Investigations on the Effects of Styrene Butadiene Styrene in Asphalt Mixture Design

Abstract

This study aims to determine the effect of using a styrene butadiene styrene modifier with basalt aggregate as coarse particles and using limestone as mineral filler. In general, several modified hot mix asphalt specimens at 4% air voids have been prepared to study the influence of different percentages of SBS (0%, 3%, 4%, 5%, 6%) with various portions of asphalt content (4.5%, 5%, 5.5%, 6%, 6.5%) using Marshall Method and Super-Pave Method. The investigations have shown that using limestone as mineral filler improves the bond strength between the basalt aggregate and the asphalt cement. Moreover, the optimum asphalt content using the Marshall method has been 5% at different percentages of Styrene Butadiene Styrene. On the other hand, super-Pave tests have showed that the best ratio of SBS in the MR test has been 3%, while, in the creep test, it has been 4% and 6% in the loss of indirect tensile strength and fatigue tests. In general, the best asphalt mixture performance is referred to as binder asphalt with 6% SBS.