Investigation of Performance Properties of Milled Carbon Fiber Reinforced Hot Mix Asphalt

Abstract

In this study, the mechanical behavior and resistance to moisture damage of hot mix asphalt (HMA) concrete with the addition of Milled Carbon Fiber (MCF) were experimentally investigated. For this purpose, the gradation curve within the boundaries of the Turkish highway construction specifications (HTS) has been determined. By keeping the determined gradation constant, MCF was added at different rates (1 %, 1.5 %, 2 %, 2.5 %, 3 %) by weight of the mixture. In the study, first, optimum bitumen ratios (OBR) of pure control samples (0 %-Control) without MCF and mixtures with MCF additives were determined by using the Marshall design method. To determine the OBR, samples were prepared with bitumen content of 3.5 %, 4 %, 4.5 %, 5 %, 5.5 %, and 6 % at each carbon additive ratio. The mixture samples prepared using the specified OBRs were subjected to Marshall stability (MS) and flow, as well as to retained Marshall stability (RMS), indirect tensile strength (ITS), and moisture damage resistance tests. According to the test results, it was observed that the MS values of the asphalt concrete with MCF additives increased at certain carbon additive ratios, while the flow values decreased compared to the witness sample. It was determined that the RMS and indirect tensile strength ratio (TSR) values of hot mixes with MCF-added bitumen increased and the moisture damage resistance of the mixes increased. As a result, when the optimum MCF ratio determined for the wearing course is used, it is thought that the engineering properties of HMA will improve.