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

In this Study, the surface energy was investigated for six penetration grade 70/100 bitumen binders. Wilhelmy Plate and the Sessile Drop were used to determine the contact angles. The purpose of this study was to compare the Wilhelmy Plate method with the Sessile Drop method, and to compare the significance of Owens-Wendt model with the significance of Acid Base model by correlating surface energy components. Better R2 –values were found for surface energy components by using the Owens-Wendt model than by using the Acid Base model. It was concluded here that Owens-Wendt model is a better model for determining surface energy components of bituminous binders than the Acid Base model since bituminous binders have low energy surfaces. For both instruments: When using Diiodomethane as a probe liquid the biggest variations among the binders were observed. When using water as a probe liquid the least variations among the binders were observed. The advancing contact angles for water determined for these six bitumen binders using the Wilhelmy plate method do not exceed the 90 degree by much, suggesting that bitumen is not extremely hydrophobic. The Sessile Drop method offers a faster and more convenient way to measure the surface energy components of bitumen binders than the Wilhelmy Plate method.

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Este trabalho apresenta estudo sobre a viabilidade técnica da incorporação de borracha de pneus em ligantes asfálticos utilizados em obras de pavimentação. Trata-se de uma alternativa para solucionar um grave problema ambiental, pois no Brasil, anualmente, são descartados mais de 30 milhões de pneus, dos quais a maior parte é disposta em locais inadequados, servindo para a procriação de vetores de doenças e representando risco de contaminação do meio-ambiente. Os efeitos dos principais fatores que condicionam o comportamento do ligante asfalto-borracha (teor e granulometria da borracha, temperatura de mistura, tempo de reação) são avaliados através de ensaios tradicionais de caracterização de ligantes asfálticos e também ensaios do Método Superpave, que determinam propriedades fundamentais, diretamente relacionadas ao desempenho dos pavimentos no campo. Os resultados da análise estatística da programação fatorial de ensaios laboratoriais desenvolvida evidenciam o efeito preponderante do teor de borracha e, principalmente, que o ligante asfalto-borracha pode aumentar a resistência ao acúmulo de deformação permanente e ao aparecimento de trincas por fadiga do revestimento. / This work presents the results of a study about the technical feasibility of the use of asphalt-rubber binder by the asphalt paving industry. In Brazil, more than 30 million tires a year are disposed, mostly in inadequate sites, causing serious health and environmental problems. The effects of the main factors (rubber content, rubber particle size, temperature of mixture, reaction time) on the behavior of asphalt-rubber binders are evaluated by traditional tests and also by tests of the Superpave Method, which are based on fundamental properties, directly related to field performance. The results of the statistical analysis of the factorial design of laboratory experiments show the most significant effect of rubber content and, mainly, that asphalt-rubber binder can increase the resistance to permanent deformation and fatigue cracking.

Este trabalho apresenta alguns resultados de pesquisa laboratorial compreendendo projeto de dosagem, comportamento mecânico da mistura SMA (Stone Matrix Asphalt - Matriz Pétrea Asfáltica), bem como, aspectos executivos relacionados ao desenvolvimento de um trecho experimental em SMA para revestimento de pavimentos. Os resultados de laboratório obtidos mostram que o SMA é um revestimento asfáltico que pode apresentar bom desempenho sob cargas pesadas em climas quentes, pois estas misturas são muito resistentes à deformação permanente, mas preservam a flexibilidade como os concretos asfálticos densos. O SMA é uma solução bem conhecida para tráfego pesado na Europa e mais recentemente na América do Norte. O SMA também tem sido empregado para aumento de aderência em pista molhada e para redução de ruído. / This research presents laboratory test results of mixture design, mechanical behavior of SMA (Stone Matrix Asphalt), as well as some construction aspects regarding to development of Brazilian road trial section as a new bituminous surface course to pavement construction or maintenance.The laboratory results show that SMA can perform very well in hot climate under heavy load conditions due to the mixture to be very resistant against permanent deformation but still flexible like dense asphalt concrete. The SMA is a well Known solution for heavy traffic in Europe and, more recently, in North America. The SMA is also employed to increase the adherence in wet conditions and for noise reduction.

