Hindawi

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Volume 2018, Article ID 4560101, 9 pages
https://doi.org/10.1155/2018/4560101

Research Article
Studying Engineering Characteristics of Asphalt
Binder and Mixture Modified by Nanosilica and
Estimating Their Correlations

1 2
Moein Hasaninia and Farshad Haddadi
1
Department of Civil Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), Narmak, Tehran, Iran
2
Department of Civil Engineering, Florida International University (FIU), Miami, FL, USA

Correspondence should be addressed to Moein Hasaninia; [email protected]

Received 13 June 2017; Revised 3 October 2017; Accepted 15 October 2017; Published 7 February 2018

Academic Editor: Peter Majewski

Copyright © 2018 Moein Hasaninia and Farshad Haddadi. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons
Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is
properly cited.
The objective of this research was to investigate rutting and fatigue distresses in asphalt containing 2, 4, 6, and 8 percent of
nanosilica (NC) and to find out the correlation between engineering properties of the modified binder and mixture asphalt. In
order to study the effect of NC on the rutting and fatigue properties of modified binders, the multiple stress creep recovery
(MSCR) and linear amplitude sweep (LAS) tests were carried out. The Marshall stability, dynamic creep, and four-point bending
beam fatigue tests were used to evaluate performance characteristics of the mixtures. The binder and mixture tests all indicated an
improvement of fatigue and rutting resistance using NC as a modifier. Furthermore, some statistical correlations between
engineering properties were developed successfully.

1. Introduction on low-temperature fatigue resistance of the modified

sample [4].
Binder plays an important role in preventing common Amirkhanian et al. studied the effects of carbon nano-
distresses associated with asphalt mixture such as fatigue particles on the performance characteristics of asphalt binder.
cracking and rutting. For instance, binder with enough The viscosity, performance grade (PG), creep and creep re-
adhesion and cohesion can significantly hinder the segre- covery, and frequency sweep tests were carried out on
gation and separation of aggregates from the pavement modified binder. Experiment results indicate that the addition
surface [1]. In order to improve the behavior of asphalt of the carbon nanoparticle was effective in increasing vis-
binder at different temperatures, many types of additives cosity, failure temperature, complex modulus and elastic
have been used. Among them, nanomaterials have been used modulus, and as a result, rutting resistance of the binder [5].
by many researchers for their high surface area and capa- Yao et al. used NC as a binder modifier. They added NC
bility of creating powerful networks in asphalt binder, to an SBS-modified asphalt in 4 and 6 percent by the weight
culminating to an increase in the mixture’s resistance to of the modified base binder. Experiment results showed that
permanent deformation [2]. Performance characteristics of the value of viscosity at high temperatures decreased slightly;
binders and asphalt mixtures have been affected to some in fact, at low temperatures, modified binder with NC be-
extent due to the addition of nanoparticles such as nanoclay, haves similar to control binder samples; furthermore, NC
nanolime, carbon nanofiber, and carbon nanotube [2, 3]. improved binder antioxidation characteristics. The rutting
The effect of nanoclay as an asphalt binder additive and fatigue cracking performance of asphalt binder modified
on the mechanical properties of the asphalt mixture by NC was improved [6].
demonstrated a considerable increase on rutting re- Among the advantages of NC are its functional features
sistance and resilient modulus of asphalt concrete (AC) and low-cost production. NC is one of the new minerals
samples. However, the additive has no considerable effect which include potential useful features, such as huge surface
2 Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

