Materials Letters 58 (2004) 267 – 271

www.elsevier.com/locate/matlet

Use of waste high density polyethylene as bitumen modifier

in asphalt concrete mix
Sinan Hınıslıoğlu a,*, Emine Ağar b
a
Civil Engineering Department, Engineering Faculty, Atatürk University, 25240 Erzurum, Turkey
b
Civil Engineering Faculty, İstanbul Technical University, Maslak/İstanbul, Turkey
Received 31 March 2003; accepted 28 May 2003

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the possibility of using various plastic wastes containing High Density Polyethylene as polymer
additives to asphalt concrete. It was investigated that the influence of HDPE-modified binder obtained by various mixing time, mixing
temperature and HDPE content on the Marshall Stability, flow and Marshall Quotient (Stability to flow ratio). The binders used in Hot Mix
Asphalt (HMA) were prepared by mixing the HDPE in 4 – 6% and 8% (by the weight of optimum bitumen content) and AC-20 at
temperatures of 145 – 155 and 165 jC and 5 – 15 and 30 min of mixing time. HDPE-modified asphalt concrete results in a considerable
increase in the Marshall Stability (strength) value and a Marshall Quotient value (resistance to deformation). Four percent HDPE, 165jC of
mixing temperature and 30 min of mixing time were determined as optimum conditions for Marshall Stability, flow and Marshall Quotient
(MQ). MQ increased 50% compared to control mix. It can be said that waste HDPE-modified bituminous binders provide better resistance
against permanent deformations due to their high stability and high Marshall Quotient and it contributes to recirculation of plastic wastes as
well as to protection of the environment.
D 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Asphalt concrete; Waste material; Modified bitumen; Marshall stability; Marshall quotient

1. Introduction point, it may be quite possible that waste HDPE material

In recent years, numerous waste materials result from
manufacturing operations, service industries and house-
holds in Turkey. Problems, however, are experienced due
to the insufficient capacity of landfills and limited alter-
natives for recycling. Waste utilization is an attractive
alternative to disposal in that disposal cost and potential
pollution problems are reduced or even eliminated along
with the achievement of resource conservation. On the
other hand, recent highway construction costs have
showed a rise in Turkey. It is well known that the
addition of both, some waste materials and certain
polymers, to asphalt binders can improve the performance
of asphalt concrete [1– 9]. Polyethylene has also been
found to be one of the most effective polymer additives
[10,11]. In Turkey, there are about million tons of
materials containing HDPE. From the economic view-
* Corresponding author. Fax: +90-4422360957.
E-mail address: sinanhinislioglu@yahoo.com (S. Hınıslıoğlu).
of may both affect the initial engineering properties of
HMA pavement and increase its service life. However,
since the mixing conditions for the bitumen and polymer
have considerable effect on the behavior of polymer-
modified bitumen, it should be determined as the most
suitable mixing conditions for bitumen and polymer. For
this purpose, modified bitumen is obtained by mixing the
bitumen and modifier at a certain temperature and time.
If the consistent mixing time and mixing temperature are
not provided for bitumen – modifier mix, modified bitu-
men cannot exhibit good performance in situ, thus
premature failures will occur. In addition, modifier con-
tent is also an important factor affecting the performance
of the polymer-modified asphalt concretes. Therefore,
there are certain recommended mixing time, mixing
temperature and modifier content for all the polymers
with a trademark.
Stability of an HMA pavement, the most important
property of the bitumen mixture in the wearing course
design, is its ability to resist shoving and rutting under
traffic. Therefore, stability should be high enough to handle

0167-577X/$ - see front matter D 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0167-577X(03)00458-0
268 S. Hınıslıoğlu, E. Ağar / Materials Letters 58 (2004) 267–271

