Comparison of Mix Design Methods for Porous Asphalt Mixtures

Bradley J. Putman,A.M.ASCE ; and Laura C. Kline

Pervious pavement is a significant proof of a widely progress of transportation and water

engineering in different countries as a substitute to impervious pavement. The good impact of the
implementation of pervious pavement to many land areas are increase in ground water recharge,
lesser run-off pollution, and improved skid resistance ( Bean et. al., 2007 ; Putman and Kline ,
2012 ). Different arrangement of aggregates are studied for much effective design of pavement ,
namely porous asphalt pavement, asphalt pavement with an open- graded friction course, and
conventional dense graded asphalt pavement. The dense graded asphalt pavement is the
conventional design of impervious pavement that is used worldwide. The open – graded friction
course asphalt pavement having a pervious surface, water enters easily unto the voids and draw
off at the side of the pavement. The porous asphalt pavement permits water to infiltrate and
stored at the base, compare to open- graded friction course (OGFC) asphalt pavement it is design
to lessen the air voids present in the structure to strengthen its ability to hold loads and filters
water effectively ( Putman and Kline, 2012). The downside of porous asphalt pavement are
accelerated aging, higher possible ravelling and increase in oxygen content which leads to a
higher portion in the mixture. Clogged pores can also become problematic especially to the fine
course that would enter to the voids ( Kandhal and Mallick , 1998; Putman and Kline , 2012 ) .
The problem in storm water management and road safety leads the way to the different studies
and improvement of the design of porous asphalt pavement ( Putman and Kline, 2012).

According to Putman and Kline ( 2012 ) the design of porous asphalt mixtures must be
modified from the traditional mix design to be able to adjust for the high air void content.
Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published the first mix designs in 1974 and then
modified in 1980 and again in 1990 ( FHWA 1990; Watson et. al. 2002). This design method
was based on the surface capacity and absorption of aggregate. In 2000, the National Center for
Asphalt Technology (NCAT) published a new-generation OGFC mix design ( Mallck et. al,
2000; Putman and Kline, 2012). The open gradation and high air void content leads to less stone-
to-stone contact, which reduces the durability. Most methods counteract this with higher binder
contents, higher binder grades, and additives to help improve the performance ( Putman and
Kline, 2012 ).

The United States gives emphasis to porous asphalt pavement by conducting experiments and
improvements of the design and determine the optimum binder content (OBC) of the porous
asphalt pavement. In several years of their study, they come up with three categories of mix
design procedures: (a) OBC using compacted asphalt specimens, (b) OBC using an oil
absorption test , and (c) OBC by visual observation of loose porous asphalt mix. Departments of
transportation ( DOTs ) in the United States studies used 30 specimens of crushed granite coated
with 1% hydrated lime and set its condition into the oven before compacting using gyratory
compactor. In oil absorption test, 100g of size No. 10 aggregates are soaked in the oil and set the
condition into the oven with a temperature of 60 ˚C. In visual determination two specimens are
set, a soil with the same properties but setting in different conditions in terms of temperature,
binder conditioning and time. In the experiment that the DOTs in United States conducted they
would be able to measure the density and volumetric properties, permeability, bulk specific
gravity, bulk specific gravity ( SSD), apparent specific gravity, absorption and abrasion
resistance of the given design of porous asphalt pavement. In the new improved mix design
procedures of porous asphalt pavement, increasing binder content is proposed. Optimum binder
increase the compactness of the aggregates which results in lesser air voids but not
compromising the ability of the pavement to infiltrate water at its cost. According to the study,
the usage of optimum binder must be limit to 20% to make the usage more practical, if it is not
properly give considerations serious problems in the construction and life span will occur, the
life span will be much lesser and pavements will be ravelling. ( Putman& Kline, 2012 )

According to Putman and Kline ( 2012 ), a specified oil is used to measure the absorption
capacity in measuring the OBC of a porous asphalt mixture. An aggregate is soaked in the oil
and drained afterwards in a particular condition. The measured parameter in the soaked
aggregates is use in series of calculations to determine the OBC of the mixture. Kerosene is
another specimen that is used by other states in the United States .

Three sources of aggregates are used in the experiment and ten specimens for each
aggregates are compacted. One percent hydrated lime was used to coat a heated aggregate that is
used in mixing the porous asphalt mixture. The temperature of the mixture is about 164 – 170 ˚C
for all the mixtures, and after that 50 gyration is applied. Virginia DOT recommends that binder
content must range in 5.75 – 7.25 %. The specimen is tested for its bulk specific gravity and
porosity ( ASTM 2011a, D7063 ), permeability ( modified ASTM 2001, PS129), and unaged and
aged abrasion loss ( ASTM 2008b,D7064). Specific gravity ( ASTM 2011b, D2041 ) is
measured using the uncompact soil specimen. Preliminary testing revealed that the diameter
standpipe did not allow for enough time for accurate measurements of flow rate and the smaller
diameter outlet appeared to limit the flow of water through the permeameter when testing
specimens having high permeability values ( Putman and Kline ).

According to Putman and Kline (2012) if binder content in the mixture increases the density
of the mixture also increases, because the binder helps to fill the air voids in the mixture. Like air
voids, porosity also decreases as binder will added to the mixture. This is important to note that
especially for porous asphalt mixtures because inaccessible air voids do not contribute to the
functionality of the porous mixture. Therefore the lower the binder content of the mixture the
better functionality of porous asphalt pavement would be develop. The aggregate structure
contributes more to the permeability than the binder content of the mixture, because it is evident
that the mixture can have its permeability having a high binder content.

Reference :Putman, B., Kline, L. (2012). Comparison of Mix Design Methods for Porous
Asphalt Mixtures. Retrieved September 6,2018 from
https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/%28ASCE%29MT.1943-5533.0000529