Highly Modified Asphalt (HiMA) binders have garnered significant attention due to their superior resistance to rutting, fatigue cracking, and thermal distress under heavy traffic loads and extreme environmental conditions. While elastomeric polymers such as Styrene- Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) have been extensively used in HiMA applications, the potential of plastomeric polymers, including Polyethylene (PE) and Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA), remains largely unexplored. This study aims to evaluate the performance of reference binder (RB) modified with plastomeric HiMA asphalt in comparison to SBS-modified binders and determine the optimal polymer dosage for achieving an optimal balance between rutting resistance and fatigue durability. The experimental program involved modifying a base asphalt binder with SBS, PE, and EVA at dosages of 6%, 7%, and 8% by weight of binder. A comprehensive evaluation was conducted, including conventional tests (penetration, softening point, viscosity, mass loss, storage stability, and specific gravity) and rheological characterization using the Dynamic Shear Rheometer (DSR). The Multiple Stress Creep Recovery (MSCR) test was employed to assess high-temperature performance, while the Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) test evaluated fatigue behavior. Additionally, an Overall Desirability (OD) analysis was performed to integrate multiple performance criteria and establish a ranking for each modification. The results demonstrated that SBS-modified binders exhibited the most balanced performance, with SBS8 achieving the highest elastic recovery (52.87%) and superior fatigue life, exceeding 1,017,904 cycles at 2.5% strain. PE8 exhibited exceptional rutting resistance, reaching the lowest Jnr 3.2 value (0.0078 kPa−1); however, its limited elasticity (15.7% recovery) indicated reduced flexibility. EVA modifications demonstrated marginal improvements in fatigue resistance but failed to meet the AASHTO M332 criteria for high-traffic applications. The OD analysis ranked SBS8 as the most effective HiMA binder (OD score = 0.715), followed by SBS7 (0.588) and SBS6 (0.509). PE7 (0.354) and PE6 (0.337) demonstrated moderate performance, whereas EVA had the lowest desirability score (0.000). Based on these findings, SBS-modified binders are recommended for applications requiring a balance between fatigue and rutting resistance, whereas PE-based HiMA is more suitable for high-temperature regions where rutting is the primary concern. Further field studies are necessary to validate the long-term durability of plastomeric HiMA binders and optimize their use for specific pavement conditions.
The present investigation deals with experimental study of three-phase direct-contact heat exchanger, for water-Freon R11 system, where water is the continuous phase (liquid) and Freon R11 (liquid-gas) is the dispersed phase. The test section consisted of a cylindrical Perspex column with inner diameter 8cm and 1.2m long, in which, water was to be confined. Liquid Freon R11 drops were injected into the hot water filled column, through a special design of distributors at the bottom of the column. The liquid Freon R11 drops rose on their way up and evaporated into two-phase bubbles at atmospheric pressure. The study was devoted to express the effect of process variables such as c
... Show MoreThe selection and assessment of single-photon detection modules is a crucial problem in satellite-based QKD systems. The system's overall efficiency, secure key rate and quantum bit error rate are all significantly influenced by single-photon detection modules. There is a knowledge gap about the practical performance of commercially available single-photon detectors because existing research frequently relies on theoretical characteristics. This paper introduces a study on the effect of the parameters of three commercial single photon detection modules from ID Quantique company: ID Qube, ID100, and ID281 on certain Bennett-Brassard 1984 protocol parameters such as secure key rate, mean photon number per pulse, quantum bit error rate
... Show MoreArtificial roughness applied to a Solar Air Heater (SAH) absorber plate is a popular technique for increasing its total thermal efficiency (ηt−th). In this paper, the influence of geometrical parameters of V-down ribs attached below the corrugated absorbing plate of a SAH on the ηt−th was examined. The impacts of key roughness parameters, including relative pitch p/e (6–12), relative height e/D (0.019–0.043), angles of attack α (30–75°), and Re (1000–20,000), were examined under real weather conditions. The SAH ηt−th roughened by V-down ribs was predicted using an in-house developed conjugate heat-transfer numerical model. The maximum SAH ηt−th was shown to be 78.8% as predicted under the steady-state condition
... Show MorePermanent deformation (rutting) of asphalt mixtures is one of the major forms of distress. Aggregate gradation is one of the most important factors affecting the permanent deformation of asphalt mixtures. Other variables are also important to understand their effects on the mixture such as temperature, binder content and compaction level. For this purpose 6 different aggregate gradations have been chosen and each one of them has been manufactured / tested with different variables. The results showed that at relatively low temperature there is little effect of aggregate packing on the permanent deformation. However, as the temperature increases the effect of gradation becomes apparent, in that the better the packing the better the resistance
... Show MoreGlassy polymers like Poly Mathyel Metha Acrylate are usually classified as non-porous materials; they are almost considered as fully transparent. Thin samples of these materials reflect color changing followed by porous formation and consequently cracking when exposed to certain level of ?-irradiation. The more the dose is the higher the effect have been observed. The optical microscope and UV-VIS spectroscopy have clearly approved these consequences especially for doped polymers.
Melanoidins can be diagnosed using the Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) technique. UV/Vis is an effective tool for both qualitative and quantitative analysis of chemical components in melanoidin polymers. The structural and vibrational features of melanoidin synthesized from D-glucose and D-fructose are identical, according to FTIR spectra, with the only difference being the intensity of bands. Using FTIR spectra, the skeleton of melanoidin is divided into seven major regions. The existence of the C=C, C=N, and C=O groups in all melanoidins formed from fructose and glucose with ammonia is confirmed by the areas ranging from 1600 to 1690 cm-1, and the band is largely evident as a broad shoulder. Both melan
... Show More