Experimental studies on the dynamic viscoelastic properties of basalt fiber-reinforced asphalt mixtures

Abstract To study the influence of basalt fibers on the viscoelastic mechanical properties of asphalt concrete (AC) mixtures, unconfined compressive dynamic modulus tests were performed on styrene–butadiene–styrene (SBS)-modified AC mixtures reinforced with various contents of basalt fibers ranging from 0.2 to 0.5% by weight at five temperatures and six load frequencies, and the dynamic moduli and phase angles of the mixtures were measured. Compared with the test results of the control mixture (with no basalt fibers), the data show that the high-temperature dynamic modulus of the mixtures initially increases and subsequently decreases with increasing fiber content and reaches its maximum value when the basalt fiber content is 0.3%, while the low-temperature dynamic modulus decreases monotonically with increasing fiber content. Furthermore, the phase angle of the mixtures initially decreases and later increases with increasing fiber content and reaches its minimum value when the basalt fiber content is 0.3%. These behaviors indicate that the addition of basalt fiber improves the high-temperature rutting resistance and low-temperature cracking resistance of the SBS-modified AC mixtures. In addition, the results of the wheel rut test exhibit a good correlation with the results of the dynamic modulus test, revealing the reliability of the dynamic modulus test for evaluating the high-temperature rutting resistance of basalt-fiber-reinforced AC mixtures.