Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466

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Construction and Building Materials

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/conbuildmat

High and low temperature properties of crumb rubber modified binders

containing warm mix asphalt additives
Ana María Rodríguez-Alloza a,⇑, Juan Gallego a, Ignacio Pérez b, Alice Bonati c, Felice Giuliani c
a
Department of Civil Engineering, Transport, Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Calle Profesor Aranguren s/n, 28040 Madrid, Spain
b
Department of Mathematical Methods and Representation, Universidade da Coruña (UDC), Campus de Elviña, 15071 A Coruña, Spain
c
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 181/A, 43124 Parma, Italy

h i g h l i g h t s

 The four additives reduced the viscosity of the CRM binder.

 The four additives worsened the characteristics of the binder at low temperatures.
 The four additives increased stiffness obtained with the BBR test.
 The four additives decreased the m-values obtained with the BBR test.
 Mixtures containing these binders are more prone to cracking at low temperatures.

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: In recent years, warm mix asphalt (WMA) has become an important new research topic in the field of
Received 26 October 2013 pavement materials due to a growing concern over global warming. Though this technology is being
Received in revised form 5 December 2013 incorporated to reduce emissions and improve workability by lowering the production and compaction
Accepted 6 December 2013
temperatures of asphalt mixtures without significantly affecting their mechanical properties, the influ-
Available online 3 January 2014
ence of WMA additives on the properties of crumb rubber modified (CRM) binders has not yet been
clearly identified. The main objective of this study is to investigate the effect of different types and quan-
Keywords:
tities of WMA additives on the high and low temperature properties of a 20% CRM binder. Statistical
Crumb rubber
Warm mix asphalt
analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to determine the significance level of testing temperature
Additive and additive content. The results of this study indicate that though the additives lower the viscosity of
Binder properties the CRM binders, they increase the stiffness at low temperatures, therefore increasing the likelihood that
the asphalt binder and pavement will crack.
Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction conventional mixtures [2], which means that more energy is

Previous studies have demonstrated that crumb rubber modi-
fied (CRM) binders produce pavements with good mechanical
behavior [1]. They offer improved resistance to rutting, better resis-
tance to low temperature cracking, reduced fatigue/reflection
cracking and temperature susceptibility, decreased traffic noise
and maintenance costs, and prolonged pavement life. These pave-
ments also save energy and natural resources by making use of
waste products. Because of these advantages, CRM asphalt
mixtures are increasingly used as a green material in the highway
pavement construction industry in many countries. However, these
mixtures require higher mixing and compaction temperatures than
⇑ Corresponding author. Tel.: +34 606999265.
E-mail addresses: anirguezalloza@yahoo.es, anamaria.rodriguez.alloza@upm.es
(A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza).
consumed and aging may be a more serious issue [3,4].
Warm mix asphalt (WMA) technology offers promising solu-
tions to the CRM drawbacks thanks to the use of fluidifying addi-
tives which were found able to guarantee lower viscosity of
bitumen at mix production temperatures without affecting bitu-
men performance at pavement service temperatures. To this aim,
waxes are suitable thanks to their melting and crystallizing prop-
erties. Several studies have been carried out about wax in bitumen,
focusing on the determination of the wax content [5,6], the crystal-
lization properties [7,8], chemical structure [9] as well as their
influence on bitumen and asphalt performance [10–13]. Concern-
ing wax performance, several experiences have shown that the
presence of wax in bitumen can be associated to different side ef-
fects influencing pavement quality and durability. More specifi-
cally, wax melting could affect the rutting resistance of the
pavement while wax crystallizing can increase mixture stiffness
and its sensitivity to fatigue and thermal cracking at low

0950-0618/$ - see front matter Ó 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2013.12.026
 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466 461

temperatures. A univocal definition of the effect of wax in the as-
phalt binder performance cannot be outlined, being strictly depen-
dent on the physical and chemical characteristics of the wax. In
order to achieve optimum production and compaction tempera-
tures of asphalt rubber comparable to those of conventional bind-
ers, warm asphalt additives should be chosen on the basis of their
ability in reducing the viscosity of the blend. Different kinds of
waxes proposed and commercialized as bitumen flow improvers
Asphaltan BÒ and LicomontÒ were selected from among a number
of WMA additives to be used for this study. The statistical signifi-
cance of the selected factors – test temperature and additive con-
tent – were analyzed comprehensively using two-factor ANOVAs.
2. Materials and preparation of CRM binders containing WMA additives
2.1. Materials