area, good distribution, high absorption, high stability, and Table 1: Physical properties measured of bitumen.
high percentage of purity. Parameter measured Test method Test value
Today, researchers are looking for binder tests that not
Specific gravity at 25°C (g/cm3) AASHTO T228 1.01
only could demonstrate the mixture’s performance-related
characteristics of both modified and unmodified binder Penetration at 25°C (0.1 mm) AASHTO T49 60
but also are easy and quick to conduct. Insufficiency of the Softening point (R&B) (°C) AASHTO T53 56
performance grade (PG) binder specification as one of the Viscosity at 120°C (centistokes) AASHTO T201 1055
common methods to evaluate binder performance, especially Viscosity at 135°C (centistokes) AASHTO T201 361
when it is modified or rejuvenated by additives, has been Viscosity at 160°C (centistokes) AASHTO T201 170
proved by many researchers [7, 8]. To address this issue and as Ductility at 25°C (cm) AASHTO T51 >100
a way to find a better performance-related test method, the
LAS and MSCR tests were introduced to evaluate fatigue and
rutting performance of the binder, respectively. The LAS test void. Then, they were sawn to the prismatic beams with
showed a good correlation with long-term pavement per- dimensions of 38.5 mm × 63.5 mm × 50 mm, considering the
formance (LTPP) field fatigue cracking data [9]. Furthermore, AASHTO T321 standard [10].
unlike the existing SHRP test method, MSCR captures the The binder performance characteristic tests have
nonlinear behavior of rutting phenomenon and correlates been carried out on aged samples. Prior to the multiple stress
fairly well with field rutting data [7]. creep recovery (MSCR) and linear amplitude sweep (LAS)
In this research study, the binder is modified by 2, 4, 6, tests, all the modified binder samples, as well as the 60/70
and 8 percent of NC, and two important distresses of asphalt, base binder, were aged in the rolling thin-film oven (RTFO)
rutting and fatigue, are evaluated through the LAS, MSCR, in order to represent a short-term aging condition.
4-point bending beam, and dynamic creep tests. Finally,
some correlation between binder and mixture test results 4. Experimental Design
was developed successfully.
4.1. Multiple Stress Creep Recovery (MSCR). This test has been
2. Materials used to measure the percent of recovered strain (R) and
unrecovered strain (jnr ) of asphalt binders. The elastic re-
The asphalt binder used in this study was AC-60/70, provided sponse of the binder under the shear stresses can be calculated
by Pasargad Oil Company, Tehran. The characteristics of the by this test methodology. The aged samples in the RTFO
binder are presented in Table 1. The required aggregates to process are used in this test method. In order to conduct the
produce the sample are taken from Asb-Cheran Mine located MSCR test, the dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) is used.
in Roudehen in the north of Tehran. Rock dust is used as the The binder sample is put under a 0.1 kPa shear stress for
filler in the production of samples. The characteristics of the a 1-second duration, followed by a 9-second rest period at
aggregates are presented in Table 2. The gradation of aggre- the temperature of 60°C. This loading repeats for 10 cycles.
gates is according to AASHTO M323 and presented in Table 3 Then, after the completion of the first ten cycles, a similar
and Figure 1. NC used in this research study has a purity of procedure will be applied to the sample with a stress level of
more than 99%. The maximum diameter of the particles is 3.2 kPa. According to the ASTM D-7405-10a standard, at each
10 nm, and the surface area is 600 m2/g. Its bulk density is less 0.1 sec interval, the relevant output should be recorded [11].
than 0.10 g/cm3, and the true density is 2.4 g/cm3.
4.2. Linear Amplitude Sweep (LAS) Test. This test was pro-
3. Sample Preparation posed by Johnson and Hintz to investigate the fatigue re-
NC is added to the asphalt binder by 2, 4, 6, and 8 percent of sistance of asphalt binders [12]. According to the AASHTO
the original binder’s weight. A high-shear mixing device is standard (AASHTO-TP 101-12-UL), the binder samples of
used to mix NC and binder with 4000 rpm for 2 hours at 8 mm thickness are tested in the dynamic shear rheometer
135°C. The SEM images of the modified binder with 4 (DSR). All DSR tests are conducted on RTFO aged samples.
percent NC in three magnitudes are shown in Figure 2. The test is carried out under the strain-controlled mode with
Accordingly, particles’ diameters are roughly between 50 linearly increased load amplitudes from 0.1% to 30% strain
and 150 nanometer. in a total time of 310 seconds [13].
The Marshall method was used to determine the stability, In the viscoelastic continuum damage (VECD) analysis,
flow, and optimum binder of all asphalt samples (ASTM the binder fatigue performance parameter Nf can be cal-
D2726 and ASTM D1559). Percentage of optimum binders culated by
obtained were 5.5, 5.3, 5.2, 5 and 4.9 at mixtures with 0%, 2%, Nf � A35 × cB , (1)
4%, 6% and 8% of NC content, respectively. The samples were
compacted using a Gyratory compactor for the dynamic where Nf is the number of cycles to failure, A35 is the
creep, indirect tensile strength, and resilient modulus tests. damage intensity corresponding to 35 percent reduction of
Samples used in fatigue tests were originally fabricated as slabs undamaged |G∗ |sinδ, and B demonstrates the binder sen-
with dimensions of 5∗30∗40 cm using wheel track com- sitivity to applied strain level. The parameters A35 and B are
pactor. All the samples made at optimume binder and 4% air experimentally defined, and c is the applied shear strain.
Advances in Materials Science and Engineering 3

