Compacted Asphalt Mixtures Research Articles

A pure case study on moisture sensitivity assessment using tests on both loose and compacted asphalt mixture

The main purpose of this research study was to predict moisture damage probability of asphalt mixtures using pure case study i.e. tests on loose as well as compacted asphalt mixtures. Polymer, chemical, filler-based modifiers and four aggregate sources i.e. calcium carbonate, dolomite, dolerite and granite minerals were selected to ascertain their effect on moisture damage of asphalt mixtures. Laboratory test results of both test regimes were compared to develop moisture damage index. The analysis of test data showed that filler-based modifiers were better anti-stripping followed by chemical-based modifiers. Moreover, granite minerals showed more loss of adhesion due to less polarity, hydrophilic and acidic nature of aggregates. Basic aggregates (calcium carbonate and dolomite) with its hydrophilic nature were relatively better antistripping. This is mainly due to its high polarity to make relatively stronger bond with asphalt binder. Boiling water test was easy to perform and less time consuming while rolling bottle test was found relatively more reliable in comparison with other tests on loose coated asphalt mixture. In compacted asphalt mixtures test regime, although Marshal stability was easy to perform, but Modified Lottman test as well as Hamburg wheel track test were found relatively better to access moisture susceptibility with reasonable confidence level. A pure case study was compromises of qualitative (tests on loose coated asphalt mixture) as well as quantitative (tests on compacted asphalt mixture) to ascertain relative accuracy of each test on moisture damage.

Assessing the Micro-Deval Test for Compacted Dense-Graded Asphalt

Abstract In recent years, the asphalt industry has been increasingly evaluating mixture testing for a variety of purposes. This article assesses the Micro-Deval (MD) test for its ability to evaluate compacted dense-graded asphalt mixtures. Historically, the MD test has been used to evaluate durability characteristics of loose aggregates, so this investigation deviates from the equipment’s intended purpose. MD testing was performed in traditional manners (i.e., submerged in water), as well as absent water. The investigation benchmarked MD testing against Cantabro mass loss and the Illinois Flexibility Index Test with an emphasis on use of the protocols during mixture production. Four evaluation criteria were used for assessment (level of rationality of test results, equipment cost, noise during testing, and time to achieve test results). Results of this investigation were that the MD testing protocol was not optimally suited for assessing compacted dense-graded asphalt. Wet MD tests (traditional test manner) were highly variable and provided no appealing test outputs. Operationally, the MD test was one of the noisier tests evaluated; it required an intermediate amount of time to conduct a test but had the lowest equipment cost. With all factors considered, the other tests considered are believed to be more promising than the MD for assessing dense-graded asphalt.

Sustainable use of waste plastic modifiers to strengthen the adhesion properties of asphalt mixtures

Low pavement performance increases environmental degradation and reduces natural reserves. This reduction in pavement’s service life is attributed towards moisture susceptibility, rutting and fatigue failures of asphalt pavements. To overcome this, waste plastic modifiers were used in this research study to improve the asphalt mixtures moisture damage resistance and hence the asphalt pavement’s service life. Four different sources of aggregate based on petrography of rock were selected to ascertain the effect of different minerals on moisture damage. Qualitative as well as quantitative tests were utilized to assess moisture sensitivity. The analysis of test data showed that high density polyethylene and wet method of mixing has relatively better adhesion properties. Moreover, acidic aggregates containing granite minerals showed more loss of adhesion than basic aggregate quarries due their less polarity and hydrophilic nature. Modified Lottman as well as Hamburg wheel track test were found relatively better for compacted asphalt mixture than Marshall stability test for moisture damage assessment. This study recommends using waste plastics in the asphalt mixtures to improve performance life of the pavement and reduces the environmental degradation.

