A new procedure to determine the rheological properties of RAP binder and corresponding bituminous blends

Abstract

In this paper, a new and simple approach to estimate the rheological properties of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) binder is proposed to overcome the limitations of the conventional extraction procedure. This method is based on Dynamic Shear Rheometer tests performed on mortars composed of RAP fine fraction and virgin binder, together with a new back-calculation solution. The properties of the bitumi- nous blends of virgin and RAP binders are obtained with a modified Nielsen model. The Voigt model is then successfully used to estimate complex modulus and phase angle of the RAP binder from the prop- erties of the back-calculated binder blend. This procedure would prevent the need of RAP binder extrac- tions to determine its properties, which is time-consuming and might modify the actual binder characteristics.