Table 2: Properties of used aggregates.

Properties Method Requirement Values
Coarse aggregate
Los Angeles abrasion (%) AASHTO T96 30 max. 20
Water absorption (%) AASHTO T85 5 max. 0.8
Bulk specific density (g/cm3) AASHTO T85 — 2.654
Flat and elongated (3–1) (%) ASTM D4791 20 max. 12
Soundness (sodium sulfate) (%) AASHTO T104 15 max. 4.8
Crushed content (one face) (%) ASTM D5821 100 min. 100
Crushed content (two faces) ASTM D5821 90 min. 100
Fine aggregate
Water absorption (%) AASHTO T84 — 1.4
Bulk specific density (g/cm3) AASHTO T84 — 2.617
Mineral filler
Bulk specific density (g/cm3) AASHTO T84 — 2.702

Table 3: Gradation of the aggregates used in the study.

Sieve sizes US 3/4″ 1/2″ No. 4 No. 8 No. 50 No. 200
Sieve sizes Metric 19 12.50 4.75 2.36 0.3 0.075
Passing (%) HMA gradation 100 95 60 40 15 5

100 4.4. Resilient Modulus. Resilient modulus is one of the

important parameters in the pavement design proce-
90
dure. The measurement of this parameter is in the form
80 of pavement response under dynamic loads and the
70 corresponding strains associated with them. The value
of resilient modulus is measured based on the ASTM
Percent passing

60 D4123 [15] standard. This test is conducted at tempera-

50 tures of 5°C and 25°C, and the minimum numbers of
loadings are 100. The value of resilient modulus (Mr) can
40
be obtained by [16]
30 (μ + 0.27)
Mr � P , (2)
20 tδh 􏼁
10 where P is the maximum dynamic load (N), μ is Poisson’s
0 ratio, t is the specimen length (mm), and δh is the horizontal
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 recoverable deformation (mm).
Seive size (mm)
Gradation
Max limit 4.5. Dynamic Creep Test. In the present research, the dy-
Min limit namic creeping test has been used to evaluate the rutting
Figure 1: Gradation of designated aggregates.
property of the asphalt mixtures. The output creep curve of
the test is made of three areas. In the present article, the
flow number (Fn) parameter is used as representation of
4.3. Marshall Stability and Quotient. The test was carried out rutting resistance of asphalt mixtures, which is the number
according to ASTM D1559. Before the test, all samples were of cycles the creep curve enters from the second to the third
put in 60°C water for 30 minutes. Marshall stability is the phase [17].
peak resistance load obtained during a constant rate of the
deformation load sequence, and Marshall flow is a measure
of deformation of the asphalt mix determined during the 4.6. Four-Point Beam Fatigue Test. The fatigue life of the
stability test. The Marshall quotient equals the ratio of the asphalt mixtures is evaluated by the 4-point bending beam
Marshall stability to the value of the Marshall flow. The value test under AASHTO-T321 standard specifications. A con-
of the Marshall quotient indicates the resistance of asphalt stant sinusoidal loading was applied on beam specimens at
mixtures against permanent deformations and the value of constant strain levels of 600, 800, and 1000 microstrains until
rutting [14]. 50 percent reduction of initial stiffness.
4 Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

