نوع مقاله : مقاله پژوهشی
عنوان مقاله English
نویسندگان English
Despite the substantial benefits of pavement recycling, maximizing the use of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) and the safe management of oil sludge (as a hazardous industrial waste) remain fundamental challenges in road, petroleum, and environmental engineering. While most studies have focused on limited RAP percentages and the use of commercial rejuvenators, this research was conducted with the aim of technically and economically evaluating the feasibility of producing fully recycled asphalt mixtures (100% airport RAP) using refinery oil sludge as a rejuvenating and softening agent, under two temperature regimes: half-warm (70°C and 100°C) and cold (25°C and 50°C). The laboratory evaluation included determination of volumetric properties, Marshall stability and flow, air void content, moisture susceptibility, and Indirect Tensile Strength (ITS). The results showed that increasing the mixing and compaction temperature to the half-warm range, through thermal activation of the aged RAP binder and more effective dispersion of the oil sludge, significantly improved the mechanical performance and compactability of the mixtures. At a compaction temperature of 100°C and an optimum oil sludge content of 3%, Marshall stability reached 1027 kg and indirect tensile strength reached 728 kPa. In contrast, at 25°C, the mixture exhibited lower mechanical strength, likely requiring gradual ambient-temperature curing; . Furthermore, economic analysis indicated that producing this mixture using a mobile in-place recycling unit, by eliminating the cost of new material supply and reducing haul distance, reduces patching costs by approximately 60% and 78% compared to hot-mix and cold-mix asphalt, respectively. The findings of this study indicate that, from a volumetric and mechanical strength standpoint, the proposed mixture has the necessary potential for patching, maintenance, and rehabilitation operations on roads with light to moderate traffic levels (less than 3×10⁶ Equivalent Single Axle Loads); however, final confirmation of performance under real-world conditions requires functional (performance-based) and field tests.
کلیدواژهها English