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento CientÃfico e TecnolÃgico / O desenvolvimento de novas metodologias no campo da engenharia rodoviÃria tem sido uma preocupaÃÃo, visando à melhoria da qualidade das vias pavimentadas, tornando-as mais seguras e resistentes. Algumas inovaÃÃes introduzidas nesta Ãrea tem sido praticadas com a aplicaÃÃo de ligantes asfÃlticos (LAs) modificados, que tem demonstrado melhorar o desempenho destes, contribuindo para a reduÃÃo da formaÃÃo das trilhas de roda e das trincas tÃrmicas. Neste estudo, o ligante asfÃltico (LA) brasileiro oriundo do Campo Fazenda Alegre foi modificado por copolÃmero de etileno e acetato de vinila (EVA) virgem, resÃduo da indÃstria de calÃados (EVAR) e fibra de coco (FC). Aditivos, como o lÃquido da castanha de caju (LCC) e o Ãleo extensor (OE) foram utilizados para melhorar a compatibilidade da mistura. O polÃmero e os aditivos foram caracterizados atravÃs de espectroscopia no infravermelho, termogravimetria e calorimetria exploratÃria diferencial. A avaliaÃÃo dos espectros FTIR dos ligantes apÃs envelhecimento simulado em estufa RTFOT, mostraram que os ligantes modificados com EVAR e EVA/FC foram mais resistentes ao processo oxidativo, provavelmente, devido à presenÃa de aditivos, como o carbonato de cÃlcio, na composiÃÃo do resÃduo. As curvas termogravimÃtricas dos LAs modificados apresentaram comportamento semelhante ao ligante puro. As propriedades reolÃgicas tambÃm foram avaliadas atravÃs de ensaios em: viscosÃmetro e reÃmetro de cisalhamento dinÃmico (DSR). O envelhecimento, de maneira geral, provoca aumento da rigidez e da viscosidade, porÃm as curvas mestras indicaram que o efeito do envelhecimento à mais expressivo nas temperaturas intermediÃrias a altas, e aumentaram a elasticidade ao longo do espectro de frequÃncias. A viscosidade zero shear (ZSV) obtida pelos modelos de Cross e Williamson apresentou-se mais elevada do que o modelo de Carreau. AlÃm disso, as imagens obtidas no microscÃpio de forÃa atÃmica (MFA) mostraram que o polÃmero EVA intumesceu devido à absorÃÃo de fraÃÃo aromÃtica do ligante, rompendo a estabilidade coloidal. Assim sendo, a adiÃÃo do Ãleo extensor preveniu a separaÃÃo de fases. Para o ligante modificado com EVAR, a mistura apresentou boa estabilidade à estocagem somente apÃs adiÃÃo de Ãleo extensor. A presenÃa do LCC e OE mostrou melhorar a susceptibilidade tÃrmica dos ligantes modificados. / The development of new methodologies in the field of road engineering has been a concern, aimed to the improvement of the quality of paved roads making them safer and more durable. Some innovations introduced in this area have been practiced with the application of modified asphalt binder (AB), demonstrated to improve asphalt binder performance, contributing to the reduction of the formation of wheel tracks and of thermal cracking. In this study, the Brazilian asphalt binder from Fazenda Alegre oil reserve was modified by virgin ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA), residue of the industry of footwears (EVAR) and coir fiber (CF). Additives, such as the cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL) and extensor oil (EO) were used to improve the compatibility of the mixture. The polymer and additives were characterized by means of infrared spectroscopy, termogravimetry and diferencial scanning calorimetry. The evaluation of the spectra FTIR of the binders after simulated aging in RTFOT, showed that the modified binders with EVAR and EVA/FC were more resistant to oxidative hardening, probably due to the presence of the additive, in the composition of the residue, such as the calcium carbonate. The termogravimetry curves of the modified ABs presented behavior similar to the pure binder. The rheological properties were also evaluated by tests with the viscometer and the dynamic shear rheometer (DSR). In general, ageing causes an increase in stiffness and viscosity, however the master curves indicated that the effect of aging is most significant in the intermediate to high temperatures and increases the elasticity along the spectrum of frequencies. The zero shear viscosity (ZSV) obtained by the models of Cross and Williamson was higher than the Carreau model. In addition atomic force microscopy (AFM) images were obtained in the showed that the EVA polymer sweeling suggest that part of the maltenic fraction of the binder was absorbed by the polymer. For the binder modified with EVAR, the mixture showed good stability only after the addition of the extensor oil. The presence of CNSL and EO improved the thermal susceptibility of the modified binders.