180
165
150
135
120
105
90
75
60
45
30
15
0
Control 2% NC 4% NC 6% NC 8% NC

Rdiff
jnr–diff

Sample R100 R3200 jnr100 jnr3200 Rdiff jnr–diff

Control 2.73 −1.85 0.00177 0.00192 167.95 8.75
2% NC 9.59 −0.10 0.00108 0.00127 114.14 7.87
4% NC 11.92 1.70 0.00080 0.00087 85.70 7.81
6% NC 21.41 7.28 0.00056 0.00057 65.98 0.72
8% NC 26.49 9.21 0.00048 0.00047 60.67 0.43

(a)
Figure 3: Summary of MSCR test results.

a 10-cycle period for the shear stress values of 100 Pa and

3200 Pa is shown in Figure 3. Results indicate a considerable
decrease in accumulated strain for the NC-modified binders.
An amount of 8% of NC decreases the accumulated strain of
the base binder from 1.7% to 0.4% over a 10-cycle period
under a 100 Pa shear stress. For the case of 3200 Pa applied
shear load, the accumulated strain decreased from 62% to
14%. This decrease indicates a higher resistance of the
modified binders against applied stresses and consequently
decreases of binder deformation under cyclic loading.
The values of percent recovered strain (R) for base and
modified binders are also shown in Figure 3. It can be seen
that, by adding NC, there is a considerable increase in re-
(b)
covered strain in the modified binders. Under a 100 Pa load,
the recovered strain for base and modified binders with 8%
of NC is 2.73 and 26.94, respectively. The recovered strain
under 3200 Pa shear stress for the modified binder con-
taining 8% of NC is 9.21, while the value for the base binder is
less than zero. This negative R value is due to the fact that the
binder has no recovered strain during the unloading process.
Since any increase in percent recovered strain contributes to
an increase in elastic response of the binder, adding NC
causes an increase in recovered strain of the binder and
improves the elastic response of it.
The permanent deformation characteristics of binders can
be quantified by the jnr parameter. A less value of jnr indicates
lower permanent deformation of the binder. The jnr values
under the 100 Pa and 3200 Pa shear loads for all base and
modified binders are shown in Figure 3. It can be seen that
(c) adding NC can decrease the jnr values, and as a result, the
Figure 2: SEM images of NC with asphalt binder: (a) 20 µm, (b) permanent deformation of the modified binders decreased.
200 nm, and (c) 100 nm. The stress sensitivity of the binder can be described by the
jnr−diff and Rdiff values. The less jnr−diff and Rdiff values indicate
less stress sensitivity, and the binder has similar behavior
5. Results and Discussion under the 100 Pa and 3200 Pa shear loads. The jnr−diff and Rdiff
5.1. Binder Test values are also shown in Figure 3. The results indicate
a considerable decrease in the jnr−diff and Rdiff values.
5.1.1. MSCR Test Results. The MSCR test encompasses Therefore, adding NC can decrease the stress sensitivity of the
different outputs. The accumulated strain versus time over binder.
Advances in Materials Science and Engineering 5

Table 4: Linear amplitude sweep (LAS) test results. improved by 31%, 12%, and 35%, respectively. The more the
Parameters 0% NC 2% NC 4% NC 6% NC 8% NC
amount of Marshall quotient, the stronger the asphalt
mixture is against permanent deformation [14].
A35 33,200 49,334 57,990 134,765 146,928
B −1.92 −2.09 −2.13 −2.35 −2.45
5.2.2. Resilient Modulus Test. Resilient modulus (Mr) is an
important factor in designing the pavement. Results of Mr
1,00,000 show that, at 25°C temperature, the Mr value is 1.37 times
greater than the base binder when the NC content is 8%, and
at 5°C temperature, the Mr value is 1.24 greater than the
Traffic volume indicator (Nf)

10,000
unmodified binder when the NC content is 8%. Accordingly,
NC improved fatigue resistance. Other research test results
1,000
on polymer-modified asphalt showed that adding NC in-
creases fatigue resistance at intermediate temperatures
100 conducting the same test [18].

