Effect of Nanoclays on Moisture Susceptibility of SBS-Modified Asphalt Binder

Abstract

Moisture susceptibility plays an important role in the damage of asphalt pavement. Failure occurs when asphalt is removed from the aggregate particles due to the decreased adhesion between the asphalt and aggregate in comparison with that between water and the aggregate. In recent years, efforts utilizing nanomaterials to improve the diverse properties of asphalt have proven to be effective. In this study, three types of nanoclays were used to modify styrene-butadiene-styrene- (SBS-) modified asphalt. The resistances to water damage of the modified binders were evaluated using the surface free energy (SFE) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The results revealed that the total SFE decreased and the energy ratio (ER) increased when the asphalt binder was modified with the nanoclays, indicating that the addition of nanoclays can improve the moisture resistance of these aggregate-binder systems. After immersion, a decreased amount of bee structures was observed in both the SBS and nanoclay-modified asphalts due to the interactions between water and bitumen. However, the residual amount of bee structures was higher in the nanoclay-modified asphalts than in the SBS-modified asphalt, indicating that the addition of nanoclay makes the surface morphology of asphalt more resistant to water damage. Finally, freeze-thaw splitting tests were used to verify the results obtained through the SFE and AFM tests.