Rheological Evaluation of Short- and Long-Term Performance for Warm Mix Asphalt (WMA) Binders

Abstract

Warm-mix asphalt (WMA) additives are environmentally friendly and cost-effective products that lower the viscosity of bituminous binders to allow reduction of mixing and compaction temperatures in asphalt mix production. In this study, two WMA additives were used; Sasobit® and Advera®. Both were mixed in the lab with unmodified 60/70 Pen and modified PG 76-22 binders. Strain oscillation and viscosity measurement tests were performed to determine the rheological properties of the binder with and without WMA additives. Different ageing processes were performed in this study; half and full short-term ageing using the Rolling Thin Film Oven (RTFO) procedure, and long-term ageing using the Pressurized Ageing Vessel (PAV) procedure. Test results have shown that the addition of Sasobit® increased the stiffness of both binders and changed PG grade by one unit up (6 °C PG grade). Also, Sasobit® presented better rutting resistance in modified and unmodified binders than Advera®, while both WMA additives decreased the fatigue cracking resistance. Multiple Stress Creep Recovery (MSCR) test was also conducted on both unaged and RTFO aged binders. Modified binder with Sasobit® and Advera® exhibited the same performance of the original binder after complete short-term ageing. However, Sasobit® increased the potential of rutting resistance in the unmodified binder more than Advera® did. The viscosity measurements revealed that adding Sasobit® to modified or unmodified binders lowered the viscosity more than Advera® did. These measures were considered as preliminary data required for further studies on the effect of WMA additives on the resistance of bituminous binders to fatigue cracking.