The study of moisture susceptibility for asphalt mixtures containing blast furnace slags

Abstract

Nowadays, in the context of increasing traffic, extending road network, and environmental protection, an important target is to develop sustainable roads through the use of by-products derived from various manufacturing processes that can lead to the reduction of environmental degradation. Blast furnace slag is the resulting material during the casting processes of the iron. This is a non-metallic process that is obtained by melting the chemical compounds from the sterile, ash coxe, and the founders. As a result of global research, it has been found that an ecological asphalt mixture (with slags as aggregate) can be used as a pavement layer. However, there are inconveniences related to poor moisture susceptibility. In this context, this paper presents the study of moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixtures with blast furnace slags starting from a basic recipe of AC 31.5 type with natural aggregate and replacing the natural aggregate with slag in different percentages. The paper presents the tests carried out on 15 asphalt mixture recipes with partial and total replacement of natural aggregates with slag artificial aggregates and compared to a classic recipe where 100% natural aggregates were used. The used tests were chosen to characterize the water-related behavior: water absorption and indirect tensile strength test. The results indicate that asphalt mixture with slag aggregates can be a valuable resource in designing asphalt mixtures and satisfactory performance has been achieved.