Effect Of Natural Asphalt On Performance Characteristics Of Bitumen And Its Mixes

Trinidad Lake Asphalt (TLA) is natural bitumen. The soluble bitumen in Trinidad Lake Asphalt has a high viscosity and if this is blended with paving grade bitumen, it can produce a material with high resistance to deformation and with suitable weathering properties. In this study TLA pellets have been used as a modifier to modify VG-30 grade paving bitumen, and it was found that it improved the properties of the VG 30 grade binder. Various binder properties were checked like softening point, penetration value, viscosity indices, and properties of modified and unmodified binder after short term aging were studied, and Rheology of binders was also studied. After witnessing the improved properties of binder, bituminous (asphalt) mixes were prepared to check the performance characteristics of TLA modified asphalt mixes. Results of wheel tracking test, beam fatigue test, and tensile strength ratios indicate that a worthwhile improvement in resistance to deformation, comparable to conventional asphalt mix, can be obtained by the addition of 2% of TLA by weight of VG 30 grade bitumen.