Compaction process tracking for asphalt mixture using discrete element method

Although the same compaction degree is achieved in practice, asphalt mixture samples prepared by different compaction methods often have different mechanical properties. In this paper, the air void content (AV) and distribution of aggregates and asphalt mortar in the process of asphalt mixture compaction are traced to capture the meso structural change characteristics of asphalt mixture during compaction. Using the discrete element method (DEM), a numerical technique is developed to simulate the laboratory compaction by taking into account the critical aggregate size and boundary effect. First, the critical aggregate size (CAS) is determined by the 2D and 3D binary particle assembly. Second, DEM simulations of both the Marshall impact compaction (MIC) and static compaction (SC) methods are conducted by the mass-wall and servo boundary, respectively. Third, the applicability of the 2D model is demonstrated through laboratory tests and numerical calculations. Finally, the distribution of aggregates and asphalt mortar are displayed and analyzed. The results show that the variation of CAS presents linear growth approximately with the increase of coarse particle size, less affected by the boundary. The primary control sieve (PCS) is applicable to separate the coarse and fine particles in the 3D assembly, but the CAS is around 0.195 for the 2D assembly, which is obviously less than the PCS. It is verified by two compaction methods and two mixture gradations that the DEM simulation is an effective way to evaluating the compacting effects of the compaction process. By double-sided hammering, coarse aggregates are moved to accumulate more closely, thus the coordination number at the bottom increases. Although a dense specimen can be achieved by compaction method, the size distribution of particles is still uneven in horizontal direction, since the position of large size particles (>16 mm) is difficult to be changed in the compaction process.

Microscopic Characteristics of Field Compaction of Asphalt Mixture Using Discrete Element Method

Abstract To investigate microscopic characteristics of the field compaction of asphalt pavement, a three-dimensional (3D) compaction model of asphalt pavement considering morphological characteristics of aggregate and temperature effect was established by distributed load and time equivalence principles using Particle Flow Code in Three Dimensions (PFC3D). The microscopic parameters of hot asphalt mixture were determined with a dynamic modulus test based on the time–temperature superposition principle. Aggregate motion, contact force, and the evolutional mechanism of energy were monitored during the virtual compaction process. This indicated that the motion displacement, angle, and stress are positively associated with load direction. It is necessary to select the proper plane angle with the load direction to evaluate the 3D motion of the aggregate with the two-dimensional (2D) plane angle. During the compaction process, the contact compressive force is mainly produced between aggregates, and the evolution laws of contact force and stress tensor can be used to reasonably interpret the aggregate motion within the asphalt mixture. Additionally, the work of external force, kinetic energy, and strain energy can be employed to precisely demonstrate energy conversion for the developed compaction model. Indexes including motion displacement and angle, contact force, and energy can reflect the microscopic characteristics of asphalt mixture during field compaction. It is rational and feasible to analyze microscopic behavior of asphalt pavement with the proposed pavement compaction model using the discrete element method (DEM). The DEM is a significant tool of investigation of microscopic characteristics of asphalt pavement.

Using the surface free energy (SFE) method to investigate the effects of additives on moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixtures

Conventional methods for evaluating the effects of additives on moisture damage resistance of asphalt mixtures are either empirical or unable to quantify the contributions of material component properties to the overall mixture performance. To overcome these drawbacks, this study proposes a surface free energy (SFE) method to investigate the effects of various additives on moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixtures. One neat asphalt and one acidic gravel aggregate are selected as the test materials along with 6 commonly-used additives: a warm mix asphalt additive, two nano-materials, a hydrated lime, a Portland cement and a non-amine liquid asphalt anti-stripping agent. All the additives are blended with the neat asphalt to fabricate modified asphalt binders. The SFE components of these modified asphalt binders and the gravel aggregates are measured with the Wilhelmy plate method and the vapor adsorption method, respectively. An energy ratio, defined as the ratio of adhesion of asphalt-aggregate to that of asphalt-aggregate-water, is calculated and used to rank the asphalt mixtures that consist of gravel and asphalt binders modified with different additives in terms of their moisture susceptibility performance. In order to validate the proposed SFE method, two mixture moisture susceptibility tests, the modified boiling water test and the indirect tensile strength test, are conducted on loose and compacted asphalt mixtures, respectively. A consistent moisture susceptibility ranking is obtained from the SFE method and the mixture moisture susceptibility tests, which validates the SFE method proposed in this paper can be used to accurately quantify the effects of additives on the moisture susceptibility of asphalt mixtures.

