Comparison of asphalt mixtures containing polymeric compounds and polymer-modified bitumen based on the VECD theory

The ‘dry’ method that can be used to produce modified asphalt mixtures is a less expensive, less energyconsuming, and faster process than the well-established ‘wet’ method. Moreover, the dry method allows the incorporation of hard plastics, even those plastics obtained from waste products. Although researchers agree that the dry method can improve the stiffness and rutting resistance (i.e., high-temperature performance) of asphalt mixtures, they have conflicting opinions regarding mixture fatigue and cracking resistance. In this regard, this paper aims to evaluate, through the application of viscoelastic continuum damage theory, the fatigue behavior of two compound asphalt mixtures that have been modified using the dry method. One of the studied compounds is composed of plastomeric polymer and the other is composed of waste plastic with the addition of graphene. A reference mixture containing polymer-modified bitumen (representing the wet modification method) was used for comparison. The experimental program involved dynamic modulus tests and uniaxial cyclic fatigue tests of laboratory-compacted specimens and cores extracted from full-scale field test sections. The test results from the laboratory-compacted specimens and field cores were input to FlexPAVETM for pavement performance simulations. Under the same volumetric conditions, the three dense-graded mixtures broadly had comparable stiffness and fatigue resistance values at the material level. However, in the pavement-level simulations, the reference mixture exhibited much less damage after 30 years of service than the compound mixtures. Concerning the field test track, the air void contents of the mixtures varied due to workability issues related to the presence of the compounds. Optimum performance was obtained for asphalt layers that could be characterized by an intermediate stiffness level that ensured an adequate load distribution without negative consequences for the mixture’s fatigue resistance and thermal resistance.