Mix Optimization

Better Roads Staff - May 06, 2013

A formula for greenbacks and green roads To avoid fracturing aggregates when compacting stone matrix asphalt (SMA) or open-graded mixes, it may be necessary to use two rollers set in low amplitude during the breakdown phase. When it comes to mix-design ...

Rap Up

Better Roads Staff - Mar 06, 2013

Making high-RAP mixes -- an art and a science By Daniel C. Brown, Contributing Editor Many state transportation departments have saved tens of millions of dollars by using reclaimed asphalt pavement. RAP is worth the same as the virgin materials it replaces. ...

Pavement Preservation Coded in MAP-21

Better Roads Staff - Feb 07, 2013

Under new federal surface transportation law MAP-21, pavement preservation treatments like slurry surfacing (shown) and state and local policy elements like asset management are supported with federal funds For the first time, pavement preservation is part of national surface transportation ...

RoadWorks

Better Roads Staff - Nov 30, 2012

Mixes and Ground Tire Rubber By John Latta, jlatta@randallreilly.com A study from the National Center for Asphalt Technology (NCAT) confirms that ambient and cryogenic ground rubber provides performance benefits in asphalt and the asphalt manufacturing process. The study, Effect of Ground Tire Rubber ...

Applications & Innovations

Better Roads Staff - Jul 03, 2012

Using RAS Recycled asphalt shingles are an acquired taste When going from the roof to the road in recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) mixes, “it’s all in the details,” says John Christensen, technical marketing manager for MeadWestvaco (MWV). It’s not impossible to get density ...

Road Science

Better Roads Staff - Apr 06, 2012

Asphalt a la Carte Modifiers Control Mix Performance Petroleum (literally, rock oil) is one of the most important gifts of the union of carbon and hydrogen. But instead of being a simple compound (like water), petroleum is a natural product, a complex ...

Road Science

Better Roads Staff - Nov 13, 2011

?%# What percentage of RAP is best? It depends. T here are powerful inducements today to reuse reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) in a variety of applications. And the big question about RAP has shifted from whether it belongs in mixes at all, ...

Road Science

Better Roads Staff - Sep 07, 2011

Science Friction Thin Open-Graded Surfacings Drive Market By Tom Kuennen, Contributing Editor Now, more than ever, thin open-graded friction courses (OGFCs) are driving the market for drainable, high-friction, noise-attenuating asphalt mixes. This new generation of OGFCs is being bolstered by the advent of high-performance ...

Stretching a road maintenance budget with fine milling

Tina Grady Barbaccia - Aug 23, 2011

Doing more with less and aggressively seeking new ways to stretch budget dollars are how many businesses respond to a tough economic climate. Federal and state highway and transportation departments are no exceptions. Fortunately, academic research and equipment technology communities ...

Highway Contractor

Better Roads Staff - Aug 02, 2011

Warm Mix Asphalt Rolls into Place Technologies taking form under the watchful eyes of the National Asphalt Pavement Association and the Federal Highway Administration By Mike Anderson There is little doubt that even the most staid and traditional of road agencies and contractors ...

Kirk Landers: Necessity is also the mother of economy

Brooke Wisdom - Jan 01, 2010

We all talk about economizing, about eliminating waste, and about getting more value for every dollar spent. We all talk about these things when we talk about government spending, and often when we discuss corporate spending, such as the so-called ...

Road Science: Top 5 Trends of 2010

Brooke Wisdom - Dec 01, 2009

Could these developments influence the way you work next year? Trying to identify major trends and developments that could affect the way highway and bridge construction is done in the next year is something of a challenge at best. But there ...