Evaluation of The Effects of Adding Nanoclay To Terminal Blend Rubberised Asphalt

Although one of the successful modifications for pavement asphalts was the blending of asphalt and the recycled crumb rubber using conventional wet process, problems with asphalt rubber, such as phase separation and weakness in workability, led to the introduction of the terminal blend process (TB) for the proper blending of asphalt and rubber. During terminal blending process, rubber particles are completely digested in asphalt binder which could cause weakness at high temperature and a reduction in viscosity of TB rubberized asphalt compared to conventional asphalt rubber. In order to reduce the problems of TB rubberized asphalt, its modification is necessary. The main aim of this paper is to modify the TB rubberised asphalt by adding 2% and 4% nanoclay. First, after preparation of seven asphalt samples, the prepared nanocomposite structure was analysed using XRD and SEM tests. Then, the TB rubberised asphalt nanocomposite ageing, rheological, and physical specifications were investigated. The results showed that modification of TB rubberised asphalt by nanoclay reduced the temperature susceptibility and phase separation of it. On the other hand, it has been shown, compared to TB rubberised asphalt, TB rubberised asphalt nanocomposite has a high viscosity, softening point, and ageing resistance and also improved performance high temperatures.