ABSTRACT
The global desire to improve the performance of road pavements and move towards a sustainable transportation system has immensely encouraged the usage of fibers in asphalt paving materials. In this study, glass fibers trademarked as ESGFIBER produced by the ESG Industry company Limited from Daejeon, Korea were added in dense-graded asphalt mix. The purpose of this study was to evaluate effects that fibers have on volumetric properties, mechanical properties, and long-term performance of asphalt concrete mixes. ESGFIBER were mixed together with aggregates and asphalt binder in asphalt mix and five different asphalt mixes with different dosage of fibers were evaluated in this study. The Marshall mix design method was used for designing all asphalt mixes, and laboratory tests indirect tensile strength test, deformation strength test and Hamburg wheel tracking test were conducted to evaluate moisture susceptibility, fatigue cracking behavior and rutting resistance of asphalt concrete mixes. The results showed that when ESGFIBER were added in asphalt mix moisture susceptibility, fatigue cracking and rutting resistance were both improved. The usage of ESGFIBER in asphalt concrete mixes can be very beneficial since the mechanical and long-term performance were improved upon the addition of fibers.
ABSTRACT
Nowadays, in order to improve asphalt pavement performance and durability and reduce environmental pollution caused by hydrocarbon materials, many researchers are studying different ways of modifying asphalt concrete (AC) and finding alternative paving materials to extend the service life of pavements. One of the successful materials used in the modification of AC is fibers. Different types of fibers have been reinforced in AC mixtures and improvements have been observed. This research studies the performance of glass wool fibers reinforced in a dense-graded asphalt mixture. Generally, glass fibers are known to have excellent mechanical properties such as high tensile modulus, 100% elastic recovery and a very high tolerance to heat. Glass wool fibers are commonly used as a thermal insulation material. In this research, to evaluate the performance of glass wool fibers in AC, laboratory tests, the Marshall mix design test, indirect tensile strength (IDT), tensile strength ratio (TSR) and the Kim test were conducted to determine a proper mix design, tensile properties, moisture susceptibility, rutting and fatigue behaviors. Results show that the addition of glass wool fibers does affect the properties of AC mixtures. The use of glass wool fibers shows a positive consistence result, in which it improved the moisture susceptibility and rutting resistance of the AC. Additionally, results show that the addition of fiber increased tensile strength and toughness which indicates that fibers have a potential to resist distresses that occur on a surface of the road as a result of heavy traffic loading. The overall results show that the addition of glass wool fibers in AC mixtures is beneficial in improving properties of AC pavements.
