gasses to both the air and water. This study explores ways used in normalizing this process as well as setting up a pathway for other asphalt binder substitutes. / Civil Engineering