Gilsonite for road construction
Gilsonite in road construction (asphalt/paving)
Gilsonite resin is used by asphalt producers, road paving engineers and paving contractors who are concerned with PG specifications, high performance, and cost effectiveness. Gilsonite, long known as a bitumen reinforce and the hardening agent, also offers a unique combination of high performance and economy for high-stress paving, as well as preservation applications. A significant benefit of Gilsonite is in producing road pavement mixes of higher stability than conventional ones.
Transportation has been increased dramatically nowadays. High-stress traffic situations frequently take place around the country. Prevailed Monsoon climate leads to the national wide high temperature in summer, and the large sum of precipitation in many countries. Under the circumstances, asphalt pavement tends to the break down in early time, by cutting, water stripping, low-temperature cracking, deformation etc.
Applying proper material helps to ease and solve the early problems upon highway pavement；therefore polymeric modified asphalt is widely used in super road constructions. The modifiers, including SBS, SBR, PE, EVA, TLA, Gilsonite, BMA have applied to SMA and the normal concrete, as well as used in the different surface layer.
RAHA GILSONITE Co. is a production company, whose product, RAHA Gilsonite asphalt modifiers possesses large viscosity, high softening point, high oxidative stability and outstanding adhesion and peel resistance. Moreover, its chemical construction is resembled to base asphalt, providing compatibility, promote resistance to tracking and water stripping. Therefore, pavements are able to be more stable and durable. Meanwhile, Uintaite-modified asphalts requires no complex workmanship nor new equipment. Compared with SBS modifier, RAHA Gilsonite doesn’t need the large instrument to process so that the cost is lower.
Gilsonite (Uintaite) resin is used in road construction, road paving engineers and paving contractors who are concerned with PG specifications, high performance, and cost effectiveness. Gilsonite, long known as a bitumen reinforce and the hardening agent, also offers a unique combination of high performance and economy for high-stress paving, as well as preservation applications. A significant benefit of Gilsonite is in producing road pavement mixes of higher stability than conventional ones.
The mixture only contains 0.5% of Gilsonite powder. The product possesses the outstanding economical advantage, compared with all the other modifiers in the market. Suppose there is a two-way four lane road with 20 meters width, 4cm asphalt mixture surface layer, 6cm interlayer, standard mixture density 2.5g/cm³ (assuming only be used in the surface layer and interlayer) The use of RAHA Gilsonite modified asphalts will save more than 30,000$ / km compare with the use of SBS modified asphalt, which is most widely used all around the world.
Gilsonite is a naturally occurring hydrocarbon, mined in Iran. With purity in excess of 99% it is high in asphalt (70%) and compatible with all traditional bituminous paving materials. Supplied as a fine powder it is easily added to hot mix asphalt directly into the mixer. Gilsonite dissolves easily in the asphalt to achieve a uniform, easily workable asphalt mixture.
Gilsonite advantage in road construction
• Greatly improved water susceptibility characteristics
• Greatly improved binder/aggregate adhesion
• Increased mixture stiffness and binder viscosity
• Improved anti-fatigue performance
After modification, the pavement would increase life expectancy at about 25% if pavement deterioration is caused by rutting and hug bag, the service life will be able to increase 100–200%.
• Improved pavement load carrying ability
• Retention of original ductility
• Increased resistance to pavement deformation
Rutting test results show that the modified mixture has good resistance to deformation.
• Ability to resist low-temperature cracking
• Improve dynamic modulus
When using polymer as modifier, mixture showed higher degree of improving the rutting-resistance and shear deformation performance
Stability
Positive benefits include increased resistance to water stripping and ageing. Gilsonite produces asphalt pavement mixes of higher stability than conventional ones.
The stability of Gilsonite-fortified pavements makes them more resistant to deformation problems, such as rutting and shoving and increases the pavement’s load carrying ability. In addition, laboratory tests and field results show that increased deformation resistance can be obtained while the pavement retains much of its original ductility and ability to resist low temperature cracking.
