Performance Evaluation of Different Polymer Nanocomposite Asphalt Binders Modified with Nanomaterial

Due to the high demand of durable asphalt mixtures in recent times, the application of polymer nanocomposite modification has been accepted as an alternative to traditional polymer asphalt modification. In this study, polymer nanocomposite modified asphalt binder samples were prepared at different concentrations of nanosilica. Fundamental performance physical properties of composite nanosilica/polymer modified asphalt binder were investigated through Marshall mix design, penetration test and softening point test. Volumetric properties Marshall stability, Marshall flow, Marshall Qoutient and density were evaluated for all modified samples. Results show that the application of nanosilica particles on polymer-modified asphalts improves asphalt binders’ stability, reduces flow of modified samples and overall improves stiffness in addition to strength characteristics of the nanocomposite modified asphalt mixtures. Storage stability analysis indicates that nanocomposite-modified binders will be less susceptible to temperature defects during service life. General assessment indicates that nanocomposite modified samples prepared with polypropylene and nanosilica are more stable compared to samples prepared with polyethylene.