Environmental effects on the rheological properties of fine warm RAP-foamed bitumen mixtures using SATS conditioning protocol

This paper uses the Saturation Ageing Tensile Stiffness (SATS) conditioning to evaluate the combined effects of moisture and oxidative ageing on the rheological characteristics of the Fine Aggregate Matrix (FAM) portion of various Foamed Bitumen Mixtures (FBMs) in combination with Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) material produced at 90, 120 and 160°C (i.e. half-warm, warm and hot processes, respectively). A reference fine Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) with RAP – no foamed bitumen – was also manufactured. Their rheological properties were determined through Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA) tests on specimens tested in their unconditioned and after SATS conditioning states. Rheology of the recovered binders of all FAM mixes before and after SATS conditioning was also studied, and rheological parameters were used to link their long-term performance in terms of cracking susceptibility. The results showed an overall increase in the stiffness of the fine mixtures after the conditioning process, mainly due to oxidation of the bitumen. Although the half-warm and warm fine RAP-FBMs exhibited the highest increase in their complex shear modulus after SATS conditioning, rheological analysis of their corresponding binders indicated that their long-term performance in terms of cracking susceptibility might be superior to those of the hot RAP-FBM, and the HMA-RAP fine mixtures.