10
5.2.3. Dynamic Creep Test. Dynamic creep test results in-
dicate that asphalt mixtures modified with NC have higher
1 resistance against permanent deformation in comparison to
1 10
Applied shear strain (%) control samples. Such an increase in NC can raise the flow
number, which is a parameter of resistance against rutting.
0% Nanosilica 6% Nanosilica Increasing the amount of NC by 8% led to an almost 71%
2% Nanosilica 8% Nanosilica increase in the flow number. This finding is in a good
agreement with other researchers [6, 18].
4% Nanosilica

Figure 4: Fatigue models from the VECD analysis. 5.2.4. Four-Point Beam Fatigue Test. In the 4-point bending
beam test, it was observed that, by increasing the percentage
5.1.2. LAS Test Results. The results of linear amplitude sweep of NC, the variation trend of Nf in all three strain levels
(LAS) tests are analyzed based on the theory of viscoelastic identically increased. Adding 8% of NC to the base binder
continuum damage. Utilizing this theory, A35 and B pa- increased the fatigue life of asphalt mixtures to the amount
rameters should be calculated to assess the fatigue life of the of 52%, 92%, and 65% under 600, 800, and 1000 micro-
asphalt binder. A higher value of A35 indicates better per- strains, respectively.
formance of the binder. Results showed that modified Further details and discussions about engineering per-
binders with NC had higher A35. The A35 values for un- formance of NC-modified mixture are presented in another
modified and modified binders are presented in Table 4. article by the same authors [19].
The increase in the absolute value of B indicates that, by
increasing the level of strain, the fatigue life will decrease in 5.3. Regression Analysis. A series of linear regression models
a higher rate. Moreover, any decrease in the absolute value between binder test results, which are considered as in-
of the parameter B indicates the reduction in the rate of dependent, and mixture test results, which are considered as
fatigue life. The B values for unmodified and modified dependent, are developed. Linear regression is a statistical
binders are presented in Table 4. Results show that adding method that defines the relationship between two in-
NC can increase the binder sensitivity against loading level dependent variables [20]. Summary of R-squared values and
strain. equations for each correlation is presented in Table 6. In-
The trend of fatigue life of asphalt binders based on the dependent values did not have strong correlation with each
VECD theory is depicted in Figure 4. Values in the Y-axis are other, so it was possible to develop a reliable regression
the number of cycles to failure (Nf), which are indicative of model and avoid the multicollinearity problem. Examples
traffic loads passing on the pavement, and the X-axis of two correlations of three independent variables are
demonstrates applied shear strain. Results show that adding shown in Figure 5. On the other hand, the independent and
NC causes an increase in Nf values for lower shear strain dependent variables showed strong correlations with
levels. The Nf values for modified binders with 6 and 8 R-squared values close to 1. Furthermore, for each corre-
percent of NC are almost identical at low shear strain levels. lation, there is a fundamental relation between independent
and dependent variables, which makes them comparable.
5.2. Mixture Performance Analysis For example, Nf and A35 correlation is investigated because
both represent the fatigue performance; one for mixture and
5.2.1. Marshall Stability, Flow, and Quotient Tests. Table 5 the other for binder. So, the same characteristics are cor-
summarizes the engineering properties of the mixtures. The related to see if it is possible to estimate one using the other.
maximum increase of the Marshall stability, flow, and Also, MSCR test results are proved to have a good corre-
quotient is for the mixtures containing 8% of NC, which are lation with the rutting depth obtained from the field
6 Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

Table 5: Summary of mixture test outcomes.

