Hoshiki SASAKI

Study on Performance Evaluation of Modified Asphalt with Modified Elastomer

Osamu TAKAHASHI

In Japan, road pavements have been preferentially constructed since the period of rapid economic growth. Currently, pavement damage is considered a problem due to the large amount of asphalt waste generated during renewal work. Therefore, a highly durable asphalt pavement is required to prolong the period between renewal and replacement.
Polymer-modified asphalts (PM-As) are used when high durability is required for asphalt pavements.
In recent years, various types of PM-As have been developed, and a prototype PM-As using a modified elastomer, which was developed to have higher durability than existing polymers, has been developed.
In this study, we investigated the quantitative evaluation of the contribution of the modified elastomer, which was developed to have higher durability than existing polymers, to the properties of asphalt concrete.
The results of the comparative study showed that PM-As with modified elastomers improved the plastic flow resistance and crack resistance of asphalt concrete. In particular, the modified technology was found to be effective for plastic flow resistance, and the hydrogenated technology was found to be effective for crack resistance of asphalt concrete in the unaged condition. Crack resistance evaluation tests after two stages of thermal aging showed that the asphalt concrete with both hydrogenated and denatured technologies performed best compared to conventional PM-As at each stage of thermal aging. This indicates that both hydrogenation and denaturation are important for improving the fracture resistance of asphalt concrete.