Green (Sustainable) Pavements

Professor Kamil Kaloush | Arizona State University

Pavements
 Backbone of transportation infrastructure.
 Striveto provide opportunities to improve
designs & performance.
 Mindfulof important environmental, social
and economic issues.
 Safer
 Lower emissions
 Longer service life
 Disseminate global best practices.
 Green = Sustainable Development

Green
PAVEMENTS

Sustainable Pavements = Social friendly, durable

and resilient, and have minimum impacts on
environment
Social Aspects

Urban Heat
Island
Performance &
Durability

Social / Sustainable
Safety
Functional Pavement
(Adequate
Friction)

Ride
Quality /
Noise
Urban Heat Island
Paved surfaces are ~40% of the
urbanized land cover in Phoenix

5 Phoenix Metropolitan Area (11pm at night)

 Environmental Aspects

Impacts on
Air Quality
(tire wear) Storm Water
Mitigation

Material
Environmental Recyclability

Energy
Sustainable
Savings
Pavement
Green Pavements = Social friendly, durable and resilient, and have
minimum impacts on environment
Impacts on
Air Quality
(tire wear) Storm Water
Mitigation

Urban Heat
Island Environmental Material
Recyclability
Performance &
Durability

Social / Green Energy

Safety Pavement Savings
(Adequate Functional
Friction)
Life Cycle
Ride (cost effective)
Quality
Long Term Impacts

Highway
Noise and
Health
Tire Wear Emission
Rates
May 2004 and
June 2005

Emission rates calculated per kilometer driven (mg/km)

Tire wear Experiment 1 Experiment 2
emission rate (PCC road surface) (AR-ACFC road surface)
based on
Compound # 3 354 ± 71 177 ± 35
Compound # 4 172 ± 34 120 ± 24
Climate Change and Pavements
 Temperature Extremes
outside the range for which
pavements are designed for:
 Asphalt Concrete Pavements
 High temperatures
 Softening behavior & excessive
deformation
 Low temperatures
 Excessive cracking
Portland Cement Concrete Pavements
High temperatures
Slabs blowing up
Low temperatures
Freeze – thaw issues

 Temperature
Gradients induce
damaging Curling
Stresses
 CLIMATE EXTREMITIES – EXTREME
New designs must raise
HEAT WAVESspecifications to
counter these effects

Zydex
Modified Pavement Materials
 Mitigate both traffic and climate induced pavement
distresses

 Rutting Resistance
 Stiffer asphalt binders

 Reduce Cracking
 Eliminate or delay cracking
 Inhibit crack propagation

 Reduce Surface Wear: Raveling

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 Sustainable Pavements Strategies
 Pervious Concrete  Asphalt Rubber / Rubberized Pavement
 Thin Whitetopping Concrete  Fiber Reinforced Asphalt Concrete
 Warm Mix Asphalt
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 Pervious Concrete
 Reduce runoff quantity
 Treats water runoff by removing
pollutants

 Lower maintenance  Groundwater Table

 Cooler at night  Dust trap

 Quiet due to Voids

 Increase traction when wet
 Reduces splashing

 less cracking
 Thin Whitetopping Overlays
 Thin or Ultra Thin Whitetopping (UTW)
 Ultra Thin slabs (50 to 100 mm thick)
 Thin slabs (100 to 150 mm thick)
 Short joint spacing (0.6 to 1.8 m)
 Bonded to existing HMA to increase load-carrying capacity
 Low volume roads exhibiting rutting, shoving, potholing
 Urban intersections
Ultra Thin Whitepping Rio Verde - Arizona
Asphalt Rubber / Rubberized Pavement
Emerging Technologies:
Reacted Asphalt Rubber RARX
Pelletized Asphalt Rubber Systems
Multi-Use
Fibers in HMA Mixtures
Huaxin
Chen et al
(2009)

Tire Fibers

Cellulose Fibers

(FORTA®)
Coconut Fibers(Passos, 2005).

(Chowdhary et al.)
 FORTA AR Fiber
Synergistic blend ®
of ® fibrillated
collated
Polypropylene and Aramid fibers
Project in Columbia
Autopistas del Café
Downhill Curves (Location: Pereira)

 Raveling problems occur within 2

month and yearly repairs where
required (2009, 2010 & 2011);
 In January 2013, FORTA-FI was
used with a dense HMA (“MDC-2”)
and a conventional 60-70 binder;
 16 month later, both curves are in
excellent condition;
 No cracks, no raveling
Bus stop (Medellín)
 Bus stop on a downhill alongside
Parque Villa Hermosa;
 Severe rutting within 2 years; (May
2013)
 Work done: milling of 15cm and paving
a 7.5cm base MSC-1 and a 7.5 cm
surface course of MDC-2 with FORTA-
FI;
 1 Year later road has no rutting
 Image Source: Rand,
TXDOT

Warm Mix Asphalt

 35 – 45C less during
production
 Reduce fuel Use
 Lower emissions
 Improved
compaction
 Reduced aging
 Improved crack
resistance
 Ability to haul
paving mix longer
distances
 Extending paving
season

It is estimated by some that the term warm mix asphalt concrete will disappear in 3-5 years
because all asphalt concrete mixtures will be made with these technologies.
 Road Life (years)
AR 62 mm, Base 150 mm 10
UTW 50mm, HMA 50mm, Base 150mm 15
HMA 100mm, Base 150mm 10
20,000 19,449

14,600
15,000

CO2
12,875

10,000

Emissions
Analysis
5,000

0
UTW 50mm, HMA
AR 62 mm, Base HMA 2" over Base
50mm, Base
150 mm 6"
150mm
Transportation kg An. CO2 Eq. /
2,676 2,526 3,722
km
Mixing kg An. CO2 Eq. / km 6,867 4,124 11,210
Production kg An. CO2 Eq. / km 3,333 7,951 4,517

1. Philip White, Jay S. Golden*, Krishna P. Biligiri, and Kamil Kaloush, “Impacts of Alternative
Pavement Designs on Climate Change”, Journal of Resources, Conservation and Recycling,
Elsevier, the Netherlands, Volume 54, Issue 11, pp. 776-782, 2010. (+)
Industry Products
New technologies contributes to sustainability / resiliency Stripping

Zycotherm ( Organosile additive)

Provides lower production and compaction temperatures

Enhancing the moisture resistance of pavements by serving as an

antistrip Raveling & Pot Holes
Combined Technologies
Component Value
RARX % 35 % by weight of total Binder conten
ZT as % of binder weight 0.125 %
Reduced Mixing Temperature 165°C
Reduced Compaction temperature 135°C

 Modified asphalt mixes does not stick to mixing

equipment used and avoids material loss.

 Good mixing and compaction.

 The Video shows the same where the sample has better
workability at 135 °C in spite being a rubber mix.

Finished RARx + Zydex sample

 Take Away Points
• Conventional pavement materials and designs
need to be re-evaluated to meet future
sustainability goals and climate change
challenges.

• Opportunities exists for sustainable / Green

pavements with emerging technologies:
o Composite and pervious pavements
o Rubberized pavements
o Fiber Reinforced Asphalt Concrete
o Warm mix technologies
Thank You!
Albert Einstein advice:

We cannot solve our problems with the

same thinking we used when we
created them.

Email: kaloush@asu.edu

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