#180 - Roads after Winter

A while back we posted a picture of a dangerous mountain road in Belize, South America. This year’s cold North American winter proved to be very damaging to asphalt road surfaces. Although the results are not as harrowing as the Belize example, the enormous post-winter potholes are really annoying. (In some places, it gives us a little idea of what the old corduroy roads must have been like.)

The winter/roads effects seem to be most pronounced in locales that see sustained temperatures below -20°C (-4°F). The weather around the Nova offices definitely fit this profile during this past winter. The folks at CBC put together a few pictures that explain the process of pothole development.

This poor chap has located a hidden pothole.
Picture credit Liu tao / Ananova

In a past life in the coatings industry, I was able to explore the effects of viscosity, rheology, and additive dispersion on stability and performance of film-forming substances. Even though I know very little about roadwork, I was thinking recently that asphalt seems to need an improved flexibility profile in cold climates. But not to the point where hot weather produces excessive softening.

One idea that might have some potential in this area is rubber. Using rubber waste in asphalt has probably been proposed many times before. But these folks here seem to be making progress in ironing out some of the bugs of using this additive. ‘Crumb rubber’ produced from shredding old car tires can be used to enhance the aging properties of asphalt. This approach also finds a better home for old tires than in landfills.

If it makes better roads, reduces potholes, and reduces waste, it is surely worth continued research.

pothole pic - http://www.bedfordma.gov/highway-division/pages/pothole-information

landfill tires - http://www.mymodernmet.com/photo/tires-1

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