Primary investigation on the relationship between microstructural characteristics and the mechanical performance of asphalt mixtures with different compaction degrees

The compaction of asphalt mixtures creates different tensile strengths throughout the asphalt mixture and is thus of importance to ensure durable pavement performance. Asphalt mixtures are composite materials. Therefore, it is necessary to analyse the relationship between the microstructural characteristics and the mechanical performance of asphalt mixtures at different DoCs. In this paper, the 3D microstructures of the asphalt specimens were reconstructed by means of Digital Image Processing (DIP) techniques based on X-ray Computed Tomography (X-ray CT) scanning. Results from the Indirect Tensile Test (ITT) were used to determine the tensile strength of the asphalt specimens. The results show that the relationships between the DoC and the tensile strength as well as the fracture energy are not linear for asphalt specimens at the same testing temperature. This indicates the occurrence of over-compaction during the compaction process. In order to reveal the mechanism of the over compaction at the microscale, the 3D fractal dimension of air voids and aggregates were derived. The 3D fractal dimension of the air voids is variable and constant at first and then becomes smaller during the compaction process. The complexity of the air void morphology is related to the tensile strengths and a hypothesis based on the evolution of 3D fractal dimension of the air voids is proposed in this paper to explain this phenomenon. The results of this research help to increase the understanding regarding the mechanism of over compaction based on the microstructure of the asphalt specimens.

New discrete element framework for modelling asphalt compaction

During asphalt mixture compaction, loads in the material are mainly transferred through contact between the stones and the interaction between the stones and the binder. The behaviour of such materials is suitable to model using the Discrete Element Method (DEM). In this study, a new DEM modelling approach has been developed for studying the asphalt compaction process, incorporating contact and damage laws based on granular mechanics. In the simulations, aggregate fracture is handled by a recently developed method of incorporating particle fracture in DEM, based on previously performed fracture experiments on granite specimens. The binder phase is modelled by adding a viscoelastic film around each DEM particle. This surface layer has a thickness that obtains the correct volume of the binder phase and has mechanical properties representative for the binder at different temperatures. The ability of the model to capture the influence of mixture parameters on the compactability and the eventual stone damage during compaction is examined for the cases of compaction flow test and gyratory compaction. Explicitly, the influence of different aggregate gradations, mixture temperatures and binder properties are studied. The results show that the proposed DEM approach is able to capture qualitatively and quantitatively responses in both cases and also provide predictions of aggregate damage. One large benefit with the developed modelling approach is that the influence of different asphalt mixture parameters could be studied without re-calibration of model parameters. Furthermore, based on comparative DEM simulations, it is shown that the proposed approach provides more realistic force distribution networks in the material.

Microstructure characterisation of field and laboratory roller compacted asphalt mixtures

This study investigates the effect of field and laboratory roller compaction methods on the microstructure of asphalt mixtures. Loose material of varying hot mix asphalt (HMA) types was compacted in the laboratory using the steel-segmented roller compactor. Multiple compaction regimes were implemented by adjusting the compaction effort, temperature and mode. The internal structure of the laboratory roller compacted specimens was characterised in terms of the aggregate contact points, orientation and segregation by means of two-dimensional image analysis. The investigation in the laboratory demonstrated that the dominant parameters controlling the formation of the asphalt mixture microstructure are the compaction temperature and effort. In addition, the comparative evaluation of the field cores and laboratory compacted specimens revealed that the laboratory roller compaction method reproduces the microstructure induced by the field compaction. To conclude several laboratory compaction regimes may be established to closely duplicate the internal structure characteristics of field cores.

Temperature Control Planning Tool for Multi-Lift Resurfacing of Airport Pavements

Overnight repairs and resurfacing of runway or taxiway pavements are common in busy airports. The time window available for such repair and resurfacing works is often limited. A common problem encountered is to ensure that the newly compacted asphalt mixture has cooled down sufficiently before receiving aircraft loadings, so as to avoid premature deformation and failure of the asphalt mixture. In this regard, a simulation model that provides a prediction of the temperature–time variation trend of each compacted pavement lift in a multi-lift asphalt course laying would be a valuable planning tool for temperature control. Information on the temperature cooling trend of an asphalt layer helps to estimate the time duration available for effective compaction during laying, as well as the time lapse needed before the pavement is sufficiently stable to receive traffic. A finite element simulation model is presented in this study to predict the temperature–time variation trends of successive asphalt lifts in a multi-lift asphalt mixture laying operation. The numerical model was developed based on the theory of thermodynamics taking into account the heat transfer effects of solar radiation, convection, and conduction. The model was calibrated and validated using data from a field trial involving a two-lift and a three-lift laying of asphalt mixtures. Illustrative examples are presented to demonstrate the applications of the simulation model as a temperature control planning tool for repair and resurfacing operations of airport pavements.