Control Mixture + 2% NC Mixture + 4% NC Mixture + 6% NC Mixture + 8% NC
Average Marshall stability (KN) — 10.23 11.30 12.10 12.73 13.40
Average Marshall flow (mm) — 4.2 4.32 4.41 4.55 4.72
MQ (KN/mm) — 2.44 2.62 2.74 2.80 2.84
@600 µε 106,092 120,477 141,428 151,623 158,685
Nf (4-point bending beam) @800 µε 76,738 85,541 113,843 139,781 147,428
@1000 µε 26,246 33,888 38,133 42,355 43,414
@25°C 3520.2 3707.5 3976.2 4420.6 4828.5
Resilient modulus
@5°C 11,884.6 12,826.2 13,255.3 13,988.7 14,711.5

Table 6: Summary of correlation equations and regression 3000

coefficients.
Dependent Independent 2500
Equation R2
variable (y) variable (x)
Nf @ 600 A35 y � 0.3763x + 103,883 0.8097
Nf @ 800 A35 y � 0.5729x + 64,290 0.9086 2000

Flow number
Nf @ 1000 A35 y � 0.1008x + 29,046 0.8712
y � −85,5191x 1500
Dynamic creep jnr100 0.9626
+ 3066.6 y = −855191x + 3066.6
Dynamic creep jnr3200 y � −760,429x + 3040 0.9829 R2 = 0.9626
Marshall jnr100 y � −309.13x + 2.978 0.9915 1000

Marshall jnr3200 y � −272.86x + 2.9663 0.9976

Mr at 5 R100 y � 114.28x + 11,676 0.9816 500
Mr at 20 R3200 y � 55.483x + 3289.8 0.9755

0
0 0.001 0.002
0.002 jnr100
0.0018
0.0016 (a)
0.0014 3000
0.0012
jnr100

0.001
0.0008 2500
0.0006
0.0004 2000
R2 = 0.7041
0.0002
Flow number

0
0 50000 100000 150000 200000 1500
A35

(a) 1000
y = −760429x + 3040
10
R2 = 0.9829
8 500
6
4
0
R3200

2
0 0.001 0.002 0.003
0
jnr3200
–2 0 0.0005 0.001 0.0015 0.002
–4 R2 = 0.7741 (b)
–6 Figure 6: Flow number of mixture versus (a) jnr100 and (b) jnr3200.
jnr100

(b)
measurements [7]. Therefore, in this research, flow number,
Figure 5: Correlation between independent vriables (a) A35 vs. MQ, and Mr as parameters showing rutting susceptibility of
Jnr100 and (b) Jnr100 vs. R3200.
mixture, are also correlated with MSCR test results.
Advances in Materials Science and Engineering 7

200000 2.9

2.85

2.8
150000
2.75

2.7
100000
Nf

2.65

y = 0.3763x + 103883 2.6

R2 = 0.8097
2.55
50000
2.5
y = −309.13x + 2.978
2.45 R2 = 0.9915
0 2.4
0 100000 200000 0 0.0005 0.001 0.0015 0.002
A35
(a)
(a) 2.9
160000 2.85
y = 0.5729x + 64290
R2 = 0.9086 2.8
140000
2.75
120000
2.7
100000 2.65

80000 2.6
Nf

2.55
60000
2.5
40000 y = −272.86x + 2.9663
2.45
R2 = 0.9976
20000 2.4
0 0.0005 0.001 0.0015 0.002 0.0025

0 (b)
0 100000 200000 Figure 8: Marshall quotient versus (a) jnr100 and (b) jnr3200.
A35

(b)
5.4. Correlation between Flow Number and jnr. Results of the
50000 flow number of mixture versus nonrecoverable compliance
(jnr) are depicted in Figure 6. It is observed that flow number
and jnr are inversely correlated, showing a good correlation
40000
(R2 more than 0.9). This indicates that the MSCR binder test
result has a close relation with the mixture’s response, and
30000 using its data could give us a good estimation of the mix-
y = 0.1008x + 29046 ture’s performance.
Nf