exist: Montan waxes, Fischer-Tropsch (FT) waxes, and functional-

The virgin binder used in this study is a B 50/70 (50/70  10 1 mm of penetra-
ized waxes. Montan wax is a combination of non-glyceride tion), which is widely used to produce asphalt mixes at normal temperatures.
long-chain organic acids, long-chain alcohols, and other organic Twenty percent by weight of rubber was added to the B 50/70 in order to obtain
compounds with complex structure. Montan waxes are obtained the CRM binder used in this study (80% bitumen, 20% rubber), referred to hereafter
as ‘B + 20%R’. Table 1 summarizes the basic specifications of the virgin binder. Pen-
from fossilized vegetables by solvent extraction of certain types
etration grade was assessed according to UNE-EN 1426 standard (Bitumen and
of lignite and brown coal [14]. FT waxes are produced by synthesis bituminous binders – Determination of needle penetration) [28], while the Soften-
process and are characterized by a high molecular weight distribu- ing Point was measured according to UNE-EN 1427:2007 (Bitumen and bituminous
tion and a fine microcrystalline structure at low temperature [14]. binders – Determination of the softening point – Ring and ball method) [29]. The
Thanks to this smaller crystalline structure, FT waxes were charac- asphalt bitumen was also subjected to a fractionation analysis as specified in the
NLT 373/94 standard [30].
terized by a reduced brittleness at low temperatures. Finally, func-
The crumb rubber modifier was manufactured by mechanical grinding at ambi-
tionalized waxes consist of waxy amides obtained by amidation of ent temperature (50% from truck tires and 50% from car tires) and was supplied by
fatty acids and are characterized by a great assortment in chemical the Renecal company in Guardo, Spain. To ensure consistency, only one batch of
structure leading to very different physical properties. crumb rubber was used in this study. The gradation of the crumb rubber is provided
in Table 2 and the thermogravimetic analysis in Table 3, both provided by the
Thus, different kinds of wax are nowadays available as bitumen
supplier.
modifiers in WMA technology and different waxes lead to different Four different organic or wax additives – SasobitÒ, Asphaltan AÒ, Asphaltan BÒ
effects on bitumen rheology, as well as on asphalt mixtures perfor- and Licomont BS 100Ò – were added to B + 20%R to produce the binders. 2% and 4%
mance and durability, being the final result mainly governed by the of each additive were used and percentages are referred to the bitumen weight.
composition and physical properties of the wax [15,16]. The possi- While SasobitÒ is a F-T wax created by treating hot coal with steam in the presence
of a catalyst, Asphaltan AÒ is a Montan wax, which is produced by solvent extrac-
bility of reducing the mixing and compaction temperatures of as-
tion of lignite or brown coal. Asphaltan BÒ is a refined Montan wax blended with
phalt mixtures represent a practical chance of decreasing energy a fatty acid amide and Licomont BS 100Ò is a synthetic fatty acid amide that is man-
consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and fumes and odors ufactured by reacting amines with fatty acids.
from asphalt plants, as well as improve the working conditions
at plants and paving sites [17]. These benefits, combined with 2.2. Preparation of CRM binders containing WMA additives
the effective reuse of a solid waste product, would make CRM as-
An oil bath with a maximum temperature of 225 °C, a mixer with a maximum
phalt mixtures with WMA additives an excellent, environmen-
velocity of 15,000 rpm, fitted with a propeller agitator and a one-liter metal con-
tally-friendly material for road construction. tainer for mixing was used for the preparation of the binders. The oil bath has a
The effect of WMA additives on the high and low temperature
properties of rubberized binders has not yet been established in Table 1
detail, although some research has been done into the influence Specifications of the B 50/70 bitumen.
of WMA additives on CRM binders [18] and their high-temperature
Properties Unit Test results
properties [19,20] as well as on mixtures containing theses binders
Penetration (25 °C) 0.1 mm 55.4
[21]. Some authors state that while the WMA additive SasobitÒ has
Softening point °C 51.1
a positive effect on the softening point and the penetration index of Asphaltenes (%) 13.8
a CRM binder, it cannot dramatically reduce its viscosity at high Saturates (%) 9.7
temperatures or improve low temperature properties [22] and Naphthene-aromatic (%) 48.5
seems to increase the stiffness of the binder [23]. Other researchers Aromatic-polar (%) 28.0
state that WMA additives decrease the high temperature viscosity
of CRM binders and achieve better resistance to permanent defor-
mation of the asphalt mixtures at high temperatures [24].
Table 2
The objective of this study is twofold: first, to establish if the Gradation of crumb rubber.
WMA additives studied here are effective in reducing the viscosity
Sieve (mm) (UNE 933-2) Accumulated (%)
of CRM binders at high temperatures, which would thereby allow
for a reduction of mixing temperatures; and second, to determine 2.0 100.0
the influence of these additives on the behavior of the material at 1.5 100.0
1.0 100.0
low temperatures, as asphalts with a high rubber content are often 0.50 94.1
used in the production of cracking-resistant asphalt mixes and 0.250 23.7
cracking is a problem usually associated with low temperatures. 0.125 3.7
In order to evaluate the high temperature properties of the 0.063 0.4
binders, a rotational viscometer was used to determine their dy-
namic viscosity. A bending beam rheometer (BBR), developed by
the Strategic Highway Research Program (SHRP) and used exten-
Table 3
sively with aged and unaged binders, was used in this study to
Thermogravimetic analysis of crumb rubber.
measure the propensity to thermal cracking at low temperatures.
BBR test indicators – creep stiffness S and creep rate or m-value TGA Rubber

