Evaluation of the Asphalt Binder Quality Tester (2022) / Chapter Skim
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Section 5 - Evaluation of the Business Case and Barriers to Adoption
Section 5 - Evaluation of the Business Case and Barriers to Adoption
Pages 15-22
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From page 15... ...
Contractors could also quickly test binder before it is added to an asphalt mix to ensure that there are no major issues with the storage tanks. Although the use of the ABQT as a quick screening tool seemed like a promising use case for stakeholders, the use of the ABQT as an additional certification test or as a replacement for any current certification test was a concern for many stakeholders (the ABQT was not considered a viable replacement option)
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From page 16... ...
The state DOTs that evaluated the ABQT stated that the device reported the correct PG of a binder sample 98% of the time. From a technical perspective, the ABQT performs well in a market readiness analysis, although some areas need to be finalized, such as approval of a standard procedure by AASHTO on how best to update the ANN software source data.
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From page 17... ...
Although the additional labor may cost more, agencies may decide that reducing the likelihood of poor-quality binder affecting asphalt quality on a roadway is worth the cost. 5.2.2 The ABQT Would Not Replace Current Acceptance Tests Another barrier identified is that the ABQT would likely not replace any current acceptance tests that are conducted because required acceptance testing procedures are very explicitly defined in the AASHTO standards.
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From page 18... ...
Approval from AASHTO as a standard specification would be a key initial achievement. If the ABQT was an accepted testing procedure with an AASHTO specification, state DOTs might be more likely to include it in their standard specifications.
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From page 19... ...
Binder suppliers are the source of the binder used at mix plants, so the binders that suppliers produce and ship need to be of the correct grade and meet technical specifications. Although the ABQT would not be used as a certification test, binder suppliers might have three potential use cases.
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From page 20... ...
Even though mix plants tend to rely on binder suppliers' certification of the quality of their binders, a mix plant could still face reputational risk if it uses an incorrect binder. Using the ABQT to sample loads of binder as they come into the mix plant would be of value to society as a whole in the rare case where a binder issue could be mitigated.
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From page 21... ...
In this way, the quick screening test could reduce the amount of subpar binder in asphalt pavement as corrections are made in the field before the project is complete and equipment is moved to the next site. Although adoption of the ABQT by owner agencies would not change the number of full tests that are conducted using current testing methods, the ABQT would augment the current testing process so that owner agencies could better target binder samples that may have problems.
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From page 22... ...
Finally, one limiting factor in making the business case for ABQT adoption is that attributing benefits to improved binder quality alone is difficult. All SMEs said that teasing out the impact of the binder on the overall quality of the asphalt used on a road is very hard.
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