This research utilized natural asphalt (NA) deposits from sulfur springs in western Iraq. Laboratory tests were conducted to evaluate the performance of an asphalt mixture incorporating NA and verify its suitability for local pavement applications. To achieve this, a combination of two types of NA, namely soft SNA and hard HNA, was blended to create a binder known as Type HSNA. The resulting HSNA exhibited a penetration grade that adhered to Iraqi specifications. Various percentages of NA (20%, 40%, 60%, and 80%) were added to petroleum asphalt. The findings revealed enhanced physical properties of HSNA, which also satisfied the requirements outlined in the Iraqi specifications for asphalt cement. Consequently, HSNA can serve as an asphalt binder to produce asphalt mixtures for flexible paving construction. Notably, HSNA mixtures exhibited greater Marshall stability and stiffness index when compared to traditional mixtures. The results from indirect tensile strength (ITS) and tensile strength ratio (TSR) tests indicated that the 80NA mixture displayed the highest ITS values and a TSR of 81.36%, surpassing the TSR of the mixture incorporating petroleum asphalt by 0.57%.
In recent years, various methods have been developed to enhance the characteristics of asphalt pavement in order to face the continuous challenges of increasing traffic loads and changing climate conditions. One of the most popular and successful methods is modifying the asphalt mixtures or asphalt binder with the addition of polymers. Therefore, two types of Polyethylene (PE) polymer, High-Density PE (HDPE) and Low-Density PE (LDPE), are used in this research. Two methods were applied to prepare PE-modified asphalt mixtures: Semi-Wet Method (S-WM) and Dry Method (DM). The findings of the investigation indicated that the addition of PE polymer can reduce the wear loss of aggregate. In general, the experimental results revealed that asphalt
... Show MoreModern asphalt technology has adopted nanomaterials as an alternative option to assert that asphalt pavement can survive harsh climates and repeated heavy axle loading during service life and prolong pavement life. This work aims to elucidate the behavior of the modified asphalt mixture fracture model and assess the fatigue and Rutting performance of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) mixes using the outcomes of indirect Tensile Strength (IDT), Semicircular bend (SCB) and rutting resistance; for this, a single PG (64−16) nanomodified asphalt binder with 5 % SiO2 and TiO2 have been investigated through a series of laboratory tests, including: Resilient modulus, Creep compliance, and tensile strength, SCB, and Flow Number (FN) to study their potential
... Show MoreThis research delves into the realm of asphalt technology, exploring the potential of nano-additives to enhance traditional asphalt binder properties. Focusing on Nano-Titanium Dioxide (NT), Nano-Aluminum Oxide (NA), and Nano-Silica Oxide (NS), this study investigates the effects of incorporating these nanomaterials at varying dosages, ranging from 0% to 8%, on the asphalt binder’s performance. This study employs a series of experimental tests, including consistency, storage stability, rotational viscosity, mass loss due to aging, and rheological properties, to assess the impact of nano-additives on asphalt binder characteristics. The findings indicate a substantial improvement in the consistency of the asphalt binder with the add
... Show MoreThis research delves into the realm of asphalt technology, exploring the potential of nano-additives to enhance traditional asphalt binder properties. Focusing on Nano-Titanium Dioxide (NT), Nano-Aluminum Oxide (NA), and Nano-Silica Oxide (NS), this study investigates the effects of incorporating these nanomaterials at varying dosages, ranging from 0% to 8%, on the asphalt binder’s performance. This study employs a series of experimental tests, including consistency, storage stability, rotational viscosity, mass loss due to aging, and rheological properties, to assess the impact of nano-additives on asphalt binder characteristics. The findings indicate a substantial improvement in the consistency of the asphalt binder with the add
... Show MoreThis study investigates the influence of five nanomaterials nano-alumina (NA), nano-silica (NS), nano-titanium (NT), nano-zinc oxide (NZ), and carbon nanotubes (CNT)on enhancing the fatigue resistance of asphalt binders. NA, NS, and NT were incorporated at dosages of 2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10%, while NZ and CNT were added at 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, and 5%. A series of physical, rheological, and performance-based tests were conducted, including penetration, softening point, ductility, and rotational viscosity. Based on the outcomes of the overall desirability evaluation, the first three dosages of each nanomaterial were selected for further testing due to their superior workability and binder flexibility. Subsequent investigations included the high-tem
... Show MoreConcerns about the environment, the cost of energy, and safety mean that low-energy cold-mix asphalt materials are very interesting as a potential replacement for present-day hot mix asphalt. The main disadvantage of cold bituminous emulsion mixtures is their poor early life strength, meaning they require a long time to achieve mature strength. This research work aims to study the protentional utilization of waste and by-product materials as a filler in cold emulsion mixtures with mechanical properties comparable to those of traditional hot mix asphalt. Accordingly, cold mix asphalt was prepared to utilize paper sludge ash (PSA) and cement kiln dust (CKD) as a substitution for conventional mineral filler with percentages ranging fro
... Show MoreOne of the major problems facing the road construction engineer is the collapsible granular soil which may be used for embankment construction. Problems appears when such compacted soil come in touch with water, it exhibits cracking and uncontrolled settlement. Collapsible soils are defined as any unsaturated soil that goes through a radical rearrangement of practice and great loss of volume upon wetting, with or without additional loading. An attempt has been made in this investigation to stabilize the collapsible soil of Nasiriya with asphalt emulsion. Specimens of pure and asphalt emulsion stabilized soil have been prepared using optimum fluid content and tested. The first group of specimens of (60x60x20) cm have been tested for direct s
... Show MoreGypseous soils are widely distributed and especially in Iraq where arid area of hot climatic is present. These soils are considered as problematic soils; therefore this work attends to improve the geotechnical properties of such soil and reduce the dangers of collapse due to wetting process. In this research, undisturbed soil sample of 30 % gypsum content from Karbala city is used. The Single Oedometer collapse test is used in order to investigate the collapse characteristics of natural soil and after treatment with 3%, 6%, 9%, 12% and 15% of Cutback Asphalt. Moreover, two selected additive percentages (9% and 12%) are used to evaluate the suitability of using the Cutback Asphalt for improvement of the bearing capacity o
... Show MoreMoisture induced damage in asphaltic pavement might be considered as a serious defect that contributed to growth other distresses such as permanent deformation and fatigue cracking. This paper work aimed through an experimental effort to assess the behaviour of asphaltic mixtures that fabricated by incorporating several dosages of carbon fiber in regard to the resistance potential of harmful effect of moisture in pavement. Laboratory tests were performed on specimens containing fiber with different lengths and contents. These tests are: Marshall Test, the indirect tensile test and the index of retained strength. The optimum asphalt contents were determined based on the Marshall method. The preparation of asphaltic mixtures involved
... Show MoreBasrah crude oil Vacuum residue 773+ K with specific gravity 1.107 and 4.87wt. % sulfur, was treated with hexane commercial fraction provided from Al-Taji Gas Company for preparing deasphaltened oil(DAO)suitable for hydrotreating process. Deasphaltening was carried out with 1h mixing time, 10ml:1g solvent to oil ratio and at room temperature. Hexane deasphaltened oil was hydrotreated on presulfied commercial Co-Mo/γ-Al2O3 catalyst in a trickle bed reactor. The hydrotreating process was carried out at temperature 660 K,LHSV 1.3 h^ –1, H2/oil ratio 300 l/l and constant pressure of 4MPa. The hydrotreated product was distillated under vacuum distillation unit. It is found that the mixture of 75% of vacuum residue with 25% anthracene satisfie
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