Performance of asphalt binder containing sugarcane waste molasses in hot mix asphalt

In recent years, waste materials as alternative raw materials have been increasingly utilized in asphalt concrete (AC) mixtures to reduce environmental pollution, decrease construction costs. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the performance characteristics of asphalt binder modified with sugarcane waste molasses (SWM) in AC mixtures. To accomplish this objective, the effects of five sugarcane waste molasses (SWM) contents of 5%, 10 %, 15 %, 20 %, 25 % by asphalt weight as an alternative to base binder were investigated on performance characteristics of binder and AC mixture. The conventional properties of the modified binder were determined by traditional binder tests and dynamic shear rheometer (DSR) test. It is observed that the SWM modified binder improved significantly the rutting resistance whereas the fatigue cracking resistance decreased slightly. In addition, the mechanical properties of SWM modified binder in AC mixtures were evaluated using tests such as the Marshall stability and flow, moisture resistance, and Wheel Tracking. The experimental results applied to asphalt mixtures indicated that the SWM modified base binder can improve the rutting resistance and the moisture damage resistance significantly. Based on the results obtained from the laboratory tests, it can be recommended that an optimum SWM content of 10 % by base asphalt weight can be utilized as an alternative to base binder in Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA).