Mechanical performance and emission characterization of multi-source bitumen and aggregate: A second step toward an alternative evaluation procedure for paving binders
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School of Engineering |
Master's thesis
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en
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103
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Abstract
The performance of asphalt pavements is highly dependent on the properties of binders and aggregates used in their construction. The availability of new multi-sourced binders in Finnish road construction market requires their mechanical performance evaluation to determine their suitability for local climatic conditions. Furthermore, the sustainability goals make it essential to incorporate emission measurements in optimizing the binder selection process. This study investigated the mechanical performance and emission characteristics of bituminous binders from multiple suppliers in establishing a comprehensive assessment framework for Finnish road materials. The research particularly focused on analysing the impact of binder source, penetration grade and aggregates in dictating mixture performance and emission behaviour. Asphalt mixtures made using two binder grades (50/70 and 70/100) from three different suppliers (designated as A, B, C) and two aggregates (Lokonmäki and Malmgård) were tested. The mechanical characterization included tests for tensile strength, moisture sensitivity, dynamic creep, stiffness, abrasion and low-temperature cracking resistance over a wide range of temperature and moisture conditions. Emission measurements were conducted for 50/70, 70/100 and 160/220 grade binders using Gasera 1 analyser. Results demonstrated that binders exhibited source dependency in terms of their mechanical behaviour and emissions. It was observed that mixtures with B-sourced 50/70 grade binder achieved the highest strength, stiffness and durability with tensile strength increase up to 34% and stiffness modulus up to 40% greater than other binders. In contrast, B-sourced 70/100 grade binders resulted in up to 30% higher cracking and approximately 20% increased abrasion resistance compared to other binders. Malmgård aggregates showed adequate strength ranging between 2500-3000 kPa while Lokonmäki aggregates exhibited good moisture resistance (up to 95%) and least abrasion loss (23 cm3) indicating better durability. In addition, emissions analysis revealed that all binders emitted varying quantities of water vapour, CO2, CO, acetone, SO2 and total volatile organic compounds based on their thermal stability and chemical compositions. A-sourced binders recorded the lowest emissions while B-sourced binders emitted highest concentration of the target compounds across all grades except total volatile organic compounds where an opposite trend was observed. The emission levels increased as a function of temperature and approached a steady state value over continuous heating of the binders. Overall, the observations showed that the binder source and grade have influence on both the mechanical performance and emissions. While the B-sourced binders exhibited superior mechanical properties, A-sourced binders provided a balance between mechanical and thermal stability. The findings support the utilization of an assessment framework combining mechanical and emissions analyses for sustainable binder selection.Description
Supervisor
Bordoloi, SanandamThesis advisor
Zhang, FanFalchetto, Augusto Cannone