R2 = 0.8712
20000
5.5. Correlation between A35 of LAS Test and Mixture
Nf. Fatigue properties of the mixture are strongly corre-
10000 lated to those of binders. Therefore, modifying the binder
could considerably alter fatigue behavior of the mixture,
0 and the binder test could give us a good estimation of
0 100000 200000 fatigue characteristics of the mixture [21]. In this research,
A35 results of the 4-point bending beam and LAS tests
were studied in correlation with each other. According to
(c) Figure 7, the fatigue life obtained from the 4-point bending
Figure 7: Fatigue life of mixture (Nf) at three strain levels: (a) beam test is in a fairly well correlation with Nf values for the
600 µε, (b) 800 µε, and (c) 1000 µε versus A35. binder test.
8 Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

16000 modified by NC contributes to resistance of the

14000 asphalt mixture against permanent deformations.
y = 114.28x + 11676
12000 R2 = 0.9816
(2) The LAS test results indicate a considerable increase
in the fatigue life of the NC-modified asphalt binder
10000
at low strain levels. On the other hand, the fatigue life
8000 of modified asphalt binders at high strain levels is
6000 y = 55.483x + 3289.8 a little less than that of the unmodified binders.
R2 = 0.9755
4000
Furthermore, the results of the four-point bending
beam test demonstrate that adding NC up to 8
2000
percent by binder content could considerably im-
0 prove fatigue resistance, which confirms the results
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
of the LAS test.
Figure 9: Resilient modulus at 5°C and 25°C versus R100. (3) According to the correlation of the flow number,
MQ, and Mr with the results of the MSCR test, it
A35 parameter represents fatigue life of the asphalt could be concluded that the MSCR test results
binder subjected to a rate of 1% strain, which is the rec- correlate very well with mixture test results related to
ommended value by the Superpave. Plotting A35 versus rutting performance.
fatigue life of asphalt mixture shows a good relation between (4) According to a fairly well correlation between binder
them. The best correlation was for the strain level of 800 µε, and mixture test outputs obtained in this research, it
and the lowest R2 was for the strain level of 1000 µε. is promising to develop a phenomenological relation
between characteristics of the binder and mixture
using more extensive data and considering impor-
5.6. Correlation between Marshall Q and jnr. The Marshall tant parameters, in future research, so more time and
stiffness index (or Marshall quotient) represents the re- materials are saved using binder tests instead of the
sistance of the material to shear stress and permanent mixture tests.
deformation. Higher MQ means the mixture is stiffer and is
more resistant against rutting. The permanent deforma- Conflicts of Interest
tion characteristics of binders are quantified by the jnr
parameter. The lower value of jnr indicates lower permanent The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest
deformation of the binder. Thus, the MQ correlation with regarding the publication of this paper.
unrecovered jnr parameter makes sense as both are in-
dicators of resistance against permanent deformation. As References
shown in Figure 8, it was observed that the MQ is inversely
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samples, which is a promising result so as to find the mixture Engineering, vol. 2017, Article ID 9493408, 6 pages, 2017.
[2] C. Fang, R. Yu, S. Liu, and Y. Li, “Nanomaterials applied in
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5.7. Correlation between Mr and R100. Resilient modulus is an [3] A. Kavussi and P. Barghabany, “Investigating fatigue behavior
of nanoclay and nano hydrated lime modified bitumen using
indicator of a material’s deflection behavior. In this research,
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resilient modulus at both 5°C and 25°C is correlated with no. 3, p. 04015136, 2015.
R100 (recoverable deformation of the binder) obtained from [4] M. Van de Ven, A. Molenaar, and J. Besamusca, “Nanoclay for
the MSCR test. Results are shown in Figure 9. The corre- binder modification of asphalt mixtures,” in Proceedings of the
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