– were measured and assessed. Plasticizer + additives (%) 4.67

Twenty percent was selected as the most appropriate amount of Polymer (rubber) (%) 57.41
Carbon black (%) 32.22
crumb rubber with respect to viscosity and workability [25], reflec-
Ash (%) 6.02
tive cracking [26] and cost efficiency [27]. SasobitÒ, Asphaltan AÒ,
462 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466

temperature probe which can be introduced into the mixing receptacle, allowing
the temperature of the binder to be controlled with a precision of ±1 °C. A bitumen
sample of 750 g was heated at 140 °C and then placed in the oil bath. Additives were
carefully added to the bitumen and the blends were subsequently mixed for 15 min
at 4000 rpm, ensuring that the additive was properly incorporated into the binder.
The blend was then heated to 185 °C and the crumb rubber was added. The mixture
was blended for 30 min at 2000 rpm then for another 30 min at 900 rpm at a con-
stant temperature of 185 °C. Reheating and homogenization were carefully carried
out at a controlled temperature in order to obtain reproducible results [31]. Special
attention was then paid to the thermal history and storage conditions of the test
samples before testing (1 h at 25 °C ± 0.5 °C), because of their influence on rheolog-
ical measurements [32]. Samples were not subjected to artificial aging before
testing.

3. Results

3.1. High temperature viscosity Fig. 2. Influence of Asphaltan AÒ on dynamic viscosity of bitumen modified with
20% rubber.
The binders were tested with a Brookfield rotational viscome-
ter. The standard used for this test is EN 13302:2010 (Bitumen
and bituminous binders – Determination of dynamic viscosity of
bituminous binder using a rotating spindle apparatus) [33]. The re-
sults of the tests are summarized in Figs. 1–4.

3.2. Analysis of variance of viscosity

The CRM binders are influenced by two factors in this study:

additive content and testing temperature. The statistical signifi-
cance of the change in viscosity as a function of additive content
and test temperature was examined and the results are summa-
rized in Table 4.
The ANOVA of viscosity illustrates that both additive content
(2% and 4%) and test temperature (150, 160, 170 and 180 °C) have
a significant influence on viscosity at a 5% significance level
(a = 0.05). Fig. 3. Influence of Asphaltan BÒ on dynamic viscosity of bitumen modified with
20% rubber.

3.3. Creep stiffness

The low temperature performance of the binders – their pro-

pensity to thermal cracking at low temperatures – was evaluated
using the BBR test. The EN 14771:2012 standard (Bitumen and
bituminous binders - Determination of the flexural creep stiffness
- Bending Beam Rheometer (BBR)) was applied for this test [34].
The tests were carried out at different temperatures ( 30, 20
and 10 °C) and the creep stiffness and creep rate were evaluated.
Three independent replications were made for each blend.
Figs. 5–8 show the stiffness values for each of the four additives.

Fig. 4. Influence of Licomont BS 100Ò on dynamic viscosity of bitumen modified

with 20% rubber.

3.4. Analysis of variance of creep stiffness

The statistical significance of the change in creep stiffness as a

function of additive content and test temperature was examined
and the results are summarized in Table 5.
The ANOVA results illustrate that both factors, additive content
(2% and 4%) and testing temperature ( 30, 20 and 10 °C), have a
Fig. 1. Influence of SasobitÒ on dynamic viscosity of bitumen modified with 20% significant influence on stiffness at 5% and 10% levels of signifi-
rubber. cance for Asphaltan AÒ and LicomontÒ. In the case of Asphaltan
 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466 463

Table 4
Two-factor ANOVA of viscosity.

