Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Civil Engineering Department, University of Technology, Baghdad, Iraq.

2 Directorate of Roads and Bridges, Karbala, Iraq

Abstract

Improving asphalt materials to develop the overall performance of asphalt binders and mixtures has been the focus of several investigations made over the past few decades. The application of discarded waste plastics in asphalt modification was one of the steps taken in this direction. Using waste materials in pavement construction would not only enhances asphalt properties but would also bring out significant saving in road material costs and help towards tackling disposal problems of such waste materials, which tend to be hazardous in as much as they can cause pollution of water, soil, and air. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the probability of using Waste Polypropylene (WPP) as modifier to enhance the properties of asphalt binder and mixture. In this paper, two types of asphalt binder (40/50) and (60/70) were used. Three percentages of WPP (1%, 3%, and 5%) were added to (60/70) asphalt binder/mixture to obtain the modified samples that were tested using several laboratory tests and their results were compared to original (60/70) asphalt binder/mixture and to those of (40/50) asphalt binder/mixture besides comparing with the Iraqi Specifications. The outcomes indicated that 3% of WPP was the optimum percentage that gave best results for asphalt binder and asphalt mixture compared to original and other percentages of asphalt samples and according to the Iraqi Specifications.

Keywords

  • This paper investigates the probability of using Waste Polypropylene (WPP) as modifier.
  • It is aimed to enhance the properties of asphalt binder and mixture.
  • Two types of asphalt binder (40/50) and (60/70) were used.
  • Three percentages of WPP (1%, 3%, and 5%) were added to (60/70) asphalt binder/mixture.
  • The outcomes indicated that 3% of WPP was optimum percentage that gave best results.