Table 1 Table 3
The results of tests performed on asphalt cement (AC-20) Gradation used in this study and gradation limits
Penetration, 25 jC, 100 g, 5 s (1/10 mm) ASTM D5 67 Sieve size (in.) Gradation limits Used gradation
Specific gravity (kN/m3) ASTM D70 1.047
3/4 100 100
Flash point (jC) ASTM D92 215 1/2 77 – 100 87
Ductility, 25 jC, 5 cm/min ASTM D113 +100 3/8 66 – 84 74
Softening point (jC) ASTM D36 56 No. 4 46 – 66 54
No. 10 30 – 50 35
No. 40 12 – 28 14
No. 80 7 – 18 9
traffic adequately, but not higher than the traffic conditions No. 200 4 – 10 6
required. The lack of stability in an asphalt mixture causes
unraveling and flow of the road surface. Flow is the ability of
an HMA pavement to adjust to gradual settlements and
movements in the subgrade without cracking. The flow are given in Table 4 and specific gravities of aggregates are
may be regarded as an opposite property to the stability, incorporated in Table 5.
determining the reversible behavior of the wearing course The Marshall Test Method was used for determining the
under traffic loads and affecting plastic and elastic properties resistance to plastic flow of bituminous mixtures prepared
of the asphalt concrete [11]. The Marshall quotient, calcu- with or without HDPE-modified bitumen. Initially, opti-
lated as the ratio of stability to flow and thereby representing mum bitumen content was found to be 4.5% (by weight of
an approximation of the ratio of load to deformation under total mix) for unmodified mixtures. Marshall specimens
the particular conditions of the test, can be used as a measure were fabricated in accordance with ASTM D 1559.
of the material’s resistance to permanent deformation in A speed adjustable vertical shaft mixer with a capacity of 2
service [12]. l was used to mix the HDPE and bitumen. Temperature
The purpose of this study is to investigate the usability control during mixing was achieved by using thermostat
of the waste material containing HDPE in the HMA as a running with a thermocouple attached to the mixer. The
bitumen modifier. Considering their deterministic role in machine was operated at 200 rpm for HDPE – bitumen mix-
the performance of polymer-modified bitumen blends, the ing. The utilization strategy must be coupled with environ-
study was focused on the effects of the modifier (HDPE) mental and energy considerations to use available materials
content, modifier – bitumen mixing time and mixing tem- most efficiently. Since the amount of HDPE, bitumen –HDPE
perature on the Marshall stability, flow and Marshall mixing temperature and bitumen – HDPE mixing time play a
Quotient. crucial role in determining the performance of HDPE-mod-
ified asphalt concrete, these were considered as factors
affecting the performance of asphalt concrete in the design
2. Materials and methods of experiment.
The binders used in HMA were prepared by mixing
The materials and experimental design procedure used in the HDPE in 4– 6 and 8% (by the weight of optimum
this study are following. The bitumen used was AC-20 bitumen content) and AC-20 at mixing temperatures of
bitumen. This asphalt was subjected to typical standard
laboratory tests. The results of these tests are incorporated
in Table 1. In this investigation, waste HDPE in the
Table 4
powdered form was used as modifier. The specific gravity Some physical properties of the crushed limestone aggregate
of modifier was measured to be 0.935 g/cm3. The gradation
Frost 0<12%
of HDPE is presented in Table 2. Crushed Limestone was Los Angeles Abrasion Test 22<35%
used as the aggregate material. A typical heavy traffic Flatness cubic
gradation for hot mix asphalts (HMA), designated as Type Stripping (AC-5) 60 – 65>50
II in the Turkish State Highway Specifications, was select- Organic material none
ed. The selected gradation and the specification limits are
shown in Table 3. Some properties of the crushed limestone

