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November 2008
Researchers receive additional funds for asphalt research
Mihai Marasteanu
Researchers in the Department of Civil Engineering have received a $265,000 grant for the second phase of an investigation of low-temperature cracking in asphalt pavements. Assistant Professor Mihai Marasteanu is the principal investigator for the work, with professors Joe Labuz and Henryk Stokarski as coinvestigators. The research, in cooperation with three other Midwest universities, is supported by the Minnesota Department of Transportation and other state transportation pooled funds.
In the first phase of the research, Marasteanu and the research team focused their efforts on developing new experimental techniques that will support the design of better-performing pavements for coldclimate applications. A final research report on the first phase of the study (Mn/DOT 2007-43) is available on the CTS Web site.
The second phase builds upon the findings and recommendations of phase one. The main focus will be the development of test methods and specification criteria that will allow the selection of fractureresistant asphalt mixtures and binders at low temperatures. The current method used in the field provides the parameters needed to predict performance at intermediate and high temperatures, but there is a need for a similar test to fill the gap in the lowtemperature range.
To learn more about pavement research, please visit www.cts.umn.edu/research.