Evaluation of cracking performance of fiber reinforced and polymer enhanced microsurfacing mixtures using conventional asphalt laboratory testing

Abstract This study evaluated the potential for improving the cracking resistance of microsurfacing mixtures using polymer and fiber additions. Three mixtures were evaluated in this study: a fiber reinforced mixture using 1/4″ glass fibers, a polymer (SBR) enhanced emulsion, and a mixture using a combination of polymer and fibers. The polymer enhanced samples and the combination samples showed improvements for the Texas Overlay Tester and the Semi-Circular Bend Test. The greatest improvements in performance for the Texas Overlay Tester were obtained from the polymer enhanced sample, whereas the greatest improvements in the Semi-Circular Bend Test were obtained from the combination samples.