01334143

Component

Even though it often seems practical to use an ‘easy to perform’ test for moisture susceptibility assessment, erroneous conclusions can result from such tests and will not contribute to long-term sustainable and economically viable asphalt mix design. Before the issue of moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixes can be addressed and tested with any test protocol, it should be ensured that the dominant moisture susceptibility parameters are being measured under relevant conditions. In this contribution a new moisture susceptibility test protocol is described in which the individual asphalt mix components (aggregate-mastic and mastic) are evaluated for their physical and mechanical moisture susceptibility characteristics. The materials investigated in this project are frequently used in the Netherlands for open graded friction courses and their moisture susceptibility performance in the field is therefore known and can serve as a validation of the developed test methodology. The ultimate aim of the resulting methodology is to make a direct link between the physical moisture susceptibility material parameters and the engineering properties, and to enable determination of the time frame over which moisture induced damage may occur in the field, taking into account mixture design and climatic conditions. In this contribution it is shown that a test procedure has been developed which allows for the repeatable measurement of the tensile strength of mastic (bitumen, filler and sand) as a function of moisture. The developed moisture conditioning procedure allows for an easy measurement of moisture uptake and release behavior of mastics and can show distinct differences between mastics. Comparing the measured adhesive versus cohesive moisture susceptibility strength curves allows for a fundamental material selection that can prevent the susceptibility to moisture damage in the field.

The DVD lists the title of this paper as: New Asphalt Concrete Moisture Susceptibility Test Methodology.

01329018

11-0653

English

2011

Transportation Research Board 90th Annual Meeting

DVD

Figures; Photos; References (18) ; Tables (2)

Asphalt concrete; Asphalt mixtures; Friction course; Mastic asphalt; Mix design; Moisture content; Open graded aggregates; Tensile strength; Test procedures

Moisture susceptibility

Netherlands

Highways; Pavements; I22: Design of Pavements, Railways and Guideways

Transportation Research Board Annual Meeting 2011 Paper #11-0653

TRIS, TRB

Feb 17 2011 5:31PM