Assessments of Potential Service Characteristics of Ethanol and Ethanol-NaHCO3 Foamed WMA Mixtures

AbstractIn the field, the workability and compactability of asphalt mixtures are essential to obtain the desired smoothness and sufficient density of a compacted pavement, especially for the asphal...

Synthesis and characterization of compartmented Ca-alginate/silica self-healing fibers containing bituminous rejuvenator

Due to the effects of traffic loading and environmental parameters, micro cracks would generate and develop in asphalt pavements during its service life. Encapsulations containing liquid rejuvenator for improving the self-healing ability of bitumen has a bright prospect. To avoid the rupture of encapsulations during the mixing, paving and compaction of asphalt mixture, the wall of which must be excellent in thermal stability and mechanical properties. In this research, a novel compartmented Ca-alginate/silica self-healing fiber encapsulating rejuvenator was synthesized by microfluidic method. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) confirm that the compartmented Ca-alginate/SiO2 self-healing fibers are successfully synthesized, nano silica composites are incorporated into the “egg-box” structure of Ca-alginate by physical adsorption and intermolecular interaction. The optimum content of SiO2 can be determined by the morphology analysis. Thermogravimetric analysis and long-term thermal stability test show that the addition of SiO2 can significantly improve the thermal stability of compartmented Ca-alginate self-healing fibers. In addition, the compartmented Ca-alginate/SiO2 fiber has no leakage in bituminous binder under the temperature of 180 °C for 1 h. Nanoindentation test indicates that the addition of nano SiO2 can increase the stiffness and rigidity of Ca-alginate wall and decreases the deformation. Three-point bending experiment shows that the fibers can survive in the process of mixing and compaction of asphalt mixture. Meanwhile, the fibers enhance the self-healing property of asphalt mixture.

Using discrete element models to track movement of coarse aggregates during compaction of asphalt mixture

The objective of this study is to analyze the movement characteristic of differently-shaped compositions in the Superpave Gyratory Compactor (SGC) test through tracking coarse aggregates and the numerical simulation of Discrete Element Method (DEM). First, the coarse aggregates were classified into five shape types (rounded, fractured, angular, elongated and flat) and scanned by a 3D scanner. Second, seven groups of asphalt mixtures with different combination types of hybrid, 100%fractured, 100%angular, 80%fractured + 20%rounded, 60%fractured + 40%rounded, 80%fractured + 20%elongated, and 80%fractured + 20%flat groups were simulated by Particle Flow Code (PFC) Version 5. Third, numerical simulations were conducted to analyze the SGC test process and the movement paths of differently-shaped coarse aggregates were obtained. Finally, statistical analysis on the results from the modeling test were used to study the movement characteristics of asphalt mixtures with differently-shaped aggregate compositions. Through this study, it was found that: (1) there were three main stages of particle movement in the SGC test; (2) the ratio of vertical displacement was obviously larger than that of horizontal displacement, while the variation of vertical rotation was obviously smaller than that of horizontal rotation in asphalt mixtures with differently-shaped compositions; (3) the rounded, elongated and flat coarse aggregates have greater influence on horizontal displacement compared with vertical displacement, but have adverse effects on particle rotations during the compaction process; (4) the effects of elongated coarse aggregates on particle movement were larger than those of flat coarse aggregates, but the flat coarse aggregates have more influence on particle rotation for the variations of horizontal and vertical rotational angles.

Lab assessment and discrete element modeling of asphalt mixture during compaction with elongated and flat coarse aggregates

Superpave gyratory compactor (SGC) is usually used for analysis of volumetric properties of asphalt mixture, evaluation of mixture densification properties, estimation of sensitivity to aggregates’ shapes, field quality control and other testing purposes. The specimens produced by SGC very closely simulate the density, aggregate orientation and structural characteristics of asphalt mixture on actual pavement. Aggregates make up the major volume or mass of asphalt mixture, and their shapes significantly impact both the structural and mechanical performance of mixtures. The objectives of this study were to analyze the influences of selected coarse aggregates on asphalt mixture compaction through lab testing and modeling. First, coarse aggregates were classified into five types, and testing samples were produced with designed percentages of different types. Second, images of selected coarse aggregates were obtained by 3D scanning and saved in STL (Stereolithography) files. Finally, the air void curves and results of discrete element modeling (DEM) were used to evaluate the influences of selected coarse aggregate shapes on asphalt mixture compaction. It was found that the asphalt mixtures with 100% angular or 100% fractured coarse aggregates were easier to compact compared with asphalt mixtures of hybrid coarse aggregates in a SGC test. Results also clearly indicated that the larger percentage of elongated and flat aggregates, with a 3:1 ratio, results in worse compactability of asphalt mixtures under laboratory conditions, and the influences of flat aggregates were greater than that of elongated. Therefore, special attention should be paid to asphalt mixtures with a large percentage of elongated or flat aggregates.