Table 5
Specific gravities of aggregate (g/cm3)
Table 2 Size fraction Apparent specific Bulk specific
The gradation of high density polyethylene gravity gravity
Sieve size Percent passing Coarse aggregate 2713 2682
No. 10 (2 mm) 100 Fine aggregate 2729 2687
No. 40 (0.42 mm) 0 Filler 2730 –
 S. Hınıslıoğlu, E. Ağar / Materials Letters 58 (2004) 267–271
Table 6
Specification of general directorate of Turkish highway for wearing surface
course subjected to high volume of traffic
Properties of Marshall specimens Specification limits
Stability (N) min. 9 kN
Air voids (%) 3–5
Flow (mm) 2–4
Voids of filled with asphalt cement (%) 75 – 85
145 –155 and 165 jC and 5 – 15 and 30 min of mixing
time. After obtaining the HDPE-modified bitumen, aggre-
gate and HDPE-modified bitumen were heated separately
to 165 and 155 jC, respectively, and then mixed with the
aggregate in a mechanical mixer. The mixture was placed
in a Marshall mold and compacted by applying 75 blows
on each side of the specimen at 145 jC. It was noted
that all the specimens have approximately the same air
void ratio. Void ratios of the specimens were in the range
of specimens 3.07 – 3.35%. The standard dimensions of
the samples were 63.5 mm height and 101.5 mm diam-
eter. After having cooled at room temperature for 1 day
and then left in water at 60 jC for 30 min, the samples
were tested with Marshall Test apparatus. All the results
are obtained from compacted specimens at the optimum
bitumen content of each mix type and each result is from
an average of three test specimens. In order to evaluate
the properties of waste HDPE-modified asphalt concrete
specimen, Specification of General Directorate of Turkish
Highway for Surface Coarse Subjected to High Volume
of Traffic was used (Table 6).
Fig. 1. Mixing temperature/mixing time vs. stability.
269
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Stability
Fig. 1 shows the variation of stability with the various
bitumen and waste HDPE mixing temperature and time. It is
shown that stability decreases with increasing HDPE con-
tent for all mixing temperature and mixing time. Stability of
the control mixture is 14 kN. For both 4% and 6% HDPE
mixes, stability is higher than the control mixture. The effect
of the mixing time is more evident at 165 jC mixing
temperature. The maximum stability is reached at 4%
HDPE, 165 jC mixing temperature and 30-min mixing
time. Marshall stability value increased by 50% when 4%
HDPE was replaced with AC-20. The decreases in stability
while increasing HDPE content may be attributed to the
decreases in the adhesion.
3.2. Flow
It is seen from Fig. 2 that flow increases with increasing
the HDPE content. Flow is 3.8 mm for the control mixture.
Although flow decreases with increasing the mixing tem-
perature and mixing time, all flow values are higher than the
control specimen except for the binder prepared at a mixing
temperature of 165 jC, mixing time of 30 min and contain-
ing 4% HDPE. This may imply that increase in the amount
of HDPE affects the interior friction of the mixture in a
negative manner. The smallest flow value, 3.8 mm, is
reached at 4% HDPE, mixing temperature of 165 jC and
mixing time of 30 min.
270 S. Hınıslıoğlu, E. Ağar / Materials Letters 58 (2004) 267–271

Fig. 2. Mixing temperature/mixing time vs. flow.

3.3. Marshall quotient [12], MQ values are calculated to evaluate the resistance
of the deformation of the HDPE-modified specimens. A
Since Marshall Quotient (MQ) is an indicator of the higher value of MQ indicates a stiffer mixture and,
resistance against the deformation of the asphalt concrete hence, indicates that the mixture is likely more resistant

Fig. 3. Mixing temperature/mixing time vs. Marshall Quotient.

 S. Hınıslıoğlu, E. Ağar / Materials Letters 58 (2004) 267–271 271

Table 7 stiffness mix with a greater ability to spread the applied

Comparison of the control and waste HDPE-modified asphalt concrete
load. Thus, the pavements being more resistant to perma-
mixtures
nent deformation are obtained and a solid waste disposal
Control Mixture with Specification
problem is relatively solved.
mixture 4% HDPEa limits
Void ratio (%) 3.32 3.07 3–5
VMA (%) 12.78 12.57 min. 14
Voids filled with 75 75.55 75 – 85 Acknowledgements
binder (%)
Stability (kN) 14 21 min. 9 kN This study is a part of the research supported by Atatürk
Flow (mm) 3.8 3.8 2–4 University Research Fund. (Project No: 2001/130). We
Marshall Quotient 3.68 5.53 –
would like to thank to Atatürk University Research Fund for
(kN/mm)
a
giving us the opportunity to make this research.
Binder was prepared by mixing the bitumen and 4% waste HDPE at
the temperature of 165 jC and 30 min of mixing time.

to permanent deformation [13]. The specimen having References

higher MQ than that of the control mixture is prepared
with 4% HDPE at 165 jC mixing temperature and 30
min mixing period (Fig. 3). The specimen under con-
ditions above-mentioned provided all the specification
limits for Marshall Design parameters. Waste HDPE
content of 4% (by weight of optimum bitumen content),
165 jC of mixing temperature and mixing time of 30
min satisfy all the specification limits given in Table 6.
Results of the Marshall design parameters and values of
MQ for both control and waste HDPE-modified asphalt
concretes mix are shown for comparison purposes in
Table 7.
4. Conclusions
From the findings of the present work, the following
conclusions are drawn. It is concluded that the specimens
prepared with the 165 jC mixing temperature and 30 jC
mixing time for 4% HDPE have the highest stability and the
smallest flow, and so the highest Marshall Quotient. A
stability increase indicates that the HDPE-modified mixes
are much stronger than the control mix. This mix is highly
resistant to permanent deformation (rutting) in asphalt
concrete. Although the flow value of HDPE-modified
asphalt concrete is the same as the control mix, higher
values of MQ are obtained due to higher stability values.
MQ increased 50% compared to control mix. It means that
asphalt concrete having higher MQ values indicates a high
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