Characterization and correlation analysis of mechanical properties and electrical resistance of asphalt emulsion cold-mix asphalt

Abstract

Asphalt emulsion cold-mix asphalt (CMA) is generally characterized as an evolutive material, with its mechanical strength increasing with curing time. This study aims to characterize the development of the mechanical properties of asphalt emulsion CMA mixtures during the curing process and correlate them with their evolutive electrical resistances. To achieve this objective, the moisture loss, Marshall stability, indirect tensile strength (ITS), indirect tensile stiffness modulus (ITSM) and electrical impedance of CMA mixtures containing various percentages of Portland cement were evaluated at different curing times up to 28 days. These evolutive properties were then analyzed and their relationships were explored. It was found the mechanical performance of CMA was considerably improved by cement, and there were liner relationships between the Marshall stability, ITS and ITSM irrespective of cement content. Furthermore, the mechanical performance was closely related with the electrical resistance of each CMA mixture containing different amounts of cement, suggesting that it is potentially feasible to predict the evolutive mechanical performance of CMA from electrical resistance which can be measured non-destructively.