Moisture-induced damage resistance of asphalt mixture entirely composed of gneiss and steel slag

Gneiss and fine steel slag are seldom used in the construction of asphalt pavement due to their poor performances. Asphalt mixture entirely composed of gneiss (coarse aggregate) and steel slag (fine aggregate and asphalt filler) was proposed in this research in order to promote their wide use. Limestone fine aggregate and filler were functioned as control groups. The inadequacy of using 100% of gneiss to prepare asphalt mixture and the performance deterioration mechanism of fine steel slag were discussed based on some newly revealed material characteristics and previous research results, and corresponding improvement measures were established first. Then four asphalt mixtures (two fine aggregate and two filler) were designed by Superpave procedure. Finally, the moisture stabilities of uncompacted aggregate-mastic system and compacted asphalt mixture were fully investigated, and hot water damage mode and freeze-thaw damage mode were adopted. Results suggested that asphalt mixture entirely composed of coarse gneiss and re-processed fine steel slag possessed satisfactory moisture resistance performance.

Determination of oxygen diffusion coefficients of compacted asphalt mixtures

The oxidative aging of asphalt binder in asphalt mixture is a key factor that affects the long-term durability of asphalt pavement. The aging susceptibility of an asphalt mixture is dependent on oxygen transport and consumption in the mixture. In this study, an apparatus was developed to measure oxygen diffusion and consumption in compacted asphalt mixtures, and methods to compute oxygen diffusion and possible consumption of asphalt mixtures were evaluated and compared. Oxygen diffusion coefficients of samples prepared with different asphalt mixture designs and air void contents were determined, and correlations between the diffusion coefficients and samples’ volumetric characteristics were examined. The oxygen environment exposed by asphalt binders in pavements and its implication on pavement durability were also discussed based on simulated oxygen concentration profiles with time. The developed apparatus and test procedure were found to be suitable to measure the oxygen diffusion coefficients of compacted asphalt mixtures. It was also found that oxygen consumption during the diffusion test at room temperature is negligible, and both numerical and analytical methods perform equally well in calculating oxygen diffusion coefficients. The oxygen diffusion coefficients of the tested asphalt samples vary in orders of magnitude, dependent not only on air void contents but also on other volumetric characteristics. The traditional models to predict the oxygen diffusion coefficients of dry porous media are not fit for compacted asphalt mixtures. The oxygen diffusion coefficients of asphalt mixtures have significant implications on oxygen level exposed by asphalt binders inside of the pavements; therefore, they may be used as an indicator in asphalt mixture design and construction quality control.

Mixture-property-independent asphalt film thickness model

The durability of asphalt mixtures and hence the service life of asphalt pavement surface layers depends to a large extent on the asphalt film thickness. The current Superpave Voids in Mineral Aggregate (VMA) criterion relates mixture durability with VMA. The need to modify the Superpave criterion was supported by a previous study [1]. As the Superpave VMA criterion is based on the minimum asphalt content in the asphalt mixture and not on the asphaltfilm thickness, this minimum requirement does not ensure mixture durability in many cases. Additionally, coarse asphalt mixtures that tend to have enough asphalt film thicknesses normally have difficulty fulfilling the Superpave minimum VMA criteria. From this contention, the need for simple and reasonably accurate models to estimate the asphalt binder film thicknesses in asphalt mixtures becomes essential.In this study, a model for estimating the asphalt film thickness (FTb) has been developed using only parameters/properties of the two mixture constituents (aggregate and asphalt binder) and without the inclusion of any mixture property. The derivation of the model is based on physics, and the determined model coefficients (constants) have been obtained through statistical regression analysis. Superpave aggregate gradations of three nominal maximum aggregate sizes (NMAS), 9.5, 12.5, and 19.0 mm with aggregate gradations passing above, below, crossover, hump through, and pass through restricted zone were used. Superpave Gyratory Compactor (SGC) test data of 100 compacted asphalt mixtures were used in developing the model, and SGC data of 31 mixtures were used for verification of the model. MS Excel program solver was used for regression analysis. The final outcome is a physics-based statistical regression model, with a high enough coefficient of determination (R2) value of 0.9 for FTb, which is easy to use and likely to predict the film thickness with a reasonable degree of accuracy.

