Effect of Kerosene on Bituminous Mix

Abstract

The flexible pavements often do not live up to the designed period due to various reasons, including the addition of petroleum diluents in the bituminous mix. The presence of petroleum diluents in the bituminous mix changes the properties of the bitumen binder as well as the mix. In hot mix plants, kerosene is used as a fuel for heating the aggregate and a little quantity of the kerosene sometimes gets mixed with aggregate in unburned condition. With the presence of petroleum diluents, the bitumen becomes less viscous and the mix becomes softer even after the normal hardening period of the bitumen. This study was conducted to evaluate the property changes in bitumen as well as in mix with the presence of kerosene including Rolling Thin Film Oven (RTFO) short ageing test. A performance study also conducted for the durability of the mix.