161 research outputs found

    The Effect of Polymer Modification on Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) Fracture at Tensile Loading Conditions

    No full text
    A laboratory investigation was conducted to evaluate the effect of both cross-linked and linear Styrene-Butadiene-Styrene (SBS) modifiers on the cracking resistance of Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) mixtures. Five types of asphalt mixtures composed by the same aggregate gradation but different asphalt binders were produced in the laboratory. The cracking performances of the mixtures were evaluated using a visco-elastic fracture mechanics-based model entitled “HMA Fracture Mechanics”. Crack localization and crack growth were investigated performing the Indirect Tensile Test (IDT) and the Semi-Circular Bending (SCB) test. A Digital Image Correlation (DIC) System capable of providing full field strain maps was applied. The results show the benefit of SBS modifiers to mixture’s cracking resistance in terms of reduced rate of damage accumulation and increased tensile limits to failure. No influence was observed in the elastic response but rather on the time-dependent response. Finally, significant damage and first fracture have shown to be strongly more localized in modified specimens than in the unmodified one

    Influence of Mixture Properties on Fracture Mechanics in Asphalt Mixtures

    No full text
    This paper reports a research study aimed at providing insight into key mechanisms and mixture properties that influence fracture in asphalt concrete. The experimental analysis was based on the Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) Fracture Mechanics visco-elastic crack growth law. HMA cracking mechanism was investigated using multiple laboratory test configurations on both unmodified and polymer modified mixtures. A Digital Image Correlation (DIC) was employed to more accurately capture localized or non-uniform stress distributions in asphalt mixtures and as a tool for detecting first fracture. Crack initiation and crack growth were predicted effectively using a Displacement Discontinuity (DD) boundary element method

    Strain Localization and damage Distribution in SBS Polymer Modified Asphalt Mixtures

    No full text
    A laboratory investigation was conducted to estimate the macroscopic cracking response of Styrene Butadiene Styrene (SBS) polymer modified asphalt mixtures by analyzing the localized strain distribution within the material microstructure. Five asphalt mixtures composed by the same aggregate gradation but different SBS modified asphalt binders were produced in the laboratory. An in-house developed Digital Image Correlation (DIC)-based system was employed to obtain 2D full-field strain maps of the specimens during tensile loading. Strain distributions were observed from three different test configurations, namely the Indirect Tensile Test (IDT), the Semi-Circular Bending (SCB) test and the Three-Point Bending (3PB) test. The cracking performances of the mixtures were evaluated using a visco-elastic fracture mechanics-based model entitled HMA Fracture Mechanics. The results clearly show the beneficial effect of SBS polymer modifier in redistributing the stress within the mastic

    Characterisation of Asphalt Mixture Cracking Behavior using the Three-Point bending Beam Test

    No full text
    The use of a three-point bending beam (3PB) test was investigated to characterise hot mix asphalt (HMA) cracking behaviour. Fundamental HMA fracture properties, identified as tensile strength and fracture energy density at first fracture, were determined for six different asphalt mixtures (two natural and four SBS polymer modified) applying the HMA Fracture Mechanics framework. Full-field strain maps obtained from an in-house developed digital image correlation-based method were observed to better understand the crack initiation and propagation mechanisms in the 3PB specimen. The resulting fracture behaviour was predicted using a displacement discontinuity boundary element method to model the microstructure of the six asphalt mixtures and to predict their fracture properties. Both numerical and experimental results indicate that the fracture mechanism of asphalt mixtures can be properly described from 3PB test results when appropriate interpretation models are used.</p
    corecore