Material Testing Apparatus and Procedures for Evaluating Freeze-Thaw Resistance of Asphalt Concrete Mixtures

Abstract This paper presents material testing procedures using an ASTM C666 (Standard Test Method for Resistance of Concrete to Rapid Freezing and Thawing) apparatus to evaluate resistance of asphalt concrete (AC) mixtures with respect to freeze-thaw (F-T) cycles. The ASTM C666 apparatus is mostly used for testing F-T resistance of pervious concrete, but it can be an ideal device to replace the currently used AASHTO T283, Standard Method of Test for Resistance of Compacted Asphalt Mixtures to Moisture-Induced Damage, as it was never intended to simulate F-T resistance for asphalt mixtures. To evaluate the effectiveness of the ASTM C666 apparatus in determination of F-T resistance of asphalt mixtures, two types of AC materials were sampled from an asphalt paving project: rubberized modified asphalt (RMA) and fiber reinforced asphalt (FRA). All specimens were prepared in the Materials Laboratory of Northern Arizona University, and their F-T resistance was tested using an ASTM C666 apparatus at six designed cycles: 0, 100, 150, 200, 250, and 300 cycles. After each desired cycle is complete, specimens were removed from the ASTM C666 apparatus and then tested for their stiffness using a bending beam rheometer (BBR). The viscoelastic reposes of asphalt mixtures tended to be less significant after 150 F-T cycles. The field evaluation of local asphalt paving associated with climatic F-T cycle data and F-T test results indicate that surface conditions and cracking progress of the asphalt pavements do have closer agreement with the increase of F-T cycles. The ASTM C666 apparatus is capable of providing F-T conditioning of the specimens. In combination of the BBR device and the corresponding procedure, the thermal properties of the mix (e.g., stiffness at 60 s or relaxation modulus function) can be measured and determined. The testing procedures and results are promising and prone to the purposes of F-T resistant simulation. The findings presented in this paper provide a positive trend for future research focusing on the evaluation of long-term F-T durability of asphalt mixtures.

Evaluation of the laboratory compaction method on the air voids and the mechanical behavior of hot mix asphalt

Marshall and Superpave mixture designs are based mainly on volumetric parameters. Despite this similarity, the definition of the optimum asphalt binder content is highly influenced by the laboratory compaction method. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of the compaction method on the air void content and the mechanical properties of compacted asphalt mixtures. The experimental procedure included the Marshall and Superpave mixture design methods (the second one uses SGC – Superpave Gyratory Compactor, with two mold sizes), the French gyratory shear compactor (PCG), and also the LCPC French roller compactor. The effect of the compaction method, mold size and the number of gyrations on the air void content (and, consequently, on the optimum asphalt binder content), mechanical properties, permanent deformation, and fatigue behavior were evaluated. The main contribution of this study is the recommendation of the Superpave Gyratory Compactor with mold size of 100mm diameter (Nominal Maximum Aggregate Size NMS≤12.5mm) for medium and high traffic. The use of 150mm molds in the SGC is recommended only if the number of gyrations is smaller than the one used in this study (100 gyrations).

Dynamic characteristics modelling of the tamper–asphalt mixture interaction: application to predict asphalt mat density

ABSTRACTRecently, the study of machinery/medium interaction is becoming increasingly important in terramechanics. In order to maximise the performance of existing equipment and obtaining desired compaction density in road construction, reasonable and effective paving operations are essential. However, the operations always depend on empirical approaches. In this paper, a model based on vibration compaction theory was used to describe the deformation property of asphalt mixture, which can lay a foundation for future analysis. And then, a dynamic model of tamper/asphalt mat interaction, based on the principles of resonance, was developed to predict asphalt mat density during paving operation. The model inputs included excitation frequency, tamper stroke, paver forward speed and asphalt mixture properties parameters for different tamper or asphalt mixture. The numerical simulations are provided to demonstrate how the tamper/asphalt mat interaction model can be used to predict asphalt mixture compaction in the field of road construction engineering.