Additive Source of Sum of squared Degree of Mean F P-value F critical value F critical value
variation deviations freedom square a = 0.05 a = 0.1
Sasobit Content 3.54E + 07 2 1.77E + 07 1.10E + 01 9.87E 03 5.14E + 00 3.46E + 00
Temperature 3.31E + 07 3 1.10E + 07 6.85E + 00 2.30E 02 4.76E + 00 3.29E + 00
Asphaltan Content 2.07E + 07 2 1.03E + 07 6.18E + 00 3.49E 02 5.14E + 00 3.46E + 00
A Temperature 3.12E + 07 3 1.04E + 07 6.21E + 00 2.86E 02 4.76E + 00 3.29E + 00
Asphaltan Content 2.36E + 07 2 1.18E + 07 8.95E + 00 1.58E 02 5.14E + 00 3.46E + 00
B Temperature 4.35E + 07 3 1.45E + 07 1.10E + 01 7.50E 03 4.76E + 00 3.29E + 00
Licomont Content 7.28E + 06 2 3.64E + 06 1.10E + 01 9.80E 03 5.14E + 00 3.46E + 00
Temperature 6.93E + 07 3 2.31E + 07 7.00E + 01 4.64E 05 4.76E + 00 3.29E + 00

Fig. 5. Influence of SasobitÒ on stiffness of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20% Fig. 8. Influence of LicomontÒ on stiffness of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20%
rubber. rubber.

BÒ, the additive content only has a marked effect at the 10% signif-
icance level. In the case of SasobitÒ, the additive content doesn’t
have an important influence at either level of significance, though,
as can be seen in Table 5, the F critical value has almost reached the
F value at the 10% significance level.

3.5. Creep rate

In Figs. 9–12, the m-value results of the BBR test can be seen.

3.6. Analysis of variance of creep rate

The statistical significance of the change in the m-value as a

function of additive content and test temperature was examined
and the results are summarized in Table 6.
Fig. 6. Influence of Asphaltan AÒ on stiffness of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20%
rubber.
The ANOVA results illustrate that both factors, additive content
(2% and 4%) and test temperature ( 30, 20 and 10 °C), have a
significant effect on the m-value at both 5% and 10% significance
levels.

4. Discussion

4.1. High temperature properties

As can be observed in Figs. 1–4, all of the additives produce a

decrease in the viscosity of the bitumen with 20% rubber propor-
tionate to the amount of additive, indicating that each has the po-
tential to reduce the manufacturing temperatures of CRM binders.
Below, the possible decreases in production temperature which
could be achieved with these additives has been estimated, taking
as a reference the fact that for a B 50/70 bitumen with 20% rubber,
the viscosity is around 2800 cP, which can be achieved at a stan-
Fig. 7. Influence of Asphaltan BÒ on stiffness of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20% dard mixing temperature of 180 °C. A summary of these calcula-
rubber. tions can be found in Fig. 13.
464 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466

Table 5
Two-factor ANOVA of creep stiffness.

Additive Source of Sum of squared Degree of Mean F P-value F critical value F critical value
variation deviations freedom square a = 0.05 a = 0.1
Sasobit Content 9.10E + 03 2.00E + 00 4.55E + 03 4.23E + 00 1.03E 01 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 2.12E + 05 2.00E + 00 1.06E + 05 9.86E + 01 3.95E 04 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Asphaltan Content 1.02E + 04 2.00E + 00 5.12E + 03 8.41E + 00 3.69E 02 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
A Temperature 1.99E + 05 2.00E + 00 9.96E + 04 1.63E + 02 1.46E 04 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Asphaltan Content 5.95E + 03 2.00E + 00 2.98E + 03 4.74E + 00 8.81E 02 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
B Temperature 1.94E + 05 2.00E + 00 9.72E + 04 1.55E + 02 1.63E 04 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Licomont Content 9.49E + 03 2.00E + 00 4.74E + 03 8.16E + 00 3.87E 02 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 2.00E + 05 2.00E + 00 9.98E + 04 1.72E + 02 1.33E 04 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00

Fig. 9. Influence of SasobitÒ on m-value of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20%

Fig. 12. Influence of LicomontÒ on m-value of bitumen B 50/70 modified with 20%
rubber.
rubber.

