Theses and Dissertations
Date of Award
5-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S.
Department
Civil, Coastal, and Environmental Engineering
Committee Chair
Shenghua Wu, Ph.D.
Abstract
The increasing awareness of sustainability in the asphalt industry has driven the use of recycled materials like reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) and waste plastic. This study examines the incorporation of recycled polypropylene (rPP), recycled high-density polyethylene (rHDPE), and recycled low-density polyethylene (rLDPE) at 0.3%, 0.6%, and 0.8% dosages into 100% RAP, along with the warm mix asphalt additive Evotherm® P25. Laboratory tests were conducted to evaluate the mechanical and durability performance of the modified asphalt mixtures while rutting and fatigue life were evaluated using mechanistic-empirical (ME) analysis in PerRoad software. Both plastic type and dosage had a statistically significant impact on the overall performance of the asphalt mixture. Results indicated that incorporating recycled plastics improves cracking resistance and abrasion loss: except for rPP and rHDPE at 0.8% dosage. However, rutting resistance decreased for modified mixtures except for rPP and rHDPE at 0.3% dosage. Additionally, plastic-modified asphalt mixtures exhibited lower moisture resistance and decreased fatigue and rutting life at higher plastic dosages. Overall, rHDPE showed superior performance in rutting, rPP in abrasion, and rLDPE in cracking resistance.
Keywords: waste plastic, reclaimed asphalt pavement, modification, performance
Recommended Citation
Bhatt, Basant, "Incorporating Recycled and Repurposed Plastic Into 100% Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement" (2025). Theses and Dissertations. 217.
https://jagworks.southalabama.edu/theses_diss/217
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