The influence of fiber addition on fatigue life of mineral-asphalt composites for road pavement layers constructed using hot and warm mix asphalt technology

Piotr Radziszewski; Piotr Pokorski; Adam Liphardt; Michał Sarnowski; Jan Król; Karol Kowalski; Marek Iwański; Anna Chomicz-Kowalska

doi:10.7409/rabdim.025.024

Published: 2025-11-13

Vol. 24 No. 4 (2025)

The influence of fiber addition on fatigue life of mineral-asphalt composites for road pavement layers constructed using hot and warm mix asphalt technology

Piotr Radziszewski

, Piotr Pokorski

, Adam Liphardt

, Michał Sarnowski

, Jan Król

, Karol Kowalski

, Marek Iwański

, Anna Chomicz-Kowalska

Section: Articles

https://doi.org/10.7409/rabdim.025.024

Abstract

Currently the warm mix asphalt production is increasingly being adopted in road construction. This technology allows for lower production and paving temperatures for asphalt pavements from 30°C to 50°C. Such a significant temperature reduction contributes to lower production costs and also reduces heat emissions into the atmosphere, which is crucial for environmental protection. One of the most important functional characteristics of road pavement layers is their fatigue life, which can be improved by adding fibers to asphalt mixtures. Aramid (AR), glass (GL), and polymer-basalt (PB) fibers are often used for dispersed reinforcement of asphalt mixtures. This paper analyzes the results of tests on hot mix asphalt mixtures containing these fibers, determining their impact on fatigue life. Polymer-basalt fibers were selected for further testing, as they have a very favorable effect on the fatigue resistance of asphalt concrete (AC) and high modulus asphalt concrete (HMAC) mixtures. The important material, technological and construction problem is to determine the effectiveness of adding fibers to asphalt mixtures in warm mix technology. The article presents the results of research on an innovative technology for the production and paving of asphalt mixtures with the simultaneous use of a selected polymer-basalt fibers, a binder fluxing agent in the form of an ecological bio-derived additive (bio-flux) and the process of foaming asphalt with water, which allows the production of a mineral-asphalt composite at a reduced temperature and with improved technical parameters. To confirm their high functional properties, this paper presents fatigue test results of samples of asphalt mixtures intended for the wearing course and the subbase course with the addition of polymer-basalt fibers, prepared in the laboratory and collected from an experimental road section. The test results showed that the use of the technology of producing and paving warm mix asphalt AC 11 for the wearing course and HMAC 22 for the subbase course, using polymer-basalt fibers, is highly beneficial in terms of ensuring high fatigue life.

Keywords:

asphalt mixtures, fatigue life, polymer-basalt fibers, warm mix asphalt

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Radziszewski, P., Pokorski, P., Liphardt, A., Sarnowski, M., Król, J., Kowalski, K., … Chomicz-Kowalska, A. (2025). The influence of fiber addition on fatigue life of mineral-asphalt composites for road pavement layers constructed using hot and warm mix asphalt technology. Roads and Bridges – Drogi I Mosty, 24(4), 391–403. https://doi.org/10.7409/rabdim.025.024

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