The addition of 4% of each additive causes a greater decrease in

the production temperature of the bituminous mixtures than that
produced by adding only 2%. The additive which produces the
greatest reduction in manufacturing temperature is the 4% Sas-
obitÒ, which reduces the temperature by around 30 °C, followed
by the 4% Asphaltan BÒ and the 4% Asphaltan AÒ. The WMA addi-
tives selected for this study have been shown to reduce the viscos-
ity of CRM binders, which could be beneficial to lowering
production and mixing temperatures.

4.2. Low temperature properties

As the stiffness of a binder increases, thermal cracking is more

Fig. 10. Influence of Asphaltan AÒ on m-value of bitumen B 50/70 modified with likely to occur, as thermal shrinkage causes greater thermal stres-
20% rubber. ses to develop in the pavement. The m-value reflects the changing
rate of the stiffness modulus with time. When it decreases, the rate
of stress relaxation and the ability to relieve those thermal stresses
by flow also decrease. Therefore, binders with a lower stiffness
modulus and a higher creep rate offer better low temperature
performance.
Figs. 5–8 illustrate the results of the stiffness test. In every case,
the stiffness of the control binder B + 20%R increased in proportion
to the content of the WMA additive. At 30 °C, the additive which
most stiffened the control binder is the 4% SasobitÒ; at 20 °C, the
4% Asphaltan AÒ; and at 10 °C, the 4% LicomontÒ. At 30 °C, the
additive with the lowest S-value is the 2% Asphaltan BÒ; at 20 °C,
the 2% Asphaltan BÒ; and at 10 °C, the 2% LicomontÒ.
Also, as can be seen from Figs. 9–12, the m-value of the control
binder B + 20%R is higher than that of any of the CRM binders with
an additive and decreases as the additive content increases. At
30, 20 and 10 °C, the additive with the highest m-value is
Fig. 11. Influence of Asphaltan BÒ on m-value of bitumen B 50/70 modified with
the 2% Asphaltan AÒ. At 30 °C the additive with the lowest
20% rubber.
m-value is the 4% Asphaltan AÒ; at 20 °C, the 4% LicomontÒ;
and at 10 °C, the 4% Asphaltan BÒ.
 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466 465

Table 6
Two-factor ANOVA of creep rate.

Additive Source of variation Sum of squared Degree of freedom Mean square F P-value F critical value F critical value
deviations a = 0.05 a = 0.1
Sasobit Content 8.17E 04 2.00E + 00 4.09E 04 4.67E + 01 1.69E 03 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 1.74E 02 2.00E + 00 8.71E 03 9.95E + 02 4.03E 06 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Asphaltan A Content 2.22E 03 2.00E + 00 1.11E 03 5.28E + 01 1.33E 03 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 1.87E 02 2.00E + 00 9.33E 03 4.44E + 02 2.01E 05 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Asphaltan B Content 7.92E 04 2.00E + 00 3.96E 04 2.27E + 01 6.53E 03 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 1.53E 02 2.00E + 00 7.63E 03 4.38E + 02 2.07E 05 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Licomont Content 1.78E 03 2.00E + 00 8.91E 04 1.69E + 01 1.12E 02 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00
Temperature 1.73E 02 2.00E + 00 8.64E 03 1.64E + 02 1.45E 04 6.94E + 00 4.32E + 00