O trincamento por fadiga é um dos principais mecanismos de deterioração dos pavimentos flexíveis e, mesmo assim, é, ainda hoje, um dos defeitos mais difíceis de serem controlados. Uma das alternativas para a melhoria das características de fadiga das misturas asfálticas é o emprego de ligantes asfálticos modificados, porém, há dúvida se o enrijecimento provocado pela adição dos modificadores pode influenciar a resistência à fadiga da mistura asfáltica. Com o intuito de mensurar características do ligante asfáltico que tenham relação com o trincamento por fadiga da mistura asfáltica, alguns ensaios de laboratório foram desenvolvidos recentemente, destacando-se dois: o ensaio de varredura de tempo (time sweep) e o ensaio de varredura de amplitude linear (LAS). O objetivo deste trabalho é caracterizar o comportamento à fadiga de 12 ligantes asfálticos modificados de mesmo grau de desempenho (PG 76-xx). As formulações CAP+PPA, CAP+SBS, CAP+SBS+PPA, CAP+Borracha, CAP+Borracha+PPA, CAP+PE, CAP+PE+PPA, CAP+EVA, CAP+EVA+PPA, CAP+SBR, CAP+SBR+PPA e CAP+Elvaloy+PPA foram preparadas tendo como base um ligante asfáltico 50/70 de classificação PG 64-xx. Com base na caracterização realizada neste estudo, as principais conclusões são: (a) o material que apresentou melhor vida de fadiga foi o CAP+EVA; (b) o material menos sensível à deformação foi o CAP puro; (c) o menos sensível à temperatura foi o CAP+PPA; (d) o efeito do PPA nos ligantes asfálticos com outros aditivos provocou diminuição da vida de fadiga para a maioria das formulações, aumento da sensibilidade aos níveis de deformação para todas as formulações, diminuição da sensibilidade à temperatura e aumento da sensibilidade ao envelhecimento para a maioria das formulações; (e) tomando por base o ordenamento final das melhores características à fadiga dos ligantes asfálticos segundo os parâmetros analisados, o CAP+Borracha apresenta o melhor desempenho global / Fatigue cracking is a major mechanism of deterioration of flexible pavements, and even then, it is still one of the defects that are more difficult to control. One alternative to improve fatigue characteristics of asphalt mixtures is the use of modified asphalt binders; however, there is no doubt that the stiffening caused by the addition of modifiers can influence the fatigue resistance of asphalt mixture. In order to measure characteristics of asphalt binders that are related to the fatigue cracking of asphalt mixture, some laboratory tests have been recently developed such as the time sweep and the linear amplitude sweep (LAS) test. The objective of this study is to characterize the fatigue behavior of 12 modified asphalt binders with the same high-temperature performance grade (PG 76-xx). The formulations AC+PPA, AC+SBS, AC+SBS+PPA, AC+Rubber, AC+Rubber+PPA, AC+PE, AC+PE+PPA, AC+EVA, AC+EVA+PPA, AC+SBR, AC+SBR+PPA and AC+Elvaloy+PPA were prepared with a 50/70 base asphalt binder graded as PG 64-xx in the Superpave specification. Based on the characterization made in this study, the main conclusions are the following: (a) the material that showed better fatigue life was the AC+EVA; (b) the material that is less sensitive to deformation was the neat AC; (c) the less sensitive one to temperature was the AC+PPA; (d) the effect of PPA in asphalt binders prepared with other additives caused a reduction in the fatigue life for many formulations, an increase in the sensitivity levels of deformation for all formulations, a reduction in the sensitivity to temperature and an increase in the sensitivity to aging for several formulations; (e) on the final ranking of the characteristics of asphalt binders according to the parameters analyzed in this research study, the AC+Rubber showed the best overall performance

Asphalt mixtures are complex composites that comprise aggregate, asphalt binder, and air. Several research studies have shown that the mechanical behavior of the asphalt mixture is strongly influenced by the matrix, i.e. the asphalt binder. Therefore, accurate constitutive models for the asphalt binders are critical to ensure accurate performance predictions at a material and structural level. However, researchers who use computational methods to model the micromechanics of asphalt mixtures typically assume that (i) asphalt binders behave linearly in shear, and (ii) either bulk modulus or Poisson’s ratio of asphalt binders is not time dependent. This research develops an approach to measure and model the shear and bulk behavior of asphalt binders at intermediate temperatures. First, this research presents the findings from a systematic investigation into the nature of the linear and nonlinear response of asphalt binders subjected to shear using a Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR). The DSR test results showed that under certain conditions a compressive normal force was generated in an axially constrained specimen subjected to cyclic torque histories. This normal force could not be solely attributed to the Poynting effect and was also related to the tendency of the asphalt binder to dilate when subjected to shear loads. The generated normal force changed the state of stress and interacted with the shear behavior of asphalt binder. This effect was considered to be an “interaction nonlinearity” or “three dimensional effect”. A constitutive model was identified to accommodate this effect. The model was successfully validated for several different loading histories. Finally, this study investigated the time-dependence of the bulk modulus of asphalt binders. To this end, poker-chip geometries with high aspect ratios were used. The boundary value problem for the poker-chip geometry under step displacement loading was solved to determine the bulk modulus and Poisson’s ratio of asphalt binders as a function of time. The findings from this research not only improve the understanding of asphaltic materials behavior, but also provide tools required to accurately predict pavement performance. / text