Research on the Possibilities of Reusing Mixed Reclaimed Asphalt Materials with a Focus on the Circular Economy

This article presents the results of a 10-year research study on the possibilities of implementing circular economy principles into the recovery of construction waste in road construction and paving traffic areas. According to Eurostat, construction waste accounts for approximately 25–30% of the total amount of waste produced in Europe. New legislative policies strongly support selective demolition and recycling with the aim of recycling at least 70% of construction waste. The subject of this research was mixed reclaimed asphalt material (MRAM) composed of 70% asphalt mixture, 10% aggregate, 10% concrete, and 10% soil. Isomorphic models and experimental sections made of MRAM showed that the required characteristics cannot be achieved when using MRAM without heating and compaction. When laying MRAM using a light dynamic plate and additional heating due to solar radiation, the LDD 100 device detected a 53% increase in the deformation modulus. On isomorphic MRAM models, the CBR test showed a 4-, 5-, and 14-times increase in the CBR value when the temperature was increased from 20 °C to 40, 50, and 70 °C. The laboratory results were confirmed by monitoring the surface condition of a local road rehabilitated between 2017 and 2025 using MRAM, where some sections showed the properties of semi-bound layers after eight years. The road surface was improved with a 20 cm layer of MRAM at an air temperature of 30 °C and compacted with a 10-ton smooth roller. The research results presented made it possible to create a proposal for a systematic approach to the evaluation of materials obtained from asphalt roads, optimized on the principles of the circular economy.