a set percentage of CRM (20% by modified binder weight) and four

Fig. 13. Temperature decrease of bitumen modified with 20% rubber.
4.3. Analysis of k factor
It can be difficult to determine which material exhibits the best
low temperature behavior simply by considering the values of S
and m. For this reason, the ratio k (k = m/S), which represents the
relationship between low temperature rheological performance
parameters of asphalt binders [35], has been calculated for each
binder. The higher the k factor, the better the low temperature per-
formance, and therefore, the better the cracking resistance of the
binder. In Table 7, the values of the k factor can be seen.
It can be observed that all the additives decrease the k factor
with respect to the control binder B + 20%R. At 20 and 30 °C,
the binder with the best low temperature performance is the 2%
Asphaltan BÒ, and at 10 °C, the 2% LicomontÒ. Taking into account
only the binders with 4% additive content, the binder with the
highest k factor at 30 and 20 °C is Asphaltan BÒ and at
10 °C, SasobitÒ. The binder with the worst low temperature prop-
erties, and which is therefore most likely to exhibit thermal crack-
ing, appears to be the 4% Asphaltan AÒ.
5. Conclusions
In this study, in order to evaluate the high and low temperature
properties of rubberized binders with warm asphalt additives,
binders were manufactured using a single CRM source (ambient),
WMA additives (SasobitÒ, Asphaltan AÒ, Asphaltan BÒ and Lico-
montÒ) at 2% and 4% content. Each binder was tested using a
Brookfield rotational viscometer and the BBR test at different tem-
peratures. From these test results, the following conclusions were
drawn for the binders created for this study.
The incorporation of any of the four organic additives reduces
the viscosity of the CRM binder. This reduction allows for a de-
crease in the temperatures necessary to achieve a viscosity of
2800 cP, which for the reference binder is reached at 180 °C. The
results show that as 2% or 4% of an additive are incorporated into
the binder, the production temperature can be reduced by 10 or
30 °C, respectively, with SasobitÒ, 7 or 19 °C with Asphaltan AÒ, 4
or 21 °C with Asphaltan BÒ and 2 or 10 °C with LicomontÒ. Based
on these calculations, it appears that SasobitÒ would be the most
effective for reducing the manufacturing temperature of a warm
mix asphalt with a CRM binder.
Unfortunately, it has also been established that, despite the
beneficial effect the additives have on the production temperature
– reducing them significantly – the four additives tested in this
study worsened the characteristics of the binder at low tempera-
tures. The incorporation of the every one of the additives caused
an increase in the stiffness and a reduction of the m-values ob-
tained with the BBR test.
In order to evaluate the binders based on both the S and m-val-
ues, the k factor (k = m/S) was calculated for each binder. The k fac-
tor is an indicator of the low temperature behavior of a binder, as it
considers both the stiffness and the capacity of a binder to relax
thermal stresses. The higher the k factor, the better the behavior
of the binder at low temperatures. In this study, it was observed
that the value of k decreased with the incorporation of all the addi-
tives, both 2% and 4%, at all three test temperatures ( 30, 20 and
10 °C). Considering only the binders with 4% additive, the binder
with the highest k at 30 and 20 °C is Asphaltan BÒ and at
10 °C, SasobitÒ. Asphaltan AÒ exhibited the worst low tempera-
ture behavior at all three test temperatures.
This seems to indicate that bituminous mixtures with asphalt
rubber are more prone to cracking at low temperatures when they
contain any of the four additives tested in this study. This fact is of

Table 7
Values of S, m and k factor at low temperatures.

CRM binder 30 °C 20 °C 10 °C
3 3 3
S (MPa) m k  10 S (MPa) m k  10 S (MPa) m k  10
B + 20%R 357.67 0.223 0.62 144.00 0.284 1.97 48.67 0.337 6.92
B + 20%R + 2% Sasobit 421.33 0.212 0.50 174.67 0.271 1.55 64.07 0.323 5.05
B + 20%R + 4% Sasobit 506.67 0.210 0.41 207.00 0.257 1.24 70.23 0.314 4.47
B + 20%R + 2% Asphaltan A 430.00 0.229 0.53 200.00 0.272 1.36 69.70 0.337 4.83
B + 20%R + 4% Asphaltan A 487.50 0.192 0.39 228.50 0.243 1.06 80.40 0.310 3.85
B + 20%R + 2% Asphaltan B 402.50 0.220 0.55 153.00 0.267 1.75 65.07 0.322 4.95
B + 20%R + 4% Asphaltan B 476.00 0.215 0.45 185.33 0.260 1.40 76.03 0.307 4.04
B + 20%R + 2% Licomont 407.00 0.219 0.54 165.00 0.250 1.52 48.40 0.321 6.62
B + 20%R + 4% Licomont 485.50 0.201 0.41 217.00 0.236 1.09 80.40 0.310 3.86
466 A.M. Rodríguez-Alloza et al. / Construction and Building Materials 53 (2014) 460–466
great importance, as bituminous mixtures prepared with 20% CRM
binders are often used when resistance to cracking is required.
Cracking is usually related to low pavement temperatures and this
study suggests that WMA additives could worsen the cracking
resistance of mixes manufactured with CRM binders.
The data obtained here seem to indicate that when the design of
an asphalt mixture with 20% CRM binder calls for resistance to
cracking at low temperatures, it would not be beneficial to attempt
to reduce the production temperature of the mixture using any of
the four additives tested in this study.
Finally, given that the four additives seem to worsen the low
temperature performance of rubber modified binders, it is recom-
mended that future studies investigate the low temperature prop-
erties of asphalt mixes with CRM binders combined with WMA
additives so as to confirm or disprove the results of this study
regarding the detrimental effects of low temperatures on these
binders.
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