Improving the sustainability of asphalt by using repurposed waste

With the increased challenge of keeping the growing generation of waste out of landfills, the road pavement is seen as an attractive disposal route for some types of waste materials. Asphalt is produced from non-renewable materials and consumes energy to heat the bitumen and dry the aggregates during manufacture. Asphalt can be made more sustainable by: 1. Replacing these non-renewable materials with repurposed waste materials. 2. Reducing the temperature required to produce asphalt. 3. Improving the asphalt performance properties with repurposed waste materials to increase its service life. The reuse of the waste is restricted by the cost of recovering, processing and transporting the repurposed waste compared with the cost of using non-renewable raw materials. Other key considerations are uncertainty over its impact on the environment, workers health, future recycling of asphalt and the long-term performance of the asphalt. This paper looks at what types of repurposed waste can be reused as a substitute material and what effect the reducing of mixing temperatures can have on lowering the carbon footprint of asphalt without compromising its performance. There are several secondary waste materials which have a proven record of reuse in asphalt. With the ban on the importation of waste plastic to China and India, there is growing pressure on society to find ways of reusing our waste plastic as a resource. Some of these waste materials can enhance the performance properties of the asphalt. This will be discussed in the context of providing more durable asphalt with improved laboratory performance properties for use in heavy duty pavement types and high stress locations.

• Record URL:
  • http://arrbknowledge.com
• Authors:
  • Murphy, L
  • Distin, T
• Conference:
  • AfPA International Flexible Pavements Conference, 19th, 2023, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
• Publication Date: 2023-10

Media Info

• Pagination: 10p
• Monograph Title: Safely paving the way to carbon zero: 19th AfPA International Flexible Pavements Conference, 30th October-1 November 2023, Brisbane, Qld

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bitumen; Bituminous pavements; Durability; Environment; Environmental impacts; Plastics; Properties of materials; Recycled materials; Sustainable development
• ATRI Terms: Asphalt; Durability; Environmental effects; Material properties; Plastics; Recycled materials
• ITRD Terms: 4573: Recycling (mater)
• Subject Areas: Environment; I33: Other Materials used in Pavement Layers;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01929905
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: ARRB Group Limited
• Files: ITRD, ATRI
• Created Date: Sep 10 2024 2:18PM